• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Martin Lewis explains how to cut broadband costs as viewer saves £624 a year

Home> News> Technology

Published 09:26 13 Mar 2024 GMT

Martin Lewis explains how to cut broadband costs as viewer saves £624 a year

Some sage advice from the finance guru

Tom Earnshaw

Tom Earnshaw

Martin Lewis has used his ITV money show to offer yet more essential advice when it comes to saving cash, with one viewer contacting him to show off a massive £600 saving when it comes to broadband.

The Money Saving Expert founder used his The Martin Lewis Money Show Live on Tuesday night (12 March) to focus on a vast array of topics, including the 2% National Insurance tax cut and what it means for you.

Another topic of discussion focused around a looming price hike when it comes to the cost of your broadband and mobile phone contracts.

Lewis and his MSE team have warned that prices are going up from the end of March and into the beginning of the new tax year on 1 April.

It's something the cash guru is fuming about, with prices set to rise for millions of customers mid-contract. He has been campaigning to put an end to what he calls 'mid-contract, inflation-linked' hikes.

Advert

On his ITV show last night, he said: "All are massively above inflation... and shouldn't be allowed."

Explaining where everyone currently sits, Lewis stated that a massive seven million UK residents are out of contract with their broadband providers, with him saying it is so easy to take advantage of this and look elsewhere.

Over on the MSE website, his team of experts add to this saying that 'millions blindly overpay for broadband and line rent as costs rocket when promo deals end'.

Getty Stock Photo

So, what should you do?

Explaining how to lower your bills with a new deal, Lewis said: "The cheapest deals out there are normally short-lived promotional deals on comparison sites.

Advert

"Not direct from the firms because the firms are allowed to put marketing spend in to attract in new customers from those routes."

Highlighting two deals, Lewis picked our a Virgin Media bundle currently available at £21 a month for line rental and 132MB fibre broadband.

Another was a Vodafone 500MB fibre broadband package and line for £28 a month. Both deals are factoring in bill credit promos and vouchers given to customers by the providers.

Not every deal is available for everyone, with one of the main deciding points being if the provider supplies lines in your local area or not, so it's worth shopping around for a little bit to see if you're covered.

ITV

What if you're on benefits?

You can benefit from discounts if you're on Universal Credit or similar benefits.

Advert

Lewis said: "There are social tariffs for millions, you could be on those.

"That's from £12.50 a month for 30MB if you're on Universal Credit."

On this, Ofcom says: "Social tariffs are cheaper broadband and phone packages for people claiming Universal Credit, Pension Credit and some other benefits. Some providers call them ‘essential’ or ‘basic’ broadband.

"They’re delivered in the same way as normal packages, just at a lower price. Amid rising living costs, Ofcom is encouraging companies to offer social tariffs to help customers on low incomes."

ITV

What if you want to stay with your provider?

Some are comfortable with what they have and that is totally fine, but Lewis recommends doing a few simple things to make sure you are not paying over the odds.

Advert

He says: "If you don't want to switch, go on a comparison site, benchmark the cheapest price and then haggle."

At this point in the show, an email from one of Lewis' viewers was brought up showing how he saved an eye-watering £624 a year by following this method.

The email said: "My broadband contract was up and they were increasing the price to £96 a month. I phoned up and tried haggling, quoted £88 a month. I took Martin's advice and kept ringing back.

"On my fourth haggling phone call they reduced it to £44 a month. A massive £624 a year saving. Thanks Martin."

Responding, Lewis quipped: "Don't stalk them... always be polite."

Featured Image Credit: ITV / Getty Stock Images

Topics: Martin Lewis, ITV, TV and Film, Money, Cost of Living, Technology

Tom Earnshaw
Tom Earnshaw

Tom joined LADbible Group in 2024, currently working as SEO Lead across all brands including LADbible, UNILAD, SPORTbible, Tyla, UNILAD Tech, and GAMINGbible. He moved to the company from Reach plc where he enjoyed spells as a content editor and senior reporter for one of the country's most-read local news brands, LancsLive. When he's not in work, Tom spends his adult life as a suffering Manchester United supporter after a childhood filled with trebles and Premier League titles. You can't have it all forever, I suppose.

X

@TREarnshaw

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

9 hours ago
10 hours ago
12 hours ago
  • (Kevin Trimmer/Getty Images)(Kevin Trimmer/Getty Images)
    9 hours ago

    Gel nail polish now banned in Europe due to toxic ingredient

    Make sure you take note of this ingredient

    News
  • (Alex Wong/Getty Images)(Alex Wong/Getty Images)
    10 hours ago

    Internet spots the same detail about Trump's hands at first press conference since 'death' rumours

    The president brushed the rumours off as 'so fake'

    News
  • (MARK GARLICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/Getty Images)(MARK GARLICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/Getty Images)
    10 hours ago

    NASA says asteroid will fly startlingly close to Earth at speeds of over 28,000mph

    Don't worry, the asteroid won't crash into Earth

    News
  • Houston Police DepartmentHouston Police Department
    12 hours ago

    11-year-old boy dies in 'knock down ginger' prank gone wrong

    The boy sadly died in hospital following the incident

    News
  • Martin Lewis sends warning to Octopus, British Gas, EDF, EON, Evo and Scottish Power customers
  • Martin Lewis explains how you can book £5 flights to Europe's most stunning destinations
  • Five conditions to be eligible for £100,000,000 Mastercard payout as Martin Lewis MSE issues update
  • Martin Lewis issues warning to any household earning under £35,000