Virgin Media O2 has announced that it will be "clear and transparent" about price increases from April, in line with the regulator Ofcom"s advice. Rather than tell customers what percentage their bill will be rising by, it will clearly state the increase in pounds and pence to make it easier for people to understand.
In the case of Virgin Media, new and re-contracting customers will receive a flat price increase each year, in April, of £3.50 per month. The company said this does not apply to those on low incomes who have taken out one of the company"s so-called social tariffs.
As for O2 customers, they will see their airtime plans increase by £1.80 per month each April. O2 says that it has avoided language such as "price increase from £1" to avoid confusion and explicitly stated the increase as £1.80.
Virgin Media O2 acknowledged that people do not like price rises but said they were necessary because of the growing demand for data. It revealed that usage on its fixed and mobile networks was up by 13% and 26% respectively last year. It claimed that "any increase on a customer’s bill is greatly outweighed by the £5 million we invest every single day in our networks and services to meet increased demand for fast and reliable connectivity."
While prices seem like a total ripoff in the UK thanks to the inflation in recent years, Virgin Media O2 believes it is offering good prices, it claimed that the UK has some of the lowest telecom services bills in Europe and that they are half the price of services in the US. It also said that the price of 5GB of mobile data in the UK is currently a third cheaper than in 2017.
Virgin Media O2 operates social tariffs for broadband and mobile with prices starting at £12.50 and £10 per month respectively. They are only available to low-income households claiming benefits from the government. In addition, it has provided support to the National Databank which is like a food bank but for mobile data which aims to fight digital exclusion by providing free connectivity for those that need it.
Source: Virgin Media O2