BT hikes broadband prices amid “dramatic” data usage increase
BT has said that a “dramatic increase” in data usage has prompted sweeping price rises after it announced last week that 14 million customers will have to pay an extra £42 per year for broadband.
In another blow to the cost of living in the UK, BT said that it will soon write to affected customers to inform them that the bills will rise by around £3.50 per month from 31st March.
The increase is higher than the current rate of inflation, which has recently surged to a 30-year high of 5.4%.
BT’s managing director Nick Lane said that the hikes were not going to be popular, but he believes that they are a “necessary part of business” at a time when the company is also wrestling with growing internal costs.
BT said that data usage has soared on broadband and mobile phones, by 90% and 79% respectively, since 2018 and that higher prices will enable it to continue investing in its networks to support demand.
However, the announcement has drawn sharp criticism from a number of quarters, with many dubbing it a “tax on working from home”.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport committee chairman Julian Knight said: “This extraordinary increase will be a body-blow to millions of British families who have to rely on BT for the provision of their phones and broadband.”
However, customers on BT’s Basic, Home Essentials and Home Phone Saver plans will not have to pay more for their packages.
BT’s move follows Virgin Media’s recent announcement that bills for broadband customers will rise by around £56 per year from March.