Stuart Ward, 68, was “astonished” when he learned EE would raise his broadband bill to £68.76 a month from April.
“The deal that Ofcom agreed with telecommunication companies to add 3.9% on top of inflation rises is a disgrace. And we, the consumers, have no real choice, as all [of the firms] appear to do it,” he says, adding that he was paying £60.11 a month before the price rise.
.
The increase has been hard to stomach amid the wider cost of living crisis. Ward has lived on a canal boat in North Yorkshire with his wife for the last year due to surging rents. “Rental prices went up a ridiculous amount,” he says, explaining that they struggled to find suitable accommodation after their landlord sold up. “It got to the point where to rent anywhere reasonable was almost double what we were paying and many are short term rentals with very little security.”
Ward was taken aback by the price increase for his broadband bill. “I was very surprised because I’d hoped there might be some consideration of the fact people are really struggling with household costs in general,” he says, adding he’d hoped for a much smaller rise.
“What other business has this guaranteed extra cash?”
View image in fullscreenWard moved on to the canal boat last year after his landlord sold up. Photograph: Gary Calton/The Observer
As Ward lives on a boat, he is limited in the providers who can offer him reliable 4G broadband. “It means that on top of all the other price rises – like food, energy – I am being forced to make some difficult choices.
“I rely on 4G broadband for my phone, internet and TV. Without this I will be very isolated. In a world where everything is online, not having internet access would make my life very difficult indeed.”
“If the costs are allowed to keep rising at inflation plus 3.9%, then only the rich will have the privilege of being able to afford to be online. This will make for a tier of second class citizens who are cut off from much of the world.”
