This topic

Some help required in changing my plan

rowmafham — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 14:55:31 GMT

Hi,

My mum has dementia which has meant that she has let her bills and things slip the last few years. I have PoA for my mum and have found that BT are currently charging her £54.44 for broadband (which she only uses for the TV), £17.98 for an unlimited call plan (she never uses the phone), £4.55 for voicemail and call protect, and £7.70 for a mobile she hasn't used in years.

Obviously, none of this is BT's fault, but the constant bills of £70-£80 seem very unfair. Can anyone point me in the right direction about how I get the current package down please? All she really needs is basic broadband and a landline that accepts calls and can make the odd call too.

Any help would be most appreciated.

Charlie

Re: Some help required in changing my plan

Kimberlin — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 15:10:57 GMT

@rowmafham As you have PoA and therefore one assumes you have authority to call BT and speak with them completely on your Mum's behalf, then the best course of action, is to call BT and ask to be put through to Retentions and explain the situation fully and renegotiate a new deal, also assuming that she is currently on the 30 day rolling contract and not currently on a fixed 24 month contract. You should easily be able to slice a significant amount off the bill. The other option, is go nuclear and switch ISP. You could switch to EE and still remain part of the BT Group and get a much better deal if BT retentions can't or won't help.

Has your Mum's phone been moved over to digital voice? Is she connected to the internet via copper or via Fibre to the Premises or Fibre to the Cabinet?

If applicable, is your Mum in receipt of any benefits such as Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Income support etc. If so, she may even qualify for BT Home Essentials social tariff.

Anything is worth a shot.

Re: Some help required in changing my plan

gg30340 — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 15:34:16 GMT

Call BT Billing 0330.1234.150 and discuss with them what you need.

Depending on whether or not she is still in a Fixed Term Contract or on a 30 day contract your options may be limited. If in a Fixed Term Contract you may be better leaving things until that contract is finished but if you are happy to start a new Fixed Term Contract you may be able to get some sort of deal but taking into account that if you are going for a cheaper package it may be better to wait till the contract ends.

If on a 30 day contract you should be able to get the package you want without any issues.

Going by what you have posted she does need a landline phone and a basic broadband package. This should cost somewhere in the region of about £35 per month. If she has a BT TV package you will also need that and that will be an additional cost.

As regards the phone you can get a Pay as You Go phone package which cost about £3 or £5 a month which will allow her to receive phone calls without any charge other than the £3 or £5. Obviously if she make any call those will be charged for.

If she has Digital Voice landline phone as against the "copper" landline the Voice Mail is free.

Re: Some help required in changing my plan

imjolly — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 16:18:02 GMT

You need to get your POA registered with BT so you can make changes. See here

https://www.bt.com/help/account-and-billing/what-power-of-attorney--poa--does-bt-accept-