Very slow Broadband speeds and BT won't do anything.

[Yerself_is_Steam]

Hello.

My uncle has experienced very slow internet speeds for a long time.  Websites take about 2 minutes to load and Youtube doesn't work.  He finally got a new laptop and now he wants to use the internet more and watch Youtube etc.  When he rang BT to complain they told him there is nothing they can do.   He asked for a test of the line but was told the copper wires are degraded and if he wanted to watch youtube he would have to upgrade to a fibre package.  But this fibre package would only be to the exchange and not to the house.   The strange thing is when I lived there for a while about 9 years ago I had Sky broadband and speeds were fine.  Then he signed up to BT Broadband pretty much after I moved out and the speeds were atrocious.

Here is the info on the line:

Why is the line speed on this number so low.  Is there a fault on the line or is it as BT say "that copper wires are degraded and there is nothing we can do". 

My uncle is on a light user scheme.  If he upgraded to fibre at the exchange how much would it cost and would it be any better if the line from his house to the exchange has not been tested? 

Regards.

[Keith_Beddoe]

@Yerself_is_Steam 

It looks like he is still on ADSL.

When he renews his contract he will find that only VDSL (Fibre To The Cabinet) will be available, as ADSL is no longer sold.

Based on what you have posted, his should get a very fast connection by renewing his contract. The price is likely to be similar.

Of course he could be on VDSL already, but has a faulty copper pair, but that would seem unlikely.

[licquorice]

Your uncle is on ADSL from the exchange at a ridiculous speed of less than 1M . He needs to be on VDSL (fibre to the cabinet) which will give him a speed of 80M.

No idea why he didn't take that up when it was first available when the cabinet was enabled.

[Yerself_is_Steam]

Thanks for both your replies.

Can he get a light user package with VDSL?  He currently pays £10 a months for ADSL.  How much will VDSL be?

[iniltous]

As stated , it’s pretty obviously that your relative is on exchange based ADSL when FTTC ( SoGEA ) is available and that  will be what you had when you lived there and used a different ISP , ( hence the massive difference in speed ) so the question really is why did he downgrade if doing so made such a massive reduction in speed , it’s also clear that they are on a social ( cheap ) tariff.

BT offer a SoGEA social tariff as well as an ADSL social tariff but it’s a bit more expensive , expect to pay between £15 to £23 depending on speed requirement ( 40 or 80 Mb ) and with or without inclusive calls , presumably at some point your relative went for cheapest possible social tariff package rather than paying slightly more for one that was more  suitable for their needs , simple enough though to upgrade and BT Essential doesn’t have yearly price increases 

[Keith_Beddoe]

He must be paying line rental as well, that is now included

[Yerself_is_Steam]

Yes he is paying line rental as well.  I think it's about £45 a quarter in light user scheme.

[imjolly]

does your uncle qualify here   https://www.bt.com/exp/broadband/home-essentials?s_cid=con_bt_dg-home_awin_aff_vidAJM_110483-Editori...

if he does then costs are  https://community.bt.com/t5/Bills-Packages/Bad-customer-service/m-p/2330514?lightbox-message-images-...

[Yerself_is_Steam]

Thanks for that info.  Yes he must have opted for the cheapest tariff possible.  I'm a bit shocked that BT allowed him to pay for this type of service for almost 10 years as it's clearly not acceptable for any sort of internet activity. It's barely faster than dial-up.

[Keith_Beddoe]

@Yerself_is_Steam 

That would be an old legacy package.

He needs to re-contract .

https://www.bt.com/broadband/deals

Broadband and phone £34.99 a month

Broadband only  £29.99 a month

Line rental is included in those prices.