Orange makes customers feel blue

UK customers are still far from satisfied with their home phone and broadband services despite promises from operators that services are improving, according to the latest Customer Satisfaction Report from uSwitch.com.

TalkTalk and Orange, together owning 14 per cent of the UK broadband market with over two million customers, have failed to pull themselves out of the bottom two spots in the league. 

Orange came last for the second time running, with a customer satisfaction level of just 65 per cent. The operator has seen its rating drop by 18 per cent over the past 14 months, coinciding with the launch of its 'free' broadband service.

Orange also experienced a recent blow when the Advertising Standards Authority found the firm guilty of misleading advertising. 

TalkTalk, meanwhile, seems to have yet to reap the rewards of its £15m investment in customer service. Just 69 per cent of its customers are satisfied, a drop of one per cent since October.

This fall comes despite the company's own assurances that connection queues have disappeared and call centre waiting times have shortened.

The performance of both companies suggests that 'free' does not necessarily ensure happiness, as customers paying directly for broadband services appear to be more satisfied than those who do not.

While overall home phone customer satisfaction rose by four per cent, broadband satisfaction has continued to plummet. For the first time, a quarter of customers reported being unsatisfied with their broadband provider.

Standards have dropped by three per cent since October 2006 and 10 per cent since March 2006, the last survey before 'free' broadband was launched.

"This time last year, free broadband was a novelty. Customers signed up by the masses to experience the broadband phenomenon, often for the first time," said Chris Frost, communications expert at uSwitch.com

"Now it has become a life essential, so when things go wrong they usually go badly wrong. Unlike last year's survey, when providers were in many cases simply overwhelmed by demand, this year the problems are more technical."

New advances in broadband technology appear to be having an adverse effect, according to Frost, as connection problems and service interruptions occur all too frequently.

"Customers have found themselves having to make numerous phone calls to get their problems fixed and this would explain why the score for overall technical support has dropped 11 per cent since March 2006," he said.

"The fact that a quarter of customers are not satisfied with their broadband provider should be a warning siren for companies to up their game.

"Major players, including TalkTalk and BT, vowed that they would reach the top of the customer service league this year. Is it a case of all TalkTalk, no action." 

PlusNet has sprung back to take top position in the broadband survey, after having experienced a drop of 16 per cent last year following a raft of service issues. Nearly eight out of 10 customers are now satisfied with its service.

PlusNet is the smallest company in the survey with just two per cent of the market. It was bought by BT last November.

Frost urged customers who are likely to review their existing provider in the next 12 months to do their research before entering into a new contract to ensure that they find the best deal to suit their needs.