Forum Discussion

johncellis1's avatar
johncellis1
Joining in
15 days ago

Contract renegotiation

Having been out of contract with Virgin for a while, I used the Chatline yesterday to aim for a reduction in my TV package from £127 per month to approx £80.  Their initial offer was around £99, which I managed to get reduced to about £92.  Apparently Virgin's best price.  However, following advice from  Martin's Money about possibly obtaining a better price from another agent, I contacted the Chatline again this morning.  After one false start with an agent whose English and comprehension were terrible, I then got transferred to a Customer Services bod.  Her supposedly "best offer" was a package that combined TV and Broadband for £99, despite my making clear that I wanted TV only.  When I asked her whether the £92 deal of yesterday had "disappeared", all the agent would say is that she had applied the best available discounts. 

So I would be grateful for a steer on next steps.  Should I try one more time for a better price, and if so when?  Or simply give my 30 days notice of termination and hope that Virgin will contact me with an acceptable offer at some point during the notice period?

 

  • Steven_L's avatar
    Steven_L
    15 days ago

    Hello johncellis1,

    Welcome to the Community and thanks for taking the time to post here on the forums. I’m sorry to hear of the issues that you’re having with arranging a new package. As you have been advised by the other community members, we no longer offer TV only deals. Any offer that you would have been given by the team would have included a broadband connection. We wouldn't be able to help any further from here with a package change but you can have your package reviewed by our contracts team. Please give them a call on 150 from a Virgin Media landline or 0345 454 1111 opt 1, 4 and 4 again, this will get you through to the contracts team who will be able to look into this further for you.

    Kind Regards,

    Steven_L

  • jpeg1's avatar
    jpeg1
    Alessandro Volta
    15 days ago

    You said you asked for TV only, not broadband.

    VM supply their TV service over their broadband, so you can't have it without. So even if you don't use the broadband for anything else, you have to take it.

  • newapollo's avatar
    newapollo
    Very Insightful Person
    15 days ago
    johncellis1 wrote:

    Having been out of contract with Virgin for a while, I used the Chatline yesterday to aim for a reduction in my TV package from £127 per month to approx £80.  .......... "best offer" was a package that combined TV and Broadband for £99, despite my making clear that I wanted TV only. 

     

    VM no longer have a TV only deal, You need a VM broadband connection for all VM TV packages

  • Steven_L's avatar
    Steven_L
    Forum Team
    15 days ago

    Hello johncellis1,

    Welcome to the Community and thanks for taking the time to post here on the forums. I’m sorry to hear of the issues that you’re having with arranging a new package. As you have been advised by the other community members, we no longer offer TV only deals. Any offer that you would have been given by the team would have included a broadband connection. We wouldn't be able to help any further from here with a package change but you can have your package reviewed by our contracts team. Please give them a call on 150 from a Virgin Media landline or 0345 454 1111 opt 1, 4 and 4 again, this will get you through to the contracts team who will be able to look into this further for you.

    Kind Regards,

    Steven_L

  • japitts's avatar
    japitts
    Very Insightful Person
    15 days ago
    johncellis1 wrote:

    Should I try one more time for a better price,

    Also the more you keep calling retentions, the more they'll know that you're not really serious about cancelling but are just searching for a discount deal.

    That discount deal may therefore potentially get worse over time. Have you priced up alternative suppliers for your combination of services? Even if you don't plan on pursuing them, it shows some basic research into facts & figures.

  • johncellis1's avatar
    johncellis1
    Joining in
    14 days ago

    Thanks for everyone's speedy responses and for clarifying that a TV package only is no longer available. (Incidentally, a point not one of the 3 VM agents made to me.)  But I am still uncertain about whether I HAVE TO USE Virgin broadband under a new VM package deal.  Or can I carry on with my current BT broadband to get all the TV channels I want through my Tivo boxes?  That is, even if I am obliged  to pay for a Virgin broadband service that I shall almost certainly not use.

    • japitts's avatar
      japitts
      Very Insightful Person
      14 days ago
      johncellis1 wrote:

      But I am still uncertain about whether I HAVE TO USE Virgin broadband under a new VM package deal.  Or can I carry on with my current BT broadband to get all the TV channels I want through my Tivo boxes? 

      The statement in a post a few above that "VM supply their TV service over their broadband" is not strictly true, it's how you interpret things.

      In VM's traditional HFC areas, the incoming co-ax cable to your home carries broadband & TV signals. Broadcast TV channels are carried separately from the broadband channels, and thus a TiVo, V6 or TV360 box does not use broadband for live TV. OnDemand & streaming services do naturally use the internet, and this needs to be a VM broadband line - it won't work on another ISP.

      In the new-build XGS-PON areas, traditional TV services are not available and the only option is internet-based (and non-recording) Stream boxes. These do use broadband.

      Whether you use a VM connection for your non-TV usage is entirely upto you.

      • johncellis1's avatar
        johncellis1
        Joining in
        14 days ago

        Sorry, friend, you are somewhat "blinding me with science" here!  I think you are telling me that the answer to my question is Yes.  Is that correct?  (That is, I shall NOT have to give up my BT broadband in order to stick with a new VM TV and broadband package, if that is how I choose to proceed?)

  • japitts's avatar
    japitts
    Very Insightful Person
    14 days ago

    For broadcast TV, VM's recording boxes do not use the internet. They do, however, need a VM internet connection for OnDemand, streaming & various updates.

    A non-VM connection will not allow those services to work. If you choose to have 2 broadband connections, using the VM one for the TV-side, and non-VM for everything else, that's fine.

  • Mr_K's avatar
    Mr_K
    Knows their stuff
    14 days ago

    Freeview do very good tv only deals. Add your own recorder and a  very reasonable price too 😉

  • jpeg1's avatar
    jpeg1
    Alessandro Volta
    14 days ago

    Tivo boxes only work on Virginmedia broadband. They won't work on BT broadband. 

    But what do you use the BT broadband for? You could do that on Virginmedia broadband instead.  There's really no need to pay for two broadband services. 

  • jpeg1's avatar
    jpeg1
    Alessandro Volta
    14 days ago

    You can of course get a similar TV recording box from BT to run on BT broadband.