Urgent need to discuss contract renewal - clock ticking!

I have been out-of-contract for a while and wanted to set up a new one with a minor change. It has not been the simple task I thought it would be. Apologies for the long read. Questions for forum staff at the end. Note - when calling VM I picked the 'leaving' option and asked to speak to retentions team, always noisy overseas call-centres.

Original Contract:

Virgin TV – Tivo monthly fee – Mix TV

Broadband – M250 fibre broadband

Phone – Line rental, Anytime Chatter, Voicemail+

18month contract started May 2023, ended November 2024.
£72.00 to March’24
£78.00     April’24 to end of contract.

Out of Contract:

19/11/24             - £81.43
19/12/24 to 19/02/25        - £94.52
19/03/25             - £104.12
19/04/25 to 19/05/25        - £101.44

Attempt to set up a new contract:

I call Virgin Media on 13th June 2025 to ask about adding a V6 Box running Tivo software to my existing package. I explain that I need to retain the old Tivo box because of the SCART connectivity, and it does not matter that App support (e.g. YouTube) on the old box is non-existent/unusable.

Virgin agent comes back with the following “offer” - 

Mega TV Bigger Bundle – Tivo monthly fee
Mega TV Bigger Bundle – Virgin TV V6 Box powered by Tivo

Broadband – M250 hybrid fibre broadband

Phone – Line rental, Anytime Chatter, Voicemail+, Call Waiting, Reminder Call

for £121 a month (splutter!) and also wants a £35.00 connection fee on top. After applying reductions and deals and the agent’s own discount the price is reduced to £88.25 a month for a 24 month contract, and I am told the connection fee will be reduced to £17.50.

The agent emails me the order summary information. I look at it straight away and reluctantly agree to go ahead. The agent says he will call me back straight away to arrange the installation date. I note that the paperwork still gives the installation fee as £35.00 and not the £17.50 I was told would be the charge.

I wait for some time but the agent does not call back.

Meanwhile… myvirginmedia is offering to renew my original contract package on an 18 month contract at an initial £56.81 a month, increasing to £60.31 from April’26. This is a huge difference from the initial £88.25 monthly cost of what the agent offered considering all I want to do is add a V6 Tivo Box to what I already have.

I call Virgin Media again and speak to another agent. I explain I have been waiting for a call back which has not come, and explain all I want is to add a V6 Tivo Box to what I already have.
The agent suggests I accept the myvirginmedia on-line renewal at £56.81 a month for my existing package, wait seven days, call again, and ask to add a V6 Tivo Box to the contract. The additional cost for the V6 Tivo Box will be around £10.00/month.

I ask the agent to check and make sure that I can definitely do this. The agent comes back some minutes later and says when I call to add the V6 Box I will be offered the same as the first agent offered me, but this time at an initial monthly charge of £81.25 after applying his own personal discount.

I am not happy about being forced to change the TV package. I can live with that, but I have a big problem with having to accept an 24 month contract with the potential for huge early disconnection fees given the length of the contract.

I also note that the old Tivo box is listed as the main TV service, and the V6 Tivo Box is listed as an add-on. Add-ons can be cancelled on 30 days notice without ending the agreement for main services. It is very likely that in coming months I will find a solution for the SCART issue I have, and the old box will become redundant. The way the contract is specified, I cannot remove it from the agreement.

Situation on 18th June:

The situation as of the 18th June is that an engineer is coming on 20th June to install the V6 Tivo Box after which a 14 day cooling-off period starts as I understand it.

I think I am being ripped off cost-wise and tied into a contract which is too long with unacceptable exit fees should the need arise.

Ripped off because the first agent came up with a best price based on his own personal discount which was significantly undercut by the second agent with *his* own personal discount. I am not buying replacement windows!

Ripped off because myVirginMedia offered to renew my existing package on-line for £56.81 a month and an agent told me an additional V6 box costs around £10 a month.

Questions for forum admin:

Why can’t I renew my out-of-contract package as per the on-line myvirginmedia offer and add a V6 box subsequently? I have screenshots of the myvirginmedia offer if needed.

If the above cannot be done, how do I get in touch with someone IN THIS COUNTRY to change the contract to make the Tivo V6 Box the main TV service and the old Tivo Box the add-on so I can remove it if/when I no longer require a SCART connection?

(Although the overseas agents I spoke to via the 150/0345 numbers tried to be as helpful as possible, I have absolutely zero confidence in getting a resolution through that route)

If I cancel the “new” package in the 14 day cooling off period, please confirm that my package will revert to the previous out-of-contract state and costs/implications e.g. V6 Box return.

Please confirm that whatever happens next (i.e. continue with new contract or cancel and revert), my blueyonder email account will not be affected.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Nigel