New broadband site helps lift the lid on complex broadband deals

A new broadband website has launched in the UK that is attempting to lift the lid on complex broadband deals by helping users to compare deals by average monthly cost.

BroadbandDeals.co.uk was developed in March 2016 after founder, Anthony Pearce, read the joint research by the ASA and Ofcom that found consumers are often confused and mislead by the true cost of broadband deals advertised in the UK.

“When I saw the research I thought there must be an easier way to compare the true cost of broadband," Anthony said. “So I tried breaking down the cost of the latest broadband deals advertised at the time."

He found that there were four main elements to the vast majority of deals; a monthly cost for the actual broadband itself, a separate monthly cost for the line rental, a one-off connection fee, and a small charge for posting the new router. “All these charges varied from provider to provider and some elements, like the connection fee, could even be different for deals from the same provider".

Whilst deep in spreadsheet misery, he found himself calculating the average monthly cost for each deal to compare prices. First he added up all the costs a customer would be charged during the minimum term contract of a deal. Then, he divide this total cost by the number of months in the contract, to give the average monthly cost.

“I found that looking at the average monthly cost of each deal created a level playing field. Although each deal may have different introductory offers and line rental, looking at average monthly cost was a good way to standardise the price comparison".

Two months later, BroadbandDeals.co.uk was born with one simple mission. Help consumers understand the true cost of broadband deals advertised in the UK.

Unlike other broadband comparison sites, BroadbandDeals.co.uk allows users to compare broadband by the average monthly cost of each deal — which includes line rental and set-up costs — as they believe this is a better way to compare the true cost of broadband.