‘Ridiculous’ to lump all old people together

You’re right to point out how ridiculous it is for surveys to lump all ‘old’ people together (‘Question of the Fortnight’, Issue 582, pictured). I’m 55, and my father is 85. I love him dearly, but the lifestyle and cultural references I enjoy are totally different to his. My behaviour as a consumer is also very different – I shop around a lot more, while he’s more content with what he’s got.

There’s as much difference between him and me as there is between me and my 25-year-old son. He would be appalled to be lumped in with middle-aged men like me, and I don’t blame him. Surveys like this are just feeble examples of lazy marketing by companies. It’s ageism, basically, which very few people seem to care about at the moment. Kim Thornton

I am 73 and would consider changing to another broadband provider. The thing that puts me off is having to let umpteen people and companies know my new email address. I have had a computer for 16 years now, and originally had broadband with Virgin. After a few years I changed to BT because Virgin got too expensive. Back then, though, I didn’t have many people to contact about a new email address. Now there are lots.

I could get a better deal with Zen Internet who did the survey in your ‘Question of the Fortnight’, but to be honest I can’t be bothered with all the hassle. I do change other utilities to save money, such as energy, and search for cheaper house and car insurance prices when they are due for renewal, but I’m too lazy to bother changing

broadband. Jim Fraser

I enjoyed your article on why older people don’t switch broadband very often, but did you make a mistake in the opening paragraph? You quote the survey that said 17 per cent over-55s didn’t switch broadband in the past year. Surely that

should be only 17 per cent did switch broadband? Eric Fisher

CA SAYS You’re right Eric, apologies for the error. To clarify, Zen Internet’s survey found that 83 per cent of people aged over 55 hadn’t switched broadband in the past 12 months, while only 17 per cent had.