Are Virgin’s ‘cancel early’ fees fair?

Ofcom is investigating the fairness of Virgin Media’s policy to charge customers on fixed contracts earlytermination fees when they move home.

The regulator said it will examine whether Virgin’s contracts for broadband, phone and TV packages comply with the Consumer Rights Act (CRA), following complaints from customers, including many Computeractive readers.

Broadband companies are allowed to charge earlytermination fees as long as they are ‘fair and reasonable’. This lets them recoup lost revenue. But unlike other providers Virgin charges customers even when they move to an address where its service isn’t available.

Virgin runs its own cable network, instead of relying on BT Openreach like other companies, limiting the number of homes it can provide broadband to.

Should Ofcom decide that Virgin’s terms are unfair under the CRA, it will mean they aren’t legally binding and customers could then cancel for free. Ofcom will also consider whether the fees deter customers from switching to other providers (read more details on Ofcom’s site www.snipca.com/24810).

Virgin Media’s website ( www.snipca.com/24811) says the fees depend on which services a customer uses, and how many months remain in the contract’s minimum period. For example, a customer signed up to the Full House bundle (TV, phone and internet) with five months remaining would be charged £217.20.

A Virgin Media spokesperson said: “We note Ofcom’s investigation into early-termination charges and will work with them during the course of their inquiry”.

If you think you’ve been unfairly charged for cancelling a contract, email: