Haggling for a cheap deal revealed secret customer discounts

CAN you really haggle your way to a better broadband and phone deal?

A report by consumer group Which? this week claimed you can make significant savings by simply making a nuisance of yourself and threatening to switch supplier.

It said half of customers who have haggled reported average annual savings of £85 on broadband, £128 on TV and broadband packages and £35 on mobile bills.

And this is exactly how I bagged a better deal for a cheaper price late last year.

I’ve been a Sky Broadband customer for almost four years. When my (very) cheap £13.50-amonth deal ended, my bill rose to £25 a month — £138 more a year for the same service.

After calling to barter down the price, I was eventually offered a superfast connection that usually costs £33 a month discounted to £24.

A modest £12 a year saving for a faster service. Admittedly, it wasn’t all smooth sailing.

When I was put through to the manager to approve the deal, he tried to say it was a mistake and that the lowest he could go was £28 a month. But after standing my ground and making a formal complaint, I got the deal I’d been promised. Success!

Curious to see if my haggling power would work on other suppliers, I gave BT, Talk Talk, Sky and Virgin Media a call this week to see if they would beat the prices advertised online.

It was here I discovered that many firms offer a secret discount exclusively to customers who call up to negotiate — unusual given so many companies these days typically reserve their best prices for internet users. The friendly call handler at BT told me it does not match rivals’ prices but that he could offer ‘special prices’ that are not available online.

If I went for its Full Fibre deal I would get a £10-a-month discount — a £240 saving over the 24-month contract. And its basic Fibre Essential bundle would be reduced from £27.99 a month to £24.99.

However, he said there was no guarantee these offers would be available if I called another day. TalkTalk also offers over-the-phone discounts. Its Fibre 65 package is advertised as £24-a-month online. But when I called it was cut to £22. And its Fibre 35 deal was reduced from £22 a month to £21.

Virgin Media cannot yet supply broadband in my area. But it can offer special deals over the phone depending on what customers want. I tried my luck again with Sky despite renewing my deal with them only recently.

They wouldn’t cut my bills but I was offered a discounted broadband ‘boost’ which guarantees wi-fi in every room, among other perks, for £5 a month.

Sky said it could give me this for £3 a month plus a £36 credit — effectively making it free for a year. As it meant tying into another contract, I declined.

But it goes to show there is never any harm in asking for a cheaper price — because as my experience shows, you just might get it.