Best and worst broadband revealed: Smaller suppliers leaving larger rivals in their wake

A NEW WHICH? survey has revealed that big suppliers like BT, Sky and TalkTalk are lagging behind some of their smaller rivals in customer satisfaction.

Which? are campaigning for broadband providers to improve serviceGETTY

Which? are campaigning for broadband providers to improve service

Which? are campaigning for broadband providers to improve service, deliver the speeds customers are promised and also wants advertising watchdogs to tighten the rules to ensure advertised broadband speeds more closely match the real experience of most customers.

Providers are currently allowed to advertise broadband speeds that only 10% of customers actually receive.

BT, Sky and TalkTalk all received customer scores of under 50% in the new survey, lagging behind the likes of John Lewis Broadband, Plusnet, Utility Warehouse and Zen Internet who topped the table with scores of over 70%.

Clarity of bills, ease of setup, value for money, reliability and technical support were all rated, but speed appears to be one of the biggest issues faced by consumers.

The majority of ISPs surveyed by Which? received scores of just three stars when rating their broadband speed, TalkTalk customers were least happy, only awarding the ISP two stars for speed.

Virgin Media and Zen Internet scored four stars – every other provider got three stars.

Which? executive director, Richard Lloyd, said: “Smaller suppliers are leaving larger rivals in their wake when it comes to the service they provide so we need to see the big players up their game.

“Ofcom is also currently reviewing this market and we now need it to identify how it plans to ensure broadband customers get a better deal.

“We’ve told the advertising watchdogs that companies need to be much clearer with their customers about the speeds they can expect.

"However, three months on, we’re still waiting for them to announce how they’ll ensure adverts only show the speeds most customers actually receive.”

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