![ASA raps TalkTalk over \](http://pictures.directnews.co.uk/liveimages/hammer+law_1150_18391869_0_0_7006214_300.jpg "ASA raps TalkTalk over \")
ASA raps TalkTalk over “free” broadband
12th December 2007
TalkTalk has been censured by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for misleading claims made about its service.
The ASA upheld a complaint from BT over "free broadband" advertised in a TalkTalk brochure.
The ad said: "This year, why not join our Talk3 call plan and get up to 8 Meg (speed depends on proximity to exchange) broadband free!"
BT complained that the ad was misleading since in order to qualify for the "free" deal, customers had to sign up for a minimum contract of 18 months - up from the previous timeframe of 12 months.
BT said this meant that because TalkTalk had increased the burden on the customer, the broadband service could not reasonably be described as free.
Explaining its ruling, the ASA said that "because the contractual agreement of ‘Talk 3 with free broadband’ was more onerous than that of its call plan-only predecessor Talk 3, we considered that package should be classed as ‘new’".
Member of the Internet Services Providers' Association
Member of the Broadband Stakeholder Group
1 comment
I was offered free broadband if I changed my package which I did. What they didn’t tell me was that free broadband wasn’t available in my area - that the contract for the broadband was for 12 months and the package deal was for 18 months. So now I pay more for my broadband than I did for my previous supplier and more for my phone calls because I took the deal. When I phoned their customer services to find out when I would be in the free broadband area he didn’t know and couldn’t tell me when because he said nobody knew. Some customer services! I was mis-sold this so-called great offer and wish I knew then what I know now. I’m definitely not recommending TalkTalk to any friends or family. The broadband is actually slower too!
Gloria Waite, 21st July 2008