Broadband: Where is customer service going wrong?

Summary

According to the Institute of Customer Service (UKCSI), satisfaction with customer service is at its lowest in nearly a decade. Sectors like utilities, transport, insurance, and service have seen significant declines, indicating widespread dissatisfaction with customer service quality. 

Which? recognise that effective customer service is crucial for businesses, especially when things go wrong. Unfortunately, some companies routinely fail their customers, leaving them frustrated and stuck in endless loops trying to get help. As part of the Customer Service Counts campaigns, Which? is calling for companies to urgently improve and make it easier for customers to get timely and effective solutions.

Our latest research compares the broadband sector's performance with other industries, highlighting providers with poor customer service. The key findings are:

1. Broadband is one of the poorest sectors for customer service: It jointly ranked third from the bottom with airlines for overall customer service in 2024
2. Consumers are most dissatisfied with the time taken to reach the right person who can help resolve their query
3. Virgin Media is the poorest-performing provider for customer service: It received the lowest satisfaction scores across multiple categories and stands out as the provider most in need of improvement.

The remainder of this article will explore each of these in more detail. 

Broadband is one of the worst sectors for customer service

In our recent research, we ran an online survey of 4,101 UK adults with 1,837 of these having contacted their broadband provider in the last 12 months (45% of UK adults). However, of these people, the majority have been in contact with their providers a lot more recently than a year ago - nearly 8 in 10 (78%) people had made contact in the last 6 months and 53% had done so in the last 3 months. 

For overall customer service across the sectors, we found that broadband did not perform very well. They were joint third-from-bottom sector (with airlines) with a net satisfaction score of +52 for overall customer service - 68% of people were satisfied and 16% were dissatisfied, giving a net score of +52.This score sat 5 points below the combined sector average (+57) and 20 points below the top performing sector - financial services (+72).

Consumer satisfaction with overall customer service by sector

4 in 10 (41%) people who said they’d contacted their broadband provider in the last year reported having at least one problem related to customer services.  The broadband sector sat third from the bottom of the table (again jointly with airlines), worse than the average which was 37%. Delivery companies performed the poorest with 49% of people who’d contacted delivery companies experiencing a problem.

Consumers experiencing at least one problem with customer service by sector

Broadband customers are dissatisfied with the time taken to reach an advisor who can help to resolve their issue  

Consumers showed the highest satisfaction levels for how seriously the advisor took their issue or query with a score of +59 and the ease of finding contact information (e.g. phone number, email, live chat), scoring +57. 

However, the most pressing challenges are when customers attempt to connect with an advisor capable of resolving their issues. Respondents were least satisfied in this area, scoring it +43 and with how long it took to get their issue resolved, with +51. The latter was tied with the variety of contact options provided. 

The dissatisfaction with the time it takes to contact someone who can help and resolve the issue underscores a crucial distinction from mere call waiting times. Initial contact with an advisor may not always lead to an immediate resolution of the issue. Often, this first advisor is unable to provide the necessary assistance, resulting in the customer being transferred to different departments. Each transfer adds to the overall time required to resolve the problem, extending well beyond the duration of the initial call. This process of multiple call transfers can significantly delay reaching a satisfactory solution in a reasonable time. Industry metrics can often focus on call waiting times as a representation of good customer service, but this can be misleading as it only addresses part of the problem. It is not sufficient for delivering good customer service. Our research suggests that genuine customer satisfaction hinges on accessing the right person who can effectively resolve your queries.

Consumer satisfaction with aspects of broadband provider’s customer service

Virgin Media is the worst culprit 

Consumers are most satisfied with Plusnet who achieved the highest satisfaction scores across all categories, including overall customer service (78+). 

Customers were most dissatisfied with the overall customer service from Virgin Media. A continuation of poor performance from earlier this year, Virgin is a worst performing provider in the Customer Service Counts campaign. In this research they received the lowest score by far, with only +29 satisfaction rating for overall customer service - 23 points behind the sector average of +52 and 49 points behind the top performing provider, Plusnet. 

Virgin Media received poor scores in other metrics too. They scored just 18+ for how long it took for their customers to reach an advisor that could help and +34 for the time it took to have their customer’s issue answered. 

Consumer satisfaction with key aspects of broadband provider’s customer service, by providers net satisfaction scores

Half (50%) of people surveyed who had recently contacted Virgin Media experienced at least one customer service issue. The most common problem was waiting a long time on the phone to speak to an advisor (51%). There are challenges that also extend beyond just waiting times; customers need to reach a resolution effectively, however Virgin customers are being passed between departments without a helpful response (36%) and speaking to unhelpful or dismissive advisors (34%). Some are even being given false promises (22%) and, in some cases, not even being able to reach the advisor with their call disconnecting after being in a long call wait queue (23%). Virgin has substantial work to do to enhance their customer service delivery.

Virgin Media problems experienced by customers

Conclusion

These findings paint a clear picture of the challenges within the broadband sector, especially when compared to other industries. Our research highlights that broadband customers are particularly frustrated by the time it takes to contact an appropriate advisor and the overall time needed to resolve their issues. These insights underscore the critical distinction between mere call waiting times and actual problem resolution.

Broadband providers must focus not just on answering calls promptly but on ensuring customers are directed to the right person who can effectively handle their queries. Industry metrics that focus on call waiting times as measuring good customer service can be misleading, as customer satisfaction is determined by the quality and efficiency of the resolution process.

Despite some encouraging results from providers, significant disparities in customer satisfaction levels persist. Virgin Media, in particular, has a long way to go, with customers frequently encountering long wait times, unhelpful advisors, and unresolved issues. This indicates a pressing need for substantial improvements in their customer service strategies.

It is never OK for companies to provide sub-standard customer service, but in essential sectors providing vital services millions rely on every day such as energy and broadband, it is completely unacceptable. As part of the campaign, Which? has written to Virgin Media about their poor performance in our research. We are calling on them to give consumers the customer service they deserve and clearly communicate the steps they are taking to improve.

Methodology

Yonder, on behalf of Which?, conducted an online survey of 4,101 nationally representative adults aged 18+. Respondents were asked if they had contacted companies in the following sectors in the last 12 months; their energy provider, their broadband provider, an airline, a booking site, a financial service, a home improvement company, a delivery company or a retailer. We captured 1,837 respondents who had contacted their broadband provider in the last year. The survey was conducted between 3rd and 15th May 2024.

Customer service satisfaction metrics

We asked respondents who contacted their broadband provider in the last year to rate how satisfied or dissatisfied they were with their experience when contacting their provider's customer service. They rated the following three statements against a 5-point satisfaction scale where “1” was very dissatisfied and “5” was very satisfied. 

1. How easy it was to find contact information
2. The variety of contact options provided
3. How long it took to get in touch with a person that could help
4. How seriously the customer service representative took your issue/ query
5. How well the customer service representative kept you informed about the progress of your issue /query
6. How long it took to get an answer to your issue /query
7. How well your issue/ query was dealt with
8. How well my issue/query was resolved
9. Overall customer service

We also asked respondents to tell us what problems they encountered when they contacted their provider. The list of problems they selected from was developed by analysing thousands of stories of poor customer service submitted to the Which?’s Cast study tool, as part of our Customer Service Counts campaign.