Broadband switch rules changed

Changing your broadband supplier is to be made easier with the introduction of new laws today, as Web User has previously reported. From today, broadband suppliers will be obliged to provide a migration authorisation code (MAC) to any customer that requests one. The MAC must be provided within five days and the broadband supplier cannot charge the customer for it. The change in the law was instigated by telecoms watchdog Ofcom, which was responding to research that suggested that many people who try to change ISP encounter difficulties. “MAC code regulation should begin to set standards in an industry that as yet does not have many regulations," said Jason Lloyd, head of broadband at Moneysupermarket.com. A MAC is a 17 or 18 digit code that is required by a customer if they wish to change from one supplier to another. Without a MAC, a customer could be forced to wait for weeks to switch ISPs; with one, it should only be a matter of hours. The changes in the law mean that any headaches involved in switching should belong to the ISP rather than the customer. “The introduction of compulsory MAC codes means every provider will have to invest in infrastructure to generate and process these codes. For those who already have systems in place this is merely an investment in making sure they’re more efficient," said Lloyd. According to research from service comparison website SimplySwitch.com, there are plenty of good deals to be found at the moment - certainly compared to 18 months ago. "Eighteen months ago, broadband was fairly expensive and only available up to 2Mbps. Connections are now available up to four times faster for an average of just £21 per month. Thousands of people who have been on the same deal for a year or more could switch to a much faster connections and save money in the process," said Karen Darby of SimplySwitch.com. While this is undoubtedly good news for most customers, some may very well find the new regulations won't help them a great deal. Those who have services provided by providers that use local loop unbundled (LLU) lines might have problems switching to other ISPs that offer LLU services. "Although Ofcom’s ruling on MAC codes is a step in the right direction, it still lacks protection for the one million subscribers to LLU broadband providers who may be looking to switch in the future," said Aamir Baloch of Firsthelpline.com. Moneysupermarket's Lloyd agreed. “It’s clear some LLU to LLU switching will not be fully resolved... as several providers have not agreed how to process MAC codes from other LLU providers," Lloyd said. However, Ofcom suggested that that only a very small number of customers are likely to be affected by this. "To put it in context, there are more than 16 million broadband lines in the UK and about one million are LLU lines at this stage. The majority of traffic on migrations is people who have been on a non-LLU service for a while and now might be looking at LLU," an Ofcom spokesman told Web User. Lloyd speculated that any extra costs incurred by broadband providers, whether they offer LLU services or not could come back to haunt customers. “The increase in costs associated with mandatory MAC codes is an additional burden on many providers, and we may see some of the smaller providers pass these costs on to people in higher monthly subscription fees. Lloyd also intimated that Ofcom will need to be strict in applying the new regulations if they are to be taken seriously. “We’ve seen in other areas of the communication market Ofcom has fined companies for breaching regulations, but the fines have been small and would not have any significant effect on the larger providers. How Ofcom polices this new regulation is as important as the regulation itself on the industry.” Price comparison services such as Moneysupermarket.com and Firsthelpline.com, as well as uSwitch.com and Top 10 Broadband also stand to benefit from customers using their services to compare broadband deals.

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