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Do you know what broadband speed you're supposed to be getting?
Unless you're incredibly lucky, it's unlikely to be anything like the 'headline' download speed advertised by the package you signed up to.
New research by Ofcom (the industry regulator) has revealed that while the average speed now boasted by ISPs is 11.5mbps, on average most of us get 45% less than this most of the time - the equivalent of just 5.2mbps.
Thankfully, now they've quantified the problem Ofcom are in a position to do something about it.
They have updated their Code of Practice on broadband speeds so as to give customers a fairer deal. The code is voluntary, but Ofcom are going to pressurise as many ISPs as possible to accept the revised terms.
Any broadband provider that agrees will:
- only advertise speeds that customers can actually get
- need to publish 'Typical Speed Range' (TSR) data so actual speeds are more easily comparable
- let customers leave their contact early and without penalty if the maximum speed they can get is significantly below that advertised.
Rest assured we'll bring you more info and add TSR details to our broadband comparison tables as soon as it starts becoming available. In the meantime you can read our article on How to Speed Up a Slow Broadband Connection to find out whether there's anything you can do while you're waiting.
Hannah
P.S. Watch out for my special email in the next 2 days - it'll explain exactly how you can get started on the my money beta challenge. Remember you get bonus points if you sign up before the beta challenge starts.
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