How to get your money back after suffering a broadband outage

Telegraph Money reveals the ways you can capitalise on the compensation rules

Broadband provides a lifeline to many households who depend on it for work, entertainment and essential life admin. 
For lots of people, there is little that is more frustrating than suffering an outage, but what you may not realise is that you should be getting paid for it. 
If you experience loss of broadband service, or delays in getting it repaired, you may be entitled to compensation from your provider. What’s more, you may be due this redress without even having to request it. 
The problem is, there’s a little awareness of the compensation scheme and few people know their rights.
Here, Telegraph Money explains the compensation rules, and how to make sure you don’t miss out.
Under the automatic compensation scheme run by the communications watchdog, Ofcom, to reimburse customers when they don’t receive the service they’ve paid for. 
Matt Sanders, broadband spokesperson for Go.Compare, said: “The scheme is designed to compensate customers for delays, repairs taking too long or missed appointments.”
You are entitled to daily payments of up to £9.76 for each day that your broadband service is down due to outages. If an engineer misses an appointment to fix your service – or cancels at the last minute – you should get £30.49, and if there are delays with the start of a new service, you are entitled to £6.10 for each day of delay.
Compensation should be paid automatically within 30 days of the issue being resolved, depending on its nature. Unless agreed otherwise, it will be paid as a credit on your bill.
The amounts paid out go up annually, in line with inflation. They increase from April 1 each year.
The redress scheme has been in place since 2019. The idea was that customers let down by their provider would be able to get compensation without having to make a claim. 
Max Beckett, broadband expert at Uswitch.com, said: “Most of the UK’s largest providers will usually compensate you after any significant outages. This means you’re not likely to need to fill in any forms, contact customer service, or worry about being short-changed.”
That said, you can’t afford to sit back entirely.
Mr Sanders said: “You can often get a payout without you having to take any action yourself. But note that while some compensation is automatic – for instance, if your service doesn’t start on the agreed date – a sudden fault in your service should be reported.”
Once you’ve logged the fault with your provider, you should not have to take further action. 
Your provider then has two working days to resolve the issue before you are entitled to an initial £9.76. This is followed by daily compensation of £9.76 for each full day it is still not fixed after that. 
Recommended
While this scheme may sound great on paper, there are concerns that it’s not always quite so plain sailing in practice.
With the number of complaints burgeoning, there are many anecdotal stories of providers refusing to pay out – even though customers have been left with no service for a lengthy period, and seemingly with no good reason given.
There are, according to campaigners, a number of issues.
First off, as it is a voluntary code of practice, there’s no requirement for broadband providers to be part of it. So, while most of Britain’s largest providers are signed up – including Sky, Virgin Media, BT and Vodafone – not all firms are. 
At the same time, as the scheme isn’t compulsory, the rules can be open to interpretation. There are fears this has led to some providers finding ways to wriggle out of paying.
Martyn James, consumer rights expert said: “Even though the rules around auto-compensation aren’t definitive regulatory requirements, they are considered to be good industry practice. The regulator expects broadband firms to follow them.”
There are also concerns that consumers don’t have the information they need to challenge decisions handed to them by their provider. If, say, they get rejected with a poor excuse, or offered a paltry settlement, many people will often just take the company’s word for it without knowing they should be entitled to much more.
Mr James added: “If you’re affected by a firm failing in its obligations to pay out compensation for service issues, it’s vital that you fight back.”
Under the rules, providers are required to compensate customers when there is a delay to repairs, or a delay to the start of a new service. 
This applies if the delay is caused by an event which is beyond a customer’s control, or beyond a provider’s control – including extreme weather, strikes and third-party acts. 
The exception here is if a law or regulation would have to be breached to avoid a delay. In this situation, the customer will not be due a payment but the provider is still required to explain why.
There are some scenarios where you may experience an outage or delays to a repair and won’t be due compensation.
According to Ofcom, a provider may not pay compensation if:
Ofcom monitors the automatic compensation process on behalf of consumers to ensure providers are acting in good faith. In extreme cases, it can intervene on behalf of the customer. 
At the same time, you as a consumer need to be proactive – starting with complaining to your broadband provider.
Mr Sanders said: “If you haven’t received any compensation and you think you qualify, it’s worth taking this up with your provider.”
If you can’t get the issue resolved directly, you can escalate your case.
Mr James said: “If you feel your provider is not following the rules – or using poor excuses not to cough up – then make a formal complaint and take it further.”
You can take your complaint to the Ombudsman, or refer the issue to an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) service, provided by the Communications Ombudsman and the Communication and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme (CISAS). 
Some campaigners feel that while the scheme is a step in the right direction, it could go further.
Mr Beckett said: “While we believe it is right that providers compensate consumers for a loss of service, missed appointments, or when the start of service is delayed, this amount may not feel a justifiable sum to many who lose a full day of work due to an outage.”
Uswitch data shows that a quarter of Britons had been left without internet for 6.5 days or more in 2023 – and that outages have cost the British economy as much as £2bn.
“That said, with recent Ofcom complaints data showing that ‘faults, service and provisioning’ made up the largest portion of broadband complaints at 37pc, the scheme has an important and necessary role to play,” he added.
When selecting a new broadband network, it’s worth reviewing in advance whether the provider is signed up to the compensation scheme. 
Ofcom keeps an up-to-date list of which providers are signed up to the scheme, and when they joined.