Now was the most complained-about broadband provider for the first three months of 2024, according to the regulator’s data.
It had the unwanted honour of topping the charts, with 22 complaints per 100,000 received by Ofcom, largely due to the way its complaints were being handled.
However, its affiliated company Sky proved to be the least complained-about provider, alongside Shell Energy, with only six complaints per 100,000.
It was the same case for landline complaints, too, as Now garnered the most grievances alongside Virgin Media, accounting for 12 and 11 complaints of every 100,000 made to the regulator respectively.
This was again driven by how it was handling its customers’ issues.
EE had the same number of complaints as Virgin Media, but the provider was found wanting among customers for its way of handling faults, service and provisioning (where infrastructure has to be set up).
Meanwhile, Virgin Media had the most complaints per 100,000 among pay TV providers, mostly due to its method of complaint handling.
For mobile providers, O2 customers made the most complaints, representing eight of every 100,000 complaints made to Ofcom.
At the other end of the scale was Tesco Mobile, with just one complaint per 100,000.
Across the board, issues reported by customers to Ofcom fell compared to the previous quarter of October to December 2023. However, complaints about mobile phone providers increased.
‘Positive sign customers supported effectively’
Following the results, Ernest Doku of Uswitch.com believes the drop in numbers “is a positive sign that providers are supporting their customers effectively”.
Doku said: “However, with mobile pay-monthly complaints rising, there is still work to be done.
“Ofcom’s data shows that faults, service and provisioning (35%) were the primary driver of complaints for broadband, while complaints handling (30%) was the main reason on the mobile side.
“This combination may see customers persuaded by other providers who can offer a more reliable service and more support when it comes to dealing with complaints.”
The telecoms expert added: “Although one-fifth of complaints were driven by billing, pricing and charges, consumers will hopefully see this start to change in a positive way following Ofcom’s recent decision to end unpredictable inflation-linked mid-contract price rises.
“This change will mean that while price increases will still happen, the total cost of the contract will be clear from the start. This will only apply to new contracts taken from 17 January 2025, meaning there is still a wait until consumers may start to see an impact.”
Now’s response to complaint ranking
In response to Ofcom’s report, a Now spokesperson said: “We’re absolutely committed to ensuring our customers have the best broadband experience – although this represents a small proportion of our customers, we’re still disappointed by this number.
“We’re making improvements to ensure that our customers are fully supported throughout their journey with us.”
YourMoney.com contacted Virgin Media for comment on the results, but had not received a response at the time of writing.
