15 million homes miss out on advertised broadband speeds, consumer group finds

Consumer group Which? has called on the advertising watchdog, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) to ban companies from advertising super-fast broadband speeds when there are currently more than 15 million households who do not get the speeds they pay for.

Under the current UK advertising code, even if they're only available to ten per cent of their customers, companies can still advertise their top speeds. Which? is keen to change this and instead wants the big companies to be banned from advertising high speeds unless more than 50 per cent of customers can actually access the speeds advertised.

Research from the consumer group revealed that 90 per cent of people feel broadband speed is a major factor in deciding which package to go with. Yet 15.4 million households are still not getting the top speeds advertised.

The request by Which? comes off the back of an announcement from ASA, which manage the UK advertising code, stating that it plans to research what exactly consumers understand about broadband speeds and the claims in adverts. The research findings are expected to be released in the autumn.

Which? Director of policy and campaigns Alex Neill said: “Millions of customers are being taken in by broadband they simply cannot get.It’s clear a shake-up is needed. The regulator needs to introduce quickly stricter rules that ensure providers advertise speeds that they can deliver for a majority.”

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