Attention: Please take a moment to consider our terms and conditions before posting.

Sky Subscription....here we go again

There was a lot of chat on here, I think around 18 months ago, regarding SKY TV subscriptions and deals you could negotiate. I think it must have been around Black Friday time in November 2019. At that time I managed to negotiate my sub down from around £93/month to £48. Many others of you shared details of similar deals after you had called them up.

In February this year I had an email advising my monthly bill would increase from £48 to £52.50 in March and I just let it go. However, I have just noticed on my bank statement that Sky charged me £76.15 in the month of May. In checking my Sky account online I see that in May they removed some discounts mid-Month and that from June my monthly bill will go up to £106. They have removed discounts totalling £53.50, so have effectively hiked my bill from £52.50 in March to the £106/month they are proposing in June. No warning was given that these discounts were about to stop (assume there is something in the small print from when they originally gave the discount but it would have been nice if they had pre-warned it was about to stop).

I have been a Sky customer for 20+ years and naturally will call them for a rant and threaten to cancel etc. I am assuming others are experiencing the same as me given how so many of you negotiated discounts around the same time and it would be interesting to hear if anyone has had a "debate" with Sky very recently. 
«134

Comments

  • Like Robin I have been with Sky for many years, monthly cost has recently risen from £90 to £125, I shall attempt a renegotiation 
  • There was a lot of chat on here, I think around 18 months ago, regarding SKY TV subscriptions and deals you could negotiate. I think it must have been around Black Friday time in November 2019. At that time I managed to negotiate my sub down from around £93/month to £48. Many others of you shared details of similar deals after you had called them up.

    In February this year I had an email advising my monthly bill would increase from £48 to £52.50 in March and I just let it go. However, I have just noticed on my bank statement that Sky charged me £76.15 in the month of May. In checking my Sky account online I see that in May they removed some discounts mid-Month and that from June my monthly bill will go up to £106. They have removed discounts totalling £53.50, so have effectively hiked my bill from £52.50 in March to the £106/month they are proposing in June. No warning was given that these discounts were about to stop (assume there is something in the small print from when they originally gave the discount but it would have been nice if they had pre-warned it was about to stop).

    I have been a Sky customer for 20+ years and naturally will call them for a rant and threaten to cancel etc. I am assuming others are experiencing the same as me given how so many of you negotiated discounts around the same time and it would be interesting to hear if anyone has had a "debate" with Sky very recently. 
    Oh yes, go for it.

    Happens to me every 18 months - price practically doubles and they never give any warning. Trick is to phone them in the last month of our contract so you don't get hammered.

    Ring them early in the morning (before they have had scores of people shouting at them and they are in a good mood). You'll get through to the call centre first. They will offer you a cheaper deal BUT SAY NO and ask to be put through to the Retentions team. There you will get through to a person who wants to be your best friend! Be nice back and almost certainly he or she will give you a much better deal than the contact centre offered you. Concentrate on the final price as they will change around the prices they charge you for your package.

    One final tip. Check that they stick to the price they offer you in your future bills. 

    Good luck!
     
  • Just happened to me too.....I keep threatening to leave but never bloody do as they have my phone, internet and TV and I can;t be arsed to change them all...  Think I'm at around £65 a month or so now...been a customer for 15 years... I keep reminding them that basically I sponsor them...
  • And ask yourself how much you watch all the channels. I got rid of sports and have the whatever the normal package is called for the programmes in the 100 and 200 channels. No sport apart from Sky Sports News which is free. I did an 18 month contract where they chuck in Netflix for about 32 a month. The Q box is alright apart from it drops its broadband a bit regularly but it has Netflix and Prime and Disney built in along with BBC iplayer and sounds and Youtube and some exercise things I have no idea about. I figure that if I want to watch a specific sports thing then I can do NowTV for a tenner. 

    If HBO Max becomes available in the UK I could probably junk the whole thing (tho I am contract for a bit). 

    Apps rather than linear broadcasting is going to be the future. 
  • edited May 2021
    My tip would be if you are speaking to an awkward bugger, just make your excuses like somebody at the door, and ring again and see if the next person is more amenable. Mind you, I haven't rung Virgin for a while, I need to do it.
  • You've literally got to note the contract expiry date and set a reminder, either on a calendar or your phone calendar, to phone in that last month before they hike the charge.  As above, phone early-to-mid morning, never phone pm or evening.  Lay it on a bit thick too and be polite.  The retention team will always offer you a better deal.

    I've seen elsewhere that you've got a chance of bigger discounts later in the month, depending on whether they've met their targets or not.  So could always try start of the month, say you'll think about it then go back to them 2-3 weeks later...
  • I had enough of their price hike at every turn nonsense and junked them earlier in the year. Now Tv Sports subscription at a discount only for me now and thanks to a fellow Lifer, watched Justice League and a few other movies free on a one month trial on Now Tv before cancelling. Actually, worth mentioning that the cancellation prompted a low cost per month (3 months) offer to stay, so I went to cancel the Sports subscription and hey presto, similarly, I have Sky Sports at lower cost for a couple of months yet. 

    I will not return to full Sky offer ever again, as long as I can source sport through stream subscription, have more than enough quality choice elsewhere and similar to above, when HBO max comes to UK, I think Sky will have some real issues to deal with. 
  • edited May 2021
    On a separate matter, does anyone actually know anyone under 30 who subscribes to Sky? I honestly don't. 

    Their business plan must be shot to pieces as young people turn their back on it and old gits like us either negotiate a saving or just get rid of it. (And I'm sorely tempted to do that if we can stream our games in future) 


  • I can’t stand bartering and I think they are thieving see you next Tuesdays, I cancelled mine last month £145 a month 
  • Timely! Just checked and my contract is up in July so I’ll set a reminder.

    I quite like Sky - I watch a lot of the sports in UHD and I don’t think that’s available on Virgin or BT (?), there broadband is relatively reliable but I’m paying £111 a month which feels like a lot.
  • Sponsored links:


  • On a separate matter, does anyone actually know anyone under 30 who subscribes to Sky? I honestly don't. 

    Their business plan must be shot to pieces as young people turn their back on it and old gits like us either negotiate a saving or just get rid of it. (And I'm surely tempted to do that if we can stream our games in future) 


    Exactly, young people are sensible and stream what they want to watch when they want to watch it. The idea of saying to a 25 year old that something is on at 9pm tomorrow is becoming a waste of time. So sports rights continue to attract a high price because they have to be watched at a certain time. But paying £111 a month to be able to watch West Brom v Southampton feels like a lot. 
  • Our "all in " contract expires in 6 days' time so I have a diary reminder to ring now.....Exactly the same scenario as @robinofottershaw having gained a good deal on Black Friday 2019.

    I tried to do so a few weeks ago but although I was promised big discounts, the amended contract price was well above what we currently pay which is £ 72pm.

    Girding my loins in readiness for the upcoming battle.

    Wish me luck ! 
  • The only thing that saves sky for me is the Golf channel, as soon as I get better coverage else where I'm out, £67 a month is how much I pay, with the discovery + stuff, not sure how that shapes up. 
  • I was paying £91.20 per month for TV, phone and broadband.
    When I checked future bills it was going up to £126.
    Phoned up and got it down to £92.
    Waited a week checked again and it had gone up to £132!!
    Phoned again and after some back and forth and speaking to managers etc got a new deal at £91 per month.  
     :) 
  • Yeah I remember I was quite active on that Black Friday thread, was thinking that thread might resurface.

    I recently got Sky to recontract me on everything but for only a few quid extra a month than the Black Friday offer probably due to inflation.

    When you talk to them never accept the first offer as others have said and just add that it's still too high and that you'll consider your options elsewhere with other providers.

    They then managed to pull out an offer almost as good as the Black Friday offer and all got sorted.
  • I've subscribed to sky for about 11 years now, been tied into 18 month rolling contracts for about 10 of those years. 

    The month before my contract ends I'll get a renewal price, normally about £100 (We have TV, Sports Package and Broadband). Always give them a ring, say I'm cancelling and within ten minutes without fail I've normally got it down to their 'special offer' of £65 which I've had for years now. Not sure at what point it stops being a 'special offer' but it suits me.

    It's interesting reading the posts about ringing at certain times of the month though. A few years ago the mother in law was telling me how she paid about £100 just for the basic TV package and movies. I told her very smugly my tactic for reducing the bill and said she should do the same as she'd save a fortune.

    Next day had a text from my Partner saying mother in law had followed my advice,  rang up threatning to cancel as it was to expensive. Call handler replied 'Sorry to hear that, I've gone ahead and cancelled that for you'. Mother in Law didn't dare to say she was just bluffing so ended up losing her entire package.

    To say she was fuming is an understatement.
    i mean, not that i'm saying that your MIL is lying, but there's quite a long process to cancel, and you can always put the phone down and try again with a different operator.
  • So, I have now had my first round (hopefully) of negotiations with Sky.

    I firstly spoke to the call centre. After the usual questions regarding whether I wanted to add Sky Broadband etc as that might help with discounts (was not interested), I was told they could bring my bill back down from £106 to £87/month without any change in my package. Told them I thought this was still too high so think I will cancel totally. They asked if they could put me through to the Retentions team before I proceeded with that.

    The retentions team told me that they could reduce it further to £76/month. I responded that this pantomime every 18 months or so is ridiculous as when it comes around to the next Black Friday they will offer me significant discounts again. The lady agreed that whereas 10 years ago the type of discounts offered on Black Friday were NOT offered to long-term customers they are nowadays. Nevertheless, those discounts aren't available right now, so £76 was the best they could offer. I advised I wanted to trigger my 31 day cancellation (I am bluffing as I want to watch the Lions rugby games plus the cricket over the next few months). Based on posts from people some time ago, I am hoping Sky will get back in touch nearer the cancellation date with a better offer, so it's a game of chicken now!

    I know I could change elements of my package to further reduce the package but it's a pain. I like Sky Sports but probably watch more non-football sport unless a Charlton game is on. 

    Will update if anything changes.
  • I've subscribed to sky for about 11 years now, been tied into 18 month rolling contracts for about 10 of those years. 

    The month before my contract ends I'll get a renewal price, normally about £100 (We have TV, Sports Package and Broadband). Always give them a ring, say I'm cancelling and within ten minutes without fail I've normally got it down to their 'special offer' of £65 which I've had for years now. Not sure at what point it stops being a 'special offer' but it suits me.

    It's interesting reading the posts about ringing at certain times of the month though. A few years ago the mother in law was telling me how she paid about £100 just for the basic TV package and movies. I told her very smugly my tactic for reducing the bill and said she should do the same as she'd save a fortune.

    Next day had a text from my Partner saying mother in law had followed my advice,  rang up threatning to cancel as it was to expensive. Call handler replied 'Sorry to hear that, I've gone ahead and cancelled that for you'. Mother in Law didn't dare to say she was just bluffing so ended up losing her entire package.

    To say she was fuming is an understatement.
    Those (the ones who don't care about losing customers) are the ones you need to stop talking too and try again. 
  • Sponsored links:


  • edited May 2021
    I binned Sky a couple of weeks ago.

    I just did not use it.  They offered upgrades to SkyQ for £20 all in for a service they had put up to £29 only a week earlier.  Sent begging emails right up to the cut off date.

    Proud of myself for resisting, i wonder how many just took the price rise?
  • Looking to move into a new house soon and am planning on getting Sky.

    How worthwhile is the UHD content? Is it actually worth the extra money?
  • I advised I wanted to trigger my 31 day cancellation (I am bluffing as I want to watch the Lions rugby games plus the cricket over the next few months). Based on posts from people some time ago, I am hoping Sky will get back in touch nearer the cancellation date with a better offer, so it's a game of chicken now!

    I know I could change elements of my package to further reduce the package but it's a pain. I like Sky Sports but probably watch more non-football sport unless a Charlton game is on. 

    Will update if anything changes.
    I went through the same process last September and started the cancellation period.

    Got an offer by text a week later, and then phone calls to discuss and agree a new contract at a much better price than had been offered by the retentions team.

    Hold your nerve...!
  • cafctom said:
    Looking to move into a new house soon and am planning on getting Sky.

    How worthwhile is the UHD content? Is it actually worth the extra money?
    Yeah I like the UHD sports (mainly Premier League & some Football League) and it’s available for some documentaries and films. I think I pay £15 for Sky Q Multiscreen which includes the UHD charge.
  • just checked after reading this thread and my bill has crept up again....they'll be getting a call from me tomorrow
  • I signed up with Sky Q couple of years back on a Black Friday deal, sports, Netflix, UHD, second box for about £50 per month. It was due for renewal in March, but I rang them when they had Black Friday deals in again and locked myself in again. I'll repeat the same in November. 
  • I've subscribed to sky for about 11 years now, been tied into 18 month rolling contracts for about 10 of those years. 

    The month before my contract ends I'll get a renewal price, normally about £100 (We have TV, Sports Package and Broadband). Always give them a ring, say I'm cancelling and within ten minutes without fail I've normally got it down to their 'special offer' of £65 which I've had for years now. Not sure at what point it stops being a 'special offer' but it suits me.

    It's interesting reading the posts about ringing at certain times of the month though. A few years ago the mother in law was telling me how she paid about £100 just for the basic TV package and movies. I told her very smugly my tactic for reducing the bill and said she should do the same as she'd save a fortune.

    Next day had a text from my Partner saying mother in law had followed my advice,  rang up threatning to cancel as it was to expensive. Call handler replied 'Sorry to hear that, I've gone ahead and cancelled that for you'. Mother in Law didn't dare to say she was just bluffing so ended up losing her entire package.

    To say she was fuming is an understatement.
    i mean, not that i'm saying that your MIL is lying, but there's quite a long process to cancel, and you can always put the phone down and try again with a different operator.
    It happened to me a while back - the young lady wasn’t in the mood to haggle with me, so broadband got cancelled instantly. It definitely felt like she was calling my bluff but I didn’t want to back down! Broadband was abysmal anyway. 

    I agree with the comments above that the business model is in jeopardy. ComCast must have known that when they bought the company. NowTV is their way in with younger consumers. 

    What bothers me is they class their TV business as a premium product compared to Netflix and co. Hence why it’s so much more expensive. But if you’re not using the set top box, there’s nothing premium about it. Sky Go is a fucking insult to humanity, and the best reason to have the STB - apart from the football I’m decreasingly bothered about - is to be able to record channels they’re not responsible for. 

    I’m looking forward to binning it and going with the plethora of apps I can use to stay entertained. 
  • edited May 2021
    JiMMy 85 said:
    I've subscribed to sky for about 11 years now, been tied into 18 month rolling contracts for about 10 of those years. 

    The month before my contract ends I'll get a renewal price, normally about £100 (We have TV, Sports Package and Broadband). Always give them a ring, say I'm cancelling and within ten minutes without fail I've normally got it down to their 'special offer' of £65 which I've had for years now. Not sure at what point it stops being a 'special offer' but it suits me.

    It's interesting reading the posts about ringing at certain times of the month though. A few years ago the mother in law was telling me how she paid about £100 just for the basic TV package and movies. I told her very smugly my tactic for reducing the bill and said she should do the same as she'd save a fortune.

    Next day had a text from my Partner saying mother in law had followed my advice,  rang up threatning to cancel as it was to expensive. Call handler replied 'Sorry to hear that, I've gone ahead and cancelled that for you'. Mother in Law didn't dare to say she was just bluffing so ended up losing her entire package.

    To say she was fuming is an understatement.
    i mean, not that i'm saying that your MIL is lying, but there's quite a long process to cancel, and you can always put the phone down and try again with a different operator.
    It happened to me a while back - the young lady wasn’t in the mood to haggle with me, so broadband got cancelled instantly. It definitely felt like she was calling my bluff but I didn’t want to back down! Broadband was abysmal anyway. 

    I agree with the comments above that the business model is in jeopardy. ComCast must have known that when they bought the company. NowTV is their way in with younger consumers. 

    What bothers me is they class their TV business as a premium product compared to Netflix and co. Hence why it’s so much more expensive. But if you’re not using the set top box, there’s nothing premium about it. Sky Go is a fucking insult to humanity, and the best reason to have the STB - apart from the football I’m decreasingly bothered about - is to be able to record channels they’re not responsible for. 

    I’m looking forward to binning it and going with the plethora of apps I can use to stay entertained. 
    I find that outside the football and other sports, the programmes I/we tend to watch are on Freeview. We have freeview in the bedroom via a box with a hard drive which works very well. I have been contemplating doing the same elsewhere in the house, given that I can watch the football via streaming and sports via Now TV. I recall my last negotiation when I realised I didn't watch most of their channels on a package, only sports that they pretty much said I had to buy them.

    It is always a job I am leaving until tomorrow. What I will do at some point is connect the non bedroom TVs to an aerial and buy freeview hard drive boxes for them, then cancel all TV and my landline which is only used by my mum and scammers (she can ring me on my mobile). I'll simply stick to high speed broadband and not miss out on anything at all. The only thing stopping me is the hassle and as they keep creeping the prices up by stealth, the tipping point will surely come sooner rather than later.
Sign In or Register to comment.

Roland Out Forever!