We may be able to help resolve your broadband dispute

Read below to find out how we could help you.

If you're having issues with your mobile, broadband, landline or pay TV provider, we may be able to help resolve your dispute.

Our process

Our simple process makes it easier than ever to raise a dispute with your communications provider. First you'll need to check whether your provider uses ourselves for their Alternative Dispute Resolution, or another company. If they are part of the scheme, here's what the process looks like:

Step 1

Raise an issue with your provider via their complaints process

Step 2

After 8 weeks, raise your dispute with us*

Step 3

You'll have 14 days to send us your evidence

Step 4

We'll review your dispute and the evidence from both parties

Step 5

We'll contact you with our decision which you can choose to accept

Step 6

If relevant, your provider should deliver a remedy in 28 days

Check if we deal with your provider here

*Before raising your dispute with us, please allow your provider 8 weeks to put things right (unless you receive a deadlock letter from them sooner).

How we can help

We provide a free and impartial service that aims to resolve disputes between consumers and providers in the communications sector.

Common disputes include;

Service and network quality (bandwidth, speeds, mobile broadband)
Contract cancellation and associated charges such as early termination charges
Customer service
Delays in providing service and repairing faults
Problems that arise as a result of switching communications provider
Mis-selling, sales and contracts
Disputes about billing, products and services

Who we are

With over 20 years experience in telecoms, the Communications Ombudsman offers independent dispute resolution services. Its goal is to put things right for consumers, ensuring fair outcomes, whilst helping energy suppliers better understand and address consumers' needs and improve their experience.

Now part of the Trust Alliance Group, our organisation has resolved over 1.3 million disputes.

With over 1,000 telecommunications providers signed up to our scheme, we are one of the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) schemes approved by Ofcom to impartially and independently handle disputes between consumers and providers.

What to expect

We can tell providers to:

Take practical action (E.g. credit or cancel an account, change your tariff)
Make an apology
Offer financial awards up to £10,000 (our average award is around £50)
Make recommendations to prevent this happening again
A combination of these actions

However, we can’t:

Punish companies
Dictate how companies operate
Issue fines

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I have to wait 8 weeks?

Your provider has 8 weeks to resolve your dispute. This is to give them enough time to assess the situation and the evidence to find an appropriate resolution.

What is a deadlock letter?

If your provider can’t do anything else to resolve with your dispute, you may receive a letter or email from them stating this. This is called a ‘deadlock letter’. The letter will tell you that you can now contact the Communications Ombudsman and will include our contact details. You must escalate your dispute within 12 months of receiving the letter.

How can I register my dispute with the Communications Ombudsman?

Raising your dispute online is the fastest way to get your information to us, however you can also do this by telephone, email and post. Searching our website is the easiest way to find out if an communications provider is a member of our scheme: click here.

What am I likely to get if I complain?

If we decide the provider has made a mistake, or treated you unfairly, we’ll recommend which action they should take to put things right. This could include:

Take practical action e.g. credit your account, cancel an account, fix a problem with your service
Make an apology
Offering a financial 'Time and Trouble Award'
Make recommendations to prevent this happening again
A combination of these actions

For more information visit our What to expect page.

Who can you accept disputes from?

We can process disputes for domestic consumers, small businesses and not for profit organisations. For the communications sector this means:

A domestic consumer is a person who has communications services provided to their home
A small business consumer is a company which employs 10 people or fewer (whether as employees, volunteers or otherwise)
A not-for-profit consumer is a company which employs 10 people or fewer (whether as employees, or otherwise but excluding volunteers)

Can I ask a solicitor or other advisor to help with my dispute?

Our service offers a free alternative to going to court and you do not need to involve a lawyer or legal advisor when bringing your case to us. You are, however, entitled to seek independent advice or be represented or helped by a third party at any stage of the process.

Consumer Feedback

The service provided was excellent in every way. My case was dealt with very professionally and with empathy. I would recommend to anyone who has had any problems with communication providers to use this service.

I had an issue with my provider so contacted the ombudsman for advice, the advisor I had allocated to my case was Richard. He was brilliant from start to finish, very informative, explained everything and made sure I understood it.

I would highly recommend if you have any issues with companies then get in touch, the website was easy to use, communication was great.

Clear accurate communication and a simple and straightforward path through a difficult time is what has made this an excellent experience. Would certainly recommend to others.

Escalated my complaint to the Communications Ombudsman after getting nowhere with my provider. I mistakenly thought that I would achieve precisely nothing but I was proven incorrect. Completely satisfied with the professionalism of the Ombudsman staff and more than satisfied with their decision.

I had cause to refer to this service and found it very well run and I received excellent support and a fair resolution decision.

When I found handling my problem myself stressful. The help I received from the Ombudsman staff eased my mind. I would recommend anyone to use this service rather than struggle with there problem.

Ready to raise your dispute with us?

Raise dispute