Don’t overpay for Sky, Virgin, or BT TV – existing customers can haggle up to 50% off with just a phone call, new customers can slice chunks off if they sign up the right way.
With the cost of digital TV often £300-£600 if you add it up over a year, this step-by-step guide including best-buy comparisons will help you slash the cost.
Existing customers
Haggle down the existing price
It really works!
Before we get into the how-to, here are some successes to show you how easy it is:
Step 1: Calculate the real cost
If you have a subscription, multiply your package's monthly cost by twelve to establish the annual cost. Unpleasantly, it's likely to be £300 to £600. This isn't churlish anti-TV sentiment, but an elbow in the ribs to consider whether this huge sum represents good value. For some it might.
The costs don't stop there
Many people, especially Virgin Media users, also get a phone package with their TV - often a penalty, not a bonus.
These can be monumentally expensive, and substantially more costly than the cheapest providers (see Cheapest Home Phones guide).
For example, a 10-minute daytime Virgin Media call to a mobile averages £2.08, using BT it's £1.26, and with cheap calls provider 18185 just 65p so don't believe the 'digital TV free with a phone service' hype. Effectively you're paying.
You can still cut the cost of calls though, use the Int CallChecker or UK Callchecker to find the cheapest providers that work on a Virgin line.
Step 2: Do a channel audit
The formal approach to examining your usage should be a sofa-side notebook, detailing the times and lengths of watched channels, yet that's nerdy. Scanning through the channels (with the family) should let you know which are important.
Remember, real past viewing habits are a better guide than guessing at future preferences. Most important is how often you really watch the premium sport and/or movie channels.
Step 3: Use the comparisons
TV providers' leaflets and brochures aim to corral you into a narrow range of categorised packages, designed to make you pick multiple (and therefore more expensive) options. Yet there's more flexibility on both price and package than they let on.
Before pushing for a better offer, arm yourself with the best deals and comparisons below, as these can often bite chunks out of the annual cost.
Treat the results only as a benchmark, as the comparison won't include the myriad of special offers pushed through letter boxes and stuffed in magazines (worth watching for).
Step 4: How to haggle
The obvious haggle start-point (you've little choice) is with the customer service operatives.
Ask about the cost of your package (or reduced package if the channel audit showed you're over-using) and see what deals are available.
Ensure they realise you've the opportunity to shift to a more competitive package elsewhere or Freeview, yet give them hope with "can you offer me a deal? I'd much prefer to stick with you".
If they're not willing to play ball, the powerhouse maneouvre is threatening to leave. Remember 'disconnections' is often internally named 'customer retentions' as that's their business aim, thus they've much wider discretion to give better deals, as ultimately their job is to keep your custom.
Add your haggle success or read others
Don't be ruled by pride
Remember this is a haggling – not a leaving – exercise. One danger is you threaten to leave, it doesn't improve the offer, and you feel embarrassed into actually leaving. Don't do this. Buy time to reconsider by saying "right, I'll think about this and get back to you".
Best Buys: For new customers
If you're a new customer or your haggle didn't give you a big enough discount, below are the current top deals.
Here, it's all about timing. Offers come and go so you need to grab them while you can.
Sky+HD, £100 M&S vouchers & £100 cashback
Plus free set-up and Sky+HD box
Sky is offering £100 in M&S vouchers when new customers sign up for a Sky+HD package* before 11.59pm, Wed 21 Dec '11. Plus you get free set-up and a free Sky+ box (usually £30 each).
The Sky+HD subscription package costs an extra £10.25/month.
Get £100 cashback
Even better, sign up via cashback sites Topcashback* or Quidco* and get around £100 on top.
Remember this type of cashback isn't 100% guaranteed, and Quidco takes the first £5/year earnt as an admin fee. Full details of this in the Top Cashback Sites guide.
Your M&S voucher will be sent via Special Delivery within 45 days of activating your viewing card.
What does the basic package cost?
A basic Sky+ package starts at £19.50/mth, the HD package costs £10.25/mth on top, plus pay an extra £12.25/mth if you get Sky's line rental instead of using BT.
Factor in the value of the vouchers and the £100 cashback and over the 12 month contract it works out at £25.33/mth including line rental.
Sky+, £100 M&S vouchers & £50 cashback
Plus free Sky+ box (worth £30)
Sky is offering £100 in M&S vouchers when new customers sign up for a Sky+ package* before 11.59pm Wed 21 Dec '11. Plus you get a free Sky+box (usually £30).
Even better, sign up via cashback sites Topcashback* or Quidco* and get around £50 on top.
Get £100 cashback
Remember this type of cashback isn't 100% guaranteed, and Quidco takes the first £5/year earnt as an admin fee. Full details of this in the Top Cashback Sites guide.
Your M&S voucher will be sent via Special Delivery within 45 days of activating your viewing card.
What does the basic cost?
A basic Sky+ package starts at £19.50/mth, plus pay an extra £12.25/mth if you get its line rental instead of using BT and a £30 set-up fee. Yet factor in the value of the vouchers and £50 cashback over the 12 month contract and it works out at £21.75/mth including line rental.
Virgin, £60 off & £62 cashback
Plus free set-up (worth £50)
Virgin is offering new customers free installation and a free TiVo box (Virgin's HD offering) when you sign up online to any Virgin bundle including TV, scheduled to end 9 December '11. Virgin says these are worth £49.95 each.
Even better, sign up via cashback site Topcashback* and get £62.36 cashback on top (or £61.75 via Quidco*).
Remember this type of cashback isn't 100% guaranteed, and Quidco takes the first £5/year earnt as an admin fee. Full details of this in the Top Cashback Sites guide.
What does the basic cost?
A basic Virgin TV and phone package starts at £23.40/mth, including Virgin's line rental which is £13.90 and the £3/month TiVo subscription.
But factor in the £62.36 cashback over the 18 month contract and it works out at £19.93/mth all in, including line rental. For this you get weekend calls and the basic TV package.
Yet this isn't as good as past cashback offers of up to £150 and bill credits of £100, so you may be better off waiting.
Best Buys: For existing customers
Sky doesn't often offer deals to existing customers (unless you threaten to leave) so grab them when you can.
Upgrade to Sky+HD, £100 M&S vouchers
Plus free Sky+ HD box - must take a £10 HD subscription
Existing Sky customers upgrading to Sky+HD before Wed 21 Dec '11 can get £100 M&S vouchers.
To get the offer, log-in to your Sky account online and go to 'upgrades'.
Existing customer deals aren't as common as new customer offers so this is a good opportunity to upgrade, but it may be possible to beat this by haggling.
To get HD you need to pay a monthly HD subscription costing £10.25/month on a 12 month contract on top of the basic package costs (from £19.50/mth). Of course you'll need a HD TV as well.
Speedily check comparisons for bespoke bundles
The best comparisons
If you're looking for a more comprehensive package with certain add-ons, check the comparison sites to find the best deals. The best are Simplify Digital*, Uswitch* and Digital Choices*.
Simply enter the channels you're looking for (as established in your channel audit - step 2 above) and it shows the alternatives available in your area.
What about Freeview?
Freeview costs from as little as £10 with no expensive installation costs. In its basic form you only get 50 permanent channels, less than other types of one-off digital boxes but sufficient for most.
Around 25% of the population cannot get Freeview because of location (check at Freeview) which means you'll need to look at one of the other options.
Those over 75 and in receipt of certain benefits may be entitled to a free Freeview box - click below for more info.
Are you entitled to a free freeview box?
You may be entitled to a free digital Freeview box, plus help to install it, if you or your partner are aged 75 or over, on the following social security benefits:
Attendance Allowance, Constant Attendance Allowance (CAA) under the Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit scheme and CAA and War Pensioners Mobility Supplement under the pre-2005 War Pensions scheme; or if you, your partner or dependant child are registered as blind or partially sighted AND you are on Pension Credit, Income Support or income-based Jobseekers' Allowance.
For full eligibility details see the Digital Switchover Help Scheme page.
How to pick the right package
If you're not sure what extras you want, read these tips on what to watch for.
Only pick the channels you know you'll watch
There's no point paying colossal prices to have 'access' to channels you won't watch, so decide what you want and get the right package.
If you're a keen footie fan, only sign up to the sports channels for the football season. Cancel for the summer and you'll save a wad of cash. Some providers insist on 30 days' notice, so set a reminder to do it in time.
Are you locked in?
18-month contracts are common now and can protect you from future market price shifts. If you're moving soon, most providers will charge a fee or ask you to pay the remainder of the contract, a lot of cash if you're at the beginning of a contract.
Broadband speed & download limit
Internet speed is measured in Kb, the amount of information transferred per second. Basic broadband is 512Kb, nearly ten times faster than dial-up, yet 8Mb (c.8,000 Kb), a further 20 times faster, is common, and super-fast 24Mb is now available in some areas.
For those just doing basic surfing 2Mb is enough. If you download music and films (including programmes like iplayer) a faster connection of 8Mb may be better. Yet just because a package says up to 8Mb don't assume that's what you'll get; it depends on your line, so your speed may be much less. Check yours using the speed detector on Think Broadband.
When it comes to downloads, for most people 5-10GB will probably be fine for checking emails and surfing the net. If you download music, TV and films you'll need more. For more details on speed and downloads read the Cheapest Broadband guide.
Do you want to record programmes?
Get special equipment from your provider and you'll be able to record, pause and rewind digital TV programmes. This can add up to £150 on to the installation costs but you may be able to negotiate this.
The Sky+ box and Virgin's V+ cost around £150 for new customers, although the more expensive the TV package the more they're likely to discount this. It's possible to get Freeview boxes with the ability to do this.
The Size of the Saving
Switching from Sky/cable to Freeview saves many £400 plus a year, enough to supplement the loss of movie channels with DVD rentals! However, even without ditching, the savings can be huge.
While filming one of Martin's TV programmes one family that followed this step-by-step technique cut its Sky bill from roughly £50 to £25 a month, without losing any of the regularly watched channels, and pushing hard on the phone for a better deal. That's £300 a year.
Rise in first-time buyers predicted
Will the big freeze hit energy bills?
Benefit cap 'could hurt couples'
OFT launches investigation into gym contracts
House prices 'still falling slightly'
Surprise call from Ed Davey, Energy Minister – on collective switching
A warning to freelancers and the self-employed everywhere
A dragon in the Napoleonic wars
Student loans will be interest free for many 2012 starters
Why I confidently predict this recession won't be as 'severe' as the last
"I rang Virgin Media, as I was being charged £38 month for broadband, TV and phone before call charges. I mentioned a family member had signed up to all three for only £30 a month. It immediately reduced my broadband costs by £10 a month, saving £120 a year."
"6 months half price everything and ESPN free for 3 months
reduced my broadband cost by a £5. Plus I got a free Sky HD+ box with free fitting."
"Last night I phoned up to "leave" Sky as we are moving house. We have been out of contract for some time, but never tried to get a deal before. Spoke to a helpful lady in retentions upgraded my package to everything and gave me a 50% discount on the whole lot for 6 months. I've gone from paying £40/mth to £24/mth and now I get the movies! Happy days"