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haggle with Virgin for a better deal

Haggle with Virgin Media

Save £100s on your existing package, without having to cancel

Chris Knight
Chris Knight | Edited by Gary Caffell
Updated 17 August 2021

Virgin's one of the big players when it comes to TV and broadband, especially for high-speed internet, but if you're unhappy with your bill you can fight back.

If you want a better deal, this guide takes you through how to haggle to cut costs.

1-min read: How to haggle with Virgin to save £100s/yr

Virgin is one of the easiest firms to haggle with according to our last survey, with 77% of people who tried having some sort of success. If you're out of contract, here are a few quick tips to cut costs – there's a more comprehensive list in our full guide below:

1. Ditch optional extras. Paying for movies, but never watch them? Do a channel audit to work out what you don't watch and consider ditching channels you don't need.

2. Call Virgin and ask for a discount. First find out what newbies are paying as this will be useful ammo when negotiating. 

3. If it won't budge, consider walking away. Some of the best deals are had when you're prepared to cancel your service completely. It may help you get a better discount, or if you do cancel, they might try to entice you back with 'welcome back' offers.

Not what you want?...
Top 10 Firms To Haggle With | Digital TV Deals | Broadband Haggling | Compare Broadband, Phone and TV | Cheap Broadband | Mobile Phone Haggling | Haggle with BT | Haggle with Sky | Mobile Broadband Deals

illustration

'I haggled £411 off my Virgin bill'

Our most recent poll, conducted in November 2020, found 77% of Virgin customers who tried to haggle were successful in negotiating a better deal, showing what's possible.

To see who else this works well on, see the Top 10 Firms To Haggle With, but here are some examples of MoneySavers who've managed to slash their Virgin bills by haggling:


I had an email from Virgin saying our bill was going up to £46 from £28, so I phoned them and said it was too much and we wanted it reduced. They said £40 was the best they could do, so I told them to cancel it and got through to the disconnection team. After telling them it was still too much, I got a deal at £29/month for 18 months. Thank you. 
- Tim, by email

Cheers Martin, I haggled with Virgin and saved £22/month off my bill on an 18-month contract.
- David, via Twitter

Called Virgin to ask them to match BT/Plusnet broadband packages. Within five minutes they reduced our bill by £14/month.
- Travis, via Twitter

I haggled with Virgin last week as I was out of contract and got the same package down from £65 to £35.
- Paul, via Twitter

I phoned Virgin and suggested I was thinking of leaving. I immediately had my bill reduced by £21/month making an annual saving of £252.
- David, by email

Please let us know how you get on by sharing your success stories - and otherwise - via the MSE Forum, by emailing successes@moneysavingexpert.com or tweeting @MoneySavingExp.

Don't settle for high prices – make Virgin fight to keep you, or switch

Many stick with the same provider for years, fearful of losing services by switching or not wanting the hassle. But if you're out of contract and any promotional deal you had has now ended, it's likely you're now paying top whack for your services.

Yet if you're willing to take the haggle challenge, you could get a better price without switching. With a little charm, you could shave £100s off your bills in just a phone call.

Why haggling works

Here's the key thing to understand:

Companies make their best deals only available for newbies, and they LOVE loyal customers as they stay with the firm through thick 'n' thin, paying full price and never looking for a better deal.

This lets big firms rake in easy, guaranteed profit. So ask yourself a question: do you want to be a customer whose business is fought for. Unless you want to be taken for granted, take the haggle challenge.

In a nutshell, call up and ask for a better deal. Say you're paying too much or rivals' deals are cheaper. If that doesn't work, say you're leaving.

You'll usually get put through to companies' super-powerful hidden deals departments.

Check new deals too - remember, switching may be best

Haggling can be mega powerful, but think of it as just one part of your battle to get the best deal. Sometimes 'new customer' offers from alternative providers are simply unbeatable. So by all means haggle, but always check the price you secure against the top deals you'd get by switching – compare broadband, phone and TV deals.

Six top Virgin haggling tips

Haggling may sound straightforward, but perfecting it is an art. Here are our top tips for haggling with Virgin – for more, see our full guide on Haggling with Service Providers.

  • 1. Do a channel audit to see if you can ditch channel packages you don't watch

    If you have TV, work out what you really watch on Virgin and ditch the rest. There's no point in paying for channel packages you don't watch. Virgin has a selection of packages to choose from and you could always opt for a more basic one to cut costs.

  • 2. Timing is crucial – if you're out-of-contract, or close to the end, it's easier to leave without penalty

    Haggling works best when you're near or beyond the end of your contract. There's no harm in giving it a try earlier though – if you struggle, note in your diary when you'll be nearing the end of your contract and call back then (you can give Virgin notice of leaving 30 days beforehand).

    Even if you do forget, don't panic as telecoms and pay-TV companies are now forced to tell you that your contract is ending. This can be via a letter, email or text between 10 and 40 days before it ends.

    Furthermore, if Virgin hikes broadband or line rental prices (or even TV prices depending on the type of contract you have) mid-contract you may be able to leave penalty-free even if you're still in the minimum term. This can also be the case if it puts up the prices of additional services you regularly use, leading to "material detriment".

    If you're able to leave penalty-free, you'll have one month from receiving notification of the price rise to tell Virgin you want to switch provider, putting you at a distinct advantage if you want to negotiate.

  • 3. Benchmark the best deal – find out what newbies are paying so you have a realistic goal

    It's important to have the factual arsenal at your fingertips before you pick up the phone, so do your homework. 

    Research the deals and discounts Virgin and its competitors offer, as a basis for negotiation. Compare broadband, phone and TV deals and sign up to our weekly email to see the latest offers.

  • 4. Tell 'em you're happy with Freeview – most of Virgin's basic channels can be found on Freeview

    Freeview costs nothing for many people, comes with loads of channels, and if you mention it, it shows Virgin you know what you're talking about. 

    It's a useful opening gambit to start your haggle with as mentioning it tells Virgin your opening offer for that element of your package is £0.

    You can then take it from there, and hopefully you'll have a little more wiggle room to get a top deal.

  • 5. Get through to the retentions department – be nice and use the phrases that pay

    Remember, if you're coming to the end of your contract, or you're already out of it, you're wielding a powerhouse weapon – customer loyalty. It's simple to use too – just tell 'em you're going to leave. 

    If you don't have any luck via the advertised ways of getting in touch, then it may be worth trying another route to the 'customer retentions' department – aka the Holy Grail of haggling – instead. (Note: This department might be called 'disconnections' externally, but make no mistake, customer retention's their job.)

    You'll need to call Virgin on 0345 454 1111 to cancel but even the cancellation section of its site suggests it could offer you a better deal - providers are used to this so if you're feeling a little nervous, don't be. It's asking you to haggle and remember, it wants your custom.

    Use charm, chutzpah, cheek... and a smile

    Aggression or anger will just put their back up and won't get you anywhere. You're asking for a discount, and they're just as much within their right not to give it as you are to leave. Aim for polite, friendly, non-combative yet firm.

    Use the phrases that pay

    You may find that your Virgin customer service rep will only offer a small discount at first, but if you don't agree with the price, try phrases like: 

    - "I've worked out my budget, and my absolute max is £[insert price here]/mth."
    - "[BT/Plusnet/TalkTalk] can do it for less."
    - "I need to think about it."
    - "I think my other half will go bonkers if I pay that."
    - "It's still a lot of money."
    - "What's the very best you can do?    "

    Don't panic if they call your bluff and say they'll disconnect you

    Some people worry and get nervous to try this in case they're disconnected. Martin's easy 'get out of jail free' card on this is the phrase: "Hold on, I'll call you back on that. I'd like to check with my wife/husband/dog/goldfish first."

    Problems mean discounts

    If you've had issues with Virgin in the past, such as slow broadband or long customer service call waiting times, politely tell them when you haggle. It's useful ammunition – they should want to try and make it up to you.

    Don't say yes to the first offer they give

    You should never go with the first offer. Chances are, it's not the best deal they can do. Remember, be firm.

    Don't fill the silence

    They may push you to agree because it's a "limited-time offer", but don't feel pressured into agreeing to the new price or deal unless you're certain. 

    As negotiations come to a close, a classic sales technique is to stay silent. They want you to feel awkward and fill the silence. Make them fill it with a cheaper offer.

    Ask if they can throw in extras

    If they won't slash the price, ask them if they can at least include any extras, such as a faster connection. free calls or extra channels.

    If you fail – try, try and try again

    While unconfirmed, we hear rumours that at some companies different staff members have different quotas of how many deals they can do. 

    Even if that's not true, it certainly feels like that to many. So you may have called the wrong person at the wrong time. Calling back a few days later and speaking to someone else may pay dividends.

     

  • 6. Finally, if Virgin really won't play ball, vote with your feet

    If you don't get what you want, you should seriously consider leaving. Remember, new customers normally have the pick of the best TV, fibre broadband and line rental deals and there are other providers out there. Compare broadband, phone and TV deals to find the best one for you.

    Once you've given your notice to Virgin, we've heard of users getting a call from Virgin within the 30-day notice period offering a deal to entice you back. It's at that point the ball in your court.

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