The UK’s broadband services have undergone recent scrutiny, revealing notable disparities in customer complaints. Ofcom, the regulatory authority, has released its latest report on grievances from UK households, highlighting Vodafone and TalkTalk as underperformers. Both of these major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have seen a decline in their rankings compared to their competitors.
Vodafone received the poorest rating with 11 complaints per 100,000 customers, representing a deterioration from previous assessments, signaling an upward trend in dissatisfaction with Vodafone’s services.
“TalkTalk and Vodafone emerged as the most complained-about broadband providers. While Vodafone witnessed an uptick in complaints from the previous quarter, TalkTalk’s complaint levels remained consistent,” confirmed Ofcom.
Conversely, Virgin Media has excelled in this evaluation, marking a significant achievement considering its historical performance in similar tests.
“The least complained-about broadband providers were Plusnet and Virgin Media,” stated Ofcom. Plusnet and Sky were also recognized for their positive performance.
The rankings for broadband providers are as follows:
– Virgin Media: 5 complaints per 100,000
– Plusnet: 5 complaints per 100,000
– Sky: 7 complaints per 100,000
– BT: 8 complaints per 100,000
– EE: 8 complaints per 100,000
– TalkTalk: 10 complaints per 100,000
– Vodafone: 11 complaints per 100,000
In addition to broadband services, Ofcom also evaluates other services such as Landline and Pay-TV complaints.
Utility Warehouse leads in landline services with only 1 complaint per 100,000 customers, with Sky, Virgin Media, and Vodafone also receiving commendations.
For TV services, TalkTalk was rated the best, followed by Sky.
The TV service rankings are as follows:
– TalkTalk: 2 complaints per 100,000
– Sky: 2 complaints per 100,000
– Virgin Media: 3 complaints per 100,000
– EE: 5 complaints per 100,000
Overall, there has been an increase in complaints, attributed mainly to recent price hikes affecting numerous households across the UK.
Cristina Luna-Esteban, Ofcom’s Director of Consumers and Retail Markets, expressed disappointment at the rise in complaints, especially after a period of decreasing complaints about telecom companies.
The unexpected mid-contract price rises announced for some mobile customers in Autumn 2025 appear to be a significant factor driving these complaints. Ofcom will continue monitoring the market and future complaint figures to gauge ongoing customer satisfaction.