Broadband providers are failing to properly inform low-income households of lower priced ‘social tariffs’ that could save them hundreds of pounds.

Regulator Ofcom has called on all UK providers to introduce social tariffs and start promoting them more widely, as well as making it easy for customers to sign up.

Millions of families will come under pressure from the rising cost of living over the next few months, with prices for services such as broadband and energy set to skyrocket.

Ofcom has found that, if households in receipt of Universal Credit switch to these lower tariffs, they could each save around £144 on their annual broadband bills.

However, only about 55,000 homes have so far taken advantage of these discounts – just 1.2% of those eligible, Ofcom said, meaning millions are missing out.

Currently six broadband providers – BT, Community Fibre, G.Network, Hyperoptic, KCOM and Virgin Media O2 – offer at least one of these specially discounted deals. However, the majority are failing to inform customers.

Around 5% of households in the UK are struggling to afford their home broadband service, Ofcom’s report on affordability has found.

This number rises to around one in 10 among the lowest-income households, with affordability problems likely to worsen in 2022 due to retail price increases and the wider squeeze on household finances.

Lindsey Fussell, Ofcom’s Network and Communications Group Director, commented: “People rely on their broadband for staying in touch, working and learning from home. But for those who are really struggling with rising bills, every penny counts.

“Special discounts can make all the difference, and too many broadband firms are failing either to promote their social tariff or to offer one at all.

“We expect companies to step up support for those on low incomes, and we’ll be watching their response.”

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Currently a standard commercial broadband package costs an unemployed person claiming Universal Credit an average of £27 per month – or 8.3% of their monthly disposable income.

A £15 social tariff would almost halve their broadband costs and use up 4.6% of disposable income.

Despite the savings to be made, Ofcom’s research shows that the vast majority of benefits recipients (84%) are unaware of social tariffs, and take-up is extremely low.

“We have seen limited evidence of providers actively promoting their social tariffs to eligible customers. These deals don’t generally feature in broadband advertising or price comparison website searches,” Ofcom said.

The regulator added that providers must “step up” to support struggling households and ensure that customers on lower incomes can benefit from reliable broadband at a more affordable cost.

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