BT Landline

BT compensation: Are you one of the 3.7m customers who could be owed up to £400?

BT sued £1.3 billion for overcharging 3.7m customers – the court decision on compensation is due soon.

The telecoms giant BT was sued for up to £1.3 billion in a compensation claim brought on behalf of 3.7m residential landline customers who were said to have been overcharged. It was claimed people could be eligible for up to £400 compensation, depending on the length of their contract.

The eight week trial against BT came to a close on Friday 22 March 2024. The Competition Appeal Tribunal handed its judgment down on 19 December in which it ‘unanimously’ dismissed the £1.3 billion claim that accused BT of overcharging for its landline services. 

The ruling means BT does not have to pay out any compensation. In a final blow, the Court of Appeal has shut down the last legal route for compensation over unfair landline charges by refusing Le Patourel, who led the claim, an application to appeal the Tribunal’s decision.

BT rips off loyal customers

In 2017 Ofcom, the telecoms watchdog, found BT had been overcharging its standalone landline customers since at least 2009. It had been continuing to put up the price of landlines despite the fact costs had been falling since 2009. 

After Ofcom’s ruling BT reduced its line rental price for some customers but it didn’t compensate customers for its historic overcharging. This overcharging affects 3.7 million UK landline customers, many of whom are older and vulnerable and could be owed up to £400 each. 

Have you been overcharged?

There are two groups of people that were said to be eligible for compensation:

• Landline-only customers. You had a BT landline service between October 2015 and April 2018, but did not receive a broadband service.
• Split purchase customers. You had a BT landline service and also a separate broadband service, any time between October 2015 and December 2023, but didn’t ‘bundle’ these services together into a single, discounted package.

The estates of more than half a million BT customers who have died could also be eligible to have claimed compensation if the claim was won.

Justin Le Patourel was approved to represent those affected and instructed the law firm Mishcon de Reya to advance the claim. The action is funded by Harbour. 

What to do next to claim compensation

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