Sky+ 12 month contract dilema

Flubber

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Ok so here goes.


Round about January I got a sky+ box from work, now as the sky account is in my brothers name. He phone customer services to get the sky+ set up and was told (by some person reading off his computer screen in India or somewhere) that he would have to take out a new contract to get sky+. After about 10 mins of trying to explain that we did not want a new box and we just wanted the service activated he hung up and tried technical services, after going through the stages (password etc.) he then passed the phone to me and I explained to the advisor that I already had a box and just wanted it set up which he said was no problem and could do straight away, I asked him if this would result in a new contract being started to which he replied NO so I let him carry on and set it up.


So good times were had watching and recording programs. That is until 18th April.


My brother decide it was time to find his own place so we agreed to transfer the sky to my name so I could keep it when he left, this is when the trouble started. After speaking to customer services and explaining that if I took over the account and was subject to a new contract I would just ask my bro to cancel and then I would start a new account myself with the deal they were doing at the time (at this point I must admit I thought they would put him through to retentions and they would offer me new box and whatever to take over account).


So having been put through to cancellations he was then told that he in fact could not cancel as he was in contract which was started when sky+ was set up, so after explaining to the advisor that when the sky+ was set up I asked the advisor if it would result in a new contract and was told NO he said they would have to listen to the recording of the phone conversation and get back in touch. Which they didn't. Last week I phoned then back up and after going through all that had happened previously was told exactly the same thing “we will have to listen to the recording to see if you were told that” I was then told “we will definitely be in touch by Friday 6th May at the latest “.


Well Friday came and went and (not that I am surprised) no phone call.


So Eventually to my questions (sorry for the long winded post)


Has this happened to anyone else?
Can they start up a new contract when we provided our own box?
Can I ask for a copy of the recorded phone conversations if I am not satisfied with their response to my problem?
Would contacting Ofcom of trading standards help or would it just be that long in being resolved that the contract would probably have finished.


We both have been quite happy with the services provided by sky but I am now starting to look at alternative options as sky just seem to be fobbing us off at every turn.
 
Has this happened to anyone else?

Everybody who takes out a Sky TV contract has to have it for a minimum 12 months.

Can they start up a new contract when we provided our own box?

Not only can they - they do. Always!

Can I ask for a copy of the recorded phone conversations if I am not satisfied with their response to my problem?

You can ask - but they record it for their protection, not yours. And there's no guarantee that they'll be able to lay their hands on the recording. If you want to listen to the recorded conversation, you should have recorded it yourself.

Would contacting Ofcom of trading standards help or would it just be that long in being resolved that the contract would probably have finished.

All Sky are doing is asking you to stick to the terms and conditions which everybody agrees to when they sign up for Sky TV. I don't think you'd have a leg to stand on regarding Ofcom.
 
My brother has been with sky for over 5 years so he was well out of his contract when we phoned.

I was told by the advisor when I asked if it would start a new contract that it wouldn't so on his advice went ahead. If i was told otherwise i wouldn't have bothered getting it set up in the first place. So in my opinion I was lied too.

We didn't agree to any terms and conditions because we were told it would not start a new contract.
 
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So in my opinion I was lied too.

Agreed - but can you prove it?

Taking out Sky+ - where previously you only had Sky - ties you to new 12 month contract. Whether Sky provide the equipment (i.e. the Sky+ box) or not. As the first operator told you.
 
Hang on Broadz - Sky+ isn't something you take out is it? It's available free of charge to anyone with any Sky subscription. Why would the date when you happen to start using it make any difference? The Sky guy who "said was no problem" was - or at least could have been - right.
 
Hang on Broadz - Sky+ isn't something you take out is it? It's available free of charge to anyone with any Sky subscription. Why would the date when you happen to start using it make any difference? The Sky guy who "said was no problem" was - or at least could have been - right.

I know when I replaced a standard Sky box which I had as my multiroom box with a Sky+ box I bought myself on ebay, when I called to add Sky+ functionality to my multiroom card the operator told me that this would tie me in to a new 12 month contract on that card. So yes, it is part of the terms and conditions of getting Sky+ functionality that you agree to be a customer for a further twelve months.
 
I don't want to labour this but my point is that you get Sky+ functionality from the day you first pay a subscription to Sky, regardless of whether you can use it or not. The only T&C that Sky+ functionality involves are that it costs £10 a month unless you have a Sky subscription.
 
I don't want to labour this but my point is that you get Sky+ functionality from the day you first pay a subscription to Sky,

Only if Sky add Sky+ functionality to your account. And at the point that they add Sky+ functionality to your account, you are tied for a further twelve months.

Sky+ is a product that you buy from Sky the same as the Variety Mix, the HD Pack, etc. The fact that they then credit you this £10 back if you have a Sky TV subscription is a thank you for having a Sky TV subscription - but it is still a product you buy from them in the first place.

Now, if the OP had added Sky+ functionality to his card when he first took out a Sky TV subscription - even though he didn't have a Sky+ box at that point - then he probably wouldn't be in this situation now. Hindsight - it's a wonderful thing isn't it?
 
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Unless things have changed in the last couple of years, I'd have to disagree with Broadz. I don't believe enabling Sky+ on an existing account results in a new 12 month contract period. It certainly didn't for me about 2 years ago. Or for my dad around 18 months ago.

Flubber, I would email Jeremy Darroch with what you've posted here and see if the special customer support team will sort it out.
 
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Well I phoned sky again yesterday and the advisor I spoke to this time was really helpful, basically they are sending a new sky+ box out which will entail a 12 month contract but as they were saying we were in contract anyway I thought we might aswell get a new box for it. The account will stay in my brothers name and she said that when he moves out he can get it moved free of charge to his new place then I can take out my own contract. So as I wanted to keep using sky its a compromise I can live with, if only I had spoken to this advisor in the first place.

Thanks all.
 
And at the point that they add Sky+ functionality to your account, you are tied for a further twelve months.
I had the 3D channel activated on mine and that did nothing to my contract.
What were people's experiences when they added the Anytime+ functionality to their accounts?
 
I had the 3D channel activated on mine and that did nothing to my contract.
What were people's experiences when they added the Anytime+ functionality to their accounts?

Both 3D and Anytime+ activation are completely different scenarios as both are only available to subscribers. Sky+ is a chargeable subscription (to FreesatFromSky customers) but is subject to a full credit on the accounts of subscribers taking other TV services.
 
It's perfectly possible that Sky do handle it that way, but we've already had one post where they didn't, and I'd be interested to hear about others' experience, either way.
Sky+ is charged - and waived - but from the first day of a subscription, so what difference does it make when the customer actually began using it?
 
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Sky+ is charged - and waived - but from the first day of a subscription, so what difference does it make when the customer actually began using it?

No it isn't. You only get charged (and credited) for Sky+ from the day that Sky+ is activated on your account - and it certainly isn't activated by default on a Sky account with a non Sky+ box. Else there would be no reason for people to phone Sky to have Sky+ functionality added to their card when they replace a standard box with a Sky+ box.
 
OK - it's that "certainly" that I'm not certain about. :D
We have a post that says it was not certain at all in two cases, and a Sky agent who said NO to it.
 

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