18 October 2006
Poor customer service is undermining consumers' satisfaction with their broadband provider.
Research by Point Topic found that 91% of customers are happy with the quality and reliability of service provided by their ISP.
However, a quarter of broadband customers are "irritated and frustrated" with the support services offered by their provider.
"Support is the one key issue that makes customers unhappy," said Tim Johnson, chief executive at Point Topic.
He continued: "Sales messages are mostly about speed and price, but the offerings are all becoming much the same. Big new entrants are trying to grab customers quickly, and finding it hard to keep up with delivery and support.
"So service is starting to move up the scale of customer concerns very quickly. It could soon be one of the biggest factors in choosing an ISP."
Broadband customers are generally happier than their dial-up counterparts, with 82% of broadband users being satisfied with download times.
Telewest was rated as offering the worst value for money among the major ISP providers while Orange and Tiscali customers are the most likely to be unhappy with their bills.
The findings are based on interviews with 2122 people during January and February 2006.
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