- 26.7 million people, almost half (48%) of UK adults, lost their broadband connection in the past year, up almost a fifth (19%) on 2025[1]
- Power cuts are now the leading cause of outages, affecting two in five (42%) of those hit, ahead of provider faults (31%)[2]
- Two in five (43%) are worried storms, flooding or power cuts could knock out their broadband this winter, as the Met Office warns of an "unprecedented" El Niño[3]
- Around 14 million people have a digital landline that relies on mains power, and 4.6 million of them don't realise it stops working in a power cut[4]
- Just one in six (16%) of those hit by an outage received compensation, down from 22% last year, while more than half (57%) didn't know they could ask[5]
- Uswitch broadband expert Max Beckett shares five tips to prepare for an outage this winter, including when you're owed compensation
More than 26 million people lost their broadband connection at least once in the past year, with power cuts the leading cause, according to new research by Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service.[1]
Most outages are no brief blip. Two-thirds (66%) of those affected, 17.6 million people, were cut off for three hours or more, and 5.3 million say it happens at least once a week.[6] Almost half of UK adults (48%) have now been hit by an outage, up almost a fifth (19%) on 2025.[1]
Among those hit by an outage, two in five (42%) lost their connection to a power cut, followed by provider faults (31%) and router problems (25%).[2] Rural households are hit hardest: almost two-thirds (63%) of those affected lost broadband to a power cut, compared with just over a quarter (28%) in urban areas.[2]
The risk of broadband outages may grow this winter. The Met Office warns that an "unprecedented" El Niño could make autumn and early winter wetter and stormier than usual, with its head of long-range prediction, Professor Adam Scaife, saying he has "never seen an El Niño signal this intense in our forecasts".[3]
Severe weather is a major cause of power cuts: Storm Arwen alone left just under a million homes without electricity in November 2021.[7] Almost four million adults (7%) lost their broadband to a storm, flood or severe weather in the past year, rising to one in eight (12%) in rural areas,[2] and two in five Brits (43%) are worried that storms, flooding or power cuts could knock out their connection in the months ahead.[3]
For many homes, losing power also means losing the phone. A quarter of UK adults (26%), around 14 million people, have a digital landline that runs through their broadband router, which means it stops working in a power cut unless a battery backup is fitted. Around a third of them (32%), about 4.6 million people, don't know this.[4]
The switch to digital landlines is well under way, with most homes expected to have moved off the old copper network by January 2027.[8] Because they run through the broadband router, providers must make sure customers can still reach the emergency services for at least an hour in a power cut, and offer free battery backup to those at risk.
Few people are getting compensation. Just one in six (16%) of those hit by an outage received compensation, down from 22% last year, and more than half (57%) didn't know they could ask, though not every outage qualifies.[5]
Under Ofcom's automatic compensation scheme, customers of participating providers, which include BT, EE, Sky, TalkTalk, Virgin Media and Vodafone, are owed £10.34 a day if a total loss of service isn't fixed within two full working days of being reported.[9] Shorter outages and drop-outs don't qualify, so not everyone who lost connection is owed money.
Londoners were the most likely to have lost their connection, with three in five (60%) affected, up from just over half (53%) in 2025, followed by the South West (56%) and the West Midlands (51%).[10]
Table: Proportion of adults who lost their broadband connection in the past 12 months, by region.[10]
| Region | % who lost connection |
|---|---|
| London | 60% |
| South West | 56% |
| West Midlands | 51% |
| Northern Ireland | 48% |
| South East | 48% |
| North West | 47% |
| East of England | 47% |
| North East | 47% |
| East Midlands | 46% |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 45% |
| Scotland | 41% |
| Wales | 39% |
| UK | 48% |
Max Beckett, Uswitch broadband expert, says: "Your broadband is only as reliable as the electricity behind it, and power cuts are now the main reason people lose their connection. It's worth spending a few minutes now working out what you'd do if it went off for an afternoon.
"It's also worth knowing how your landline works. Most homes are moving onto digital landlines that run through the broadband router, which means the phone needs power. If the electricity goes off, so does the phone, and millions of people don't realise that. Keep a charged mobile to hand, and if anyone in your home relies on the landline, ask your provider about a battery backup.
"If you've been left offline for days, check that your provider is in Ofcom's compensation scheme and that the money has arrived. Not every provider is signed up, and that's worth knowing before you renew."
Max Beckett's five tips to be prepared when your broadband or power goes down:
- Know how your landline works: If your home phone connects through your broadband router, it needs mains power, so it won't work in a power cut. That's the standard setup for a digital landline, so there's no need to change it, but keep a charged mobile to hand. Your provider must make sure you can still reach the emergency services for at least an hour in a power cut, and should offer free battery backup if you're vulnerable or don't have a mobile.
- Know who to call in a power cut: In Great Britain, dial 105 to report it. If you have a health condition or rely on medical equipment and you're worried about losing connection in a power cut, ask your electricity network operator about joining the Priority Services Register.
- Have a Plan B: Know how you'd get online if your broadband went down for a day. For most people that means tethering to a mobile. If your signal at home is poor, a 4G or 5G backup router is worth considering.
- Rule out your own kit first: Restart the router and check your provider's status page or app before you assume it's a wider fault.
- Know the compensation rules: Report a total loss of service straight away, because the clock only starts when you do. If it isn't fixed after two full working days, participating providers owe you £10.34 a day, so check your bill to make sure it arrives. If your provider isn't signed up to the scheme, it's worth knowing before you next renew.
Visit Uswitch.com to compare broadband deals in your area.
-ENDS-
For more information
Harriet Atkinson | Telecoms PR Manager
harriet.atkinson@rvu.co.uk
Twitter: @UswitchPR
Notes to editors
Research conducted online by Opinium, 29 September to 2 October 2026, among 2,000 UK adults, weighted to be nationally representative. UK adult population figures are based on the ONS estimate of 55,022,253 adults and are calculated using unrounded percentages. Figures for 2025 are from Uswitch research conducted by Opinium among 2,000 UK adults between 31 October and 4 November 2025.
1. Respondents were asked "Have you lost your broadband connection or had it drop out for any of the following reasons in the past 12 months?" 47% selected "N/A – I have not experienced any broadband outages in the last 12 months" and 5% selected "Don't know". Excluding "Don't know", 970 of 2,000 respondents (48%) had experienced an outage: 970 / 2,000 x 55,022,253 = 26,685,793. This measures the proportion of adults who experienced at least one outage; it does not measure the number of individual outages. In the 2025 research, 814 of 2,000 respondents (41%) had experienced an outage: 814 / 2,000 x 55,022,253 = 22,394,057. Difference: 4,291,736, an increase of 19.2% (rounded to 19%). Methodological note: an additional answer option, "storm, flooding or severe weather", was added to this multi-code question in 2026 and was not available in 2025. Only 25 respondents selected this option exclusively, so the effect of the additional option on the overall proportion experiencing an outage is minimal, and Opinium is satisfied that the year-on-year comparison can be made on that basis.
2. From the question in note 1, among the 970 respondents who had experienced an outage (excluding "Don't know"): power cut 42%, broadband provider outage 31%, router not working 25%, storm, flooding or severe weather 15%. Power cut by area, among those affected: rural 63% (base 168), semi-rural 46%, suburban 41%, urban 28%. Respondents could select more than one cause. In the 2025 research (base 814): power cut 33%, broadband provider outage 37%, router not working 27%. Because the "storm, flooding or severe weather" option was not available in 2025, comparisons between individual causes should be treated with care. Separately, 7% of all adults selected storm, flooding or severe weather (3,934,091 adults); by area, as a share of all adults in each area: rural 12%, semi-rural 9%, suburban 5%, urban 6%.
3. Met Office: "An 'unprecedented' El Niño and its implications for the weather forecast", Met Office blog, 21 August 2026, in which Professor Adam Scaife, Met Office head of long-range prediction, said: "I have never seen an El Niño signal this intense in our forecasts." The Met Office expects the event to "increase the chances of wetter, stormier conditions for NW Europe, including the UK, in the coming autumn and early winter." https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/blog/2026/an-unprecedented-el-nio-and-its-implications-for-the-weather-forecast. Respondents were asked "How concerned are you, if at all, that storms, flooding or power cuts could knock out your broadband this autumn and winter?" 13% were very concerned and 30% fairly concerned (net 43%).
4. Respondents were asked "Which of these best describes your home landline?" 26% have a landline that plugs into their broadband router (14,113,208 adults), 18% have one that plugs into a phone socket on the wall, 5% have a landline but aren't sure which, and 51% don't have a landline. Respondents were asked "Do you understand the following to be true or false? 'A landline connected through a broadband router stops working during a broadband outage or power cut'." Among respondents whose landline plugs into their broadband router (base: 513), 68% said true, 10% false and 22% didn't know, so 32% were unaware (false or don't know), equivalent to around 4.6 million adults. The same respondents were asked "Were you told about this when your landline was moved onto this setup?" 37% said yes, clearly; 19% probably, but didn't really take it in; 24% no; 18% don't know / can't remember; 3% it was set up when they moved in.
5. Respondents who had experienced an outage (base: 970) were asked "Did you receive any compensation from your provider as a result of your broadband outages?" 6% received automatic compensation, 11% received it after requesting it (net received: 16%), 11% requested it but were denied, 57% said they didn't know they could request it and 16% knew but didn't request it. In the 2025 research (base 814), 9% received automatic compensation and 12% received it after requesting it (net received: 22%), 9% requested it but were denied, 55% didn't know they could request it and 14% knew but didn't request it. Compensation under Ofcom's scheme is only payable in the circumstances set out in note 9; the survey did not establish how many respondents' outages met those criteria.
6. Respondents who had experienced a broadband outage in the past 12 months (48% of UK adults, see note 1) were asked "How often have you lost your broadband connection for a continuous period of three hours or more in the last 12 months?" 66% had experienced at least one outage of three hours or more (17,662,143 adults); 20% experienced them once a week or more often (daily 2%, 4 to 6 times a week 5%, 2 to 3 times a week 8%, once a week 5%), equivalent to 5,337,159 adults. Frequency is self-reported.
7. Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, "Energy Emergencies Executive Committee Storm Arwen Review: Interim Report", February 2022: "just under 1 million households experienced power cuts, 59,101 of whom were without power for over 48 hours and 3,032 for a week or more." https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1055504/arwen-review-interim-report.pdf
8. UK government guidance, "UK transition from analogue to digital landlines": the industry expects most customers to complete the migration by January 2027, although not all analogue phone services will be switched off by then, depending on the provider. Digital landlines cannot carry a power connection, so handsets and routers must be powered from the home power supply. Communications providers must ensure customers can reach emergency services for at least one hour during power outages, and should offer battery backup units at no charge to customers at risk. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/uk-transition-from-analogue-to-digital-landlines
9. Ofcom, "Automatic compensation: what you need to know": customers of participating providers receive £10.34 for each calendar day a total loss of service is not repaired, starting two full working days after the fault is reported; £32.31 per missed engineer appointment; £6.46 per calendar day of delayed service start. Participating providers: BT, EE, Hyperoptic, Plusnet, Sky (including NOW Broadband), TalkTalk, Utility Warehouse, Virgin Media, Vodafone and Zen Internet. Amounts rise each year in line with inflation. https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/service-quality/automatic-compensation-need-know
10. From the question in note 1, by region (% experiencing an outage, excluding "Don't know"): London 60% (2025: 53%), South West 56%, West Midlands 51%, Northern Ireland 48%, South East 48%, North West 47%, East of England 47%, North East 47%, East Midlands 46%, Yorkshire and the Humber 45%, Scotland 41%, Wales 39%. The 2025 regional figure is from the 2025 data tables and was not published at the time. Regional figures are based on smaller samples than the national figures (unweighted bases range from 77 in Northern Ireland to 283 in London), so differences between neighbouring regions are indicative only.