Social Tariff - Broadband AND TV ?

[chrisredgwell]

So , heres an issue,

My mother has had a stroke , some 8 years ago , leaving her severley disabled on her left side , has speech and sight problems .

She recieves benifits that qualify her for a social taffif .

Reaserching most if not all social tarrifs talk about only broadband , my moyjer is house bond watches , well listens to the TV.

to be honest the broadband speed is appauling , so bad i've had to have virgin fibre installed in addition to her sky broadband as its pityfully slow. 

I have not been able t find an actual TV deal to allow her to be able to watch TV or in her case listen to TV , does Sky or any of the other providers discount TV for the elderley and or disabled ?

ChrisR

[Daniel0210]

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@chrisredgwell wrote:

does Sky or any of the other providers discount TV for the elderley and or disabled ?

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@chrisredgwell 

Sky don't offer discounts purely based on age or a disability. The social tariff only applies to Broadband and there is no TV equivalent. 

This link explains the process if she is eligible for Sky Broadband Basics.
https://www.sky.com/help/articles/sky-social-tariff
The Sky account holder needs to be claiming Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Income Support, Income based Jobseekers Allowance or Income based Employment Support Allowance. These are the only qualifying benefits and in order for Sky to carry out checks with DWP they will need her NI number. The social tariff is for Sky Broadband Superfast 35 with an average download speed of 36Mb/s and the Sky Talk Pay As You Go tariff (ie: all calls are chargeable). It does not offer a discounted Sky Talk plan.

If she is eligible you’ll need to call Sky to join. There is no equivalent offer for TV. The social tariff lasts 18 months and then reverts to the full cost but if she is still eligible you will then need to re-apply on her behalf. 

[Invisiblename]

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@chrisredgwell wrote:

So , heres an issue,

My mother has had a stroke , some 8 years ago , leaving her severley disabled on her left side , has speech and sight problems .

She recieves benifits that qualify her for a social taffif .

Reaserching most if not all social tarrifs talk about only broadband , my moyjer is house bond watches , well listens to the TV.

to be honest the broadband speed is appauling , so bad i've had to have virgin fibre installed in addition to her sky broadband as its pityfully slow. 

I have not been able t find an actual TV deal to allow her to be able to watch TV or in her case listen to TV , does Sky or any of the other providers discount TV for the elderley and or disabled ?

ChrisR

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I don't understand why you kept Sky broadband when you had Virgin fibre installed? You don't need both??

[Padam_Padam]

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@chrisredgwell wrote:

So , heres an issue,

My mother has had a stroke , some 8 years ago , leaving her severley disabled on her left side , has speech and sight problems .

She recieves benifits that qualify her for a social taffif .

Reaserching most if not all social tarrifs talk about only broadband , my moyjer is house bond watches , well listens to the TV.

to be honest the broadband speed is appauling , so bad i've had to have virgin fibre installed in addition to her sky broadband as its pityfully slow. 

I have not been able t find an actual TV deal to allow her to be able to watch TV or in her case listen to TV , does Sky or any of the other providers discount TV for the elderley and or disabled ?

ChrisR

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If you've installed Virgin Fibre then why not get Virgin Stream? Probably a lot cheaper than Sky Stream. 

[best+of+the+best]

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@Padam_Padam wrote:

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@chrisredgwell wrote:

So , heres an issue,

My mother has had a stroke , some 8 years ago , leaving her severley disabled on her left side , has speech and sight problems .

She recieves benifits that qualify her for a social taffif .

Reaserching most if not all social tarrifs talk about only broadband , my moyjer is house bond watches , well listens to the TV.

to be honest the broadband speed is appauling , so bad i've had to have virgin fibre installed in addition to her sky broadband as its pityfully slow. 

I have not been able t find an actual TV deal to allow her to be able to watch TV or in her case listen to TV , does Sky or any of the other providers discount TV for the elderley and or disabled ?

ChrisR

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If you've installed Virgin Fibre then why not get Virgin Stream? Probably a lot cheaper than Sky Stream. 

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Essential Broadband plus with Stream VM

[Pogit]

Social tarrifs include essentials only Phone OR Broadband (not both) and no Pay TV sadly which is classed as a luxury Very short sighted by the government and companies offering the scheme, that said if ir did many companies would loose alot of income over night as disabked people are classed as having expendable income and  free time so ideal pay tv customers. 

Even the broadband is limited meaning its not a good idea to stream 1-5 and other free TV. 

[chrisredgwell]

Wow , I hear what your saying , so effectively TV is a luxury only for those that have money and not for a disabled or impoverished person.

sad days 

[daveNOS]

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@chrisredgwell wrote:

Wow , I hear what your saying , so effectively TV is a luxury only for those that have money and not for a disabled or impoverished person.

sad days 

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@chrisredgwell Nope that's not what was said, you can get TV for free via Freeview, it's only pay TV that is classed as a luxury as its entirely optional.

[chrisredgwell]

Hi , 

please don't misunderstand, just think it's sad that only those wealthy enough can watch premium programs. 
I'm not  picking an argument with you just stating a sad fact that people that are disabled through no fault of their own are stuck with the repeat channels with very little new content and a dribbling internet speed . 
I pick up myself the bill for my mother as I've found that internet speeds advertised on the social tariff fall woefully low and just writing an email or connecting home automation devices like automated light bulbs don't work most of the time when speeds dip 

Chris R 

[Pogit]

Oh as a disabled member of society I know exactly what you mean,  WiFi light bulbs are great but they don't need a fast internet connection.  I find not being able to afford the hardware and software much more of an issue if I'm honest. 

[TimmyBGood]

@chrisredgwell 

Government defines broadband and landline as essential service because these permit citizens to access the increasingly online-only benefits system, job search facilities and the NHS.  Realistically they also don't want the backlash of defining subscription television in the same way.

The Social Tariff offering from all ISPs is their lowest speed band (typically 40/10 FTTC) because they are reselling it without a profit margin once wholesale price and support is factored in.  It's not in the nature of the current administration to require or request business to lose money.

[Pogit]

@TimmyBGood Do you know if they specificaly define both as as essential services in there own right (or atleast one) because my understanding is that most providers only allow one service inder the scheme users have to loose a service is they currently have both or atleast that was rhe case when I last checked which is why it has such a low uptake.  I conpletey understand why and agree with it but currently how the NHS works not all is online many services are still conducted in over traditional phone services its not yet a joined up system or the DWP for that matter. 

[Anonymous]

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@Pogit wrote:

@TimmyBGood Do you know if they specificaly define both as as essential services in there own right (or atleast one) because my understanding is that most providers only allow one service inder the scheme users have to loose a service is they currently have both or atleast that was rhe case when I last checked which is why it has such a low uptake.  I conpletey understand why and agree with it but currently how the NHS works not all is online many services are still conducted in over traditional phone services its not yet a joined up system or the DWP for that matter. 

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When you say 'both' are you talking about phone and broadband? They're both included under the social tariff scheme and you can have either or both together.

As for having the premium channels included that's never going to happen, the same way as you're not getting Disney+ Netflix or Amazon Prime included.

Freeview and Freesat of course are always available and they're very much NOT just repeat channels.

[TimmyBGood]

@Pogit 

If you mean the transition to 'digital voice' (PSTN switch-off) then both broadband and 'landline' voice calls remain 'essential' services but by definition the voice element cannot function without broadband.  

Complications related to robustness and devices such as care alarms aren't going to stop the transition.

[Pogit]

I simply mean that under this scheme BT & VM only allow you to have Broadband or a Phoneline not both.  I'm aware most phone lines are now delivered via broadband connections but landlines and broadband are charged individually (even if bundled) the social tariff is implemented by providers that you get one at that rate not both some are (or atleast were) saying you could have the second option or a TV package if you claimed the social tariff meaning many didn't take up the tariff as it excluded them from other services.  Eg you could have broadband but would loose your landline and TV packages