My, what big teeth you have!

Pumpkins on doorsteps and rowdy children dressed in witches costumes and hyped up on sugar can only mean one thing – yes, it’s our favourite American-import holiday, Halloween.

But when it comes to your broadband package, are you being treated or tricked by your Internet Service Provider (ISP)?

New research shows over half of broadband providers will cut off customers who use the internet “to excess,” with close to a million broadband users already penalised for downloading too much while on an “unlimited” deal.

The study revealed that more than six million broadband users wrongly believed that they had a truly unlimited broadband package with no usage cap, while only 22% of major ISPs clearly advertise the true limits of their broadband service.

It seems that although heavily criticised by the press, many “unlimited” broadband packages - which carry limits in the form of a fair usage policy - are still baffling British consumers.

So, to help you make sure you don’t fall for a broadband bogeyman trick this Halloween, here are my top five broadband baddies to watch out for:

1. “Free” broadband
Companies including Sky, TalkTalk, and Orange all offer “free” broadband, by including it in your home phone and digital TV bundled deal.

But while so-called “free” deals may seem like a good idea, and can for some customers be good value for money, you need to make sure it isn’t cheaper for you to get the deals you want individually before deciding to take out a “free” broadband deal. Ask yourself whether it is worth having that extra service thrown in, because you may end up paying for something you don’t even need.

2. Download restrictions
If you sign up for a cheap broadband deal, you may discover your package has a download limit. While 2GB a month might sound a lot, if you plan to download a lot of music or films, then it probably isn’t enough. As a rough guide, 2GB will allow you 90 hours of internet surfing a month. To download one music album uses about 0.06GB, and a low definition film uses about 0.75GB.

Your cheap broadband deal therefore stops being a bargain when you are either blocked for exceeding your limit, or have to pay extra in download charges.

3. Fair usage policies
Even customers who sign up to “unlimited” broadband packages can be hit by download restrictions. The majority of UK providers have something called a “fair usage policy”, which means people who are considered excessive users by their provider can be penalised and have limits placed on their broadband use.

But what constitutes as an excessive downloader? Someone who watches 20 minutes of video online a day? Someone who downloads 200 songs a month (legally)? I’m afraid this is at the provider’s discretion…

4. Set-up fees
Often providers will charge set-up fees for your new broadband connection. These fees cover the administration of your line, the cost of a broadband modem and the charge for providing an engineer to help get you online.

Not all providers have these charges, but some have been as high as £50 – that’s the equivalent of adding £4.17 to your monthly bill for the first year – a trick you don’t want to fall victim too.

5. Technical support and customer services
According to research by uSwitch.com, British consumers spend £31 million a year calling broadband technical helplines. With call charges as much as 50p a minute and the average customer spending six minutes of each call on hold listening to Green Sleeves, this is a hidden cost you might not have bargained for.

Luckily, not all providers charge to call technical helplines or customer services – so you should check your documents before picking up the phone – and for those that do, there are always alternatives. Read the Consumer Spy column on high cost helplines to see if there is a cheaper number to call.

So internet enthusiasts, make sure you watch out for the Broadband Bogeyman and all his tricks this Halloween!

 No no limits, we’ll reach for the Sky?

Those of you with a sneaky broadband addiction might have thought your prayers had been answered when Sky Broadband announced the removal of the fair-use policy from its top end package, “Broadband Max”.

For the uninitiated, most “unlimited” packages are not really unlimited - they usually come hand in hand with “fair-use policies”, which are the source of much contention.

The policies are designed to manage cyber traffic, but they can result in ISPs imposing limits on your downloading either by reducing the speed of your connection, restricting your usage at peak times or charging you for your excess usage.

The announcement from Sky that they have removed their fair-use policy, should mean that their customers with the “Broadband Max” package are now free to make the most of truly unlimited broadband – even 24/7 downloading if they so pleased!

However, there is a catch and as usual, it’s hidden in the terms and conditions, in the ominous “2h”. It reads (at the time of writing) as follows:

“2h. To protect our network and maintain quality of service for all our users we can temporarily or permanently control or restrict your online activities via Sky Broadband where such activities may have a detrimental effect on other customers’ quality of service and it is reasonable for us to do so (e.g. sending “spam” Messages or hosting a website).”

Using “spam” as an example activity is very clever. No-one likes spammers and none of us would object to their broadband being cut off completely!

However, the activities referred to here are not necessarily malicious and would actually include simply overusing your broadband – if you made full use of the “unlimited” service you may indeed have “a detrimental effect on other customers’ quality of service”. Thus, this condition says that if you were to “overuse” your connection, Sky is still allowed to “temporarily or permanently control or restrict your online activities”.

Now, is it just me, or does this sound a lot like a fair-use policy? It may be enforced less frequently, but the threat of targeted control is still there. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve got nothing against fair-use policies (in fact I think they make a lot of sense!), but I like to be told things straight.

If the changes translate to higher download limits then that’s an improvement, but Sky really shouldn’t say “unlimited” unless it means it and shouldn’t announce the ditching of its fair use policy, simply to disguise it in the terms and conditions.

Whether or not Sky will make further changes to these terms and conditions, truly making its broadband “unlimited” remains to be seen…

If you’re worried about overstepping your download limit, check out the BroadbandChoices guides, Top tips for downloaders and Top five ISPs for downloading.

 Umm…is it a wine rack? 

Question One: Cheap Broadband – Too Good to be True?

Answer: Invariably, yes.

Why so?

Well, on the face of it, you’re entitled to believe you’ve picked up something of a bargain. Super fast broadband for under a tenner each month? Sounds like a great deal, particularly when you consider some ISPs charge up to three times that amount for what seem like relatively similar products, but…..

Question Two: Is ‘cheap’ a byword for ‘value’?

Answer: According to some I’m sure it is, but in broadband terms, not a chance.

When approaching the purchase of a broadband product, as either a newcomer to the game or a canny veteran about to switch, it’s important to focus not only on the cost of the package, but also how well that package suits your individual needs.

Opt for a cheap entry level package, sit watching i-player all day, then observe in horror as the escalating costs roll in, and wish you were on a more advanced package for just a little extra expense. It’s happened to the best of us, even me.

Question Three: What are the hidden costs I should be looking out for?

Here’s a rundown:

(1) Free laptops. Looks like a great concept on paper, but the mammoth contract lengths mean you could end up paying for your ‘free’ laptop numerous times. Choose a more tailored deal and you could buy yourself a higher spec laptop and still save money.

(2) Downloading beyond your set limit can be very costly, especially when you’re free roaming with a mobile broadband connection. Anything other than a bit of e-mailing and light surfing abroad is a huge no no. For instance, using your dongle in Spain with Vodafone will cost you an extra fiver a day, and for each Mb you use beyond the 15Mb limit, you’ll be charged another fiver. Incidentally, Skype and Instant Messenger aren’t included in the ‘fair usage’ policy, and to use these will cost you…that’s right….five pounds each. Costly isn’t it?

(3) Download penalties in the UK vary between £1.50 and £3.50 per extra GB.

(4) ISPs are often afforded the capacity to offer cheap deals because they connect customers to local loop unbundled networks (LLU). However, if you wish to migrate from an LLU, it may cost you a cease and re-provide cost of £60, or a £125 charge from BT to be reconnected to their service. Effectively, the savings you made are instantly wiped out.

(5) A number of ISPs charge up to 50p a minute for technical support. Thankfully, the BT group has seen sense, and now BT Broadband, Be* Broadband and O2 Broadband all offer free technical support.

(6) Connection and cancellation charges are an inevitability, but some are easier to stomach than others. Having your Sky broadband installed on a weekday rather than the weekend can save you £30! All you need to do is box clever.

(7) Some ISPs send you a free modem, and then charge you for the postage. Therefore, it’s not free. Check first.

Last Question: How do I monitor my downloading activity?

Easy, with the broadbandchoices free download monitor of course!