Ofcom's new 'One Touch' switching rules will speed up UK broadband switching

One Touch Switch will prevent ISPs from using new deals or excessive bureaucracy to convince customers to stay

Communications regulator Ofcom has announced a new 'one-touch' switching process for customers to change their broadband or home phone provider.

Ofcom hopes the new process, called One Touch Switch, will encourage people to seek out better deals, after a survey found that nearly 40 per cent of people avoid switching broadband providers because they consider the process too complex.

Similarly, many people are discouraged because they think the process will take too much of their time.

Ofcom said it was consulting on a proposal to introduce One Touch Switch in February, and would take a final decision in the summer.

ISPs have largely supported the move: BT, for example, said in April it approved of the proposal but wants Ofcom to widen its scope, so customers can switch triple-play bundles including pay TV, as well as fixed voice and broadband.

How switching works at the moment is, if a customer wants to change ISP (Virgin Media to Hyperoptic, for example) or line type (copper to fibre), they have to contact both their new and existing operators to manage the switch-over. They also need to ensure there is no gap between the end of the old service and starting of the new one.

Under the new rules, a subscriber would need to only contact their new home broadband provider, regardless of whether they are switching between networks, or changing services on the same network.

That should make it easier and faster for a customer to switch from a provider using the Openreach network to one using CityFibre's, or from Virgin Media to Hyperoptic.

Under the new rules, the customer will just have to give their details to their chosen new provider, and will automatically receive information regarding the switch-over from their current provider. If they wish to proceed, the new provider will manage the rest of the process.

Ofcom says the new process will make switching provider or service much faster: down to a single day. One Touch Switch will also prevent providers subjecting customers to annoying attempts to convince them to stay (although that can sometimes result in some great deals).

'The new 'One Touch' process will make it easier to get a faster package, cheaper deal or better customer service when you switch provider. It will also make it quicker - just one day where this is technically possible,' Ofcom said.

Lindsey Fussell, Ofcom's Networks and Communications Group Director, noted: "Household finances are strained at the moment, so switching broadband provider could help keep your bills down."

"We're making it as easy as possible for you to break up with your broadband provider and take advantage of the deals on offer."

Moreover, new rules would ensure that service providers compensate customers if they are left without internet access for more than one working day during a switch.

That sounds great, and streamlining the broadband market is welcome, especially in the new hybrid working world. It's not all good news, though: Ofcom says One Touch Switch is a 'highly complex change for providers' and will not come into effect until April 2023.