Virgin Media Comes Top Of The Flops For Customer Complaints

It may be only a few years since the two were combined, but Virgin Media O2 is topping UK comms regulator Ofcom's customer complaints chart.

The report, which covers the period from July to September 2023, found that Virgin Media received the most complaints across broadband, landline, and pay TV categories. According to Ofcom, there was "significant rises across all these areas from the previous quarter."

In terms of complaints per 100,000 subscribers, Virgin Media scored almost double that of the next placed NOW Broadband at 32 versus 18. Sky scored the least complaints per 100,000 at five.

A similar story was recorded for landline complaints. Virgin Media came top with 19 complaints per 100,000 subscribers, once again almost double that of next placed NOW Broadband, which had 11.

It was even worse for Virgin Media when it came to pay TV, with 20 complaints per 100,000 subscribers, almost three times that of next placed BT, which scored the industry average of 7.

Meanwhile, O2 and BT Mobile received the most complaints for mobile operators. The former was mostly driven by how issues were handled, while the latter arose from the experience of trying to change operators.

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Ofcom suggested that Virgin Media's poor showing is likely due in part to an investigation into the company regarding difficulties customers experienced in handling complaints and cancellation requests.

Fergal Farragher, Ofcom's Consumer Protection Director, said: "The slight increase in complaints on the previous quarter shows that providers must continue to focus on improving customer service."

The Register asked Virgin Media to comment. A spokesperson said: "Our number one priority is to provide an excellent service to our customers, and we accept that the rise in complaints in the third quarter falls far short of our expectations.

"As Ofcom acknowledges, the rise is largely due to its investigation announcement in July, which subsequently generated a higher number of complaints than would ordinarily be expected. However, it should be noted that overall complaints about Virgin Media products still represent a very small proportion of our customer base.

"As well as engaging fully with Ofcom's ongoing investigation, we are investing in every area of our business to give our customers the best possible experience, with a real focus on resolving any issues at the first time of getting in touch and making it easier for them to get support when they need it." ®