BT, Sky and Virgin broadband customers sent £67 bills warning

Millions of UK households are paying more than they need to on their broadband bills, experts have claimed. Around a third of households are said to be using internet speeds that are too high for what they actually need.

These households use speeds of 150 megabits per second (Mbps), but it’s estimated that just a fifth (21%) of internet users actually need broadband as fast as this and many others could get by with cheaper deals, according to research from Go.Compare.

And they could be spending around £67 more than they need to on these broadband packages - enough to cover a standard Netflix subscription for a year. Households have been advised to research what package they actually need depending on their internet usage in order to save cash.

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Matt Sanders, broadband expert at Go.Compare, explained: “Our latest research suggests that a large chunk of the country is spending more than it needs to on broadband, which is a real kick in the teeth when times are so tight. Everyone’s broadband needs are different, so it can be difficult to know what speeds you actually need.

"The key factors to keep in mind are the number of people in your household and what you tend to use your broadband for. Certain activities like online gaming and streaming 4K videos need faster speeds to run smoothly, and these speeds will be diluted if multiple devices are using the internet at once.

“So, if you live alone and only use the internet for general browsing like emails and shopping, you should be able to manage on relatively slow speeds. But, if your household is a family of four with multiple devices on the go, you might need to get faster speeds so that everyone can use the internet at once without being slowed down.”