The UK’s various mobile network providers have been put through the paces in a new annual survey, and the results have revealed some significant differences in quality and value across major firms. According to Which?’s annual survey, mobile provider Three was found to be one of the worst, ranking in sixteenth place with a customer service score of just 66 percent. Nearly half (45 percent) of Three customers who took part in the report, claimed that they faced an issue in the past 12 months, making Three users the most likely to experience difficulties.
This is clearly bad news for the firm, as the survey found that Three customers frequently complained about constantly poor phone signal, network dropouts and problems resolving queries.
With mobile bills on the rise, Which found that the so-called Big Four mobile providers are being beaten on value for money by so-called virtual networks.
The Big Four include O2, EE, Vodafone and Three, all of whom were outperformed by providers that use their infrastructure, such as Smarty, Giffgaff, Tesco Mobile and iD Mobile.
Three was not the only provider that was named and shamed, as Which? noted that Vodafone fared only slightly better than Three – coming in twelfth place with a customer score of 68 percent.
While Vodafone customers said that the provider had a reliable network and fast download speeds, the firm was rated poorly for customer service
This comes despite the fact that Vodafone deals come with a variety of perks – including giveaways, cheap cinema tickets and guaranteed trade-in prices.
Of the Big Four, O2 and EE were the highest scoring, coming in joint tenth place with a customer score of 69 percent, after receiving largely mediocre scores in most categories.
With these popular brands faring poorly, Tesco Mobile was able to surge ahead, coming in first with a customer score of 80 percent, scoring the highest or equal highest across all categories.
That’s not to say that Tesco Mobile is perfect, however, as the provider lost its coveted Which? Recommended Provider endorsement after raising rates for new customers above inflation levels.
Smarty, Giffgaff and iD Mobile all met the “Great Value” criteria for offering cheap Sim-only deals. GiffGaff and Smarty came in joint fifth place with a customer score of 75 percent and iD Mobile came in eighth place with a customer score of 72 percent. All three providers’ customers rated them highly for value for money.
Which? says that with the cost of living continuing to impact household budgets, the flexibility offered by virtual networks is an attractive way to keep mobile costs down. It also appears that some may get better service by switching.
Speaking about the latest report, Rocio Concha, Which? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said: “The vast majority of mobile customers are with one of the Big Four providers, but our research suggests consumers could save money during the cost of living crisis and get better service by switching to a better deal – such as one of those offered by Which? Great Value providers.
Speaking about the latest report, Rocio Concha, Which? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said: “The vast majority of mobile customers are with one of the Big Four providers, but our research suggests consumers could save money during the cost of living crisis and get better service by switching to a better deal – such as one of those offered by Which? Great Value providers.