How to cancel NOW TV Broadband

NOW TV is branded as a simple and flexible entertainment, sport and internet service provider. Its deals are often a budget-friendly alternative to the packages offered by its parent company, Sky, with the added bonus of a monthly contract option. However, NOW does not offer the fastest broadband speeds or a top-rated router, so customers may decide they want to give a different provider a go. It can also be possible to find a cheaper deal with a rival offering a discounted monthly rate, or even a valuable sign-up bonus like a free tablet or voucher. Whether you are leaving NOW to get a better deal or faster broadband, this article will explain the steps you need to take to cancel and if you will need to pay an early termination charge.

How to cancel NOW TV Broadband if you’re out of contract

You can cancel NOW TV Broadband for free if you are out of contract. It is a quick and easy process, especially if you are switching over to another Openreach product from a rival provider. All you need to do is sign up with your new provider and it will cancel NOW TV Broadband on your behalf. The two providers should coordinate your activation and deactivation dates to make sure your broadband downtime is kept to a minimum.

If you need more information on switching your broadband, read our article ‘How to switch broadband provider’.

Packages not eligible for an Openreach switch include any mobile or cable broadband deals, plus a full fibre connection. You can find out more about the different types of broadband connection in the UK by reading our article ‘Which broadband is best?’. If your new deal is not eligible for an Openreach switch, or you are disconnecting your broadband entirely, you will need to contact NOW directly to cancel.

Cancelling NOW TV Broadband by phone

The easiest way to directly cancel NOW TV Broadband is by phoning customer services. The number to call is 03300 412473, which will be free from a NOW landline or from your mobile if you have a free calls deal. lines are open 8am-8pm, 7 days a week.

Contact NOW or check your paperwork if you are not sure if your initial contract has ended. NOW TV Broadband deals are usually 12 months, so it is easy to work out when your deal ends if you can remember when it started. If you are on one of NOW’s rolling 30 day deals, you can cancel at any point for free and choose to have your service end the following day or at your next billing date.

Cancelling NOW TV Broadband by email

You can also email to cancel NOW TV Broadband by emailing updatemyaccount@nowtv.com. You may then need to answer a phone call to confirm your identity, but your notice period will begin from the day you sent the email.

Cancelling NOW TV Broadband online

Previously, you could request a cancellation through your NOW TV Broadband online account and speak to customer services on live chat, but that option has now been removed and you will be directed to call instead.

Keep in mind that NOW requires 31 days notice to cancel your service, though Openreach switches can usually be completed within 14 days.

How to cancel NOW TV Broadband if you’re still in contract

You can cancel NOW TV Broadband even if the minimum period of your contract has not ended, but it might cost you. The NOW TV Broadband early termination charge is calculated by multiplying a set fee by how many months you have remaining on your contract. How much that fee is will depend on which package you have and how much it is discounted.

How the now broadband cancellation fee is calculated

NOW takes the number of months remaining on your contract and multiplies it by the monthly charge for your plan, minus deductions. These deductions include any discount you are getting, the business costs NOW will save from not having to provide your broadband and an amount to reflect that NOW will benefit from receiving one lump sum instead of a staggered payment. For example, if the monthly charge for NOW Super Fibre is £38.50 and you had a special offer of a £10 off per month, you would be paying £28.50 a month. If you cancelled with six months left on your 12-month deal, you would not need to pay for the six months left on your contract. Instead, you would pay the monthly fee (£38.50), minus the NOW savings (leaving £18.32), minus your £10 discount (leaving £8.32), multiplied by the six of months left on your deal to give a total of £49.62. NOW will round this up to the nearest 25p, to leave a £50 cancellation charge.

You will not need to pay a cancellation fee if you cancel within your 14-day ‘cooling off period’. This is a legally-required clause in your broadband contract that lets you change your mind in the first two weeks of your deal and cancel for free. If your service is already up and running when you cancel, you may need to pay for the period you have been connected for, plus any set up or delivery fees.

It is also possible to cancel NOW TV Broadband for free if you get hit by an unexpected price hike. Internet providers will need to tell customers about any planned above-inflation price increases when they sign up, or they can leave for free when their bill changes. If you are not told about a price increase until after your service has started, you will have 30 days to cancel NOW TV Broadband for free. If you are unsure if your price increase is fair, contact NOW directly.

In some cases you may also be able to cancel NOW TV Broadband for free if your internet speed is too slow.

How to cancel NOW TV Broadband if it is too slow

NOW Broadband has opted into Ofcom’s ‘Broadband Speeds Code of Practice’. This means that you will be given a minimum guaranteed speed when you sign up and NOW will have to supply your home with at least that speed. If it fails to do so, you can terminate your contract without paying a cancellation charge.

Unfortunately, the process is not as simple as running an online speed test, finding your speed is slower than the guarantee, then immediately leaving for free. You will need to give NOW Broadband the chance to repair any fixable issues first. From the point that you notify NOW that the speed you are getting is below the contractual limit, it has 30 days to fix it – if the fault is within its network. This will usually involve an engineer visiting your home to assess your connection and investigate any other issues in your local area. If NOW fails to boost your speed up to the guaranteed minimum, you will be able to cancel without paying a fee to leave.

It is worth keeping in mind that NOW may still be supplying you with the speed you were guaranteed, even if a speed test on your laptop or phone records a lower figure. The important speed test is the one an engineer will perform to see how fast the broadband connection is when it reaches your home. An online speed test will tell you what speed is reaching your device, but this can be affected by factors such as the layout of your home or how many devices are connected simultaneously, which are factors outside of your provider's control.

We explain more about broadband speeds in our article ‘What broadband speed do I need?’.

Before you cancel NOW TV Broadband

If you are frustrated by the price of your deal, try haggling for a discount before you cancel NOW TV Broadband. Most providers will be happy to at least put you onto the deal offered to new customers if it stops you switching over to a rival. You could also compare deals before you ring up to cancel. This way you can find out the cheapest price on the market, then try and negotiate NOW down to that level. If you are told no, it should be easy to switch over to the cheaper deal with a competitor.

You can find out our take on NOW Broadband in our 'NOW Broadband Review'.

You do not need to worry about losing your TV deal when you cancel NOW TV Broadband, as this is a separate subscription. You can still have a NOW TV membership without subscribing to a broadband package.

Use the ‘Ofcom broadband checker’ to see which types of broadband are available in your area. NOW does not offer full fibre broadband at the time of writing, so it is worth checking if this has been rolled out to your area since you last compared. If it has, there will be a lot more broadband packages to choose from. You may also be able to access mobile or cable broadband packages. You can compare a range of providers by using a comparison service such as Uswitch* to find out exactly what is available in your area.

How to compare broadband deals

It is worth comparing broadband deals online via a comparison site prior to cancelling NOW broadband, so that you know what price you could be paying elsewhere. Comparison sites help you to compare the best deals from multiple broadband providers at once. Results can be filtered by personal preference, usually with options to tailor results by factors including price, speed, reliability, Wi-Fi coverage and customer service. If NOW is then not able to match that price, you could cancel and switch to the cheaper deal.

After you cancel NOW TV Broadband

After you cancel NOW TV Broadband, you may need to return your router by printing a prepaid postage label, packing the router up and dropping it off at your local Post Office.