Broadband fair usage policy

MajesticDonkey

There's a lot of talk recently about eir's FUP, specifically on the fibre to the home products. Here's a quote from the bottom of this page: https://www.eir.ie/broadband/:

"Unlimited broadband means you and your whole family can shop, stream and download as much as you like and not worry about exceeding a usage limit. Subject to a fair usage cap, don’t worry the usage cap will cover even the largest family."

I'm assuming that stating that a 1 TB FUP will cover "even the largest family" is not just pulled out of thin air, and is based on actual usage statistics from eir themselves. If this is the case, I would like to ask the question: why have a fair usage policy at all? If the majority of users never have to worry about using close to 1 TB (which I'm sure is the case), then surely eir shouldn't worry about people possibly using close to 1 TB. Removing the FUP will not cause everyone to suddenly double or triple their usage, but it will allow the people who are paying extra for a faster connection to use it as much as they like - which they should be allowed to do.

Can someone from eir clarify eir's stance on this, and if there's the possibility to have the FUP removed or significantly increased, at least for FTTH products.

whiterebel

http://www.boards.ie/ttfthread/2057783247

MajesticDonkey

whiterebel wrote: »

http://www.boards.ie/ttfthread/2057783247

I have read and am following that thread since the beginning, but eir reps have stopped replying so no real point continuing the discussion there.

raydator

MajesticDonkey wrote: »

whiterebel wrote: »

http://www.boards.ie/ttfthread/2057783247

I have read and am following that thread since the beginning, but eir reps have stopped replying so no real point continuing the discussion there.

I don't think you will get a response or if you do, it will be the normal response of "see you T&C's" or "this has been flagged with the relevant department" which is the same response seen in most of the FUP threads going back months but yet nothing has changed.

eir: Adam

MajesticDonkey wrote: »

There's a lot of talk recently about eir's FUP, specifically on the fibre to the home products. Here's a quote from the bottom of this page: https://www.eir.ie/broadband/:

"Unlimited broadband means you and your whole family can shop, stream and download as much as you like and not worry about exceeding a usage limit. Subject to a fair usage cap, don’t worry the usage cap will cover even the largest family."

I'm assuming that stating that a 1 TB FUP will cover "even the largest family" is not just pulled out of thin air, and is based on actual usage statistics from eir themselves. If this is the case, I would like to ask the question: why have a fair usage policy at all? If the majority of users never have to worry about using close to 1 TB (which I'm sure is the case), then surely eir shouldn't worry about people possibly using close to 1 TB. Removing the FUP will not cause everyone to suddenly double or triple their usage, but it will allow the people who are paying extra for a faster connection to use it as much as they like - which they should be allowed to do.

Can someone from eir clarify eir's stance on this, and if there's the possibility to have the FUP removed or significantly increased, at least for FTTH products.

Hi MajesticDonkey,

Thanks for getting in touch. I wouldn't be able to give you a specific reason as to why this fair usage limit as this is an internal decision by the company that I wouldn't be able to comment on.

I'm afraid we don't have any plans in place to remove or increase this limit. If changes are made to this you will be notified.

- Adam

MajesticDonkey

eir: Adam wrote: »

Thanks for getting in touch. I wouldn't be able to give you a specific reason as to why this fair usage limit as this is an internal decision by the company that I wouldn't be able to comment on.

I'm afraid we don't have any plans in place to remove or increase this limit. If changes are made to this you will be notified.

- Adam

Thanks for the reply Adam. I would say this: you have a great product (FTTH) that not too many other companies have, and you have paying customers screaming out for a higher FUP (or no FUP). Why not give it to them?

pmce4

MajesticDonkey wrote: »

eir: Adam wrote: »

Thanks for getting in touch. I wouldn't be able to give you a specific reason as to why this fair usage limit as this is an internal decision by the company that I wouldn't be able to comment on.

I'm afraid we don't have any plans in place to remove or increase this limit. If changes are made to this you will be notified.

- Adam

Thanks for the reply Adam. I would say this: you have a great product (FTTH) that not too many other companies have, and you have paying customers screaming out for a higher FUP (or no FUP). Why not give it to them?

hi can I ask you a question, would you pay extra for a higher FUP on a monthly basis. This is possibly the best approach to EIR add a tarrif for an extra 1TB for FTTH customers

eir: Adam

MajesticDonkey wrote: »

eir: Adam wrote: »

Thanks for getting in touch. I wouldn't be able to give you a specific reason as to why this fair usage limit as this is an internal decision by the company that I wouldn't be able to comment on.

I'm afraid we don't have any plans in place to remove or increase this limit. If changes are made to this you will be notified.

- Adam

Thanks for the reply Adam. I would say this: you have a great product (FTTH) that not too many other companies have, and you have paying customers screaming out for a higher FUP (or no FUP). Why not give it to them?

I'm afraid I wouldn't have any information as to why we can't offer a higher FUP to our customers as this decision was made internally. I understand that it may be frustrating and I do apologise that I can't give you more information on this.

- Adam

R.F.

Another night another issue with Eir.

Adam kindly informed me of the correct number to call to discuss my usage thus far.

I first Tried on Saturday and was told I had to call mon-fri. In fairness when I informed Adam via PM, he apologised on the agents behalf and I rang again tonight.

When I asked for my usage from the start if my billing date I was confused when the agent informed me he can only give my monthly usage. And not from the start of my billing date.

So this is making things very difficult to keep track of in the event we think we are reaching our limit. We cannot know for sure where we stand.

I also wonder as well, how do eir work it out in the case when we exceed our limits for the billing month what our overall usage is? But us the actual end users are not privy to this information.

To make matters worse when I asked the agent to put me onto a superior, he transferred me to an answer machine saying office was closed.

Adam, what am I meant to to do?

pmce4

R.F. wrote: »

Another night another issue with Eir.

Adam kindly informed me of the correct number to call to discuss my usage thus far.

I first Tried on Saturday and was told I had to call mon-fri. In fairness when I informed Adam via PM, he apologised on the agents behalf and I rang again tonight.

When I asked for my usage from the start if my billing date I was confused when the agent informed me he can only give my monthly usage. And not from the start of my billing date.

So this is making things very difficult to keep track of in the event we think we are reaching our limit. We cannot know for sure where we stand.

I also wonder as well, how do eir work it out in the case when we exceed our limits for the billing month what our overall usage is? But us the actual end users are not privy to this information.

To make matters worse when I asked the agent to put me onto a superior, he transferred me to an answer machine saying office was closed.

Adam, what am I meant to to do?

Based on this I would point blank refuse to pay any additional charges. Hard to believe that an EIR employee cannot give your current monthly usage but lo and behold they can certainly charge you for it if it goes over in your billing cycle.
I would challenge any extra usage charge based on this if they cannot supply your usage to help you avoid going over the FUP how can they in good faith charge you for it.

R.F.

pmce4 wrote: »

R.F. wrote: »

Another night another issue with Eir.

Adam kindly informed me of the correct number to call to discuss my usage thus far.

I first Tried on Saturday and was told I had to call mon-fri. In fairness when I informed Adam via PM, he apologised on the agents behalf and I rang again tonight.

When I asked for my usage from the start if my billing date I was confused when the agent informed me he can only give my monthly usage. And not from the start of my billing date.

So this is making things very difficult to keep track of in the event we think we are reaching our limit. We cannot know for sure where we stand.

I also wonder as well, how do eir work it out in the case when we exceed our limits for the billing month what our overall usage is? But us the actual end users are not privy to this information.

To make matters worse when I asked the agent to put me onto a superior, he transferred me to an answer machine saying office was closed.

Adam, what am I meant to to do?

Based on this I would point blank refuse to pay any additional charges. Hard to believe that an EIR employee cannot give your current monthly usage but lo and behold they can certainly charge you for it if it goes over in your billing cycle.
I would challenge any extra usage charge based on this if they cannot supply your usage to help you avoid going over the FUP how can they in good faith charge you for it.

The whole shambles has been baffling to me. I cant belive they have been getting away with it

Gonzo

R.F. wrote: »

pmce4 wrote: »

R.F. wrote: »

Another night another issue with Eir.

Adam kindly informed me of the correct number to call to discuss my usage thus far.

I first Tried on Saturday and was told I had to call mon-fri. In fairness when I informed Adam via PM, he apologised on the agents behalf and I rang again tonight.

When I asked for my usage from the start if my billing date I was confused when the agent informed me he can only give my monthly usage. And not from the start of my billing date.

So this is making things very difficult to keep track of in the event we think we are reaching our limit. We cannot know for sure where we stand.

I also wonder as well, how do eir work it out in the case when we exceed our limits for the billing month what our overall usage is? But us the actual end users are not privy to this information.

To make matters worse when I asked the agent to put me onto a superior, he transferred me to an answer machine saying office was closed.

Adam, what am I meant to to do?

Based on this I would point blank refuse to pay any additional charges. Hard to believe that an EIR employee cannot give your current monthly usage but lo and behold they can certainly charge you for it if it goes over in your billing cycle.
I would challenge any extra usage charge based on this if they cannot supply your usage to help you avoid going over the FUP how can they in good faith charge you for it.

The whole shambles has been baffling to me. I cant belive they have been getting away with it

the real issue here is not that there is a fair usage policy of 1tb per month, the real issue is that it is hidden deep in small print within the terms and conditions. What makes matters worse is that all promotional material and references on the product pages claim that there is absolutely no usage limits, use as much as you want, when you like and that there is more than enough for any large family. The product is sold as unlimited, when clearly there is a strict limit in place and a very expensive and easy one to break.

Another problem is that all the fibre plans are on the same usage limit, which is fine for most customers who have speeds of less than 60 megs but very limiting to those with FTTH, particularly those who are on the 300 and 1000 FTTH plans. FTTH fibre broadband should have a different data cap then FTTC as it uses way more bandwidth. The 300 and 1000 FTTH plans are for those who want to download more/use the internet more but they have the same allowance as someone who is on 7-100 meg broadband, makes no sense. There is no option to pay for an increased cap either.

R.F.

yes, ultimately that is the issue. But with that other issues arise. Not being able to see what usage you are on from the start of billing date is pretty awful. 

Ive not heard back yet from Adam, will be interesting if they can provide me with the info I require. Surely they have to, they will potentially be charging me extra for their hidden cost so I will need to know when or if I should restrict usage in my house

raydator

R.F. wrote: »

yes, ultimately that is the issue. But with that other issues arise. Not being able to see what usage you are on from the start of billing date is pretty awful. 

Ive not heard back yet from Adam, will be interesting if they can provide me with the info I require. Surely they have to, they will potentially be charging me extra for their hidden cost so I will need to know when or if I should restrict usage in my house

The fact you have to possibly think about restricting your usage is so annoying!
 

eir: Adam

R.F. wrote: »

Another night another issue with Eir.

Adam kindly informed me of the correct number to call to discuss my usage thus far.

I first Tried on Saturday and was told I had to call mon-fri. In fairness when I informed Adam via PM, he apologised on the agents behalf and I rang again tonight.

When I asked for my usage from the start if my billing date I was confused when the agent informed me he can only give my monthly usage. And not from the start of my billing date.

So this is making things very difficult to keep track of in the event we think we are reaching our limit. We cannot know for sure where we stand.

I also wonder as well, how do eir work it out in the case when we exceed our limits for the billing month what our overall usage is? But us the actual end users are not privy to this information.

To make matters worse when I asked the agent to put me onto a superior, he transferred me to an answer machine saying office was closed.

Adam, what am I meant to to do?

Hi,

I have responded to your PM about this.

- Adam

R.F.

eir: Adam wrote: »

R.F. wrote: »

Another night another issue with Eir.

Adam kindly informed me of the correct number to call to discuss my usage thus far.

I first Tried on Saturday and was told I had to call mon-fri. In fairness when I informed Adam via PM, he apologised on the agents behalf and I rang again tonight.

When I asked for my usage from the start if my billing date I was confused when the agent informed me he can only give my monthly usage. And not from the start of my billing date.

So this is making things very difficult to keep track of in the event we think we are reaching our limit. We cannot know for sure where we stand.

I also wonder as well, how do eir work it out in the case when we exceed our limits for the billing month what our overall usage is? But us the actual end users are not privy to this information.

To make matters worse when I asked the agent to put me onto a superior, he transferred me to an answer machine saying office was closed.

Adam, what am I meant to to do?

Hi,

I have responded to your PM about this.

- Adam

cheers Adam, I replied again with further queries. 

eir: Adam

R.F. wrote: »

eir: Adam wrote: »

R.F. wrote: »

Another night another issue with Eir.

Adam kindly informed me of the correct number to call to discuss my usage thus far.

I first Tried on Saturday and was told I had to call mon-fri. In fairness when I informed Adam via PM, he apologised on the agents behalf and I rang again tonight.

When I asked for my usage from the start if my billing date I was confused when the agent informed me he can only give my monthly usage. And not from the start of my billing date.

So this is making things very difficult to keep track of in the event we think we are reaching our limit. We cannot know for sure where we stand.

I also wonder as well, how do eir work it out in the case when we exceed our limits for the billing month what our overall usage is? But us the actual end users are not privy to this information.

To make matters worse when I asked the agent to put me onto a superior, he transferred me to an answer machine saying office was closed.

Adam, what am I meant to to do?

Hi,

I have responded to your PM about this.

- Adam

cheers Adam, I replied again with further queries. 

No problem, I'll get back to your PM ASAP.

- Adam

raydator

R.F., have you managed to get some answers from Eir.

R.F.

Adam was able to give me a rough estimate of what I used in week one. The following week was the start of my 1st billing period so I just subtracted that from total

It's not 100% accurate at all which is disgracful really

Since I found out about the limit our usage has decreased pretty significantly. I know it's first world problems but I purchased a 4K tv to watch 4K content. I pretty much will not do this now, as downloading and streaming content in 4K will easily surpass the limit in a month. Again first world problems but my intentions of going all digital on games consoles will come to an end now too.

Gonzo

R.F. wrote: »

Adam was able to give me a rough estimate of what I used in week one. The following week was the start of my 1st billing period so I just subtracted that from total

It's not 100% accurate at all which is disgracful really

Since I found out about the limit our usage has decreased pretty significantly. I know it's first world problems but I purchased a 4K tv to watch 4K content. I pretty much will not do this now, as downloading and streaming content in 4K will easily surpass the limit in a month. Again first world problems but my intentions of going all digital on games consoles will come to an end now too.

Data caps are killing/delaying video innovation.

4k Streaming isn't possible with data caps in place. It's interesting that a few providers in the United States sing from the same hymn sheet as Eir, this article states that 1tb per month is nowhere near enough to Steam 4k services regularly. I would argue that 1tb isn't even enough to stream 1080p regularly across a number of devices in a family household when you take into account all other internet usage.

https://www.techhive.com/article/3064460/streaming-services/netflix-and-4k-hdr-proof-that-data-caps-will-stifle-video-innovation.html

Dcully

Everytime i try to check my usage my eir dashboard is down, how do eir expect people to keep tabs on things?

Then again keep it down theres a loophole right there, eir as always inept to the extreme cant even sustain a reliable usage meter for users.