Sky customers warned of simple mistake that could lead to a Wi-Fi blackout

SKY customers have been warned not to cancel their broadband before their contract ends.

Otherwise, you risk going without Wi-Fi for weeks – as one Sky customer found out when they tried to cancel the account that was in their ex-husband’s name.

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In a help forum on Sky’s website, one confused customer wrote: “How can I start a new subscription with a new name and account, after cancelling old sky account of my ex-husband?

“Because it’s the same address, I cannot order online and an agent told me I have to wait for it to run out, then order.

“I cannot afford loss of broadband, I work from home. Anyone else experienced this?”

Sky customers typically can’t order a new Wi-Fi contract until their old account is completely closed.

And you may need to pay an early termination charge.

Sky, along with a lot of other providers, use the OpenReach network, so they are in the hands of OpenReach as to when they can establish a new connection.

There is a lead time of around two weeks for a new broadband connection.

So, if you cancel your account suddenly before the contract ends, you could be left without service for several weeks.

Even if you choose a different internet provider, the lead time on getting your new Wi-Fi set up will be the same unless you specifically find a provider not on the OpenReach network.

Neither Virgin Media and Community Fibre are on the OpenReach network, so you it’s possible to open a new account with them to cut down that wait time.

Even then, you’ll still have to wait for your new Wi-Fi box to arrive, which can take an average of three to five working days.

However, Sky can set up another account with the same address in special circumstances, such as if a couple has separated and one wants to create a new account in their name.

After explaining their situation, the Sky customer’s ex-husband’s account was temporarily reinstated and they were fixed up with a new account that will be activated as soon as the old one expires.

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