Have a good internet connection it is essential today. We need both the download and the upload to be good, since we use services such as the cloud, downloading files, playing high-quality videos … Now, do we always have the maximum speed? The truth is that sometimes we do not get what we have actually contracted. Should we pay the same if we have bad service? In Germany they will take action on this issue.
Pay less if your internet connection is slow
When we buy a product, we all want it to be as we have paid for. We want it to work well, to have the characteristics indicated in the specifications, to have no factory errors … Shouldn’t it be the same when hiring one? Internet connection? What happens if we hire 300 Mbps, for example, and we get 50?
The truth is that this problem happens to many users. Although in recent years the connections have improved markedly, in certain circumstances there may be major limitations. For example, if we live in an area where the coverage does not reach well or there are problems with the installation and we do not even reach what we have contracted.
Germany wants to start regulating this, at least in part. They have launched a new regulation That could change the rules of the game. According to the draft, users who have contracted Internet can perform a speed test and, if they receive an amount that is much less than what they have contracted, they could claim to pay less.
It is not about having 300 Mbps contracted and 295 arriving, but that there really is an important difference. In addition, it could not be if this specific problem only appears, for example at a certain time, when the speed is lower.
In order to claim, the user would have to use an official application and perform 20 tests over two consecutive days. It would be 10 tests each of those days. This is to ensure that it is an ongoing problem and not a one-off issue.
Speeds not reaching 90%
But the question they ask themselves is: How much does that have to be? loss of speed to be able to claim? The draft indicates that it has to be less than 90% hired. For example, a 100 Mbps rate would have to receive at least 90; one of 500 would have to reach at least 450.
It should be mentioned that this includes both up and down. This is something that, according to the German consumer protection authorities, more than 50% receive less than that minimum 90%. Therefore, there could be many who would have the possibility of requesting a discount.
The objective of this law, beyond protect the consumer, is that Internet operators work to offer a better service and that they really fulfill what they promised and are not just empty marketing campaigns.
This new law is scheduled to go into effect next month. It could mark a before and after in Europe. Will we see something like this in Spain at some point? Do you think that a user who receives less speed than the contracted one should have a discount on the invoice?
