Original article ISPreview UK:
Some customers of internet provider Earth Broadband (earth.) have recently established a Facebook based support group after they complained of having suffered a string of problems with billing errors, unexpected price rises and a lack of effective communication and customer support from the ISP.
Earth Broadband (earth.) itself is a relatively new provider, which first popped up on our radar in 2023 alongside a commitment to plant 500,000 trees and remove 100,000 pounds of plastic each month by 2025 (here) – based on the optimistic assumption of having gained 100,000 customers by that point. Speaking of which, on 4th Aug 2025, the provider reported that they’d so far helped to plant a total of 100,000 trees.
NOTE: A couple of those with complaints reported that the ISP had planned to increase their monthly price by an extra £5.
However, it recently began to become clear that all may not be well with the ISP, which was reflected through a sharp rise in complaints about the service that has been seen across social media, review sites and now the Facebook based Earth Broadband Issues support group.
Most of the complaints highlight a lack of response to support requests and billing errors (e.g. duplicate payments), some of which seem to flow from a sudden mid-contract price increase notification that, for some people, popped up with only a few days of notice (considerably less than the 30-day period outlined in their own T&Cs). Not to mention that this was for a provider that had previously pledged not to do mid-contract price hikes.
Sample Customer Complaint 1 (Shannon)
“We signed up via Uswitch after Earth Broadband advertised on multiple platforms with the promise of “no mid-contract price rises”. On 12th August, we received an email informing us of a price increase with only 3 days’ notice (their own website T&Cs say 30 days).
The payment they attempted to take was a duplicate, as we had already paid for August. We cancelled it via our bank after Earth Broadband shut down all communications (live chat and phone lines closed, no email responses).
While checking whether they were allowed to raise the price, we realised we had never received any contract or T&Cs from them. According to Ofcom, this is a breach, as providers must give customers full contract details in a durable format before consent.”
Sample Customer Complaint 2 (Sonya)
“We are in the same position as everyone else. Reported them to OFCOM and Watchdog. Have sent multiple emails etc and no response. I have cancelled my direct debit and the bank have blocked them from setting up any further direct debits, which they are fond of doing. They have breached their contract therefore we are within our legal rights to cancel. As they are unable to respond to any emails other than Trustpilot reviews I have also sent them a letter recorded delivery that confirms they’re in breach of contract and I will be terminating our contract with immediate effect. Also I took a look on Companies House where I found they took out a loan end of July for £111,000 … They are fond of threatening third party collection agencies”
Sample Customer Complaint 3 (Lynn)
“Yes, unfortunately I am another victim of earth broadband.
An additional and increased charge has been taken from my account and like most others I have been unable to contact anyone either via email, phone or web chat.
The only response I had was from the elusive Riley who has never replied to further emails I have sent.”
Feedback on the same group, which came from somebody (James Benton) claiming to be a member of the Operations team at Earth Broadband, yesterday indicated that a “mistake was made by a third-party development team after instructions from management about a price increase“. In other words, the price increase notification was correct, but it was sent out in error (too early) and thus without advanced notice.
James added: “Unfortunately, it reached the point where we were selling broadband at a loss, so a price increase became necessary to ensure the company’s long-term future. Customers should have received advance notice, but the change was applied immediately in error. This meant some customers were charged twice and faced an immediate price increase that should never have happened.”
In addition, James also apologised for the fact that some customers had “received automated emails about debt collection or direct debits being reinstated“, which they’re now working to correct and have pledged to refund “any customers who have paid twice“. The provider has also promised to “pause the price increase for six months for customers who wish to stay” and added that those who wish to cancel because of the change are “free to leave” without penalty. Naturally, we sought a comment of our own on the issues.
Luke Chapman, CEO of Earth Broadband, told ISPreview:
“We’re aware of a billing issue that has affected some customers. Our team are working hard to resolve this error.
Our team introduced a new feature to support price increases and an error was made which resulted in some customers being charged.
Customers are receiving refunds and we’re working hard to rebuild their trust.”
Overall, we do have to give some credit to Earth Broadband above, which seems to be taking the ‘honesty is the best policy‘ style approach in their response; we don’t often see that from ISPs in today’s market and it’s very welcome. On the other hand, those who have been overcharged, sometimes significantly, and threatened with debt collectors, will naturally want to see everything settled before they consider forgiveness.
A quick look at Earth Broadband’s latest micro accounts shows that the company’s total assets less current liabilities stood at -£111k for the year ended 30th April 2024, which compares with the -£75k reported in the prior year. The provider also had 3 employees (including directors), which is down from 4 in the prior year.
