Millions hit with three-hour broadband outages during last year

04 Jul 2022

Almost 11 million consumers have suffered a broadband blackout lasting more than three hours over the last year, according to data from Uswitch.

The average UK household lost a total of almost two days of internet time from loss of service, power cuts and maintenance, figures show.

UK homes that experienced broadband provider outages were offline for an average of 19 hours in the year to 14 June, the report said.

When additional factors that cause the internet to go down are added – including an average of 11.5 hours of power cuts, five hours of cable damage and almost 10 hours of routine maintenance – the typical UK home was offline for nearly 45 hours.

Outages caused issues for remote and flexible workers operating from home, with 16% of those affected saying their work had been affected at an estimated cost to the economy almost £1.3 billion.

Ernest Doku, a broadband expert at Uswitch, said: 'Misfiring home broadband can quickly become a huge annoyance, given that video calls have become essential for many remote workers.

'Many households who took out a broadband deal during lockdown in the January sales last year will now be reaching the end of their contract. It's the perfect time to shop around.'