Around 52pc of Irish households are unhappy with their broadband speeds, according to a study by Uswitch.ie. Almost a third are unsure of what broadband speeds they actually get at home.
The study found that 48pc of households in Ireland are satisfied with the broadband speeds they receive.
Despite internet speed being a crucial factor in deciding a broadband package, Irish consumers are not checking the exact broadband speeds they are receiving.
Although many Irish households have expressed unhappiness with their current broadband speed, the rate of switching to new suppliers remains relatively low.
Of those surveyed that have switched suppliers, more than one-third (37pc) switched more than two years ago. For many households, this means missing out on essential savings to be made from a raft of new broadband offerings recently introduced into the Irish market by a range of broadband suppliers.
The cost and speed of broadband are still the two most crucial factors at work in choosing to switch supplier, with price being the main reason for people who switch suppliers (43pc) followed by broadband speed (20pc).
Availability of data allowances currently accounts for 13pc of households’ reasons for switching, with this figure likely to increase in the months ahead as new content-rich services become more available.
“Broadband speed is now a major factor in Irish households, as online services continue to grow and families want to have fast and easy access to things like shopping, entertainment, banking and gaming online,” said Eoin Clarke, head of uSwitch.ie.
“It’s so important that households are actually getting the broadband speed they are paying for and getting value for money.”
He said consumers can check their speeds by using by using uSwitch.ie’s online Speed Checker.
