53 per cent of broadband customers experienced connection issues in 2022, according research by Which?.

A study by the consumer champion, which surveyed nearly 4,000 broadband customers in the UK, found that very slow speeds, connection drop outs, outages, and router problems were some of the most common grievances.

Which? says that these issues were taking place across all broadband providers, with “very narrow margins” between the best and worst customer experiences.

The organisation said that the connection issues being faced by consumers "add insult to injury”, with many paying more than 14 per cent more for "mediocre services" after broadband providers hiked their prices earlier this year.

In its research Which? found that of the UK's largest broadband providers, Sky, Virgin Media and EE had the lowest proportion of customers that hadn’t experienced any issues, with just 32 per cent, 35 per cent and 37 per cent of their customers not reporting any problems.

BT fared best out of the major players, with 49 per cent of its customers experiencing no performance issues during the 12 month period.

But Hyperoptic, Shell Energy Broadband and Utility Warehouse performed better, with 50 per cent or more of their customers not experiencing any performance issue.

“A reliable connection is essential to modern life,” said Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy. “Earlier this year, many broadband consumers were hit with mid-contract price hikes of more than 14 per cent – meaning that it’s more important than ever that their provider offers a reliable connection and good customer service.”

Concha added: “It’s completely unacceptable that customers who have faced these eye-watering increases are also experiencing so many problems with their connection. Broadband firms need to work harder to resolve these issues and offer a better service."

Sky and EE both said that Ofcom's quarterly complaints survey show they are some of the least complained about broadband providers, with Sky adding it doesn't believe Which?'s report is "representative".

“While these findings are only taken from a small sample of customers, the latest, fuller data from Ofcom shows that our customers benefit from the fastest download speeds, and customer complaints on our broadband services fell by 22 per cent in the first quarter of this year," said a Virgin Media spokesperson.

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