Practical how-to guides for UK TV and broadband
Switch in a single day, cancel without paying out the contract, watch TNT Sports on a Sky box, find a landline number you cannot remember. Step-by-step instructions written for real UK households, not jargon-loving call centres.
1 day
How fast Ofcom One Touch Switch can move you to a new provider
14
Days cooling-off period to walk away from a new contract
30
Day price-rise window to leave a contract without paying a fee
£0
Cost to follow every method in these guides
UK telecom rules changed a lot in the last two years. Ofcom's One Touch Switch means you no longer ring two providers to change broadband, the price-rise rules tightened so mid-contract jumps now follow a fixed pounds-and-pence formula, and the satellite-dish era of pay TV ended quietly with Sky Stream, Sky Glass and EE TV on Apple TV 4K. Every guide below reflects the new processes, not the version your old neighbour remembers.
Whatever you need to do, the steps are written for someone who simply wants the thing done. Pair them with our comparison guides if you are also shopping for a new deal, or jump straight to the full directory of TV & broadband providers.
The four essentials
Start with the four most-asked how-tos
Switching, cancelling, exit-fee rules and the practical account look-ups: these four pillars cover the actions almost every UK household will need at least once.
How to switch broadband provider
The Ofcom One Touch Switch process in plain English: when to give notice, how providers handle the line, what to do about the router and how to avoid double-billing.
Read the guideHow to cancel broadband
Out-of-contract, mid-contract or moving abroad: how to cancel cleanly, what the early termination fee looks like and the price-rise window that lets you leave fee-free.
Read the guideBroadband cancellation rights
Your 14-day cooling-off period, mid-contract price rises, signal failures and the Ofcom rules that let you walk away without paying out the remaining months.
Read the guideFind your landline number
Five ways to find your home phone number without paying for a 1471-style service: bill, online account, router, ringing your mobile and asking the operator.
Read the guideEvery how-to on one page
Filter all 8 how-to guides
Tap a category to narrow down by what you actually need to do: switch, cancel, watch, troubleshoot or simply find a piece of account information.
How to switch broadband provider
Switching
The Ofcom One Touch Switch process in plain English: when to give notice, how providers handle the line, what to do about the router and how to avoid double-billing.
How to cancel broadband
Cancelling
Out-of-contract, mid-contract or moving abroad: how to cancel cleanly, what the early termination fee looks like and the price-rise window that lets you leave fee-free.
Broadband cancellation rights
Consumer rights
Your 14-day cooling-off period, mid-contract price rises, signal failures and the Ofcom rules that let you walk away without paying out the remaining months.
Find your landline number
Account info
Five ways to find your home phone number without paying for a 1471-style service: bill, online account, router, ringing your mobile and asking the operator.
Watch TNT Sports on Sky
Watching
How to add TNT Sports (formerly BT Sport) to Sky Stream, Sky Glass or Sky Q and what bundle you actually need to watch every Champions League match this season.
What is my web browser?
Troubleshooting
Tells you the browser and version you are using right now, why ISP support always asks the question and how to update Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox in 30 seconds.
Run a broadband speed test
Troubleshooting
How to run an honest UK speed test, what the result really means, when to challenge your provider and the threshold Ofcom uses to let you leave fee-free.
Compare broadband in your area
Before you switch
Postcode-by-postcode UK availability check: which fibre lines pass your home, who actually delivers gig speeds, and the cheapest matching plan once you know what you can get.
Most-asked questions
Jump straight to the answer
The eight questions our readers tap on most often, with the matching guide one click away. No login, no form.
Can I switch in 1 day?
Ofcom One Touch Switch
Will I pay an exit fee?
Out-of-contract vs in-contract
Can I leave on a price rise?
The 30-day window
How do I find my landline number?
5 quick methods
Where is TNT Sports on Sky?
Channel 528 explained
Which browser am I using?
Live detection + update
Is my speed below the contract minimum?
How to test it properly
Is my postcode on full-fibre?
Free availability check
Pick your goal
How-to guides by what you want to do
Switching, cancelling or just wanting to watch a specific channel. Pick the closest match to what you came here to do and we send you straight to the right step-by-step.
Switch provider
You want a faster, cheaper or simpler plan. Ofcom One Touch Switch can move you in a single day, with the old provider closing the line automatically.
1 day
Switch time with One Touch Switch
Cancel cleanly
You are leaving the UK, moving in with a partner who already has broadband or simply ending the contract. Five real reasons that let you cancel with zero fee.
£0
Exit fee out of contract
Watch something specific
You bought a Sky box but the match is on TNT Sports. You want iPlayer on the EE TV remote. Short guides that tell you which app, which channel, which add-on.
5 min
Average read time
The universal 3-step move
The shape of every successful switch or cancellation
Whichever guide you open, the underlying motion is the same: check where you stand, take the action, watch for the trip-wires. These three steps stop almost every horror story.
Check where you stand
Open your account or a recent bill: contract end date, current monthly price, current speed and any open faults. The whole game changes once you know whether you are in or out of contract.
Take the action in one place
Switching means one call or web form to the new provider only; cancelling means a single call to the existing one. Avoid mid-process changes (router moves, line tests) until the action is logged.
Watch the trip-wires
Final-bill date, refund of any credit balance, returning provider hardware, redirecting any line-rental or VoIP service. The guides flag every one of these in the right place so you do not get caught.
Updated for the new Ofcom rules
The two rule-changes that quietly fixed UK switching
Since September 2023, Ofcom's One Touch Switch makes the new provider responsible for the whole move, and price-rise rules require providers to give you the pounds-and-pence increase in advance. Together they removed the two oldest UK telecom nightmares: double-billing and surprise hikes you cannot leave on.
One call
To the new provider, who closes the old line for you
30 days
To leave fee-free after any mid-contract price rise
14 days
Cooling-off period on any new online sign-up
Source: Ofcom General Conditions, updated rules in force since September 2023.
How-to FAQ
The Selectra expert answers your questions
One business day if both the old and new provider are on the same network (Openreach or Virgin Media) and you use Ofcom One Touch Switch. Cross-network switches (e.g. Virgin cable to Openreach fibre) take up to 10 days because a new line has to be activated. The new provider does everything, including ending the old contract. Full walk-through in our switch broadband guide.
Yes, in five real cases: you are out of contract, you are within the 14-day cooling-off period, the provider raised your monthly price (you have 30 days to leave), the speed is persistently below the contract minimum, or the service has been broken for an extended period and they cannot fix it. Our broadband cancellation rights guide walks through each one.
Check a recent bill, log in to the provider account, look at the router admin label (BT and Sky print the number there), ring your mobile from the landline, or call your provider's service number. The full find your landline number guide has step-by-step screenshots for each route.
TNT Sports (formerly BT Sport) is available as a paid add-on inside the Sky channel guide on Sky Stream, Sky Glass and Sky Q. The bundle costs around £30 a month on top of your existing Sky package and unlocks Champions League, Premier League Saturday 12.30, MotoGP and UFC. The watch TNT Sports on Sky guide shows where to find it on the on-screen menu.
The fastest answer is on our what is my browser tool: open the page and it tells you in real time. Knowing the answer matters because ISP technical support, online banking, HMRC and some streaming sites have minimum browser versions; an out-of-date Chrome or Edge causes problems blamed on the broadband.
Not since September 2023 under One Touch Switch. You sign up with the new provider only and they handle the cancellation with the old one. The single exception is if you want to move home and keep the same provider: in that case you call them yourself before the move.
Run an honest speed test (wired connection, peak time, repeated three times) and compare the result against the minimum guaranteed speed on your contract. If you are persistently below that floor, the provider has 30 days to fix it. After that you can leave with no exit fee. Our broadband speed test guide covers the right method.
Use the postcode checker on our broadband in my area guide. It shows which Openreach FTTP, Virgin Media gig and alt-net (CityFibre, Hyperoptic, Community Fibre) lines actually pass your home, then the cheapest matching plan once you know what you can get.