1. Providers
2. BT
3. Moving Home

There are so many things to think about when you're moving home – it can be a really stressful time. When it comes to broadband, you want it to be working in your old home up until the day you leave, and you want it to be ready and waiting for you when you arrive at your new place. And you don't want it to be too much of a fuss to sort out.

In this guide we'll take you through what to do if you're moving home and are a BT broadband customer. The number of options open to you depends on where you're moving to and whether you're still in the minimum contract period, but the moving process should be pretty straightforward whatever the case.

Keeping your current BT broadband package

If you're moving home and happy to stick with the BT broadband package you have at the moment – or are in your minimum contract period and can't get out without paying a hefty cancellation charge – the process really is quite straightforward.

BT has a dedicated moving home service that will take care of everything – all you need to do is fill in your phone number, BT account number, your new address and your moving date. BT will do the rest. It's recommended you give BT at least two weeks' notice before your moving day and you can tell BT about the move up to 90 days in advance if you so wish.

Your bill details will remain the same, there's no need to set up a new Direct Debit and there'll be no charge for your new connection, unless BT needs to install a new phone line in which case a fee of £130 may apply. It's also important to note that by sticking with your current plan, you won't be entering into a new minimum term contract when you move, you'll simply carry on where you left off.

It's highly unlikely that BT won't be available at your new place since the Openreach network it uses covers the vast majority of UK postcodes. In the unlikely event that BT broadband isn't available at your new address, BT will waive any cancellation fees that may apply as they cannot provide the service you signed up to.

Upgrading your BT broadband deal

You may feel that as you're moving home, it's also the perfect time to upgrade your BT broadband package. There are plenty of upgrade options available including BT Halo 3+, which offers speeds of 100Mbps where available, a 4G Mini Hub that connects you to mobile data should your wifi drop out and a guarantee that your monthly price won't go up at the end of your contract. You may also want to add BT TV to your broadband deal, take advantage of all the European football on BT Sport or simply upgrade from standard broadband to fibre.

To make changes to your package and change address, you'll need to speak to BT on the phone. You can call the moving team on 0800 783 0235 between 8am and 9pm Monday to Friday, from 8am to 8pm on Saturdays and from 9am to 6pm on Sundays. You can use the same number to speak to BT about downgrading your package if you're outside your minimum contract period and are looking to save a bit of cash.

Most of the introductory offers you find on comparison sites aren't available to existing BT customers, but there may well be other offers and loyalty discounts available if you call up. Be aware that if you do upgrade, you'll probably be committing to a new minimum term contract.

Moving home and leaving BT

Let's take a look at a couple of scenarios in which you may end up leaving BT as you move home.

You've seen a better offer elsewhere

If you're outside of your minimum contract period, there's nothing to stop you looking around at what deals other providers have to offer. In fact, we'd positively encourage you to do so. Something to bear in mind if you're eyeing up a new broadband deal is to check to see whether it's available at your new address.

Virgin Media is available to about 67% of UK households so there's roughly a one in three chance you won't be able to get it. All of the other major broadband providers including Sky, TalkTalk and Plusnet use the same Openreach network as BT so if you can get BT at your new address, you should also be able to get any one of these providers.

BT isn't available at your new address

It is highly unlikely that BT broadband won't be available at your new address – some 98.5% of UK homes can get a fixed broadband service with the majority of those being served by the Openreach network used by BT. But there are a few exceptions.

• New-builds – Some new-build housing estates are not covered by Openreach and instead are serviced exclusively by another provider using its own network infrastructure, such as Virgin Media, Hyperoptic or Gigaclear. The upside is that all three of these offer tremendous speeds and it doesn't mean that Openreach won't be coming to the area at some point in the future
• Rural areas – If you're moving to a remote area, it may be that BT broadband isn't currently available at the property you are moving to, but is available in a nearby village. Get in touch with BT as the area may be included in an upcoming rollout. The Government's Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme also offers up to £1,500 towards the cost of getting gigabit broadband installed in rural residential properties
• Hull – If you're moving to Hull, there is no way you'll be able to stay with BT. You won't be going to Virgin, Sky or TalkTalk either. KCOM is the only fixed broadband provider in the city

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