T-Mobile u-turns on data cap

A customer backlash has prompted T-Mobile UK to scrap plans to cut fair-use mobile data limits on existing contracts.

The company told customers two days ago - Monday, 11 January - that it was reducing fair use data limits to 500MB - previously set as high as 3GB on Android phone contracts - on 1 February.

This provoked a huge media shit storm and accusations of bait and switch by outraged customers.

Today the company issued a statement signed by a VP called Lysa Hardy, that it will impose the cap to new and upgrading customers only, "following further review".

"There will be no change to the data packages for existing customers  for the duration of their contract and we apologise for any confusion caused," Hardy wrote. "The revision to the Fair Use Policy is designed to ensure an improved quality of service for all mobile internet users.”

Yeah, yeah.

The company can thrust its contractual rights to changes terms as much as it likes, but its initial decision to impose data caps on contracts bought in good faith was shabby. T-Mobile deserves all the opprobrium hurled at it.

We trust this is a lesson learnt for the company. ®