Old package + Upgraded speed = Usage issues.

[#1]

Hello,
I fear I already know the answer to my question but I figured it could be worth a try and asking it anyways in case I’m assuming wrong.
My situation:
Had ADSL Max. Couple of weeks ago line suddenly started syncing at ADSL+2 speeds. After a few days the line also started to download at ADSL+2 speeds.
So far no actual problems with that in of itself.
The problem is that is for the first time (I think) since I have had my connection (around 2005) I have now approached my download limit and gotten emails telling me so and that I have been put on level 1 management to help ensure I don’t actually go over it.
Since I’m now downloading faster I’m downloading more then I use to during peak time which puts me a lot closer to my limit before the month is up and if I hadn’t gotten the emails and started to go careful would easily have gone over the limit.
In some respects I find it a sad state of affairs this country’s internet is in. I get a faster connection but can’t fully use it now I have it. Which in fact makes me end up with a management system in place that artificially reduces my speeds down again to worse then what I had before the upgrade. Seems a bit silly to me. Give with 1 hand and take with the other.
I know it would be easy at this point to just click the upgrade button and get a new package with a higher limit. But all new packages have there ‘free over night’ usage between midnight and I think its 8am. Where as my current package, Premiere Option 1 gives a much more generous off peak time of reversing the hours and making peak time between 4pm and midnight. So instead of having just 8 hours of peak time a day I would end up with just 8 hours of off peak time day. I don’t want to loose this, it is too valuable. But I would also like to not be limited to just 20GB a month of peak usage either now I’m easily going over this limit thanks to the faster speed.
So my question is, is there a way to have my cake and eat it? Keep the longer off peak time but increase my peak limit a bit? I have no problem paying more for more peak usage, I just don’t want to loose the really nice off peak times in the process. I assume the answer is no but figured if you don’t ask you’ll never get.

[#2]

Hi there and thanks for posting.
You might want to consider changing your account over to Extra first, which by default has a usage allowance of 60gb. Following that you might want to consider signing up for the extra usage trial which you can read about and apply for here: http://trials.plus.net

[#3]

Thanks for the quick reply.
That link is very interesting indeed.
I am a little weary of just jumping in head first though as like I said above the longer over night usage is too valuable to lose by miscommunication.
So long as Samknows is accurate I’m in a market 2 area. The way I read the link it suggests for essentially £20 I can upgrade my account so my usage limit is 120GB a month.
The first question I have is to make sure it is an added bonus to the account package I currently have and simply adding on the extra usage. Not changing my package that would then take away the longer over night usage?
Second question is ‘For a total monthly broadband cost of’ suggests to me I would start getting charged £20 a month instead of the £23 I do now? Or have I got it wrong and it means the price would be the £23 I pay now + £20 more a month for the 120GB usage?
Just refreshed the thread to see the reply got edited.
The problem with the Extra package currently available is the over night usage is terrible compared to what I currently have and like I said, I don’t want to give that up.
Calling the extra 120gb usage option a trail also makes me concerned. If I was to take the extra usage option and the trial ends or something, how will it affect my package afterwards? Is there some small print somewhere that would let you then put me on a more current package and take away the longer over night usage? This is the kind of issue I want to avoid if I were to adjust, change or improve my package.

[#4]

Hi, to address your questions:

Quote

The first question I have is to make sure it is an added bonus to the account package I currently have and simply adding on the extra usage. Not changing my package that would then take away the longer over night usage?

No, it's a separate account type and your off peak hours will change (midnight to 8am as opposed to midnight to 4pm). Having said that though surely the increased allowance would more than offset that?

Quote

Second question is ‘For a total monthly broadband cost of’ suggests to me I would start getting charged £20 a month instead of the £23 I do now? Or have I got it wrong and it means the price would be the £23 I pay now + £20 more a month for the 120GB usage?

It won't be an additional cost. The price quoted is the monthly price for that account.
To reassure you, we'll never change your account type without you requesting it (we don't sell the account type you're on any more and you're still using it ) so you've no worries on that score.

[#5]

Quote from: chaoticmess

The first question I have is to make sure it is an added bonus to the account package I currently have and simply adding on the extra usage. Not changing my package that would then take away the longer over night usage?

This would be a complete package change, so you would move over to the 'Premium' package with included 120GB transfer.  Your 'off peak' hours would then reduce to 00:00-08:00

Quote from: chaoticmess

Second question is ‘For a total monthly broadband cost of’ suggests to me I would start getting charged £20 a month instead of the £23 I do now? Or have I got it wrong and it means the price would be the £23 I pay now + £20 more a month for the 120GB usage?

Your total bill would reduce to around £20.00

Quote from: chaoticmess

The problem with the Extra package currently available is the over night usage is terrible compared to what I currently have and like I said, I don’t want to give that up.

Honestly, I'd be surprised if that would actually be an issue.  Gaining 100GB of usage, but losing 8 hours of daytime use is a fairly good exchange for most people, as they are usually "at work" during the 8am-4pm crossover.  Even that said, you can still schedule an unlimited amount of 'off peak' downloading.   I am a heavy internet user, (I think my best month was somewhere in the region of 300GB) and I'm actually struggling to hit 120GB of peak-time usage.

Quote from: chaoticmess

Calling the extra 120gb usage option a trail also makes me concerned. If I was to take the extra usage option and the trial ends or something, how will it affect my package afterwards? Is there some small print somewhere that would let you then put me on a more current package and take away the longer over night usage? This is the kind of issue I want to avoid if I were to adjust, change or improve my package.

Historically with trials, anybody who participates will be allowed to stay on their 'trial package' even after the trial ends, in perpetuity.  The only reason this is branded a 'trial' is because it meant that the development process to get this 'special' package out to the masses was a lot simpler if they called it a trial.  It's a fully blown product in it's own right, so I wouldn't be worried about it's nomenclature.
Cheers
B.

[#6]

Thanks for the replies and clarifications in regards to my questions.

Quote from: Barry

Honestly, I'd be surprised if that would actually be an issue.  Gaining 100GB of usage, but losing 8 hours of daytime use is a fairly good exchange for most people, as they are usually "at work" during the 8am-4pm crossover.  Even that said, you can still schedule an unlimited amount of 'off peak' downloading.   I am a heavy internet user, (I think my best month was somewhere in the region of 300GB) and I'm actually struggling to hit 120GB of peak-time usage.

Perhaps if I explain more about my setup:
I have 2 internet connections I use. One with plusnet one with another ISP.
Until a year or so ago the other ISP connection was a business package and truly unlimited with no fair usage policy. But then it all got changed and a limit imposed of 100GB.
I used to use my plusnet connection for gaming and downloading during offpeak time and my other connection for downloading heavily during peak time as well as off peak too.
Now my other connection got nerf’d I’ve had to reduce and cut down on downloading as much as I used to during peak times. With the increase speeds on my plusnet line it makes we want to use it for downloading faster during peak times more then my other connection which is still on adsl max. This is part of why I want the peak time usage increased. But I also want to use the plusnet connection at off peak times to download as well. So I want to keep the off peak times as they are on my plusnet account while also increasing my peak time limit.
I’m at home all day and can use my connections at all ours, 10am, 8pm, 4am. It is better for me to have the limit between 16:00-00:00 and be free the rest of the time then be free between 00:00-08:00 and be limited the rest of the time to just 100GB.
I do agree that for the price of £20 a month getting an extra 100GB is very good but it’s still not worth it to me to give up the off peak times I currently have. I could easily get through that, especially if my off peak times change to just 00:00-08:00. I’m not leaving things going over night. I’m active still between 08:00-16:00 and is just to valuable to me to give up.
I was hoping to pay an extra £10 a month or something and add on an extra 50GB to my existing package, while keeping the over night usage I have. Clearly I was right though and this is not possible.
Thanks for the advice though.