The short answer
If two broadband providers are billing you after a switch, your old provider almost certainly never received the electronic "switch order trigger" that ceases your old line. Complain in writing to your new provider first, because it leads the switch. Then reclaim any money already taken through the Direct Debit Guarantee at your bank, which refunds you in full and immediately. If it is not resolved within 6 weeks, escalate to your provider's Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme, whose decision is binding on the provider.
Nobody plans to pay for two broadband connections. Yet every month a steady trickle of UK households discover exactly that on their bank statement: one direct debit for the shiny new provider, and one for the old one that was supposed to have quietly stepped aside. The internet works fine. The billing does not.
Here is the reassuring part. This is a known, well understood, entirely fixable failure, and the rules are firmly on your side. What has been missing until now is a straight answer about how to unwind it, because the search results for this problem are mostly other bewildered customers on provider forums swapping theories. Good people, wrong tools. So let us set out the mechanism, the rights, and the exact order of operations.
Why are two providers billing me at once?
Because of a single message that never arrived.
Since 12 September 2024, home broadband switches in the UK run on One Touch Switch, a Gaining Provider Led process required under Ofcom's General Condition C7. You contact only the provider you are moving to. That provider sends a match request across a central industry system called the TOTSCo Hub. Your old provider must answer within 60 seconds, then send you a Switching Information Letter setting out any early termination charges and what you will lose. You consent, the order is placed, and on the agreed day your new service goes live.
Then, and only then, the new provider sends a final message: the switch order trigger. That is the instruction telling your old provider to cease the line and stop billing.
Your old provider does not stop charging you when your new router lights up. It stops charging you when it receives that trigger. If the trigger is never sent, is never processed, or was never possible because the initial match failed, then as far as your old provider's systems are concerned nothing has happened at all. The line stays live. The direct debit keeps collecting. And you keep paying twice for a service you are receiving once.
That is the whole mechanism. It is not a conspiracy and it is rarely deliberate. It is a message that fell down the back of the sofa.
Is this a rare glitch?
Not as rare as anyone would like. The TOTSCo Hub match rate stood at 62.93% in May 2026 (ThinkBroadband, 2026), meaning a substantial minority of switch requests do not match cleanly on the first attempt. BT's own response to TOTSCo's April 2026 consultation reported that roughly 32% of its successful switches still required two or more match request retries, which BT described as time consuming and capable of producing a poor customer experience (BT, 2026). Every retry is another chance for a trigger to go astray.
The system is nonetheless working at scale. TOTSCo celebrated its three millionth completed switch on 15 June 2026, with 147,894 switches completed in May 2026 alone and more than 13 million messages processed since launch with no unplanned downtime (TOTSCo, 2026; ThinkBroadband, 2026). Most switches are fine. Yours simply was not.
First, check whether your switch was even covered
Before you complain about a broken process, it is worth confirming that the process applied. A surprising share of double billing cases are not failures at all: they are services sitting outside One Touch Switch that were never going to cancel themselves.
The most common version of this runs as follows. You leave a bundled provider for a full fibre altnet. Broadband and home phone move across neatly under One Touch Switch. The television package, which has never been in scope, remains exactly where it was, billing exactly as before. Your old provider is not doing anything wrong. You simply have a TV subscription you forgot you had.
Mobile broadband on a 4G or 5G router is likewise outside scope, being governed by the separate PAC and STAC mobile switching codes. Business broadband and leased lines are outside scope too: the industry's business switching solution was still in trial through 2026 rather than fully launched, which is worth knowing if you are moving a small firm. Our guide to switching business broadband without downtime covers that territory properly.
And if your old provider is not listed on the TOTSCo Hub, which remains true of a handful of smaller networks, One Touch Switch cannot complete at all. You will need to cancel with them directly, in the old fashioned way, with a telephone and a note of the time you rang.
The nine step recovery procedure
Work through these in order. Each step has a regulatory basis, which matters enormously if you end up in front of an adjudicator, and which is why it is worth naming the rule when you write to your provider. Nothing focuses an agent's mind like a correctly cited General Condition.
Step 1. Gather your evidence before you speak to anybody
You will need: your switching order reference from the new provider, the One Touch Switch or TOTSCo reference if you have one, the Switching Information Letter from the old provider, bank statements showing both direct debits running side by side, any cease date confirmation (or proof that none arrived), and dated, timed notes of every conversation including the name of the person you spoke to.
This sounds fussy. It is the difference between a case you win in four weeks and a case you argue about for four months. The Hub keeps records of what was sent and when, but you will only think to ask for them if your own timeline is straight first.
Step 2. Contact the gaining provider, not the losing one
Every instinct says to ring the company still taking your money. Resist it. Under the Gaining Provider Led model, your new provider owns the switch and is responsible for sending, and if necessary re-sending, the trigger that ceases the old line. Ask them explicitly whether the switch order trigger was sent, and on what date. That single question tends to move the conversation along at a considerable pace.
Step 3. Tell the losing provider to stop, cease and refund
Now contact the old provider. State plainly that under Ofcom's General Condition C7 they may not levy notice period charges beyond the switch date, and that they are required to cease the service and refund the overlapping charges. If they instead ceased your line in error and left you without service, demand reinstatement: the industry operates an Urgent Service Restoration route for Openreach lines ceased in error, and an erroneous transfer process that providers can invoke between themselves.
Be aware of one persistent myth doing the rounds on provider forums: that a 30 day notice period still applies after a One Touch Switch. It does not. That is the entire point of the reform.
Step 4. Raise a formal written complaint and get a reference number
A service enquiry is not a complaint. A complaint is a complaint, and it must be logged as one under Ofcom's complaints handling rules, with a reference number and a date. That date starts the escalation clock, and without it you cannot go to an ombudsman later. Ask for the reference in writing and keep the email.
Step 5. Reclaim the money through the Direct Debit Guarantee
This is the step almost nobody knows about, and it is the fastest route to your money.
Under the Direct Debit Guarantee, operated by Bacs, if a payment is taken in error you are entitled to a full and immediate refund from your own bank. There is no time limit. You do not need your provider's permission, agreement, or blessing. Technically this is an indemnity claim: your bank refunds you, then reclaims the money from the provider through the banking system, with the funds recovered automatically 14 working days later unless the provider formally challenges it.
Ring your bank, use the words "Direct Debit Guarantee indemnity claim", and explain that the payments were collected after the service transferred. Note the one caveat: the Guarantee returns your money, but it does not extinguish any genuine underlying debt, so the provider can still pursue anything you actually owe. In a clean double billing case, you do not owe it.
Step 6. Claim your automatic compensation
Ofcom's automatic compensation scheme is voluntary, but its signatories cover 97% of landline customers and 91% of broadband customers, and they include BT, EE, Plusnet, Hyperoptic, Sky (including NOW Broadband), TalkTalk, Utility Warehouse, Virgin Media, Vodafone and Zen Internet (Ofcom, 2026). From 1 April 2026 the rates are:
| What went wrong | Rate | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Delayed start to a new service | £6.46 per day | From the missed start date. This explicitly includes delays during a switch, so it is the one that matters here. |
| Missed engineer appointment | £32.31 | Per appointment, including any cancelled with less than 24 hours' notice. |
| Delayed repair after total loss of service | £10.34 per day | Where a reported total loss is not fixed within two full working days. |
Compensation is paid as a bill credit within 30 calendar days, and the rates rise every 1 April in line with CPI. Not everything is covered: slow speeds, intermittent drops, faults you caused, planned engineering works and business contracts all sit outside the scheme. In 2024 the total paid out across all signatories was £62.4 million (Ofcom, 2025). Some of that was probably yours. Our full guide to broadband compensation and service failure unpacks the detail.
Step 7. Escalate to Alternative Dispute Resolution after 6 weeks
Here is a 2026 change that works in your favour, and which most published guidance has not caught up with. For complaints raised on or after 8 April 2026, the waiting period before you can escalate to Alternative Dispute Resolution fell from 8 weeks to 6 weeks.
Better still, if your provider issues a written deadlock letter (a final response saying it will go no further), you can escalate immediately without waiting at all. Once you have that letter you have 12 months to bring the case.
There are two Ofcom approved schemes, and which one you use depends entirely on your provider. This mapping changed materially in 2026, so check it rather than assuming:
| Provider | Scheme | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| BT | Communications Ombudsman | |
| EE | Communications Ombudsman | Device finance complaints go to the Financial Ombudsman instead. |
| Plusnet | Communications Ombudsman | |
| Sky, including NOW | CISAS | |
| Virgin Media O2, residential | CISAS | Moved from the Communications Ombudsman on 1 January 2026. Business customers remain with the Communications Ombudsman. |
| TalkTalk | CISAS | |
| Vodafone | CISAS | |
| Three and SMARTY | CISAS | Three from 21 May 2026, SMARTY from 27 May 2026. Cases opened before the move stay with the Communications Ombudsman. |
| Hyperoptic | Communications Ombudsman | |
| Community Fibre | Communications Ombudsman | |
| YouFibre and Netomnia | Communications Ombudsman | |
| Zen Internet | CISAS |
Memberships change. Ofcom publishes a live checker, and your provider's own code of practice will always name its scheme. Verify before you file.
An adjudicator can order an apology, correct your account, waive charges and early termination fees, and award compensation. The Communications Ombudsman's maximum award is £10,000, though typical financial awards run to £50 to £100. The decision binds the provider if you accept it, and you keep the right to reject it and go to court instead.
Step 8. If your bank refuses a valid indemnity claim, go to the Financial Ombudsman
Rare, but it happens. The Direct Debit Guarantee is an obligation on your bank, not on your broadband provider, so a refusal is a banking complaint. The Financial Ombudsman Service has jurisdiction over the bank. Ofcom does not.
Step 9. Report it to Ofcom, for the record
Ofcom does not resolve individual disputes. It collects complaints data and acts on patterns, which is genuinely useful and completely useless to you personally on a Tuesday afternoon with two direct debits pending. Report it anyway. It is how systemic problems eventually get fixed for everybody else.
It is worth knowing that Ofcom closed its One Touch Switch enforcement programme on 11 June 2026, concluding that the majority of customers now switch successfully while noting residual issues with address matching and a small number of providers not always adhering to the process (Ofcom, 2026). In plain terms: the regulator has taken its hand off the tiller, so the burden of fixing an individual failed switch now sits squarely with you and the escalation ladder above.
What to put in your complaint
Keep it to the billing and switch issue alone. Do not bundle in the router that arrived late or the agent who was rude. One issue, calmly argued, with a clear remedy requested.
- Identifiers. Both provider account numbers, your switch or One Touch Switch reference, and the service address.
- A dated chronology. Order date, agreed switch date, go live date, the date the second bill first landed.
- The specific breach. State that under Ofcom General Condition C7 you must not be charged notice period charges beyond the switch date, and that the losing provider must not continue billing once the service has transferred.
- The remedy you want. Cessation of the old service, a full refund of all overlapping charges, and automatic compensation of £6.46 per day for any delayed start.
- Your deadline and your next step. Say that you expect a written response, that you will escalate to the relevant Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme after 6 weeks or on receipt of a deadlock letter, and that you are raising a Direct Debit Guarantee indemnity claim with your bank for sums taken in error.
That final sentence tends to be the one that gets read twice.
Frequently asked questions
My new provider says "no match found". What do I do?
The Hub matches on your address and surname. Ask your new provider to retry the match using your old account number, which is permitted as a second attempt and resolves most cases. Mismatches usually come from the address held against the underlying line differing from the one on your account, which is common where providers have merged or migrated their systems.
I switched, but my old provider is still charging me. Is that allowed?
No, not beyond the switch date. Under Ofcom's General Condition C7 the losing provider must not levy notice period charges after the switch date. If billing continues, the switch order trigger has almost certainly not been processed. Start with step 2 above.
My provider says I still have to give 30 days' notice after One Touch Switch. Is that right?
No. Removing the need to give notice to your old provider is precisely what One Touch Switch was designed to do. You do not contact them to cancel, and you should not be charged a notice period beyond the switch date. Put that in writing and cite General Condition C7.
Two providers are billing me at once. Who do I complain to?
Both, in order. Complain to the gaining (new) provider first, because it leads the switch and sends the trigger. Then complain to the losing (old) provider about the charges themselves. Raise a formal complaint with each and get a reference number from each.
Can I just cancel the direct debit to my old provider?
You can, and many people do. Be careful, though: cancelling the mandate stops future collections but does not cancel the underlying contract or the debt. If the old service is still technically live, arrears can build up and, in the worst case, affect your credit file. Cancel the direct debit by all means, but cancel the service properly too, and get written confirmation.
Can I get back money that has already been taken?
Yes. Use the Direct Debit Guarantee. Your bank must give you a full and immediate refund of any payment taken in error, with no time limit, then reclaims it from the provider itself. Ask your bank for a "Direct Debit Guarantee indemnity claim". This is usually far faster than waiting for a provider's refunds team.
Whose fault is it, the new provider or the old one?
Mechanically, the trigger message is sent by the gaining provider and processed by the losing provider, so it can fail at either end. Practically, it does not matter to you. The gaining provider leads the switch, so that is where you start, and the losing provider is the one levying charges it should not, so that is where you demand the refund. Do not let either one send you back to the other. If they do, that circularity is itself excellent evidence for an adjudicator.
How long is a One Touch Switch supposed to take?
Your old provider must respond to the match request within 60 seconds electronically, and loss of service during the switch itself must not exceed one working day under General Condition C7. The overall timeline depends on the switch date you agree and any cooling off period.
Will I lose internet during the switch?
You should not lose it for more than one working day. If you do, that is a total loss of service, and the delayed repair compensation rate of £10.34 per day may apply once it has run beyond two full working days from being reported.
What compensation am I owed if my switch was delayed?
£6.46 per day for a delayed start to the new service, from the missed start date, and £32.31 for any missed engineer appointment. These are the rates in force from 1 April 2026, and an incident is paid at the rate applying when it began. Payment arrives as a bill credit within 30 calendar days.
My old provider is not on the TOTSCo system. How do I switch?
Manually. If a provider is not on the Hub, One Touch Switch cannot complete, and you will need to cancel with them directly while ordering your new service separately. Keep careful records of the date you gave notice, because this is exactly the scenario where overlapping bills appear.
Do I need a deadlock letter to go to the ombudsman?
Not necessarily. A deadlock letter lets you escalate immediately. Without one, you can escalate once 6 weeks have passed since you raised the complaint, for complaints raised on or after 8 April 2026.
I moved my broadband and phone, so why is my old provider still billing me?
Check whether you also had a television package. TV is not covered by One Touch Switch and never transfers automatically. It stays with the old provider, billing away happily, until you cancel it yourself.
There is a credit sitting on my closed account. How do I actually get it?
Ask for it in writing, specifying whether you want a bank transfer or a cheque, and give the provider a deadline. Credits on closed accounts are a well documented source of complaints because they are not always refunded automatically. If it is not paid, this is a straightforward money claim to put in front of an adjudicator.
Nobody will take responsibility. Can I claim compensation for the mess itself?
Automatic compensation covers a delayed start, a missed appointment and a delayed repair. It does not cover general inconvenience. An Alternative Dispute Resolution adjudicator, however, can award compensation for poor complaint handling and distress on top of correcting your account, which is one reason the escalation route is worth using rather than simply enduring.
Where to go next
Sources
- Bacs. (n.d.). The Direct Debit Guarantee. Scope: refund entitlement for payments taken in error by direct debit, United Kingdom.
- BT. (2026, April). Response to TOTSCo Monitoring and Improvement consultation. Value: approximately 32% of successful switches required two or more match request retries.
- CEDR. (2026). CISAS scheme members. Scope: Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme membership, United Kingdom.
- Communications Ombudsman. (2026). Complaints process and maximum awards. Value: maximum award £10,000; escalation window reduced to 6 weeks for complaints raised on or after 8 April 2026.
- Ofcom. (2025, October). Automatic Compensation Scheme [Freedom of Information response]. Value: £62.4 million total automatic compensation paid by all signatories in 2024, United Kingdom.
- Ofcom. (2026). Automatic compensation rates from 1 April 2026. Values: £6.46 per day delayed start; £32.31 missed appointment; £10.34 per day delayed repair. Scope: residential customers of signatory providers, United Kingdom.
- Ofcom. (2026, 11 June). Enforcement programme: industry's failure to implement One Touch Switch by the deadline of 3 April 2023 [Programme closure]. Scope: United Kingdom.
- Ofcom. (2026). General Condition C7: switching, and Condition C4: complaints handling. Scope: United Kingdom communications providers.
- ThinkBroadband. (2026, June). TOTSCo celebrates 3 million completed broadband migrations. Values: 62.93% Hub match rate, May 2026; 147,894 switches completed, May 2026. Scope: United Kingdom.
- TOTSCo. (2026). One Touch Switch industry process and Hub performance. Values: more than 13 million messages processed since launch; three millionth switch completed 15 June 2026. Scope: United Kingdom.
This guide explains consumer rights under the Ofcom General Conditions and the Bacs Direct Debit Guarantee as they stood in July 2026. It is general information and not legal advice. Compensation rates change every 1 April, and Alternative Dispute Resolution memberships change from time to time, so verify the current position with Ofcom before you file.