Virgin Media

Broadband and TV provider. Products & services: Broadband, TV, Landline.

Updated: 2 August 2026

Company Overview

Industry: Telecoms (broadband, pay-TV and home phone)
Parent company: VMED O2 UK Limited (Virgin Media O2) — Liberty Global / Telefonica 50:50 JV
Regulator: Ofcom
Ombudsman: CISAS (Communications and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme, run by CEDR)
Customers: Around 5.4 million UK consumer broadband customers (Virgin Media O2, Q2 2026)
Founded: 2007 (Virgin Media brand launched; parent company Virgin Media Limited incorporated 1991)
Legal entity: Virgin Media Limited (Companies House no. 02591237)

6(industry average 6)Broadband complaints per 100,000 customers

What customers complain about

Customers most often complain to Virgin Media about billing, pricing and charges (Ofcom identified this as the main pay-TV complaint driver), about faults and service reliability, and — most prominently — about how hard it was to cancel. In July 2026 Ofcom fined Virgin Media £28 million after finding it repeatedly obstructed customers trying to leave between January 2022 and September 2024, including long holds, dropped calls, repeated transfers and a two-tier retention system that forced over a million callers to repeat their cancellation request. Complaints about outages also feature after incidents such as the nationwide service loss in February 2025. To complain, contact Virgin Media by phone, post or online; if it is unresolved after eight weeks or you receive a deadlock letter, you can take the case free of charge to CISAS.

Complaint categories

1
Cancellation and contract exit
The dominant theme in recent enforcement: customers reported it was made unreasonably hard to cancel, with long hold times, dropped calls, repeated transfers and continued retention attempts after they had asked to leave.
Ofcom's July 2026 decision found a two-tier retention system forced over one million callers to repeat their cancellation request; Ofcom received 1,881 complaints on the issue during the investigation.
2
Billing, pricing and charges
Disputes over bills, mid-contract price rises and charges. Ofcom identified this as the main driver of Virgin Media pay-TV complaints.
Ofcom telecoms and pay-TV complaints report, Q1 2026.
3
Faults, service reliability and outages
Complaints about loss of broadband, TV and phone service, including after network outages, and about how quickly faults are fixed.
Nationwide Virgin Media outage on 24 February 2025 (peak of around 10,000 reports); reflected in Ofcom fault/service complaint categories.

Contact methods

Complaint journey

1
Contact Virgin Media
What happens
Raise it by phone (150 / 0345 454 1111 for broadband, TV and home phone; 789 / 0345 600 0789 for mobile), online at virginmedia.com/support/help/contact-us, or by post to Complaints, Virgin Media, Sunderland, SR43 4AA.
2
Acknowledgement
What happens
Written complaints are acknowledged within 48 hours of receipt.
3
Investigation and response
What happens
Virgin Media aims to resolve complaints at first contact and to respond within 7 days; in some cases it says this can take up to 28 days.
4
Reopening
What happens
Virgin Media keeps a complaint open for 28 days after responding, so you can go back if you think something was missed.
5
Escalate to CISAS
What happens
If your complaint is unresolved after 8 weeks, or you receive a deadlock letter sooner, you can refer it free of charge to CISAS for an independent, binding adjudication. (Ofcom reduced the industry ADR waiting period to 6 weeks from 8 April 2026.)

Response times

Virgin Media's Consumer Complaints Code of Practice says it acknowledges written complaints within 48 hours of receipt and aims to respond within 7 days, though it states some cases can take up to 28 days. A complaint is kept open for 28 days after Virgin Media's response so you can reopen it. If your complaint remains unresolved after 8 weeks — or Virgin Media issues a deadlock letter sooner — you can take it to CISAS at no cost. (From 8 April 2026 Ofcom reduced the general ADR waiting period across the industry from 8 weeks to 6 weeks.)

If your complaint isn’t resolved

If Virgin Media can’t put things right, you can escalate — free of charge — to an independent body:

Communications Ombudsman

Recent news

8 July 2026
Ofcom fined Virgin Media £28 million for repeatedly preventing customers from cancelling contracts between 1 January 2022 and 11 September 2024, breaching General Condition C1.8. It found long holds, dropped calls, repeated transfers and a two-tier retention system that forced over a million callers to repeat their request; agents were financially rewarded for retaining customers. The penalty included a 30% settlement discount.
Read more
1 January 2026
Virgin Media moved its Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme from the Communications Ombudsman to CISAS, so complaints reaching deadlock from 2026 are adjudicated by CISAS.
Read more
24 February 2025
A nationwide Virgin Media outage left customers without broadband, TV and landline services, with reported issues peaking at around 10,000 and heavy disruption in cities including London, Birmingham and Manchester before services were restored.
Read more

Earlier cases

8 July 2026
Historic/enforcement context: Ofcom's £28m penalty covered conduct from January 2022 to September 2024, so the underlying failings pre-date the 2026 decision.
Read more

Know your rights

Consumer Rights Act 2015
Services such as broadband, TV and phone must be provided with reasonable care and skill; where they are not, you can seek a repeat performance or a price reduction. This is general information, not legal advice.
Ofcom General Conditions of Entitlement
As an Ofcom-regulated provider, Virgin Media must handle complaints fairly, signpost ADR, and offer access to an approved scheme (CISAS) when a complaint is unresolved after the set period or reaches deadlock.
Ofcom automatic compensation scheme
For qualifying total loss of service, delayed repairs or missed engineer appointments, Virgin Media should pay set daily/appointment amounts automatically, without you having to claim.

Frequently asked questions

Which ombudsman or ADR scheme covers Virgin Media?

CISAS (the Communications and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme, run by CEDR). Virgin Media switched to CISAS from the Communications Ombudsman on 1 January 2026, so the Communications Ombudsman will not handle Virgin Media disputes.

How do I complain to Virgin Media?

Call 150 or 0345 454 1111 for broadband, TV and home phone (789 or 0345 600 0789 for Virgin Mobile), use the online contact form, or write to Complaints, Virgin Media, Sunderland, SR43 4AA.

How long does Virgin Media take to respond?

It acknowledges written complaints within 48 hours and aims to respond within 7 days, though it says some cases can take up to 28 days; a complaint is kept open for 28 days after its response.

When can I escalate to CISAS?

Once you have a deadlock letter from Virgin Media, or after 8 weeks without resolution (Ofcom reduced the general industry waiting period to 6 weeks from 8 April 2026). CISAS is free and its decision is binding on Virgin Media if you accept it.

Is Virgin Media the most complained-about provider?

In Ofcom's Q1 2026 figures it matched the industry average for broadband (6 per 100,000) and pay-TV (3 per 100,000) as complaints hit record lows, and Ofcom named Virgin Media and EE among the most-complained-about pay-TV providers, mainly over billing, pricing and charges.

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