Up to 25% off calls to your 10 favourite numbers!

With KC Favourites you can nominate three of your favourite numbers and receive a permanent discount of 25 per cent. You can then nominate another seven numbers for a permanent discount of 10 per cent.

You can even select one mobile number and one international landline number, so the potential to save is huge.

KC Favourites is totally free to use (BT charge £1.50 for their Friends and Family discount scheme) and the discounts are available to all KC Talk customers.

KCOnline customers

Register online

If you aren’t registered with KC Online

For more information call 0800 915 5148

Don’t forget, you can save 50p a month if you opt for paper-free bills too which you can do with KC Online.

0845 and 0870 inclusive calls

Packages that have 0845 and 0870 inclusive calls, have up to 60 minutes duration (excluding calls to identified dial-up internet access numbers) during applicable inclusive times. Redial before 60 minutes to avoid being charged. Fair Usage Policy: 1,000 minutes or 150 calls in a month. If either of these limits is exceeded by the customer, KC reserves the right to charge the standard KC rates for these calls (as shown in the above table) until further notice.

Calls to 197 Directory Enquiries

KC Local & Weekends, KC Local, Evenings & Weekends and KC Anytime include up to 30 calls per month to 197 during applicable inclusive times. After that standard KC pence per call charge applies.

Calls to 118288 national directory enquiries

KC Anytime includes up to 30 calls per month to 118288 national Directory Enquiries service 24/7. After that standard KC pence per call charge applies

Save 25%¹ on mobile calls

With MobilePlus you can save 25%¹ on all your calls to UK mobiles for just £2 a month. So, you can talk more, but pay less - simple!

For more information call 0800 915 5148

¹This reduction does not apply to the call set up fee

Save 25% off your national and/or international calls

With Discount 25 you can save 25% on all your national and/or international calls¹ for just £1.20 per month. So you can talk more and pay less!

For more information call 0800 915 5148

¹National calls to 01, 02 & 03 numbers. Excludes internet dial up numbers and international mobiles.

Going paper-free is not only better for the environment, but will now save you money too.

Instead of charging for receiving a paper-bill like other providers, KC has introduced a 50p per month discount to reflect our reduced costs by not having to print and post a bill to customers.

KC is very aware of the environmental impact of paper bill production, with just over 29 tons of paper used in 2007 to produce customer bills. KC is aiming to reduce the total amount of paper used within the business but require your support to achieve this.

Opting for this service means you will be able to view your bills online but can still pay in any way that suits you. Visit KC Online to register for paper free billing

For customers who receive certain financial support

£5.49¹ a month

• Monthly line rental included
• 20 inclusive local calls²

Call us on 0800 915 5148

The legal stuff
¹Price shown is for payment by Direct Debit and registering for paper-free billing. Add 50p for non-Direct Debit payment types and 50p for paper billing. For more details about our call pricing see our price manual.
²Local geographic calls. All subsequent local geographic calls will be charged at 6.90p for the duration of the call. All other calls are timed to the nearest second and are subject to a 6.90p minimum call charge
You must receiving one financial support package such as Income Support or Housing Benefit and we will need evidence of the package you are on

General: Calls are not eligible for discount under any of KC's existing schemes. If your 20 inclusive calls are not used, these cannot be transferred to the next month. The calls you make must not be of an excessive length, subject to the restrictions set out in our Conditions of Service. If we feel you are not adhering to this we will contact you to discuss whether a KC Talk Plan would be more appropriate for you. Certain restrictions apply.

For customers who make less than 20 minutes of calls a month

£8.00¹ a month

• Monthly line rental included

Call us on 0800 915 5148

The legal stuff
¹Price shown is with paper-free billing. Payment must by Direct Debit or Budget Scheme. Add 50p for paper billing. For more details about our call pricing see our price manual.

General: Calls are not eligible for discount under any of KC's existing schemes. All calls are timed to the nearest second and are subject to a 6.90p minimum call charge.  To be eligible for the Light User Scheme, you must have made 20 minutes worth of calls or less per month to UK landlines (numbers that begin 01, 02 & 03) for the last 3 months. A quarterly review may be undertaken to ensure that the Light User Scheme continues to offer the best value for you. If you are no longer eligible you will automatically be changed to KC Local, unless you request to be moved to an alternative KC Talk plan. Certain restrictions apply.

If you have difficulty reading our standard printed material then we can offer various types of alternative media. Alternative media means that standard print information is copied into a format that can be easily used by someone who has a disability. We can offer large print or Braille contracts, bills, or manuals to disabled customers.

Customers who require large print or Braille media can contact us on 0800 915 5148

If you are disabled or have difficulty using our phonebook we can offer you our directory enquiries service for free.

To register for our free directory enquiry service please call 194

For customers who are deaf, hard of hearing, speech-impaired, deaf or blind and cannot use a standard telephone a textphone service is available. If you use a textphone you can make a call through TextDirect and TypeTalk. For more information please contact 01482 320101 (text) or 0800 915 5148 (voice).

You can order your bill in a different format or change your billing address by contacting our Customer Service team on 0800 915 5148.

You can also view your account/bill online by registering with KC Online This service is free and allows you view and analyse your itemised bill, make secure payments and to set up a Direct Debit.

Payment

We have a range of payment options to make it easier for you to pay your bill.

• Online by registering with KC Online
• Pay by cash, cheque and direct debit from your bank account
• Pay by post or by visiting a bank or post office
• Pay by phone using our 24 hour automated service on 01482 604706
• We also belong to the PayPoint scheme that allows payment where the PayPoint symbol is displayed

If you wish to set up a Direct Debit please call 01482 602555 or register with KC Online.

If you wish to make a payment via our 24 hour debit card line please call 01482 604706.

For people who find it difficult to pay their bill we also offer a Budget Scheme to allow you to spread your phone bill over 12 monthly payments.

Contact us on 0800 915 5112. One of our friendly, local customer service advisors will be pleased to help you.

If you do not have access to a phone book then you can find a telephone number by using our directory enquiries service.

To access our directory enquiry service please call …

• 197 (Kingston network)
• 118 288 (National)

If you are disabled or have difficulty using our phonebook we can offer you our directory enquiries service for free. To register for our free directory enquiry service call 194.

Silent calls

Silent calls are normally from companies that use an automatic dialler to make large number of calls. If you are receiving a large number of silent calls then we can register you for the Silent Callgard Service. To register for this service please call 0870 4443969. (BT National call rate).

You also have the right to have your name placed on a national register of people who do not want to receive direct marketing calls and faxes. These are calls and faxes made by people trying to sell you things. If you would like to arrange for your name to be placed on this national register please call the Telephone Preference Service on 0845 070 0707 (BT local call rate).

Malicious and Nuisance calls

Most nuisance calls will automatically have their calling number withheld. If you are receiving a large number of nuisance calls then we can offer you our Call Number Withheld Block service. This will simply block any incoming calls that withhold their number. The caller will automatically get a recorded message stating that their number has been blocked.

We know how distressing malicious and nuisance calls can be. Making such calls can be a criminal offence. If it happens to you, please let us know. As a last resort we can discuss the following solutions:

• Interception: An operator will check to see who is calling and ask you if you would like to take the call. Please note this service is dependant on our Operator Services capacity
• Call Tracing: We can set up a system so that you trigger our tracing of a caller's number when a nuisance call is made. Please note that Call Tracing can only be requested by the police

For more information contact us on 0800 915 5112. One of our friendly, local customer service advisors will be pleased to help you.

To report a fault with your service you should call us as soon as you become aware of the fault. Our fault reporting centre is always open. Our target is to clear the fault by the end of the next working day.

To report a fault you can call …

• 151 (from a Kingston line)
• 01482 602151 (from any line)

You can also report a fault online at www.kingstonworld.co.uk (opens in new window)

If you are unable to leave your house due to a disability or illness, a telephone becomes a vital lifeline. We offer a free priority repair service for customers who may be at risk, in the unlikely event of a fault occurring on their line.

You can find out more about our priority repair service by contacting us on 0800 915 5112. One of our friendly, local customer service advisors will be pleased to help you.

Hull Council of Disabled People
35 Ferensway
Hull
HU2 8NA
Tel: 01482 326140

Telephone Preference Service (TPS)
DMA House
70 Margaret Street
London
W1W 8SS

TPS Registration line - 0845 070 0707
Tel: 020 7291 3320
Fax: 020 7323 4226
Email: tps@dma.org.uk
Web: www.tpsonline.org.uk (opens in new window)

Citizens Advice Bureau
2 Charlotte Street Mews
Hull
HU1 3BQ
Tel: 01482 224608

We, like other broadband companies use the phrase 'up to' because not everyone can surf at the same speed. There are lots of reasons why:

• Some houses have longer line lengths to the exchange so the signal is weaker
• Old or deterred internal wiring will reduce the performance of your connection
• Some websites can't cope with high speeds so they slow down
• If lots of people are on the internet at the same time, the network gets busy and will be slower (a bit like the A63 in rush hour, the more cars, the slower you go)

Karoo broadband is delivered via ADSL2+ technology which has the potential to provide connection speeds as high as 24Mbps downstream and 1Mbps upstream.

We comply with Ofcom's Voluntary Code of Practice for Broadband Speeds, which ensures you are given information about the speed you can expect before you sign up.

Tip 1: Use your main phone socket

Wherever possible, connect to the internet through your main telephone socket using a micro-filter (the small piece of equipment that you connect your phone line and broadband line into).

Tip 2: Check your sockets have a micro-filter fitted

Micro-filters should be fitted to all your home telephone extensions including your TV set-top box, cordless telephone stations, dial-up security alarms, analogue modems and fax machines.

Tip 3: Check what type of extension leads you are using

Extension leads (e.g. long telephone cables) can cause disconnections and slow speeds. We strongly recommend that if you need to use an extension, it should be a broadband specific extension lead such as the RJ11. We would recommend that you don't use an extension lead because our tests show these can severely degrade your service. Instead, have extra telephone sockets fitted to suit where your home PC or Laptops are located. This might not be ideal for everyone, so if you do need to use extensions try not to run any more than two metres of cabling.

Tip 4: Check your router is working

If you are having intermittent disconnections, check the manufacturer's website of your router for any software updates which are usually free to download. Ethernet-based routers provide an 'always on' connection, and usually automatically reconnect after a service interruption so if this doesn't happen, there may be a fault or a software update needed.

Tip 5: Power cycle your router

From time to time, you may need to re-set, or restart your router/ connecting device. We would recommend that every seven days or so, you give your router and internet connection a break and re-set it by switching off at the mains, wait for a few seconds and then back on again. If you are having connection problems, this could also help.

• ADSL2+
• Products
• Hardware
• Terms " Conditions
• Speed
• Usage
• Karoo Max (No longer for sale)
• General

ADSL2+

What is ADSL2+, and what are the benefits?
ADSL2+ is the next generation of ADSL (i.e. broadband over the telephone line), and it works by using additional equipment to utilise additional bandwidth in the line. ADSL2+ extends the capability of basic ADSL and has the potential to provide connection speeds as high as 24Mbps downstream and 1Mbps upstream. However, only a tiny proportion of users will ever see speeds exceeding 16Mbps, and users who live further away from the exchange and currently receive ADSL connection speeds of less than the full 8Mbps, are unlikely to see a significant speed improvement using ADSL2+. As with ADSL, the length and quality of the line will determine the actual connection speed.
ADSL2+ also increases the potential download/throughput speed to around 2400kbps or 2.4Mbps, so overall, the download/throughput speed experience should be much closer to the connection speed achieved than on ADSL services.
A key benefit of ADSL2+ is the higher upload speed, which can reach as high as 1Mbps, which is double that of previous Karoo ADSL services. This means that you'll be able to send your files and data to other internet users or to online sites much faster than previously.
ADSL2+ can also cope with more 'noise on the line', which means the stability of the connection is much better. To put it in technical terms, an ADSL2+ connection will remain stable at a lower SNR (Signal-to-Noise Ratio) than an ADSL connection.
A further benefit of ADSL2+ is the fact that it has a greater reach, so that, for the first time, customers living further from an exchange may be able to have broadband.
So, in short, the benefits of ADSL2+ are increased download and upload speeds (subject to distance from the exchange), greater line stability and extended reach.
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Signal-To-Noise Ratio (SNR) and attenuation
All ADSL connections are subject to SNR and attenuation, which determine the actual stable speed that can be achieved on your line. SNR (Signal-to-Noise Ratio) is how much signal you are receiving as opposed to noise on the line, and attenuation is how much loss of signal you have on the line. The SNR will often fluctuate at different times of the day, so it is difficult to monitor, whereas attenuation is fairly static, and depends on the actual length of your phone line between your premises and the exchange.
For SNR, higher is better (meaning not much noise on the line), but for attenuation, lower is better (meaning not much loss of signal on the line).
The SNR reduces as you connect at higher speeds and the further you live from the exchange. For a consistently reliable service, the SNR has to be above 6, and ideally above 10.
For example, if you have an SNR of 10, and you are on a 2Mbps ADSL service, you would not gain very high speeds from ADSL2+, as if you were to connect any faster, the SNR would drop to about 6, possibly causing disconnections and download speed problems. But, if you had an SNR of 30 on a 2Mbps ADSL service, you could probably receive much higher speeds with ADSL2+, which will perhaps cause the SNR to drop to about 8-10, just enough to operate reliably. However, there is no sure way to find out what your phone line will support, until a service is installed on the line.
When signing up for an ADSL2+ service, we will be determining what speed your line is capable of providing whilst remaining stable, based on your postcode area. This means that, while it may connect at a slower speed than you might like, it will help stop your connection from disconnecting due to a low SNR, giving you the benefit of a stable, always on (slightly slower) connection, rather than a (slightly faster), intermittent one.
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Is ADSL2+ available to all customers using Karoo products?
ADSL2+ technology is available on all our Karoo Lite, Mid and Pro packages. Customers on older Karoo packages can regrade to Mid or Pro for free, or to Karoo Lite for just £29.99.
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Products

Why are Karoo Lite, Mid and Pro better than Karoo Max?
For a start, Karoo Lite, Mid and Pro are based on the latest ADSL2+ technology, which has the potential of giving faster speeds (subject to line length and other factors), greater line stability, and a longer reach than the old Karoo Max products.
In addition, unlike Karoo Max, Karoo Lite, Mid and Pro are subject to very little Performance Management (or "traffic shaping"). In fact, there will be no Performance Management on the most common forms of internet traffic, such as browsing, emailing, streaming, downloading and uploading.
All in all, Karoo Lite, Mid and Pro have the potential of providing better line and throughput speeds than Karoo Max, and are much less subject to fluctuating speeds. In addition, the products are easy to choose between, with pre-set usage limits, unlike Karoo Max, so the customer knows exactly what he's getting by paying more.
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What are the advantages of switching to Karoo Lite, Mid or Pro?
There are several benefits to changing, summarised as follows:

• Our lowest prices starting from just £8.49
• Faster overall speeds and a more stable connection
• Options for extreme downloaders with unlimited downloading overnight (on Pro packages only)
• All packages come with a "Pay as You Go" option for customers who want to use the internet beyond their monthly allowance, offering complete flexibility and choice.

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Why can you not provide me with an unlimited package?
We understand that many customers enjoy the peace of mind that unlimited usage brings. However, many broadband providers who advertise 'unlimited' services actually have a Fair Usage Policy which means there are restrictions on how much you can download. Rather than advertise an unlimited service (which isn't really unlimited), we wanted to be honest and provide the actual usage allowance for all our packages up front. Karoo Pro packages each have 'true' unlimited downloads from mid-night to 8am, which means you can schedule heavy downloads during the night.
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If I am unhappy with my new package, can I change back without cost to me?
We are confident you will experience consistently improved download speeds with these new packages. However, in the rare circumstance that you might experience a downgrade in experience, of course we will switch you back to your previous package at your request.
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Hardware

I'm using a USB modem to connect to the internet. Will this still work on an ADSL2+ service?
Not all broadband hardware is ADSL2+ compliant. USB modems are not ADSL2+ compliant, nor are the earlier ADSL routers. Your hardware will still work with Karoo on ADSL2+, but will only train up to a maximum of 8Mbps (i.e. ADSL Max speeds only). If you want to take advantage of ADSL2+, the higher connections speeds and higher upload speeds and greater stability, you will need to upgrade your hardware to an ADSL2+ compatible router.
We recommend two particular routers, which have been developed with the suppliers we work with to work straight out of the box with your Karoo broadband service. We also offer free Technical Support for the routers we provide.
To order a new ADSL2+ router you can wither click here or call us on 01482 602555.
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Terms & Conditions

Why do I have to re-start my contract?
When we switch you from one package to another, there are a few things we need to do from changing information in systems to physically switching your service at the exchange with one of our engineers. To cover our costs of doing this, we kindly ask you to start a fresh contract with us. We do have some a more flexible contract option for our Karoo Mid and Pro packages which works as a rolling one month contract. This does require a one-off charge of £47 inc. VAT.
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Does a Fair Usage Policy apply?
There is no Fair Usage Policy with our Lite, Mid and Pro packages.
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Speed

What speed am I going to get?
We will provide you with an estimated connection speed for your postcode when you sign up which will be confirmed in your welcome letter. The actual speed at which you browse or watch online videos will differ across different times of the day or what website you are visiting.
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How have you calculated my speed?
The speed we quote is taken from a large cross-sample of KC lines right across the network, which is split by postcodes so we can provide you with a typical 'average' speed for your street.
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What speed information does your speed checker give me?
Our broadband speed checker will give you an indication of typical connection speed for your postcode area. This is the speed your line can achieve between your broadband router or modem and your local telephone exchange. There are a number of factors that affect your broadband speed, the length of your line being by far the most significant, but internal wiring and the use of extension cables can also affect your speed. So the further you live from the exchange, the lower your speed is likely to be. There are other broadband speed checker tools on the internet but these are likely to be checking download (or "throughput") speed, which is different (and often lower) than your connection speed, since this is affected by a number of additional factors, such as how busy the internet is.
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Will I always be able to connect at the speed you quote me?
The Karoo speed checker will provide you with a typical speed for your postcode area. This is the maximum speed at which you will be able to connect to and browse on the internet. It's important to know that connection speeds vary when more people are using the internet at the same time and depend on what website you are visiting.
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Is there a guarantee of minimum speed?
The speed you experience is affected by a number of things, so we can't guarantee a minimum or maximum speed at any given time. We understand how important a good connection speed is to you and we do everything we can to ensure traffic on our network is optimised to provide a great experience for everyone. Some of things that might impact your speed are:

• The distance you live from the telephone exchange: the closer youlive to the exchange, the faster your connection is likely to be. Like mobile phones, the further a signal has to travel, the weaker it is.
• Quality of your phone line: if your phone line's in good condition, you'll get a stronger signal.
• Wiring: once the broadband internet connection hits your house, it still needs to reach your PC. If you've got good quality wiring in your house, you'll be able to enjoy faster speeds. Try to avoid using extension cables.
• Time of day: the internet has busy periods, and traffic on our network will vary from minute to minute depending on the number of people using our network.
• Hardware: the type of modem or router you use can affect the speed you experience. In addition, you will need to be using an ADSL2+-compliant router in order to benefit from the best speeds possible.
• Microfilters / splitters: the quality of the filters you use will also affect your speed.
• Karoo Performance Management on file sharing and Usenet traffic (affecting users of this type of traffic only)

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How will traffic shaping impact my speed?
There is no Performance Management or 'Traffic Shaping' on the most popular types of internet activity. However, we do apply Performance Management for bandwidth hungry protocols such as file sharing and Usenet traffic, which, whilst used by a small minority of customers, has the ability to adversely impact the Internet experience for a large number of customers.
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Usage

How do I check my usage?
Go to www.karoo.co.uk/controlpanel, enter your Karoo username and password and click 'Check My GB Usage'. This will give you a chart of you current and previous usage periods.
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How will I know if I go over my usage allowance?
We'll email you when you are getting close to your limit but don't worry, if you want to use more, you can. Our pay-as-you-go option will kick into place which means you're never stuck without your service. For customers on Karoo Lite, additional usage is just £3 per GB pr part thereof. For other packages it's even cheaper, at just £2 per GB or part thereof.
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Karoo Max (no longer for sale)

Why do we have a Fair Usage policy?
We are committed to ensuring you receive the best broadband performance for a competitive price. To achieve this goal we provide a contended service for some of our old products like Karoo Max. This means our internet bandwidth is shared with all our customers at any one point in time. The amount that we contend will depend on whether you are a business or home customer and the type of service you buy from us. Contention is a proven method for providing fast and cost effective services and is used by nearly every broadband service provider in the UK. Unfortunately, a small number of customers use more than their "fair share" of internet bandwidth during our busiest hours, which means the service degrades by taking bandwidth away from customers who use the service fairly.
You will only be affected by the fair usage policy if you use file sharing software such as peer to peer (p2p), file transfer (ftp) or binary newsgroups (USENET) during peak periods, or if you watch several hours of online content (e.g. iPlayer / YouTube) a week.
If you exceed the fair usage limit for your package then your broadband contention will be increased and the performance of your broadband will degrade during peak hours (6pm – midnight).

How do I stop my Karoo Max service being degraded?
If you wish to use file sharing applications without being affected by the fair usage policy, simply schedule your file sharing to operate outside of peak hours (midnight until 8am is the best time).
Applicable products
The fair usage policy currently relates to the Karoo Max service only. The table below shows the number of gigabytes (GB) per month that maybe transferred during peak hours which are from 6pm until midnight every day.

Karoo Max	Peak limit (6pm – midnight)	Off peak limit
Option 1	20GB	None
Option 2	30GB	None
Option 3	40GB	None
Option 4	50GB	None

The Karoo Broadband Starter Max product is charged according to the number of gigabytes that you transfer every month and consequently a fair usage policy does not apply.

General

Why can I not pay cash?
Unfortunately, we can't accept cash payments for security reasons. But we do have a variety of flexible ways to pay to suit you. You will find these on the back of a bill or you can give us a call on 01482 602555.
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Can my email be sent to another email address other than Karoo?
Unfortunately at the moment we can only send usage to your Karoo email address, but you can set up a re-direct from Karoo to a hotmail or Gmail account. Check with your current email provider for details.
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