What is BT Prompt Care?

Prompt Care in plain terms

Every BT Business Broadband plan has a care level, which sets BT's target time for fixing a fault on your service. There are two:

• Standard Care, included with Essential and Enhanced: BT aims to fix faults reported by 9pm on a working day before the end of the second working day.
• Prompt Care, included with Pro and Ultra: BT aims to fix faults reported by 9pm on a working day or a Saturday before the end of the next working day, including Saturdays.

Prompt Care does not change the broadband itself, the speed or the equipment. It changes how quickly BT aims to restore the service if something goes wrong, and it brings BT's Customer Service Compensation Scheme into play against that shorter target.

Prompt Care vs Standard Care

Side by side, using BT's published terms:

BT's terms describe the Prompt Care target as 23:59 on the next weekday, or Saturday. Full details, including exclusions, are in BT's broadband terms and its compensation scheme.

What the difference looks like in practice

To show how the targets play out, here are some examples worked from BT's published cut-offs. They ignore bank holidays and assume the fault is reported before 21:00:

For a shop, café or practice that trades on Saturdays, or any business where a fault on Friday would otherwise run into the next week, the gap is several days of trading.

These are BT's targets, not guarantees of when a particular fault will be fixed. If BT misses the target, its compensation scheme applies.

Compensation under Prompt Care

Prompt Care is covered by BT's Broadband Customer Service Compensation Scheme. If BT misses the target fix time, standard compensation is one week's rental credit for each day, or part day, past the target, with claims capped at 12 days. If your broadband is part of a bundle, BT calculates the credit on the monthly price of the whole bundle.

Compensation applies when you report a total loss of internet access. To claim, BT says you must already have reported the fault, wait 24 hours, and claim within 90 days with your account number and fault reference. Exclusions apply. See BT Business Broadband support for how the scheme works across start of service, switching and missed appointments.

Compensation is a credit, not a substitute for being online. That is why many businesses pair Prompt Care with Hybrid Backup, which keeps them connected over 4G while the fault is fixed.

Which plans include Prompt Care

Prompt Care is part of the higher plans and an option on the others:

If you are on Essential or Enhanced and the main reason to move up is faster fault fixing, adding Prompt Care on its own can be the simpler change. If you also want better Wi-Fi coverage and device-level security, Pro brings those too. Our plan comparison sets them side by side, and upgrading your BT Business Broadband covers making the change mid-contract.

Is Prompt Care worth it?

It comes down to what a lost day of connectivity costs you. Prompt Care is usually worth a look if:

• You take card payments or orders online and cannot trade without the connection.
• Your phones run over the broadband, so a fault takes out calls as well as email and cloud apps.
• You trade on Saturdays, because Prompt Care brings Saturday fixes into BT's target.
• You have no easy fallback, such as staff who can work from home, or a second connection.
• A fault on a Friday would cost you the start of next week under Standard Care.

If downtime is merely inconvenient, Standard Care plus Hybrid Backup can be the better buy, because backup keeps you online while BT works to its normal target. If you need more than either can offer, such as a formal service level agreement on a dedicated line, look at when to upgrade from broadband to a leased line.

Prompt Care and the rest of your resilience

Prompt Care is one layer. A resilient small business connection usually combines three:

1. Backup for the gap: Hybrid Backup switches to 4G automatically if the line fails.
2. A faster fix: Prompt Care shortens BT's target for restoring the line.
3. A clear plan for calls: if you use BT Cloud Voice, check how calls behave if the connection drops, and set up divert or app options in advance.

We can help you work out which layers are worth paying for.

Getting the most from Prompt Care

BT's target clock runs from when the fault is reported, so how you report it makes a real difference:

• Report early, before 21:00. A fault reported after the cut-off is treated as reported at 08:00 on the next working day, which can push the target back a day.
• Do the quick checks first. Restart the BT hub and test with a device plugged in by cable. If you use your own router, reconnect the BT hub, because BT says an engineer visit may be charged if the fault is with your own equipment.
• Report online and keep the fault reference. You need it to track the fault and for any compensation claim. See BT Business Broadband support.
• Make access easy. If an engineer is needed, the target only helps if someone can let them in, including on a Saturday.
• Switch to backup while you wait. With Hybrid Backup, the connection moves to 4G automatically, so staff and card payments keep working while BT fixes the line.

Prompt Care covers faults on BT's broadband service. Problems with your own network, devices or third-party equipment sit with you or your IT provider.

Talk to us about Prompt Care

Tell us which plan you have now, or are considering, and how your business would be affected by a day or two offline. We will show you the options side by side, including adding Prompt Care, adding Hybrid Backup, or moving to Pro.

Contact us for a quote.