Brits think broadband more important than mobes, cars or savings

Yet interweb access is still crap for two thirds, says Which?

Broadband is more essential than owning a mobile phone, running a car or having savings, according to a survey by consumer watchdog organisation Which?

Of 2,000 folk, 90 per cent said broadband was essential, while 74 per cent named mobile phones as a necessity, and 68 per cent said running a car was a key requirement.

More also considered broadband an essential than they did savings (70 per cent) and pension contributions (53 per cent).

However, 68 per cent reported problems with their broadband in the last 12 months. The main problems cited included slower speeds than usual and intermittent connection drop-outs.

Some three in 10 reported getting download speeds below 10Mbps, the speed the government will introduce as a legally binding universal service obligation by 2020.

Alex Neill, Which? managing director of Home and Legal Services, said in a canned quote: “This research underlines again just how important broadband is to our everyday lives. Yet many of us are still experiencing persistent service interruptions and a large proportion of the population can’t access usable speeds to carry out the most basic tasks.”

Neill added: “The government must urgently press ahead with its reforms to give us the faster and more reliable broadband connections we all need.”

Which? is also calling on the government to press ahead with its plans for automatic compensation to be paid when people’s broadband speed dips below expected levels, or drops out entirely.

Earlier this week consumer rights charity Citizens Advice slammed the UK's broadband compensation scheme, which fails to pass on compensation to customers.

Many folk – particularly millennials – regard internet access as a human right.

Back in June the United Nations Human Rights Council passed a non-binding resolution in June that condemns countries that intentionally take away or disrupt its citizens’ internet access. ®