Does Everyone Get a Free Laptop with Mobile Broadband?

The short answer is yes, but then actually getting the mobile broadband is another issue.

During 2008 mobile broadband companies have seen huge growth in demand for the product, particularly as, especially as christmas approached, many offered a free laptop with the mobile broadband. However, it was during the last quarter of 2008 that a large percentage of retailers offering mobile broadband rejected 1 in 2 people for the offer, with some rejecting as much as 3 in 4, based on the results of a credit check.

There is a certain irony in the fact that the offer is particularly popular with students, those on lower incomes etc who may not necessarily be able to afford the upfront cost of a laptop – yet it is these people who are most likely to be excluded from the offer as providers are playing safe and only accepting those who have a “very good credit rating” or those who are “low risk.”

The majority of the “free laptop” offers come with a mobile broadband contract for 18 or 24 months and generally range somewhere in the region of £25 to £40 per month. As there is no upfront fee involved, for either the laptop or the broadband dongle, the level of risk for the retailer supplying the laptop is considerably higher and it shows the level of confidence that retailers have in people meeting their payments as retailers lean more towards those with a particularly good credit rating as a result of a credit check.