Reasonable Service, Predatory Cancellation Practices

I’ve been paying R669 per month for a 50/25 fibre line with Webafrica since moving into my building. Not cheap, but fine — and to be fair, the technical service itself was mostly decent.

The problems only started the moment I tried to cancel.

I was recently offered a 100/100 line for R579 by another ISP. Naturally, I approached Webafrica to cancel or match it. Their counter-offer? A slightly reduced price for six months only, after which the cost jumps straight back to the same overpriced rate. In other words: “Please stay, but only temporarily — then we’ll resume fleecing you.”

I declined and asked them to proceed with cancellation.

That’s when the fun really started 🎪

Suddenly I was informed of:

A R999 cancellation surcharge

A requirement for a full calendar month’s notice (it’s currently the 8th of January)

Delays of several days with no meaningful feedback

When I queried this, I was told this is all covered in the Change of Ownership agreement I signed.

Here’s the issue:

The agreement contains a vague checkbox saying “I agree to all terms & conditions”

There is no link to those terms

No copy was ever provided

No specific cancellation fee or notice period is explicitly stated in the document itself

So apparently, by ticking a box with no referenced document, I unknowingly agreed to a mystery rulebook written in invisible ink.

This feels less like customer service and more like a gotcha trap:

“Everything is fine until you try to leave — then we invoice you for the privilege.”

To summarise:

✔ Internet works

✔ Billing is prompt

❌ Retention tactics feel manipulative

❌ Cancellation process is opaque and punitive

❌ Key terms are buried behind undocumented “agreements”

If you’re happy to stay forever and never question pricing, Webafrica might be fine. If you value transparent contracts, fair notice periods, and not being punished for leaving, I’d strongly suggest looking elsewhere before you sign anything.

Would I use them again? Only if cancellation fees were printed in 72-point font, tattooed on the router, and read aloud to me by a lawyer.