Chess ICT alternative: the clauses to read before you sign.
Chess ICT is a privately owned Cheshire group selling telecoms, IT and security together, and it publishes its terms in full. If you are looking for an alternative to Chess, the General Conditions and the voice schedules answer most of the questions about cost, renewal and exit.
Providers are compared on what each publishes: list prices and the conditions attached to them, minimum terms and mid-contract rises, what the price includes (calls, set-up, porting, support hours), UK-based support, and whether failover is offered. Telexico’s own entries are our list prices. Where a provider has changed its terms since the date shown, the published source wins; tell us and we will correct it.
Compiled and reviewed by Mickey Mall, Director, Telexico Communications Ltd, Wolverhampton. Updated October 2026.
Chess ICT in 2026.
Chess ICT Ltd traces back to Chess Telecom in 1993 and was incorporated in 2002; founder David Pollock remains executive chairman and the company is privately owned rather than private-equity backed. In June 2026 it moved its headquarters to Alderley Park near Macclesfield. Its site cites more than 18,000 organisations served and recent acquisitions including Callagenix, CyberLab, the National Business Communications customer base and Interhost.
To SMEs it sells Cloud Voice, Cloud Voice Express and Cloud PBX, Teams Direct Routing and Operator Connect, broadband, FTTP and SoGEA with 4G backup, leased lines, EE business mobile, Microsoft licensing and Sophos security.
What to check in a Chess ICT contract.
Taken from Chess ICT’s own published terms and prices on the dates shown. Clauses change; read the version attached to your order.
Two years, then 12-month renewals
The General Conditions (29 May 2026) set “a minimum period of two (2) years from the Commencement Date”, after which the contract is “renewed automatically for successive periods of twelve (12) months”. Notice must be given “not more than ninety (90) days and no less than thirty (30) days” before the end of a term. Microenterprise, small enterprise and not-for-profit customers do not auto-renew and have 30 days’ notice.
RPI + 3.9%
The voice schedules increase charges each year by the January Retail Prices Index “plus 3.9%”, with a negative RPI ignored. Separately, the General Conditions allow Chess to “vary the Charges at any time” on 30 days’ notice.
Termination charges at 100%
The termination annex charges “100% of the Recurring Charges for all remaining months of the Minimum Term”, plus any waived one-off or installation charges, plus six months’ average usage.
Hardware ownership
Title to hardware passes only once all charges, including any termination charges, have been paid.
Support hours
Standard voice care runs Monday to Friday 08:30–17:30 with a one-hour target on critical faults; higher care levels are chargeable upgrades.
Chess ICT and Telexico, on the points that decide it.
Telexico is a competitor, so judge this table on the facts in it: the Chess ICT column is from its published documents, the Telexico column from how we actually contract.
| What matters | Chess ICT | Telexico |
|---|---|---|
| Contract term and notice | Two-year minimum; 12-month automatic renewals; 30–90 day notice window | Rolling 30-day terms available, or 12 months where handsets are included; the term and notice period written on the first page of the proposal |
| Price rises | RPI + 3.9% each January; charges may also be varied on 30 days’ notice | No mid-contract price rises |
| Leaving early | 100% of remaining recurring charges plus waived set-up fees plus six months’ average usage | Discussed openly before you sign; we plan switches around existing end dates |
| Handsets and equipment | Title passes only when all charges are paid | Standard SIP handsets you are not locked to; on 12-month terms they are included and become yours |
| Who supports you | Mon–Fri 08:30–17:30 standard; upgrades chargeable | A named UK engineer; the person who set you up answers |
| Installation | National; direct | On-site from Wolverhampton across the Midlands; UK partner engineers elsewhere |
| What sits on one bill | Telecoms, IT, Microsoft and security together | Phones, full fibre or leased line, WiFi, 4G/5G failover, CCTV and AI on one bill |
| Published price | Quote only | One per-user price per month quoted in writing before you sign, UK calls included; set-up and number porting free |
Swipe the table sideways on a phone.
Who Chess ICT suits, and when to stay.
Who Chess ICT genuinely suits
Chess suits a Microsoft-centric business that wants its IT, security and telecoms managed by one privately owned supplier and is comfortable with business-hours voice support. Its Trustpilot profile showed 4.3 from about 5,000 reviews on 7 October 2026.
Why people look elsewhere
People look for a Chess ICT alternative because of RPI + 3.9% uplifts, termination charges at the full remaining value of the contract, business-hours-only standard support, and the migrations that follow when an acquired customer base is moved onto Chess platforms.
When to stay put
If Chess runs your Microsoft estate well and the voice service is incidental, it may be simpler to keep IT with Chess and move only the phones at the end of their term. We are happy to work alongside an incumbent IT provider.
The main alternatives to Chess ICT in 2026.
Each suits a different kind of business. Ours is first; we have said plainly who the others are for.
Telexico: managed and local
A fully managed hosted phone system with the Telexico Mobile App, Web UC and standard desk phones, one per-user price quoted in writing, rolling 30-day terms available, no mid-contract price rises, your numbers ported, and a named UK engineer. Add full fibre or a leased line, WiFi, 4G/5G failover, CCTV and AI call answering on the same bill.
Gamma Horizon through a good partner
A solid hosted platform if you find a responsive reseller; many of the suppliers on this page sell it. You are still dealing through a partner, so judge the partner, not the platform.
RingCentral or 8x8
Enterprise cloud platforms with deep contact-centre tooling. Best for larger or international operations; more than most UK SMEs need.
Microsoft Teams Phone
Sensible if your business already lives in Microsoft 365. Telexico can supply Teams calling too, so this is not an either/or.
Self-service VoIP (bOnline, Yay.com)
Cheap and quick for a micro business happy to set everything up itself, with no on-site install or local support.
3CX, self-hosted or managed
A software PBX that is inexpensive at scale if you have IT to run it, or a partner such as Telexico to manage it for you.
How the switch from Chess ICT works.
1. Review
Send your Chess bill and the terms or renewal you have been offered. We list your numbers, users and end dates, and tell you what we would change, what it costs and whether staying is the better move.
2. Build alongside
We configure the new system, ship desk phones and set up the Telexico Mobile App while Chess keeps running. Nothing is switched off early.
3. Port and cut over
Your numbers port on an agreed date, usually one to three weeks from authorisation, with both systems tested side by side. Your named engineer stays with you afterwards.
The services behind the comparison.
Business phone systems
Hosted cloud calling with the Telexico Mobile App, Web UC and desk phones.
AI call intelligence
Every call transcribed, summarised and flagged for complaints and opportunities.
Business broadband and full fibre
The connection the phones depend on, with 4G/5G failover built in.
Every comparison in one place
Other suppliers compared the same way.
The PSTN switch-off
What the end of analogue and ISDN lines means for your set-up.
Free infrastructure review
Send a bill; get an honest comparison within two business hours.
What Chess ICT’s published terms say.
Quoted or closely paraphrased from Chess ICT’s own terms, prices and published pages on the dates shown, with a link under each point. Clauses change: read the version attached to your own order before relying on anything here.
Minimum term
The General Conditions (for contracts from June 2026) default to “a minimum period of two (2) years from the Commencement Date”, shorter than the five-year defaults elsewhere.
SourceRenewal and notice
The agreement “shall be renewed automatically for successive periods of twelve (12) months” unless written notice is given not more than 90 and not less than 30 days before the end of the term; services not transferred within 30 days of expiry are deemed renewed.
SourcePrice changes
No index or fixed figure is published: charges may be varied “at any time” on 30 days’ notice (clause 6.10).
SourceEquipment
Rental equipment is supplied under “a separate lease agreement” with Chess or a third-party supplier, who retains ownership; the funder and term are not named.
SourceSupport
An “award-winning UK-based customer service team”; 24/7 support is listed only for the Broadband Protect add-on; disputes go to CISAS after six weeks.
SourceReviews
Trustpilot “Chess”: 4.3 out of 5 from 4,993 reviews, replies to 100% of negative reviews; founder-owned since 1993 with a strong workplace-award record.
SourceThe notice window is the whole game.
The notice window is narrow: written notice between 90 and 30 days before the end of the term, or the contract renews for 12 months and services still in place 30 days after expiry are deemed renewed. Diarise the window, send notice at the 90-day end of it and tell us the date.
Tell us your end date →Months away? The date goes into the director’s diary and we come back before the window closes, with a written quote to compare against the renewal.
Four things that are the same on every Telexico agreement.
Rolling 30-day terms, or 12 months where handsets are included; the term and the notice period are written on the first page of the proposal. There is no automatic renewal clause: when a term ends you stay on 30-day rolling, nothing re-ties you for another year.
The per-user price you sign is the price for the term. There is no April uplift clause in a Telexico agreement.
Numbers port across on an agreed date, the new system runs alongside the old one until it is tested, and nothing is switched off early.
A named engineer and account manager from Wolverhampton, a WhatsApp group for your team, and a UK phone line answered by people who know your sites.
Trustpilot score shown for Chess ICT: 4.3 out of 5 from 4,993 reviews on 14 October 2026 (Trustpilot). Telexico is a competitor; judge the points above on the documents linked, not on us.
Chess ICT alternatives: your questions.
How much notice does Chess need?
For standard contracts, notice must land in the window between 90 and 30 days before the end of the current term, otherwise it renews for another 12 months. Microenterprise, small enterprise and not-for-profit customers do not auto-renew and give 30 days’ notice.
What would it cost to leave Chess early?
Under the published annex, 100% of the remaining recurring charges for the minimum term, plus any installation charges that were waived, plus six months’ average usage. In most cases it is better to time the move to the end of the term, and we will say so.
Can Telexico work with our existing IT company?
Yes. Phones, connectivity, WiFi and failover can move to Telexico while your IT support stays where it is. We coordinate the network changes with them.
Do you offer out-of-hours support?
Faults on the services your business cannot run without are covered outside office hours, and you have a named engineer rather than a queue. We set the cover level out in the proposal so there is nothing to upgrade later.
Compared the same way: dated terms, published prices, who each one suits.
Where the Chess ICT facts come from.
Checked on 7 October 2026. Telexico is a competitor of Chess ICT; the figures are from the documents below and may have changed since. Verify the current versions before relying on them.