topic Re: How do I extract customer service from BT in Archive

How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 20:39:53 GMT

We placed an order with BT on 25 Feb for business broadband and phone. After a month, and having pushed back the date by a week, an engineer arrived. Then 3 more came and eventually we got a box on the wall. That was a week ago. Then the fun started. Although we have phone line they cannot appear to make the broadband work. My colleagues and I have spent minimum of 6 hours on the phone being passed from department to department (BT Business, Openreach, BT Wholesale, Connections Team, the Broadband team, the Line Fault Team are just some of them). No one will take owner ship of the problem and each time they say it will be fixed by midnight the next day it does not happen. We are a service business. So are BT (LOL)!

Anyone tips about how we get some service out of this bunch? Who can we escalate to?

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

Mervyn — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 06:31:44 GMT

Welcome to the club! If you have only been trying to get help since February, then I'm afraid you have a long learning curve ahead of you. I've been trying since October 2009 to get my connection to work correctly, and have yet to find a way to get anyone to help.

My guess is you have signed a 12 or 24 month contract with BT for Broadband, so there will be no need for them to do anything much now. The cooling off period will have expired, so you can't cancel. I tried to do this, but the 10 days cooling off starts on the day you order the service, not the day they install it. As they took 14 days to connect me, I had no right to cancel when I discovered it didn't work properly.

At least an engineer came, so you are doing well!

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

JohnE — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 09:00:36 GMT

Crossbill, if you'd care to PM me some details, I'll look into this for you. I'm sorry to hear that you seem to have had some difficulty with the provisioning process.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

wearefrank — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 11:17:50 GMT

Crossbill, can't offer any tips because I'm suffering from the exact same problem as you. Can only hope that coming on here and making some noise might make someone at BT take note.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

bsmitheng — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 11:30:37 GMT

we had a very different experience, but i do hope you took down names of people in departments you spoke to. i did have problems with the switch over but after contacting the person who sold us the deal it was sorted out pretty quickly. i am also a business and we switched our phone, broadband and got a second line installed and have to say that after the first blip it seemed ok. even now though if i cant get the response i need from helplines i go back to the guy who set it all up because the buck lands there, seemed to work for me.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 10:50:46 GMT

Hi John. What info do you require? Our phone number is [number removed by moderators for security purposes].

The latest is the service was supposed to be working by midnight last night. Still not working today so we have spent more time on the phone to Broadband Technical Help. We are now being told that there is a problem with 'tie pairs' (whatever they are) in the exchange and earliest it will be fixed is next Monday. If this is really the problem (it is the fourth excuse we have had), why was it not identified at the outset? Based on past experience we will be back on the phone on Monday to be told it is yet another several days off. Almost impossible and expensive to run our business with wireless dongles which is what we are forced to do.

My impression is that your teams try manfully to work out the problem then fob us off with anything that comes to mind to get us off the phone sure in the knowledge that it is some other poor sucker who will take the call next time.

Anything you can do to give me confidence it will be sorted this time?

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

owain — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 16:49:14 GMT

Hi , My advice ... cancel if you can

We took bt business broadband a year ago and is still not working ...

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 09:49:50 GMT

John - you clearly decided not to follow this up or (just like everyone else at BT) decided it fell into the too difficult box and ignored it. What a shower! For the avoidance of doubt we still do not have broadband.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

JohnE — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 11:40:07 GMT

Crossbill, I am very sorry that you continue to have difficulty. You seem to have a problem with the phone line. I've PM'ed you, I will certainly look into the problem for you, be assured of that.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

JohnE — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 11:52:21 GMT

owain - Hi and welcome to the forum, I'm sorry to read your BT Business Broadband isn't working, have you contacted the technical helpdesk about this?

If you wish, please PM me the reference numbers and I'll have a look over the case for you.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 17:42:47 GMT

John - I don't want to detract from your good intentions, but no, we do not have a problem with our phone line. The phone works perfectly. It is the broadband. The most recent message is it is a problem at the exchange with tie ends! Equally i was given 4 previous and plausible excuses all of which were wrong.

Please keep trying though before I lose the will to live.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 07:55:19 GMT

John

Here we go again. BT have broken their fifth promise to rectify the problem. We are back in the office this morning, no broad band and wading through the treacle of various BT departments - line faults, broadband support and after sales support already!!

I really do not care who knows we have a problem - in fact I am happy if the whole world knows how rubbish BT is.

Our latest reference is 479 203 474 53.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

JohnE — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 07:58:14 GMT

Crossbill, it doesn't seem to be a line quality issue. Certain phone line services (DACS is a well documented example) can cause problems if they have been present in the past and not been properly dealt with from an engineering standpoint. Can you let us know what Faults have told you about this?

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 09:06:09 GMT

Faults originally told us it was a 'tie pair' issue at the exchange and that they needed to replace equipment. This is alledgedly fixed but we still have no service.

Broadband think it is still a line fault. They also think that Aftersales have not dealt with it properly. Aftersales have no idea what us wrong.

What on earth whould you do if you were us? Feels like I can trust no one as they all just pass the blame to another department.

For all you people out there thinking if using BT - DO NOT DO IT!!!!!!

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

chrismcl — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 07:53:49 GMT

Hi there crossbill, I can see there is progress on your fault. Now we know the phone line is nothing to do with the fault we can now proceed with a broadband fault. With the engineer now booked hopefully you will get some resolution.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 08:05:15 GMT

Another day, another useless flashing light on our broadband router. Some guy named Chris is struggling manfully with the pile of festering junk that BT call their telecoms infrastructure (well done and thx Chris - at least YOU are trying).

Once again BT promised they would sort our problem over night. Broken promise number 6. This morning they reckon the cables are wrongly connected and an engineer will come tomorrow to take a look. Makes no sense to us since the phone is working fine but we are no experts (and BT are???!!!!). (If the 4 engineers who made the connection could not get it right then that says it all!)

Wondering how I can get this sorry saga onto Facebook so more folks can be told how shocking BT's customer service is.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

JohnE — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 09:24:35 GMT

Please be assured, Crossbill, that your issue is being handled by one of our best advisors and will be "owned" until you are fully satisified with the result.

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

NigelGreen — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 17:18:24 GMT

Good luck with ...i spent 13+ hours on the phone to them a xmas and it was a pretty painful experience

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

crossbill — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 08:17:27 GMT

USELESS USELESS USELESS.

If this was not a business matter this would be funny. Engineer turned out yesterday at the exchange, reckons everything is working, and went home for a cup of tea. Now clearly nothing is working - I am growing quite fond of that green disco light.

BTW that was after an engineer phoned from Bolton to ask where our office was. We are based in London.

As soon as I am done with today's tasks I am going to look at how to escalate this to someone in BT that gives a XXXX

Re: How do I extract customer service from BT

JohnE — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 10:42:03 GMT

Crossbill, I am sorry that this is still not resolved. I understand that this issue is being owned by a team coach on the technical helpdesk who will update you regularly. A false cross-jumpering issue at the exchange does seem to have been at the heart of the issue.

Rest assured, Crossbill, I'm sure tha tmy colleague will get this resolved as soon as possible.