INCOMPETENT BUSINESS - You're trying to shut my business down before it even starts!

[IanGriffiths200]

I ordered a new telephone line for a new business within an established Office Block on 19th April 2011.  I told the Sales person that I am starting on 2nd May 2011 and wasn't given any indication that this would be a problem in getting a line that already exists in the premises, switched over to me.  There are actually at least 2 lines in that building that are available!

As I am not totally familiar with BTs online tracking service, it didn't alarm me too much that I could not track my order, though what did concern me was that the call that I had been promised, from an Engineer, within 24 to 48 hours, never came!

I eventually got hole of somebody from BT either on the phone or via the internet Chat and they said there was a hold up in the Credit/Sales Dept(?)  On speaking to that department they confirmed that the order was progressing and I left it another couple of days for another "Call Back".  Nothing happened, no "Call Back" and I contacted them again!!!!

This time it was "Oh the Order is STUCK"!!!!  Arrrrgh, possibly the OLDEST Telecoms Cowboys in the WORLD and they still cant handle their own IT or manage to master actually CALLING SOMEBODY BACK to say there's a problem!!!

Somebody then took it on them selves to RE-ORDER the Line on 4th May, 2 days after the line was supposed to be up and running!

On telling the Sales Dept that I NEEDED this line in ASAP, they told me the earliest was the 18th May.  I told them this wasnt acceptable.  I need to be trading sooner than that and I got the usual "I'll look into it and see if we can escalate it and bring it forward, somebody will call you back within 48 hours" !!!!  But again, NO CALL.

Finally able to track the order online, I saw that the date had been brought forward (target date) to 13th May (Friday the 13th, was this an OMEN?).  Not knowing that the "Target Date" is the date I wanted (NO IT WASN'T!!!), according to another sales person on chat, I was then informed that the Engineer was actually booked to go out on 19th May!!!.  Hang On  ........  I was told 18th and they would look into it to try and bring it forward!  What they actually did was put it further back AND not bother telling me either, AND have me thinking it was 13th May, AND all this despite NEEDING THE LINE BY 2nd MAY!

Am I frustrated?

Take a guess!!!!!!!!

My Order Number is ZMR474NE if anybody can be bothered to look into this shambles, but no doubt I will "get a call back" (NOT) and you will try and get Open Reach to "Bring the date forward" (NO YOU WON'T).

[hm1]

You think YOU'VE had it bad? I'm 8 months down the line from you and I still have:
Main business phone line faulty + been charged and paid almost double the amount originally quoted + being charged for the same lines on different account numbers... it goes on and on! Like you spent weeks on phone to BT and wasted days waiting for non-existent engineers to turn up. This disgusting level of service MUST be a matter for the ombudsman/DTI at the very least? You would think we were liviing in a third world country looking at the appalling service BT are NOT providing. Can anybody out there afford to take a class action against them?

[gwaelod]

I've never been called back either. I'm in the process of trying to cancel my line and broadband because of the poor service and the way BT treat their customers. I was promised a callback within 24 hours last Wednesday. I would've thought somebody might've called me to try to persuade me from leaving, but nothing. Makes me even more sure I want to leave.

There are some lovely people working for BT, most people I've dealt with have been friendly and tried to help, but the way it all holds together seems a bit of a mess.

[hm1]

Here again, just to say, lo and behold, they appear to have fixed one line, and in doing so have made the other faulty! Magnificent! Like everyone else, can't access my telephone or broadband services online (want to put on call redirect).

What on earth can we all do?

[JohnE]

IanGriffiths200, I am very sorry that there was some difficulty with getting your phone line provisioned.  Given the dates, I see that you should now have a functioning phone line.  Can you confirm this?  Also, did you ask about the complaints process the last time you contacted us?