BT have disconnected our services and merged account with a different company

[BrickWall]

After having the same telephone number with BT for 22 years (yes, twenty-two years!) BT have disconnected my business telephone number and broadband services. After going round and round in circles on the phone, it seems my account has been merged with a different business - I have no idea why this has taken place.

The phoneline and intenet are absolutely integral to the running of my business and we have been left with no services and nobody on the customer services phone numbers can even speak to us as our business name no longer matches the account name on the account, so they say we cannot pass security checks and they therefore cannot help us!

One person even told us we will have to wait until our contract ends and apply for a new phone line...after asking when our contract is up for renewal, we were told 2025! So we should just wait 9 months without a phone line or internet?! To be given this as a solution is completely ludicrous.

Is there ANYBODY who can help us to get our services back online? This is wholly an error on BT's part and after twenty two years of the business having the same phone number, we cannot lose it, nor can the business function without a phoneline or internet.

How can we get this issue escalated past the first-line support teams??

[BethM]

HI BrickWall

I'm sorry to hear about this - I can help. Please send me a private message with your account details. 

[BrickWall]

Please can whichever admin is working today pick this query up for me? I have since realised that none of the card payments that have been taken on my card terminal are being received into my bank account - without either the phone line or internet they aren't being processed!

I cannot run my business like this! I have overheads and wages to pay, I need my services back online TODAY.

I have heard nothing from since Friday - I understand it has been a bank holiday weekend, but I have been left with no services for five days!

[BrickWall]

According to this article, phone line faults should be fixed in a minimum of 4 hours - I have been left without a phone line for five days! When is this going to be resolved?? When is ANYONE from BT going to contact me about this? 

https://business.bt.com/help/article/what-levels-of-support-do-bt-offer-for-phone-line-faults/ 

[BrickWall]

It is now day EIGHT of having no phone line, no internet, no way to take payments, no resolution from BT, nothing more than roughly one email a day from them with no sense of urgency or resolution in sight. 

Nobody has picked up the phone to talk to me. After pointing this out I finally got an employee's direct line and we spoke briefly this morning but I've just spent 20 mins trying to get back through to them and no answer - although they may have gone home for the day as they are an offshore team, not sure if they work to UK hours or not.

I am a independly run business that survives on my phone number for customers to contact me - ALL my business is done via the phone, so in cutting me off in error and losing my phone number BT have effectively crippled my business.

I have no custom, and no money coming into my bank as my card payments need the phone line and internet to be processed.

If any other SMEs are wondering how you will be treated by BT when there is a problem, take heed. I have emailed, phoned, sent letters via recorded delivery, even emailed the Chairman (and received a response) but I am yet to receive any form of solution and I have had minimal contact from BT - around one email a day and 0 phone calls to me.

If it wasn't for the fact I want to retain my phone number of 22 years, I would just look elsewhere for a new service but losing my number could essentially decimate my business.

I am desperate, stressed and all I have is a wall of silence from BT.

My issue is nothing to them, but everything to me.