Virgin Media Retention thread

istanbul_2

just been on to vm and found out that the price they quoted me was £8 per month more than i agreed !! waiting for call back to sort it out :mad:

shapala

I'm a Virgin BB customer and on the brink of cancelling so phoned retentions. Currently paying £28.90 for 10mb BB & M phone (including line rental). Was offered £20.90 for same package I'm on now or £2/pm more for the 0870 numbers (that's before the increase next year). Said I would join Sky if I didn't like what I was hearing so they better give me the best they've got or I'm hotfooting it - I'm not into dithering, lol.

Do people on here think that's a reasonable deal, or could I pressure them to perhaps waive the upcoming price increases or throw something else free into the equation? To be honest, I still don't know if it's worth it to me as I've had a number of problems with Virgin's internet this past year which has cost me a lot of money and time since I work from home. Anyone with any thoughts?

visidigi

shapala wrote: »

since I work from home. Anyone with any thoughts?

Get a provider that has an SLA in if this is such an issue - you are using a residential connection for business purposes, so unfortunately you wouldn't have a leg to stand on.

As for the package, the reduction they have offered is good, bear in mind phone rental is currently £14.99 a month, puts it in perspective.

AceT

Managed to get the following from retentions. Should I have haggled for more ? I would have like to keep my existing V+ HD Box in another room but forgot to ask.

1TB Tivo Box
M Phone
L BB
XL TV
Asian Package

All for £49.00 a month with no price increases. What do you think ?

visidigi

Id phone them back and ask about the second box, but depends if they would hit you with an install fee (which you should be able to push back anyway...)

shapala

visidigi wrote: »

Get a provider that has an SLA in if this is such an issue - you are using a residential connection for business purposes, so unfortunately you wouldn't have a leg to stand on.

As for the package, the reduction they have offered is good, bear in mind phone rental is currently £14.99 a month, puts it in perspective.

Thanks. Spoken to Virgin this morning and decided to take the deal, so have the same BB package but with upgraded phone line with 0870/0845 numbers for £22.90 before prices increase next year. I'll likely pay the upfront line rental of £120 next week to effectively cut the cost again. In all honestly, I'm quite happy and appreciate what Virgin's retentions team could do for me.

DSofCambs

Here is my experience – sorry it is so long but the experience was so surprising and hurtful!
I am a long term Virgin Media cable customer (approx. 15 years) - living in Cambridge, taking broadband, telephone and television services .
On the 28th January 2012 I telephoned Virgin Media and negotiated a new package deal with their Customer Services department (CS) and was happy to be verbally reminded, and receive, a written contract notification confirming a £12 “Loyalty Discount” had been applied to my account and that the term was for 12 months to January 2013. I was also informed (verbally) that at any time I could request a change in my service provision, with proviso that any ‘change’ would have to run for a minimum period of one month. At no juncture was it mentioned that at each occasion of these possible ‘changes’ that I would be put on a new 12 months contract to run from the date of the latest ‘change’.
Subsequently, at the end of August I again telephone contacted CS, this time to request a short term reduction in my service as I would not be at home for the whole of September. The CS agent taking my call rightly advised that I could not cease the services outright and the only option available was to downgrade my TV from XL to M and my Broadband from 60mb to 30mb – this to save me about £20 overall a month . At no point was I told that in changing my service requirement [even for a month] that I was committing to a new 12 months contract.
On my return home in mid October [I was away for nearly 6 weeks in the event] I discovered I had been sent a new ‘Residential Services Contract’ stating that I had been put on a new 12 months contract dated 28th August 2012.
With hindsight and now much to my dismay, I did not contact CS at that point to ‘discuss’ why I had been put on a new contract period! I instead put away the paper considering it a procedural hiccup in that it was the VM’s way of reminding me of the new monthly charges applying! WAS I WRONG!
Today (12th December 2012) I attempted to upgrade my service using the online facility (by logging onto my personal ‘My Virgin Media ‘), but encountered an error stating “woops the system appears to broken, please try later or contact our Customer Service”. I therefore subsequently telephoned CS to request the following upgrades:
Broadband from 30mb to 60mb, the addition of the Sky movies and sport HD package, and the Telephone call notification service. This I calculated as an increase of £47 (using the online ‘My Offers’ section [ BB £5, Sky package HD £39.75 and Telephone £2.25]).
Unfortunately this is where I first encountered the ‘issue’ and the appalling stonewall attitude of their CS staff and the labyrinth like minefield of VM’s pricing policy!
CS first calculated my services increase cost was to be £54 (£7 per month more than the online figure of £47), stating that as I was no longer eligible for the full £12 ‘Loyalty Discount’. I appealed and stated that it was unreasonable and that I would end my contract unless they honoured the ‘online’ ‘My Offers’ price of £47 ….….. we are discussing a difference here of just £7!
“No” was the reply. “I can put you through to ‘Disconnections’ if you wish”.
The ‘Disconnections’ agent played even more hardball!
“Yes, your contract is to run until 28th August, you should have contacted us before on your return in mid October when you first sighted the new contract. If you request a disconnection now you will be charged £136 early disconnection fee. Also, if you want to avoid taking on a new 12 months contract as a result of these latest changes, you will NOT at all be eligible for a ‘Loyalty Discounts’, therefore your new monthly charge will see an increase of £59 [Note! NOT the £54 already mentioned, or the £47 online price! ]. Sorry, the online offers are from a different VM department and we do not have contact with them! ”
By now I just wanted to give up. I therefore have acquiesced to their bullying and agreed to the additional £59 charge per month (to £92.40). I have also asked that the CS agent’s manager contact me to discuss, but I have no faith in receiving a conciliatory or reasonable hearing [They will surely want to ‘back up’ their staff]. [PS I wrote this 12th Dec. and as yet (14th Dec.)I have not received the promised call from a manager – call me naïve to think I would !]
I have transcribed this appalling experience here to provide as a warning to all unwary future and current customers of VM. After more than 15 years with them I now understand that ‘Loyalty Discount’ does not mean “loyalty”. It think it means, in their eyes, a discount for how much they can bully out of you.
NB If anybody out there has a view on the ‘legality’ of VM imposing a new 12 months contract at each ‘change’ in service, I would be glad to hear? Else, I see that I have no option now other than to see out my current contract until the end August 2013.

Jaxer

After the last price bump earlier this year, I agreed a 12 month contract in April 2012 for XL Phone (inc. calls and 0870/0845) and 10MB BB (now upgraded to 20MB) for £24.90/mth.

We've now received the letter saying an increase of £2.24/mth from Feb 2013 but on the back it says existing promo offers will be honoured so I'm assuming this won't kick in until April 2013 when the existing contract ends.

Is it better to wait until Mar/April 2013 to see what's on offer or call now about the proposed increase?

Anon

DSofCambs wrote: »

Here is my experience – sorry it is so long but the experience was so surprising and hurtful!
I am a long term Virgin Media cable customer (approx. 15 years) - living in Cambridge, taking broadband, telephone and television services .
On the 28th January 2012 I telephoned Virgin Media and negotiated a new package deal with their Customer Services department (CS) and was happy to be verbally reminded, and receive, a written contract notification confirming a £12 “Loyalty Discount” had been applied to my account and that the term was for 12 months to January 2013. I was also informed (verbally) that at any time I could request a change in my service provision, with proviso that any ‘change’ would have to run for a minimum period of one month. At no juncture was it mentioned that at each occasion of these possible ‘changes’ that I would be put on a new 12 months contract to run from the date of the latest ‘change’.
Subsequently, at the end of August I again telephone contacted CS, this time to request a short term reduction in my service as I would not be at home for the whole of September. The CS agent taking my call rightly advised that I could not cease the services outright and the only option available was to downgrade my TV from XL to M and my Broadband from 60mb to 30mb – this to save me about £20 overall a month . At no point was I told that in changing my service requirement [even for a month] that I was committing to a new 12 months contract.
On my return home in mid October [I was away for nearly 6 weeks in the event] I discovered I had been sent a new ‘Residential Services Contract’ stating that I had been put on a new 12 months contract dated 28th August 2012.
With hindsight and now much to my dismay, I did not contact CS at that point to ‘discuss’ why I had been put on a new contract period! I instead put away the paper considering it a procedural hiccup in that it was the VM’s way of reminding me of the new monthly charges applying! WAS I WRONG!
Today (12th December 2012) I attempted to upgrade my service using the online facility (by logging onto my personal ‘My Virgin Media ‘), but encountered an error stating “woops the system appears to broken, please try later or contact our Customer Service”. I therefore subsequently telephoned CS to request the following upgrades:
Broadband from 30mb to 60mb, the addition of the Sky movies and sport HD package, and the Telephone call notification service. This I calculated as an increase of £47 (using the online ‘My Offers’ section [ BB £5, Sky package HD £39.75 and Telephone £2.25]).
Unfortunately this is where I first encountered the ‘issue’ and the appalling stonewall attitude of their CS staff and the labyrinth like minefield of VM’s pricing policy!
CS first calculated my services increase cost was to be £54 (£7 per month more than the online figure of £47), stating that as I was no longer eligible for the full £12 ‘Loyalty Discount’. I appealed and stated that it was unreasonable and that I would end my contract unless they honoured the ‘online’ ‘My Offers’ price of £47 ….….. we are discussing a difference here of just £7!
“No” was the reply. “I can put you through to ‘Disconnections’ if you wish”.
The ‘Disconnections’ agent played even more hardball!
“Yes, your contract is to run until 28th August, you should have contacted us before on your return in mid October when you first sighted the new contract. If you request a disconnection now you will be charged £136 early disconnection fee. Also, if you want to avoid taking on a new 12 months contract as a result of these latest changes, you will NOT at all be eligible for a ‘Loyalty Discounts’, therefore your new monthly charge will see an increase of £59 [Note! NOT the £54 already mentioned, or the £47 online price! ]. Sorry, the online offers are from a different VM department and we do not have contact with them! ”
By now I just wanted to give up. I therefore have acquiesced to their bullying and agreed to the additional £59 charge per month (to £92.40). I have also asked that the CS agent’s manager contact me to discuss, but I have no faith in receiving a conciliatory or reasonable hearing [They will surely want to ‘back up’ their staff]. [PS I wrote this 12th Dec. and as yet (14th Dec.)I have not received the promised call from a manager – call me naïve to think I would !]
I have transcribed this appalling experience here to provide as a warning to all unwary future and current customers of VM. After more than 15 years with them I now understand that ‘Loyalty Discount’ does not mean “loyalty”. It think it means, in their eyes, a discount for how much they can bully out of you.
NB If anybody out there has a view on the ‘legality’ of VM imposing a new 12 months contract at each ‘change’ in service, I would be glad to hear? Else, I see that I have no option now other than to see out my current contract until the end August 2013.

I am not sure how your recent discussion now affects this, but the price rise that they recently notified people about offered a right to cancel all services with no penalty.


Anon

Anon

Jaxer wrote: »

After the last price bump earlier this year, I agreed a 12 month contract in April 2012 for XL Phone (inc. calls and 0870/0845) and 10MB BB (now upgraded to 20MB) for £24.90/mth.

We've now received the letter saying an increase of £2.24/mth from Feb 2013 but on the back it says existing promo offers will be honoured so I'm assuming this won't kick in until April 2013 when the existing contract ends.

Is it better to wait until Mar/April 2013 to see what's on offer or call now about the proposed increase?

Now, I think - leave it 30 days and you will have accepted the price rise.

Anon