BT Connection Charges (merged threads)

gt94sss2

pinkshoes wrote: »

Actually, I made a call to the builder, because there's a BT point in the newbuild flat, and outside the 15 flats there's a shiney new metal drain thingy saying "BT" on it... The builder told me that BT have already been round and installed the phone lines, so there's no way that all 15 flats should have to pay a £125 installation charge. Activation should be free as it's all been done already! cheeky BT!

BT have to charge you and the other 14 flats their installation charge.

BT installed their equipment while your new build was being built but haven't charged anyone for it yet. (i.e. the builders didn't pay for it)

This is what they always do and better for everyone as otherwise BT would be making holes in newly built property.

The standard charge is £125/line and the Ofcom insists it should be paid by everyone for a new line(for up to 100 hours work) - BT don't have a choice even if they didn't want to charge you..

If its any consolation, it would have cost BT a lot more than £1875(15*125) to actually install all their equipment/wiring...

Regards
Sunil

xxdiddiexx

Does anyone know if there is a way of telling if a BT line has previously been at a property?

I have called BT and they said "no line has been there previously", but I am not convinved of this.

I would like to be able to check elsewhere if possible.

Thanks!

DonnyDave

xxdiddiexx wrote: »

Does anyone know if there is a way of telling if a BT line has previously been at a property?

Are you in a street with telegraph poles and drop wires that come off and connect to houses? Look for a drop wire to your house. If there is, then there has been a line there before.

Follow the wire down/through your wall and look for the BT master socket.

Alternatively, new estates are built with the BT wiring underground and therefore don't have poles. So even if you don't take BT's service, you will probably have wiring to you premises. However, the first person will have to pay the installation charge.

Look for the wire coming out of the ground, probably on your front wall. It's probably covered with plastic trunking and about a foot long. Then look on the inside wall where this is.

Allanon

pinkshoes wrote: »

Actually, I made a call to the builder, because there's a BT point in the newbuild flat, and outside the 15 flats there's a shiney new metal drain thingy saying "BT" on it... The builder told me that BT have already been round and installed the phone lines, so there's no way that all 15 flats should have to pay a £125 installation charge. Activation should be free as it's all been done already! cheeky BT!

they reluctantly seemed to agree with this, but now say we HAVE to sign up for at least 3 months if they activate our line. We need broadband, and this has a minimum 12 month sign up, but we don't want BT to be our service provider, we want to use another company. I thought they had to share their phone lines nicely and allow fair competition?

i'm confused

AAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

HOW MANY TIMES MUST IT BE SAID - When BT charge you £125 for providing a new line into a new-build house/flat or whatever, you are NOT, NOT, NOT just paying for the telephone socket (ie, the little white box in the shiny new house). You are paying for all the work that has been done behind the scenes by the planners, engineers builders - all the digging, trenching ducting and cabling to connect that little white box in your house to the rest of the world.

The cost can - and does - run into hundreds of thousands of poundsto get that little white box there and connected.

John - a cable jointer on BT for over 17 years

Allanon

Allanon wrote: »

AAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

HOW MANY TIMES MUST IT BE SAID - When BT charge you £125 for providing a new line into a new-build house/flat or whatever, you are NOT, NOT, NOT just paying for the telephone socket (ie, the little white box in the shiny new house). You are paying for all the work that has been done behind the scenes by the planners, engineers builders - all the digging, trenching ducting and cabling to connect that little white box in your house to the rest of the world.

The cost can - and does - run into hundreds of thousands of poundsto get that little white box there and connected.

John - a cable jointer on BT for over 17 years

Sorry - my wife came into the room and distracted me then. What I should have also said is that in order for that nice shiny new white box to be on the wall of your new house, work for BT would have started about 18 months to 2-years earlier. That's what you're paying for - all the infrastructure behind the box.

John

Heinz

xxdiddiexx wrote: »

Does anyone know if there is a way of telling if a BT line has previously been at a property?

There should be - see HERE.

BritBrat

We have a 2nd line we don't use, thought I would test it the other day.

It has a dial tone and when doing test using the 17070 number it gave a number that was not the lines number when we used it.

Never tried to see if it would dial and make a call.

Heinz

BritBrat wrote: »

We have a 2nd line we don't use, thought I would test it the other day.

It has a dial tone and when doing test using the 17070 number it gave a number that was not the lines number when we used it.

Never tried to see if it would dial and make a call.

Bet you will now!

Wizbit

I have recently moved into a new build and can completely understand BT charging for a line connection. What I can't understand is how they can justify telling us that it will cost an extra £160 for each additional socket (of which we have 3) to be activated!?! I would understand this if it needed cabling and fitting into the wall etc. but when the sockets are there already and we've paid the connection fee I didn't expect it to be for just one of the sockets, which also happens to be the least conveniently positioned one of them all!

DonnyDave

Wizbit wrote: »

… What I can't understand is how they can justify telling us that it will cost an extra £160 for each additional socket (of which we have 3) to be activated!?! …

Has the engineer had to install a new master socket?

When you say "activated", are you talking connecting the wires into the (new) master socket? In which case you could a tool like this and connect it yourself.

Were you warned about the £160 x 3 when you asked the engineer to do it?