BT Connection Charges (merged threads)

Lotus-eater

Whose phone point is it then? Is it not a bt one?
I thought bt charged alot less than that for reconnection where there is already a phone point.

olly300

Lotus-eater wrote: »

Whose phone point is it then? Is it not a bt one?
I thought bt charged alot less than that for reconnection where there is already a phone point.

BT were forced by OFCOM to change their policy in summer last year.

They didn't use to charge this much to put in a line or reconnect an existing one but they charged other companies who passed the cost on to the customer. Therefore to create a level playing field all telecoms providers that go through Openreach (through BT lines) have to charge £124.

BTW BT operators generally don't know what they are talking about. Before the charges where brought in I was told I didn't have a BT line in my property by a BT operator and they were going to charge me £124 to connect me. They then sent an Openreach guy out, who said there was a BT line in the property and when he checked it, it was working. I then complained to BT and said I wasn't paying their bill.

Virgin Media may connect you for free but just be warned if you have a billing problem with them then they will cause you a nightmare.

deklan99

olly300 wrote: »

Therefore to create a level playing field all telecoms providers that go through Openreach (through BT lines) have to charge £124.

Almost - Openreach charge £88 + VAT to whichever teleco requests a new line. They in turn can charge whatever they like, Phone Coop is £116, Post Office I think is about £113, Madasafish £115.

jhp

leb2005 wrote: »

Help is needed
just moved into new flat and would like a phone. we have a phone point on wall but after calling BT we dont have a BT phone line they say it will cost £124 to put one in!
i cant afford that is there any other opition for me?
thanks

Is it a new build that has not had service before?

Or if the flat has had a BT phone service in the recent past and the line still has a dialling tone, it's likely it won't cost you anything to get your line working again (you can check for dial tone by plugging a telephone into the BT socket and lifting the receiver).

If you don't get dialling tone but believe the property once had a BT line that has been disconnected, just look for a white BT phone socket on your wall. If you find one, this may give an indication that you can get connected, on payment of a standard connection charge. You can ask for half price connection this involves signing a 18 month contract.

xboss666

olly300 wrote: »

BT were forced by OFCOM to change their policy in summer last year.

They didn't use to charge this much to put in a line or reconnect an existing one but they charged other companies who passed the cost on to the customer. Therefore to create a level playing field all telecoms providers that go through Openreach (through BT lines) have to charge £124.

BTW BT operators generally don't know what they are talking about. Before the charges where brought in I was told I didn't have a BT line in my property by a BT operator and they were going to charge me £124 to connect me. They then sent an Openreach guy out, who said there was a BT line in the property and when he checked it, it was working. I then complained to BT and said I wasn't paying their bill.

Virgin Media may connect you for free but just be warned if you have a billing problem with them then they will cause you a nightmare.

I have a similar experience with the BT engineer turning up just to tell me everything is fully working, there is nothing to be done.

Spoke to ConsumerRights, apparently what BT is charging is unlawful. You can request BT to justify this charge. Installation charge by definition is not for BT to make a profit from. They MUST justify what they are charging is what actually cost them.

I've just wrote to BT, will see if I get anywhere.

hammy_the_hammer

xboss666 wrote: »

I have a similar experience with the BT engineer turning up just to tell me everything is fully working, there is nothing to be done.

Spoke to ConsumerRights, apparently what BT is charging is unlawful. You can request BT to justify this charge. Installation charge by definition is not for BT to make a profit from. They MUST justify what they are charging is what actually cost them.

I've just wrote to BT, will see if I get anywhere.

how can companies make money if they do work at cost ?
this seems a misconception created because companies were once nationalised.
also you or consumer rights need to define what they mean by 'bt'

Lotus-eater

I think what people are saying is that if BT send an engineer out to do a job and the line is already working, then they shouldn't have to pay for the engineer. But if thats the stated cost then I can't see how you would get out of it.

Marvel1

This is where I'm lucky, I just bought a house (not new) and there is a BT line and box and I rang BT to check and it's free to connect.

xboss666

xboss666 wrote: »

I have a similar experience with the BT engineer turning up just to tell me everything is fully working, there is nothing to be done.

Spoke to ConsumerRights, apparently what BT is charging is unlawful. You can request BT to justify this charge. Installation charge by definition is not for BT to make a profit from. They MUST justify what they are charging is what actually cost them.

I've just wrote to BT, will see if I get anywhere.

Yesterday I had a bit of a phone rage with BT. I spoke to an agent, her coach and the Call center manager for 45 mins with no success. Then a quick call to Consumer rights, they advised me based on my experience, BT cannot justify their charge and so it is unlawful.

I then followed the BT complaints procedure (filling in an online form).

Today, I received an email from Karan Talreja (eContact Customer Service) informing me she has already waived off the full installation charge. Success!!!

My complaint to BT went something like this:

"I am writing to you because a Consumer Rights agent advised me the £124.99 installation charge is unlawful.

On the day of the telephone line being installed an OpenReach engineer attended my home to advise me there is nothing to be done on my line. I also asked the engineer if anything was done either at the local exchange or a box on the side of the road, his answer was simply 'no'. In fact the engineer then said 'This is an easy one (referring to the job). Did you not know your line is fully working!'.

Base on this experience and after speaking to Comsumer Rights, I do not agree with this charge you insist on charging. I feel strongly you have imposed an unlawful charge. I now request proof work was done and you to justify the cost of the work done. Unless you can provide me with this information, I demand the full amount to be refunded, otherwise I will take this matter further.

If I do not receive a respond in the next 7 days, I will contact both OfCom and OFT again to raise this matter further."

Hopfully if anyone else have a similar experience will find this useful. Or if anyone feel the charge is unjust may want to try sending a similar letter.

donnadoo515

Having just read a previous BT post about an email...i would appreciate your thoughts on the following email i sent to BT and their reply

I have previously rang up regarding this enquiry and have been told that nothing can be done, this is my second attempt at contact BT to resolve this matter before i seek legal advice.
As you will see i have an outstanding balance, I would like to dispute the connect charge of £124.99 that has been added to my account for the following reasons
1) There was no justification for this charge..an engineer called at my property with a small handheld machine , tested the line and all was ok...he was at my property for 5 minutes
2) You will see that i called to change over in December, i have since found out that BT have been running a promotion since 9th November 2007 for half price line connecton if i had agreed agree to take BT Together Option 1, 2 or 3 for a minimum period of 18 months...WHY was i not offered this promotion???
Source: BT Official price list:- http://www.serviceview.bt.com/list/public/current/FrameworkImpl10126/2-FrameworkImpl133605.htm
3) I also quote from your price list "Take-over of service where no changes to internal or external wiring are required" the cost for this is 0.00 ...i can assure you there there were no internal or external wiring required so WHY have i been charged for this?
I would like this matter to be looked into fully and would like the termination of my contract to be held until this matter is resolved.
If the result shows that i am liable for this charge, i would like written confirmation from BT to explain why and what this charge entails.
I look forward to you response

Their reply...

Dear Miss ***

Thank you for your e-mail dated 9/3/08 regarding connection charges.

At the outset Miss Tully, I really apologise for the inconvenience
caused due to the delay in reply.

In response to your email, I would like to inform you that from 15
August 2007 the connection charges are applied in all circumstances wether
or not engineer visit is required.

I once again apologise for the difficulties that you have experienced
and hope that you can understand the situation.

Thank you for contacting BT.

Yours sincerely,

Pooja Patel
eContact Customer Service


OK i understand it is about connection charges but surely i have valid points???