Utility Warehouse (Telecom Plus) Discussion

itfc1959

I became a member / customer of the Utility Warehouse some months ago. I've read this thread, and the previous thread that was closed down because of the over-excitability of some of its contributors. I read these posts after I became a customer. Here are my views.

1. I've had cause to call Customer Service on a number of occasions and I have had no problems getting through, or getting help. The calls have been answered promptly and courteously. These calls are free. I had support in configuring my own router even though I had been advised that this would not be forthcoming, but I phoned them anyway. I have also changed tariff on my gas and electricity to the budget plan with no issue or complaint. Result: jobs done.

2. I was advised to give the service at least three months before deciding it was for me or not. I'm three months in. The cashback is starting to come in on money I was going to spend anyway. It's not enough to cover all my bills but it effectively pays for my homephone and broadband.

3. There is no confusion in my mind as to what constituted the Double the Difference price promise. It's expressed very clearly on the website, which is where I was referred to when the distributor presented the sales pitch to me.

4. The £200 switch is real. I was credited £80 to my account after I presented my final O2 bill. If there were any problems they sat with O2, who were a complete pain when it came to getting that information off them.

5. I've been advised that my internet service will be unlimited after April 1st. That means I'll be paying less next month, as there was a small surcharge for unlimited.

All in all, I'm happy, so far, and I'll be keeping a close eye.

Tips: 1. Do as you're advised and send your meter readings in at the end of every month.

2.Use your cashback card as advised, and you will make real savings.

3. Check your account on-line, on your webpage. it's updated daily. If there are any concerns, phone customer service (see above).

HappyMJ

itfc1959 wrote: »

I became a member / customer of the Utility Warehouse some months ago. I've read this thread, and the previous thread that was closed down because of the over-excitability of some of its contributors. I read these posts after I became a customer. Here are my views.

1. I've had cause to call Customer Service on a number of occasions and I have had no problems getting through, or getting help. The calls have been answered promptly and courteously. These calls are free. I had support in configuring my own router even though I had been advised that this would not be forthcoming, but I phoned them anyway. I have also changed tariff on my gas and electricity to the budget plan with no issue or complaint. Result: jobs done.

2. I was advised to give the service at least three months before deciding it was for me or not. I'm three months in. The cashback is starting to come in on money I was going to spend anyway. It's not enough to cover all my bills but it effectively pays for my homephone and broadband.

3. There is no confusion in my mind as to what constituted the Double the Difference price promise. It's expressed very clearly on the website, which I where I was referred to when the distributor presented the pitch to me.

4. The £200 switch is real. I was credited £80 to my account after I presented my final O2 bill. If there were any problems they sat with O2, who were a complete pain when it came to getting that information off them.

5. I've been advised that my internet service will be unlimited after April 1st. That means I'll be paying less next month, as there was a small surcharge for unlimited.

All in all, I'm happy, so far, and I'll be keeping a close eye.

Tips: 1.Do as you're advised and send your meter readings in at the end of every month.

2.Use your cashback card as advised, and you will make real savings.

3. Check your account on-line, on your webpage. it's updated daily. If there are any concerns, phone customer service (see above).

The calls to customer services are not free. They either cost 5p/minute or they cost £12 per year.

MillicentBystander

Be prepared to be accused of being an undercover distributor now, itfc1959 I mean, how dare you actually use the company as a mere customer and give a positive review? Don't you know all these non-customers have been telling you how rubbish it is for all these years?

PS Just checked after your line about the broadband service changing and I'm happy to report my bill will be decreasing by almost £3 from April! :money: We were paying just under £25/mth for the u/l BB deal (had to update from the standard BB after signing up to netflix and one of the offspring decided to embark on a massive programme watching frenzy! :eek:). Now going to cost just under £22/mth as as far as I can see. Is that right or am I missing something? A telecommunications company actually reducing their prices - who'd have thunk it?

PPS Happy, whilst we are on a pedantic mission I'm sure you simply forgot to say the £12/yr, as well as bagging you free calls to UW, also bags you 12 monthly PAPER bills delivered to your door. Something I'm not aware any other energy company does? Oh, and £10,000 worth of accidental death cover.

itfc1959

MillicentBystander wrote: »

Be prepared to be accused of being an undercover distributor now, itfc1959 I mean, how dare you actually use the company as a mere customer and give a positive review? Don't you know all these non-customers have been telling you how rubbish it is for all these years?

PS Just checked after your line about the broadband service changing and I'm happy to report my bill will be decreasing by almost £3 from April! :money: We were paying just under £25/mth for the u/l BB deal (had to update from the standard BB after signing up to netflix and one of the offspring decided to embark on a massive programme watching frenzy! :eek:). Now going to cost just under £22/mth as as far as I can see. Is that right or am I missing something? A telecommunications company actually reducing their prices - who'd have thunk it?

PPS Happy, whilst we are on a pedantic mission I'm sure you simply forgot to say the £12/yr, as well as bagging you free calls to UW, also bags you 12 monthly PAPER bills delivered to your door. Something I'm not aware any other energy company does? Oh, and £10,000 worth of accidental death cover.

Well, that's all true.

I haven't had to pay a penny on calls to Customer Service. Maybe you have to be a Gold Member, or something. If it's that important, and I think it is, as I don't like Premium Phone lines, then go to SayNoTo0845 and get the landline equivalent.

I've looked really hard at this UW forum and I have to say that I don't understand some of it. Some of the posters on both sides of the argument seem to have real psychological problems and this is their battle ground. Each to their own. I make no judgements.

Here's the point, as I see it.

UW will not save your life and it will not give you your utilities for free. But it will give you a great deal on BB, Mobiles and Landline. Gas and Electric is, as they say, competitive. It's when you use the on-line shopping and CashBack card effectively (and it's not hard) that the money comes off the bill and then you can see it as a reduction in your Gas and Electric. I know, I've seen it for myself, and it works.

I know it's true that judicious shopping around can save you more, but quite frankly, I haven't got the time for all that crap. Primus are the cheapest for Line Rental, but according to this website, their CS is awful. Does this matter? Of course it does, when their line goes down, again.

I bought into CW for the single bill, the 10% Gas and Energy rebate after 12 months, the discounted shopping and cashback, the life cover (YOU try finding £10k life cover for less than three quid), and the UK based customer service.

I don't see the problem with their distribution system either. Network Marketing is a perfectly acceptable business model that benefits distributors and customers alike. I expect it's true that some distributors have done very well out of it all, and good luck to them. I'd rather any company spend their money on their agents who are prepared to get off their !!!!!! and work hard than spend three million a week on advertising, which I was advised that British Gas do.

I can see that UW is not for everyone. You have to be a little bit cute to make it work for you to its fullest potential, but at least it makes on-line shopping a little more fun, seeing how much cashback you're going to get out of it.

itfc1959

HappyMJ wrote: »

The calls to customer services are not free. They either cost 5p/minute or they cost £12 per year.

I'm happy to clarify. To join UW you have to be a member. You can pay £1,50 per month, or £2,50 per month. If you don't want to be a member, don't join up. Those are the club rules, and if you don't like them then clearly UW is not for you. It really is that simple.

So what do you get for your £2,50 a month? From their website, and I'm paraphrasing:

Access to the UW on-line cashback shopping portal (includes eBay and Amazon at 5% cashback)
Option to buy the Cashcard
Monthly paper bill
Freephone customer service
Freephone technical support
£10,000 accidental death cover.

I'm sorry if this sounds like a plug or an advert, but you started it and unfortunately did not present the whole story. I do this only in the interests of balance.

Cardew

QUOTE=itfc1959;60133483]
I'm sorry if this sounds like a plug or an advert, but you started it and unfortunately did not present the whole story. I do this only in the interests of balance.[/QUOTE]

Agreed it 'does sound like a plug or an advert'

In the 'interests of balance' would you think this statement of yours is balanced?

Gas and Electric is, as they say, competitive.

Competitive?? look on the comparison websites and see how far down the lists UW appear for the majority of gas and electricity consumers.

The average UK customer uses 16,500kWh gas and 3,300kWh electricity. In my area(Midlands) the cheapest UW tariff is in 50th position and 13.6% more expensive than the cheapest tariff.

I only post this in the 'interests of balance'.;)

P.S.
This will no doubt provoke a response from MillicentBystander or one of the many names he uses to sing the praises of UW.

P.P.S. If, as Carmine suggests, you are accused of being an 'undercover distributor' it would only be because so many of that ilk have tried it on MSE.

MillicentBystander

If the casual reader wishes to ascertain the ridiculous lengths Cardew will go to to denigrate UW they really only need to read the exchange that ensued after my Post #2849 (he's been an uncharacteristically infrequent contributor to this thread ever since. And understandably so ). I think that should tell you all you need to know about his modus operandi in this thread....he also once claimed that he'd seen French and Saunders advertising UW on his TV 'every night of the week'. :rotfl:

(posted only in the interests of balance)....

itfc1959

Cardew wrote: »

Competitive
The average UK customer uses 16,500kWh gas and 3,300kWh electricity. In my area(Midlands) the cheapest UW tariff is in 50th position and 13.6% more expensive than the cheapest tariff.

Then don't use UW, then. When you go into the UW you go for the whole package. With the 10% refund at the end of the year, plus the cashback on everyday purchases written into the equation, it makes like-for-like comparisons very difficult to compute. What it does mean is that at the end of 12 months, which is what we ought to be measuring these things by, UW will compare very favourably indeed.

As I seem to keep on repeating, it's about the overall package and customer service, both of which I have no complaints about and judging by other pages on this site, neither does MSE when it comes to UW's customer service.

Other than that, I have no intention of getting into a troll fight so please consider this element of the wider conversation closed.

Cardew

itfc1959 wrote: »

Then don't use UW,

Thanks, I most certainly will take heed of that advice.

Other than that, I have no intention of getting into a troll fight so please consider this element of the wider conversation closed.

It is a strange definition of a 'troll fight' to correct your statement that UW is competitive for gas and electricity, and point out to readers that indeed UW have some of the most expensive gas and electricity prices for most people - as they can check on any comparison website.

HappyMJ

itfc1959 wrote: »

.....

I bought into CW for the single bill, the 10% Gas and Energy rebate after 12 months, the discounted shopping and cashback, the life cover (YOU try finding £10k life cover for less than three quid), and the UK based customer service.

.......

It isn't life cover. It's accidental death cover. You need to die in an accident which is not covered by any other insurance or claimable against any other third party due to their negligence. i.e you could claim if you accidentally fall down the stairs in your own home crack your head open and die. If an illness caused you to lose conciousness for a second causing you to fall then it won't pay out. If you fall down the stairs in a shopping centre the shopping centre is sued and this insurance does not pay out. If you die in a car accident the third party that caused the accident pays out and this insurance does not. If it's your fault in any way then it's not an accidental death. You must cause your own death completely without fault.

This insurance is almost free due to the rarity of successful claims.