Probably a stupid ?

hermum

I've been with Virgin for phone & broadband since moving into my house 3 years ago, the previous owners also had them.
I've just given notice, how do I find out if I have a BT line into the house?
I'm assuming that other suppliers need a BT line.
I would also be really interested in hearing other peoples suggestions on phone, broadband package.
Thank you

Heinz

Unless you can see a socket (in which case, plug a phone in, listen for a dial tone and dial 17070 to get the number), the only way is to phone BT (0800 800 150) to ask.

If you say you're thinking of jumping ship to BT and were wondering if your house had a line already so reconnection would be free of charge rather than £127, they should look up the address on their computer records and be able to tell you.

hermum

Thanks, I won't be going to BT but on comparison sites a lot of them say you have to have a BT line. There's a socket, with nothing written on in but isn't Virgin as my phone doesn't work in it, no dial tone but it wouldn;t be live as I'm not with BT. I'll try BT & ask them.

hermum

My Good God, I've just called BT, they want to do just a little profile on me to be able to do a search, address, (obviously) mobile number? DOB? Mothers maiden name? at that point I decided not to bother. Why on earth do these people need all this info when all I want to know is whether or not there's a BT box in the house. I do hope that they aren't doing a credit check or anything, I just don;t know why anyone needs all that info. Am I just being paranoid?
I didn't say to her that I wanted to transfer to them.

Does anyone know a supplier who doesn't require a BT box please?

Heinz

Apart from the address (which they obviously need) why on earth did you not just give them slightly false information so they could do what you wanted them to do?

My names is JAMES (if it's JANES), by DOB is 11 (if it's 01) June 1995 (if it's 1999) her maiden name was GRAHAM if it was GRAEME) and so on.

I can't help it if they key it in wrong.

Now you know what they'll ask, work out your 'answers' and call again. You're bound to get another operator.

Mark_In_Hampshire

hermum wrote: »

Thanks, I won't be going to BT but on comparison sites a lot of them say you have to have a BT line. There's a socket, with nothing written on in but isn't Virgin as my phone doesn't work in it, no dial tone but it wouldn;t be live as I'm not with BT. I'll try BT & ask them.

Just call your chosen supplier (as you're not going with BT, there's no sense in speaking to them) and ask them how much it will cost to connect a phone line at your address. They can look in the database and find out. They may ask you what the box looks like.

Typically a newer style BT master socket is square with a stripe across it and has a BT logo, but some houses have older style sockets and / or GPO boxes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_telephone_sockets

spike7451

If you have a box like the one in the picture connecting your broadband,then you are on Cable,the box on the left is the CTE5 Master socket which is used by all cable companies as well as BT (NTE5).
If it has a logo like the one in the pic saying either NTL/Telewest/Virgin Media,then you're again on cable.The logo on BT's in the same but on older models is a moulded logo.

hermum

Mark_In_Hampshire wrote: »

Just call your chosen supplier (as you're not going with BT, there's no sense in speaking to them) and ask them how much it will cost to connect a phone line at your address. They can look in the database and find out. They may ask you what the box looks like.

Typically a newer style BT master socket is square with a stripe across it and has a BT logo, but some houses have older style sockets and / or GPO boxes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_telephone_sockets

Thanks, the one I can find in the house, looks like one someone has put in themselves. It's not the old GPO, but the newer one, I think that someone who had the house at one time liked wiring stuff up. (Every room has loads of double electricity sockets but only 1 side works, hmm, maybe a trainee sparky) There's nothing written on the box, maybe there's a main one elsewhere, not in the lounge.

spike7451 wrote: »

If you have a box like the one in the picture connecting your broadband,then you are on Cable,the box on the left is the CTE5 Master socket which is used by all cable companies as well as BT (NTE5).
If it has a logo like the one in the pic saying either NTL/Telewest/Virgin Media,then you're again on cable.The logo on BT's in the same but on older models is a moulded logo.

I'm on virgin cable, that's what I've been on since I bought the house & I think the previous owner as it was already here, or NTL anyway.
I'll probably end up staying with virgin, purely as it's easier. Not very MSE.
Orange said I have to know if there's BT box.
Talk talk charge £39.99 for the engineer to press a button, if I already have a BT line.
Nothing's easy.:)

Apart from the address (which they obviously need) why on earth did you not just give them slightly false information so they could do what you wanted them to do?

My names is JAMES (if it's JANES), by DOB is 11 (if it's 01) June 1995 (if it's 1999) her maiden name was GRAHAM if it was GRAEME) and so on.

I can't help it if they key it in wrong.

Now you know what they'll ask, work out your 'answers' and call again. You're bound to get another operator.

I probably would get the same operator, or the computer says, "arsey woman who refuses to give her details & hangs up". I do wish that I could stay calm.

Mark_In_Hampshire

hermum wrote: »

Thanks, the one I can find in the house, looks like one someone has put in themselves. It's not the old GPO, but the newer one, I think that someone who had the house at one time liked wiring stuff up. (Every room has loads of double electricity sockets but only 1 side works, hmm, maybe a trainee sparky) There's nothing written on the box, maybe there's a main one elsewhere, not in the lounge.



I'm on virgin cable, that's what I've been on since I bought the house & I think the previous owner as it was already here, or NTL anyway.
I'll probably end up staying with virgin, purely as it's easier. Not very MSE.
Orange said I have to know if there's BT box.
Talk talk charge £39.99 for the engineer to press a button, if I already have a BT line.
Nothing's easy.:)

Apart from the address (which they obviously need) why on earth did you not just give them slightly false information so they could do what you wanted them to do?

My names is JAMES (if it's JANES), by DOB is 11 (if it's 01) June 1995 (if it's 1999) her maiden name was GRAHAM if it was GRAEME) and so on.

I can't help it if they key it in wrong.

Now you know what they'll ask, work out your 'answers' and call again. You're bound to get another operator.

I probably would get the same operator, or the computer says, "arsey woman who refuses to give her details & hangs up". I do wish that I could stay calm.

You can go through a sequence of steps on the BT website which lead to telling you whether an installation charge will apply.

From memory, one of those is "I have a dial tone".

As the answer is no, an installation charge would probably apply which is circa £120 inc VAT (think Talk Talk is circa £69).

BT have some kind of free installation offer if you take a long contract, but you've already sensibly decided to steer clear of them.

Before even thinking about migrating from cable to ADSL broadband, it's worth using the speed checker to see what speed you might get at your postcode anyway. In most instances, ADSL cannot get anywhere near competing with what cable can offer.

If it's going to cost £120 for the line to be installed and your broadband speed drops from say 10Mbps to 1Mbps I wouldn't have said that the migration represents good value anyway.

If the ADSL speed is going to be good enough for you then you can work out whether it's financially worthwhile.

Robert2009

I am on Virgin Media and due to a BT balls up I ended up with a BT line with broadband as well as my Virgin Media broadband and I only phoned them up to enquire as well.

I only found out my BT line and broadband were live when people with BT complained about me not answering the phone. I had the same phone number for Virgin Media and BT and if a person on Virgin Media phoned me my Virgin Media phone rang and if they were with BT my BT phone rang except I did not have a phone plugged in to my BT socket.

I was of course told this was impossible but it was.

So I tried the BT internet and the speed was only 2 mbs whereas I was getting 10 with Virgin Media.

It took me sending emails and letters to the head of BT before it was sorted as of course their call centre said it was impossible for 2 phone lines to have the same number.

I am scarred with my experience with BT and will never go with them. I even pulled out of buying a new house when I found out that all I could get was BT.

Rob