Nildram contract now being switched over to Opal - should I be worried?

Stompa

Seejayuu wrote: »

Are you on an unbundled telephone exchange?

Yes, I switched to Be, a vast improvement over Nildram.

Seejayuu

Stompa wrote: »

Yes.

Thanks for clarification. In making comparisons it is very difficult to identify what's available on a 'bundled' exchange without going into the time-consuming examination of the small print.

SilverSmith_2

Since the switch to Opal I've had problems with:

a) logging in to Opal to see my bill (the process rejected me),
b) Seeing my long invoice history (once I got in to Opal it seems that the history isn't transferred and there is no access to Nildram's MyControls to see it either),
c) The homepages FTP isn't working,
d) The server configuration is different so if you used default.htm(l) as your home page, it now fails showing a directory listing instead - Nildram had default.htm(l) configured but Opal has only index.html (I gather),
e) Their response to tickets raised through their online contact form (the pages for which are faulty, at least when viewed using Firefox)... four hours and counting.

So much for "you'll see no difference".

Time for a change I think.

P.S. ...that's a loss of ALL history... traffic loads and phone calls as well as the bills.

SilverSmith_2

Just a wee update. STILL no response to two support tickets but hours of trawling their pages found the necessary change to the FTP connection details.

So, now all they have to do is respond to the tickets and load all my Nildram bill, call & traffic history.

Have migrated away from the homepages web space... next step, redirect emails then I'll be free to switch to a decent ISP.

I'm seriously considering XILO Communications, does anyone have recommendations?

Seejayuu

SilverSmith wrote: »

... So, now all they have to do is respond to the tickets and load all my Nildram bill, call & traffic history. ...

Another suffering Nildram-exer :beer:

It is now 22 days since Opal Tech Support said they would fix-it for me.

But a small success ! On Tue 28.09.10 at 20.56 Tech Support answered the phone within a minute of dialing the 0800 number. After checking he explained, "It's been escalated to a senior engineer. [checked my name and login] I cannot access your controls.". Tech Support was VERY sympathetic and said he would ensure the Senior Engineer (with whom Tech Support do not have a phone line) knew of my frustration.

I explained I would be seeking damages if I had to go through the hassle of a new ISP and new email address. I asked for the internal complaints number - they are only open office hours.

Today (Fri 01 Oct) I have emailed complaints-sm@opal.co.uk giving them until 1700 hrs Mon 04 Oct to fix it. If not I am off to OTELO and CISAS seeking a remedy and compensation.

Why should they get away with it by people just migrating?

Other sufferers may be found at the Thinkbroadband Forum under "myopal-v-nildram-exers"

Stompa

Seejayuu wrote: »

Why should they get away with it by people just migrating?

If you do migrate away keep an eye on them. Nildram continued to bill me for a couple of months after leaving.

Seejayuu

Thanks Stompa. At present my account is being debited by Opal but I am not being sent any email as Nildram used to and I cannot access MyAcoount !

dazprospect

Has anyone else had problems with direct debit payments since the take over? My monthly payment was always taken out at the beginning of the month with Nildram, but since switching over, my bill now says i owe 2 months worth on the website and another month will be due in a week. It is only by chance that i checked the documents as i'm used to it going out. And in the email when the takeover was announced it said if you pay by direct debit, you have to change nothing. 3 un-answered emails, cannot get through on the 0800 number, definitely losing patience quickly with this company now.

9wizard9

I've had a similar problem, and I stopped being a Nildram customer over a year ago!

I had an email advising me that all my details were being transferred to Opal, and now get redirected to their login page.

I can't log in as I don't have any account details any more (and I assumed didn't have an account given I cancelled so long ago!).

I logged a support call to ask why my account was being transferred and why they still held my details give I was no longer a customer. I got a helpful reply back, but couldn't then reply to that to provide further detail as they decided they couldn't match my email address.

Just been listening to Ofcom on radio 4 talking about Talk Talk continuing to bill ex-customers since the various mergers and takeovers, so I'm now worried that they may set debt collectors on me - they haven't told me I owe money, but then they don't appear to have any of my contact details since the original email!

Might have to start finding a phone number for them I guess.

dazprospect

Ok, after investigating further, it turns out my mehtod of payment has somehow changed to cheque on the switch over.? I do not own a cheque book and have paid by direct debit for the passed 5 plus years! I don't really know how to go about this as they are not reply to emails and i can't get through on the phone!