My 02 Story So Far and Forthcoming

fozzeh

Well, I plumped for going for O2 broadband last week (30/09/10). I got a box in store and haggled (£40 off) as I needed the line installed and compared it to other providers, who could do a cheaper package over 12 and 18 month (Tiscali and PlusNet).

Good start. Monthly cost to £20pcm.

Rang up 01/10/10- "Can you come an install a line at my house please?" "Yeh sure...oh, I can't find your address on the system". It was only added to Royal Mail that morning so it would have been a case of updating the system. She said that she would do this and I should ring back tomorrow.

Rang 02/10/10 morning - "Can you come install a line at my house? My address should be on the system and is already on Royal Mail." "Yeh sure...oh wait, you're still not on the system. I'll put this through as a request today and monitor it. When it gets added which should be by the end of the day, I'll ring you when so. I finish at 5 so should be before then. You need a bank account registered at that address so we can credit search you".

I duly comply and rush into town where the local Natwest is open until 1pm. That sorted.

X Factor starts, sat down with Chinese, still no call.

Ring 06/10/10- "Can you...ya-di-ya" "Oh, you're not on the system and this could take up to 7 days to do, maybe more as it has to go to HO" (Yes, I did point out you can't knowingly give an "up to" if it will probably go over without sounding like a fool).

So that's where I am now. I'm going to ring up again tonight, explain the problem and tell them what a balls up it is thus far.

fozzeh

Ok, I had 15 mins left of dinner:

First call - got lost in the system. Typical! My phone has auto callback but didn't want to speak to the same person again.

Second call - went to CS, they put me through to BB sales and after she asks for postcode and house number....oops, they hang up!

Third call - Chris at CS puts me through to Chantelle who checks (confirms on RM website) and say "The first house is 14", "...no it isn't" so she check RM website! BAM! There is the house. "That's really weird. I know there is a way to add it myself..." *holds*. It's not updated on Capscan (actually getting some proper information here) but there is nothing they can do about it...could take up to another week. How handy to be told this a week later. Still, she actually asked her manager and was more useful than the previous.

Ring Capscan and Joanne doesn't understand how their database can't be up to date if Royal Mails is...hhmmm...she's going to ring me back in the next 15 mins.

fozzeh

She does ring back...but my phone dies. I ring and apologise for my phone dying. She says it is Royal Mail who have to tell them where to update their database as they update theirs "daily".

Ring RM. Says that what she says is true but the address was fully active on 01/10/10 and is up to the individual company as to when they actually do/buy the updates. If it is daily, as she says, then there is something wrong on their system (RM provide the update disks on a daily/weekly/monthly basis) and they haven't done it properly.

fozzeh

"Capscan aren't a free address search, we're an independant company and you need to speak to Royal Mail about this".

"I have. And, if I am looking at your website, on the right hand side is a nice button which says 'Free Address Search' which must run from a database of some sort".

"Erm...bear with me on second..."

I then get passed through to some stern woman who tells me "they offer a service to companies to search for and verify addresses and..." then breaks down laughing. Basically, they're a middle man who provide companies information readily available from Royal Mail in bulk. When a company requests this data, they add it to their database (getting the addresses paid for by the company) and utelise it.

So far, my deductions come to O2 are fobbing me off saying that it is Capscans fault and they haven't updated their system and they can't do anything...when really they need to request the information from Capscan who will then give them it for a fee. So O2 verify their data at source 1 and source 2 and source 2 get their data from source 1 too...which is pretty poor on O2's part. I'll be ringing when in...

...and ring TalkTalk to see if they can do it from RM database only.

PARIS_5000

fozzeh wrote: »

"Capscan aren't a free address search, we're an independant company and you need to speak to Royal Mail about this".

"I have. And, if I am looking at your website, on the right hand side is a nice button which says 'Free Address Search' which must run from a database of some sort".

"Erm...bear with me on second..."

I then get passed through to some stern woman who tells me "they offer a service to companies to search for and verify addresses and..." then breaks down laughing. Basically, they're a middle man who provide companies information readily available from Royal Mail in bulk. When a company requests this data, they add it to their database (getting the addresses paid for by the company) and utelise it.

So far, my deductions come to O2 are fobbing me off saying that it is Capscans fault and they haven't updated their system and they can't do anything...when really they need to request the information from Capscan who will then give them it for a fee. So O2 verify their data at source 1 and source 2 and source 2 get their data from source 1 too...which is pretty poor on O2's part. I'll be ringing when in...

...and ring TalkTalk to see if they can do it from RM database only.

Talk talk are crap did you not watch watchdog last week.

O2 are much better even through you are having problems with them. I have a BT line and my O2 broadband was connected very quickly.

fozzeh

My "other" house is Tiscali and I have never had a problem with it...but things change!

I didn't get the chance to ring when in so will resume this in the morning.

PARIS_5000

fozzeh wrote: »

My "other" house is Tiscali and I have never had a problem with it...but things change!

I didn't get the chance to ring when in so will resume this in the morning.

Tiscali is owned by TalkTalk and so is Aol UK.

fozzeh

Yep...I know that. Hence in other threads mentioning the extra £2.50 I am being charged when they took over

fozzeh

Well, spoke to Tim on the inbound broadband setup team and went through the whole thing again. Still no address on the system and was told that he would put the request through "to his managers within the next 30 seconds and it would probably be Monday now before it is sorted".

1 week on, I have been told the address would be on the system on the day, 7-10 days and 48 hours now. If we get to Monday and nothing, that shows that everyone is wrong and it's a crock of tripe.

Then there is the matter it will probably take them two weeks to get an engineer out to actually install the line, then a couple of days set up. 27th October? When I started all this, I was hoping for 14th! Here's to optimism.

Vixichick

I'm having exactly the same problem. I went in store to set it all up and was told it would take 48 hours to a week for my address to be registered, even though it was on Royal Mail already. Went back after a week and was told it could actually take two weeks. So I waited another week and returned, only to be told it would take six weeks for them to even check if the original request had gone through, meaning I've got up to a four week wait on my hands at the end of which, it might turn out I have to start the whole process again!

I don't get what is taking so long? My address is up on the BT and Virgin website, so why not O2's??

illumintai

Hey guys.. am thinking of doing the same thing.. my studio flat is not in their system tho... any advice ?