Orange Mobile Network coverage reduced in NI

nozzadamozza

anyone having problems with Orange in the Lisburn Rd area today? I was waiting to hear from my doc-so was important call and for some reason have had 'no service' all morning!

Graham_W_2

Glad I've found this thread.My mobile signal in BT25 has been non-existent since the 17th July. Have made three calls to Customers Services and three visits to the Orange store in Lisburn without any sensible resolution. I was expecting a promised call back from Customer Service this evening, but it never came. Absolutley shocking disregard for NI customers as evidenced by fellow sufferers on this page. I've written to the Chief Executve, below (and issued a reminder) but no contact from them. It really is appalling.
:mad:
From:
Sent: Wednesday, July 25, 2012 10:05 PM
To: (Link removed due to MSE guidelines)
Subject: Orange coverage problems - help.





Dear Mr Swantee,



I would like to bring a matter to your attention as I have been unable to resolve it satisfactorily through the normal channels.



I have been an Orange customer for around ten years, first on Pay As You Go, and recently on a monthly contract. (My account number is xxxxxxxx.)



Since last Tuesday afternoon (17th July) I have had no coverage at my home address (BT25). Previously coverage has been very good in the area and I have not encountered this issue before.



I work in Belfast during the day and have noticed that I am able to receive a signal once I travel about fifteen miles from home (and the signal is maintained.) On the way home, however, at about the same point in my journey each evening, the signal disappears, and does not return. This suggests to me that it is a signal issue, and not a SIM problem - something which (at least) has been more or less verified by Customer Services.



I contacted Customer Services on 150 last Friday (20th July) to explain the problem and identify a possible solution. The advisor told me that they had no knowledge of a signal problem in my area, and suggested that it might be because of where I lived. I explained on several occasions that I have been with Orange for many years, and have lived at my current address for 6 years, without experiencing any similar problems.



Unfortunately the best solution that the advisor could offer was that I "monitor the situation for a week". Clearly though, by that point, I had already been closely monitoring the situation for nearly four days.



I called into my local Orange shop this afternoon and explained the situation again. The (very helpful and sympathetic) member of staff rang Customer Services for me and I spoke to the operator and again explained the problem. Once again, unfortunately, I was advised simply to "monitor the situation for another week". Rather than create a scene in the store (as the member of staff had been helpful, and the operator had obviously completed as much diagnostic testing as she feasibly could from outside the UK) I resolved instead to e-mail Customer Services through the website this evening to:



(i) make the point that monitoring the situation for another week is not an acceptable solution - given that I know there is a problem, and the problem has persisted for over a week already. Hoping that the issue will magically resolve itself without intervention or diagnosis is not, unfortunately, a sound basis for treatment;



(ii) request that having been without coverage for over a week already, to suggest that there might be some gesture on your part to waive at least part of your monthly fee to compensate; and



(iii) to indicate that if the matter persists, I will consider it a breach of contract (on the basis that Orange are unable to provide the service in my area that we agreed to) and move to another supplier.



Unfortunately, having sent an e-mail to Customer Services through the website I received the following message:



"Whoops, due to issues beyond our control we are currently unable to handle your email query. If you need to contact us by calling us on 07973100150 from a landline (landline calls are charged at local rates if you're a BT customer, but if you're with another provider it may cost more so do check). You can also contact us whilst you're abroad on 07973100150, where calls are charged at international rates."

Hence, Mr Swantee, my e-mail to you.

It is also prompted, in part, by the information imparted to me in the Orange shop following my call to Customer Services this afternoon. I was told that as part of the infrastructure investment as Orange and T-Mobile merge, some customers in certain areas of Northern Ireland are experiencing problems with signal and coverage - presumably as certain masts are reconfigured. If this is true then it is an appalling example of service provision. "Improving" the service to customers long-term (or perhaps to shareholders) should not result in a detriment to the service to customers in the short-term.

I would be grateful for your views.

Respectfully yours,

Graham

kah22

An old thread admittedly but very interesting.

When my contract with Vodafone is up in June I'll be leaving them and initial research using Billmonitor suggest that I switch to Orange for a saving of approx £113 over the next two years plus a free Galaxy s3.

Not much good in looking at that offer if Orange is not operating in NI. So what's the present situation with Orange in NI

falko89

kah22 wrote: »

An old thread admittedly but very interesting.

When my contract with Vodafone is up in June I'll be leaving them and initial research using Billmonitor suggest that I switch to Orange for a saving of approx £113 over the next two years plus a free Galaxy s3.

Not much good in looking at that offer if Orange is not operating in NI. So what's the present situation with Orange in NI

I believe Orange operate but T-Mobile do not.

saverbuyer

Orange and T mobile merged and are now called EE (everything everywhere).

dmxdave

saverbuyer wrote: »

Orange and T mobile merged and are now called EE (everything everywhere).

Except that they turned off the T mobile masts so not exactly everything everywhere!

I changed to Vodafone from Orange and the coverage is great. I am on a sim only business contract and it is working out cheaper than Orange was.

darwin-rover

Can I just add that its the same for Virgin Mobile.
I've been with Vodafone for a very long time, but wanted to change to VM as I'm a Virgin Media customer, and the deals are pretty good.
Ordered a sim card from Virgin when my deal with Vodafone was coming to an end, but made sure there is good signal in my area (Newtownabbey).
When you put your post code in on the website, you can check the T-Mobile and Orange signal in your area. Of course in NI it only shows the Orange signal and shows nothing for T-Mobile. My area showed 4 bars of 3G signal so I ordered the sim and requested my PAC from Voda.
Got the sim and was barely able to get any signal in my house, sometimes 1 or 2 bars of 2G , but sometimes no signal at all. Tried it in a different phone and it was no better.
Phoned Virgin and they didn't believe me saying that my area shows good signal and they use both Orange and T-Mobile masts. Didnt seem to take in that theres no T-Mobile signal here anymore.
Needless to say I was able to cancel because it was a 30 day rolling contract , and I was able to stay with Voda.

Colourv2001

Orange took over T-Mobile masts, and they were back on again at the end of October 2012

BigAl94

Colourv2001 wrote: »

Orange took over T-Mobile masts, and they were back on again at the end of October 2012

That is incorrect.

kah22

BigAl94 wrote: »

That is incorrect.

Incorrect?