TalkTalk shocking - but is any provider better?

suzie.saves

We just moved into our first owned home & signed up to TalkTalk.

In-laws said they'd had no problems with them, monthly costs cheaper than BT, & there was a nice juicy £100 shopping voucher offer to tempt us.

Sep 1st, TalkTalk took my £172 for the upfront line rental & sent an email saying we'd soon receive welcome pack & an engineer would be round to plug us in on the 16th.

In the meantime, BT, our old provider as tenants, told us we had to disconnect the line (& of course pay ££ for the privilege). So we did that.

Today (the 15th), still no welcome pack from TalkTalk, so I phone them up.

Having navigated a call answering system that frequently cut itself off mid-sentence & took me places I didn't ask for, I ended up at Sales, despite the system eventually confirming that I wanted to check the progress of an existing order.

Sales put me through to "Joe", who sounded like he was stoned out of his mind.

Joe told me that TalkTalk had cancelled our order because they were having trouble transferring our account from the old provider. He said this was because we had asked BT to disconnect and that made it difficult for TalkTalk to set up a new one.

When I asked why they hadn't called to tell us this, there was a long silence. Eventually he tentatively proffered "I apologise?", before telling me I could just order with TalkTalk again - once we'd called BT and told them not to disconnect us after all. He then started reciting the TalkTalk URL in a weird monotone.

I really don't feel like using TalkTalk at all now I've had this experience with them. I haven't encountered such terrible service for years, and - although it's a small consideration compared to the cheaper monthly costs - we have now lost the £100 shopping voucher that was an extra incentive to use them, because that's no longer an offer.

But every broadband provider I've researched has terrible reviews. It seems like they're all as bad as each other, and we're stuck between a rock & a hard place.

Also wondering when TalkTalk plan to give me my £172 back, because they've been earning interest on it for two weeks now & Joe-the-stoner had switched into robot mode & wasn't answering any more questions.

Really unbelievable. Just very thankful that my mobile broadband signal is strong, or we'd be really stuck trying to sort out all the new house stuff - so much of it needs an internet connection these days.

Not sure what I expect you all to tell me - think I've partly come here to get this off my chest - but any suggestions would be welcome.

MataNui

You should ask TT to refund the money immediately. If they dont then assuming you paid by debit card you need to go to your bank and do a chargeback. A company refusing to refund a deposit for a service never provided is a valid reason for a chargeback so you should have no problems.

A word of advice though: Dont get into a long running dispute with TT. They are a useless company with non-existent support. Ask for a refund once. If they stonewall or dont give the reply you want go to the bank and do it that way.

JJ_Egan

Try Plusnet .

suzie.saves

Thanks MataNui. My partner has already tried to re-call them to request refund but he just keeps getting syphoned to start of "details verification" process. Hasn't managed to reach customer services at all.

Unfortunately we had to do it on debit card; M&S had temporarily suspended my credit card because a big retailer got their database hacked & I changed my address at the same time.

Such a palaver. Making me wish we all just dealt in cash & turnips. Nice & simple.

Am wondering if my parents-in-law are the only TT customers who haven't had a bad experience!!

MataNui wrote: »

You should ask TT to refund the money immediately. If they dont then assuming you paid by debit card you need to go to your bank and do a chargeback. A company refusing to refund a deposit for a service never provided is a valid reason for a chargeback so you should have no problems.

A word of advice though: Dont get into a long running dispute with TT. They are a useless company with non-existent support. Ask for a refund once. If they stonewall or dont give the reply you want go to the bank and do it that way.

suzie.saves

Thanks JJ - are you with them?

JJ_Egan wrote: »

Try Plusnet .

onomatopoeia99

suzie.saves wrote: »

But every broadband provider I've researched has terrible reviews. It seems like they're all as bad as each other, and we're stuck between a rock & a hard place.

Do you just want an ISP, or are you looking at getting TV / phone / the kitchen sink "bundled"? If the latter, then they are all much of a muchness in ISP terms. If the former, then there are some quality providers, e.g. Zen, or A&A (who I use).

Pincher

Go with PlusNet.


By the way, if I say I'm with PlusNet, why should you believe me?


There are plenty of strategies for dealing with the vicissitudes of life:


1. If it's expensive, it must be good: John Lewis Broadband. If only Harrods did broadband, then it must be the bees knees.


2. Pincher's backup plan. Have TWO broadband connections.


3. Find a boy friend, and blame him for everything that goes wrong in your life. Nag him until it's all fixed.


And many more.

suzie.saves

onomatopoeia99 wrote: »

Do you just want an ISP, or are you looking at getting TV / phone / the kitchen sink "bundled"? If the latter, then they are all much of a muchness in ISP terms. If the former, then there are some quality providers, e.g. Zen, or A&A (who I use).

No TV - just bb & phone.

JJ_Egan

suzie.saves wrote: »

Thanks JJ - are you with them?

No but i have been with them .
With BT now for BT Sport.

[Deleted User]

MataNui wrote: »

A word of advice though: Dont get into a long running dispute with TT. They are a useless company with non-existent support. Ask for a refund once. If they stonewall or dont give the reply you want go to the bank and do it that way.

Yep - that's me - in a long-running dispute with TT over our faulty phone line which they refuse to fix. I get plenty of e-mails and zilch actual action. I'm even in contact with the CEO (Dido Harding) and she does nothing except forward my e-mails to a flunky who stonewalls me, no matter who they are.


That is why I am on here now - to research which provider to go with next and have found the same - all the providers seem to be as good/bad as one another. It's most frustrating. However, I was thinking about going with PlusNet too, as apparently, they do not have foreign call centres.


But it still doesn't get my line fixed, so I am flummoxed. Is it worth contacting the Ombudsman? Because I am not convinced that that would do any good? But what else do you do?


Anyway, good luck with your choice of provider - I know I need luck with mine!!


PT

1cat2fish

I'm with Plusnet. I like their customer service. Was with talk talk, their customer service is non existent. Have had a lots of issues with the line dropping with talk talk and no help from them. Plusnet sent engineer out and sorted the problem. Can only say, from my experience, that I will stick with Plusnet.x