BT (OpenReach) replaced master socket - sockets in house not working?

DonnySaver

Can anybody offer me any advice here please?

A few weeks ago I had to have my main BT master socket replaced as I had no telephone dial tone at all.

I have since discovered that 3 out of 4 sockets around my house are now no longer working - they were before!

I've been onto BT and they want to charge me £129.99 for someone to come out and fix a problem that I'm reasonably sure THEY have caused. I've told them that's no way to treat your customers and I'm not paying it. They've passed the buck by saying I need to get my own independent telephone engineer out to fix it or make a complaint to OpenReach ! :mad:

Any ideas where I stand or what I should do ? Independent enginner has quoted my £80 to come and look at it.

Thanks.

HappyMJ

If you take the front off the master socket you should find the cables to your extensions behind that plate. If the engineer has removed the extensions for testing they may have simply forgotten to plug it back in. It's a very easy job to do you can do that yourself. You'll only need a screwdriver to undo the screws on the master socket.

Cornucopia

BT and BT Openreach are two different companies. Your issue is with Openreach, although it may well be that you have no contact details for them. If you genuinely believe that they caused the problem, you probably need to speak to someone (possibly higher-up) in BT, and demand that they either instruct Openreach to fix the problem, or give you contact details for Openreach so you can contact them yourself.

You could also try contacting the Openreach Damage Team on 0800 671 130.

Be aware that there may be some kind of contractual limitation applying to non-BT infrastructure in your home, although the Engineer should have told you if s/he was going to disconnect it deliberately.

philbostavros

Hi

As already mentioned, simple job to unscrew the faceplate on the openreach master socket. The part that pulls off is where any extension wiring should be connected. This allows you to isolate the internal wiring (which you are responsible for) in the event of a fault (You plug a phone into the socket that left on the master socket base plate, which is a direct connection with the telephone line).

It is possible that either the internal cable(s) has not been reconnected or the connections have failed to make contact properly.

Ideally, you should use the correct type of tool to check this (an insulation displacement tool). You can buy a simple form of this in most DIT outlets (B&Q, Wickes etc). Should be near the telephone extension sockets on display. Simply push the tool into each of the v-shaped connectors where the extension cable wires are located. If any have not been pushed home fully, this will hopefully cure the problem. Plus the face-plate back in and check the extensions.

At a push, you can use a small flat-head screwdriver to gently push each wire in, but you have to be careful you don't damage/weaken the v-shaped connector.

Maybe worth Googling "openreach master socket wiring" to see the many links that give guidance, before you start?

Good luck.

brewerdave

I hesitate to cast aspersions on BT Open Reach engineers -but I had a genuine external fault solved by the engineer, but he couldn't close off the fault because the line wouldn't pass one of his tests. To get a pass he temporarily disconnected the extensions -and it passed with flying colours!
In my case he then reconnected -but possibly your engineer couldn't be bothered if it was causing an upstream fault condition.

Retrogamer

It's likely that there are problems with the internal wiring which caused the no dial tone fault in the first place. It's more common than you'd think.
The engineer would normally recommend any functioning internal sockets.

eddddy

Assuming BT is your phone service provider, your complaint is definitely against them. (You instructed BT to fix a fault, then BT instructed Openreach).

In your position, if you can't do the DIY fix others suggest, I would write a letter to BT complaints explaining that the engineer they arranged left 3 of your sockets not working - and say that they need to correct their engineer's error.

(They may well say that they did it because the extensions were faulty. If you don't believe that, the fight gets more difficult.)

DonnySaver

Thanks for everyone's replies. I contacted BT's twitter team about this. I told them that I had arranged for an independent engineer to come to look at my socket and that if it was found that it was not wired up correctly then I would be sending BT the £80 minimum callout charge for my engineer.

All of a sudden, BT want to be helpful. They have told me to cancel my engineer and they will raise a complaint with OpenReach.

I am still unsure as to whether they will attempt to charge me for an OpenReach visit though - so I have asked that very question. If I do not get a response soon then my engineer will be coming on Thursday to sort it out, and I will be sending BT the bill regardless as to whether they say they can reimburse me or not.

iniltous

I would think there are two possible scenarios , one is that your extension sockets were not wired in a way acceptable to OR, even if they 'worked'
If they were 'star' wired, which isn't the current method of connecting extension sockets, you may find that in such circumstances all OR will do is disconnect the extensions (so in some respects the fact one extension still works is a bonus) or the OR engineer or contractor working for OR messed up,
What you need to be aware of is if you call out Openreach via your line rental provider to look at something they are not responsible for (like extension sockets) there is a real chance of charging you for the visit,
I presume it was a fault report you raised that got the master socket changed, is the new master socket a different design to the previous master socket ?, if your new socket is a NTE5 and your old was just a LJU (line jack unit) the way to connect extensions is very different and on a fault report I don't think they are obliged to convert your wiring and extensions to make them compatible, although the upgrade from LJU to NTE5 should be free provided it was the LJU that was causing the fault

Browntoa

If the extension wiring was not installed by BT then it's not their responsibility at all , anything past the master socket is down to you

DonnySaver

iniltous wrote: »

I would think there are two possible scenarios , one is that your extension sockets were not wired in a way acceptable to OR, even if they 'worked'
If they were 'star' wired, which isn't the current method of connecting extension sockets, you may find that in such circumstances all OR will do is disconnect the extensions (so in some respects the fact one extension still works is a bonus) or the OR engineer or contractor working for OR messed up,
What you need to be aware of is if you call out Openreach via your line rental provider to look at something they are not responsible for (like extension sockets) there is a real chance of charging you for the visit,
I presume it was a fault report you raised that got the master socket changed, is the new master socket a different design to the previous master socket ?, if your new socket is a NTE5 and your old was just a LJU (line jack unit) the way to connect extensions is very different and on a fault report I don't think they are obliged to convert your wiring and extensions to make them compatible, although the upgrade from LJU to NTE5 should be free provided it was the LJU that was causing the fault

The master socket was a 'fault' fix. It does look slightly different to the original one. All the extension sockets are as they were when the house was built - they all have 'BT' marked on them.
I've asked BT to confirm whether or not I am going to get charged for the visit - but they've gone all quiet on me again...