Would changing to eg Virgin cable free us from BT Openreach

guineapig

A month ago we booked through our phone and broadband provider, John Lewis Broadband, for a BT Openreach engineer to move our master socket because the room where the master socket currently sits is being changed to a bathroom. The building schedule was arranged around this visit.

We are livid because the engineer did not turn up and are raising a dispute with them via John Lewis broadband.

We are contemplating moving to an infrastructure that does not involve BT Openreach but are not sure if that is possible. Virgin media fibre broadband is available in our area. If we changed to them would any of the infrastructure still involve BT Openreach? Are there any other options? Or is the service dreadful because there is no alternative?

I would appreciate any input. Thank you in advance.

[Deleted User]

Virgin have their own network, independent of BT lines and Openreach.

I wouldn't recommend them simply because they are not Openreach, though.

With regard building work, I wouldn't arrange anything to take place until any installation work is completed.
This is for any supplier.

visidigi

guineapig wrote: »

A month ago we booked through our phone and broadband provider, John Lewis Broadband, for a BT Openreach engineer to move our master socket because the room where the master socket currently sits is being changed to a bathroom. The building schedule was arranged around this visit.

We are livid because the engineer did not turn up and are raising a dispute with them via John Lewis broadband.

We are contemplating moving to an infrastructure that does not involve BT Openreach but are not sure if that is possible. Virgin media fibre broadband is available in our area. If we changed to them would any of the infrastructure still involve BT Openreach? Are there any other options? Or is the service dreadful because there is no alternative?

I would appreciate any input. Thank you in advance.

Virgin Media would install new hardware to your house in the rooms you want it in as part of the install.

Nothing they would install or you would use to be able to get Telephone, TV or Internet would use anything associated with BT openreach.

JJ_Egan

I would want to know how VM equivalent of OR respond to calls etc .

Bigphil1474

You might be jumping out of the pan into the fire. I've been at the same house for 20 years and we've had Openreach out twice. Both times they were reasonably quick to respond - on one occasion they had to come into the house as the whole line from our house to the telegraph pole needed replacing, they arrived when they said they would and did the work in quick time, and it was free as expected. The other time, they had to fix something on the pole, and left a card to say it was done when they'd done it the next day. If this is the only bad experience you've had, then personally I'd just take it up with your supplier as you have done, and hope they do better next time. I doubt VM have a perfect record of turning up on time either, they might be better or worse, but never perfect.
I'm not 100%, but you might still have to pay the line rental even if you aren't using it? - presumably Openreach can remove the line if you don't need it? but then it would cost if you decided to go back to a landline. Sounds an extreme solution.

[Deleted User]

Bigphil1474 wrote: »

you might still have to pay the line rental even if you aren't using it? - presumably Openreach can remove the line if you don't need it?

In common with most suppliers, John Lewis won't supply Broadband without a landline. Virgin Media do offer a Broadband only option, but charge almost as much as they do for a package of both.