How can I make a neighbour dispute official?

Smodlet

A point which has yet to be made, I think is that digging up verges, let alone roads and laying cable over several hundred yards is time consuming and expensive for Openreach or any other provider.

Think how much more money they can make in half the time "installing" a dozen suburban or urban phone lines where they probably have only to reconnect an existing twisted pair to an existing pole/DP. That is why rural and/or more involved installations go to the back of the queue; simple economics and availability of engineers.

moneyistooshorttomention

One thing I'm wondering about (bearing in mind Phoebe's experience) is that I had one heck of a time with OpenReach in the first place trying to get my phoneline changed to being more "normal" level of service from them.

In the course of this - I found out that OpenReach are supposed to have a certain proportion of "available/spare" lines available so to say for new customers needing a phoneline. I think that proportion was around 20%???? I was told by an engineer that there were no spare lines waiting for new customers in this area - despite it being a requirement. I landed up with a lot of "pillar to post" stuff going on at that moment in order to make it plain to them that "It's not my fault you lot havent got the spare lines you need. Get them! and if meanwhile that means you keep shoving customers around as one customer complains, then another one that was okay complains and so on and so on - then remember I'm on the Will Shout Loudest/Am Used to Normal Service List and don't try and have me on this merry-go-round of yours to suit another customer".

The point being the local guys on the ground did give me a very convincing impression of "wanting to be seen to Do Something - whilst not actually really putting any effort much into it - as they'd only get someone else kicking up instead".

That may be what is happening to OP - if they're in a more rural area.....and hence they don't seem to "know their job" properly.

I suspect a bit of Davesnave's previous problems (and him having to find someone "higher up the food chain") may also be down to him being in a more rural area.

parkrunner

vet8 wrote: »

. I have no idea what the neighbour's objection is to this. The odd thing he has always seemed friendly enough over the years, but he originally replied to BT saying that " he was unable to sign the form" now he will, but not at the moment.

As others have already said..........ask him, why on earth haven't you?

Smodlet

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

I found out that OpenReach are supposed to have a certain proportion of "available/spare" lines available so to say for new customers needing a phoneline. I think that proportion was around 20%???? I was told by an engineer that there were no spare lines waiting for new customers in this area - despite it being a requirement

I cannot believe I seem to be "defending" Openreach; this is not my intention at all but
on what level does it make sense to keep 20% of your infrastructure available and therefore providing no revenue, especially in very rural areas where the uptake of new lines is probably going to be virtually zero?

In an expanding town where new lines are requested every day, of course it makes sense to make them available. Installing a new DP with x new pairs, when you know you will have sold them all to new subscribers within six months is always going to take priority over installing one because one person, who may well be used to better, demands a phone line in Darkest Wales (or wherever)

Add to that the fact that copper degrades over time: What looks like several free pairs on a computer screen may turn out to be none in real life if the copper has deteriorated or otherwise fallen to bits. Again, in a less rural setting this would probably be picked up far more quickly than in the Last Chance DP, Back of Beyondsville.

Those privileged to live in such beautiful settings need to realise there are downsides to everything. Lack of infrastructure and distance from facilities are perhaps two of the most obvious.

Davesnave

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

I suspect a bit of Davesnave's previous problems (and him having to find someone "higher up the food chain") may also be down to him being in a more rural area.

I suspect it was the fact that, according to their records, I didn't have a pole, so I must be a nutter.


There again, when they later sent me a plan of where the new pole would be, their highly trained surveyor had somehow located it on someone else's land, about 30m from where we'd agreed.....

vet8

parkrunner wrote: »

As others have already said..........ask him, why on earth haven't you?

The entire situation has got very weird, it has been a huge lash-up.

We originally applied for a line in February, BT sent an engineer to fit the phone even though we had told them we were a long way from the nearest pole. He left, then an Open Reach guy came and spoke to me about getting signed permission to dig up the road, he said he had several options and he would deal with it and we should leave it to him.

More than 2 months past and we heard nothing, then I got several odd text and voice mails from BT saying we had to speak to our neighbour "as we knew". Well we did not know because I did not know which neighbour they were talking about. The Open Reach guy said he would speak to the self appointed road menders and ask them, he mentioned the neighbour the other side and this guy's verge, so I genuinely had no idea who we were supposed to speak to. I spent over a month phoning BT to be told every time, "You must ask for your neighbour's consent".
"Which neighbour?"
"We don't know. Call back tomorrow and we will tell you."

I would call the next day and go through this sort of ground hog day scenario repeatedly. Eventually after speaking to all sorts of pleasant, but very unhelpful call centre staff I was given a case manager who finally told me last week which neighbour it was. In the meantime they had sent another phone engineer on a time wasting trip to connect the phone to the non-existent line.
Finally, a few days ago the Open Reach guy came around and I got some sense. I had asked repeatedly to be able to talk to him as he seemed the only one who knew what was going on, but I was told Open Reach are not customer facing and you cannot call them.

Anyway now that I know what the problem is I am trying to get as much info. as possible before I move on. The Open Reach guy spoke to the neighbour when he came round and explained the entire thing to him. In the past few months I have exchanged the time of day with the neighbour several times and he has always been pleasant, but neither of us has mentioned the phone, I did not even know at that time that he was the cause of the problem.

I suspect it is not actually him, but his wife, when I passed her the other day I smiled and went to speak and she cut me dead totally.

I will speak to him but I am trying to understand all the options before I speak, but basically if he has said no there is not a lot I can do, I am not going to beg him. As I have said on here several times the laying of the cable in the verge will cause him no bother AT ALL so I cannot understand why any reasonable person would refuse, if the roles had been reversed I would have said yes immediately.

vet8

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Adding to that thought being that you've said there is "no mobile signal at all where we live" - and I'm wondering if some mobile phone networks would be "stronger" and would pick up a signal - even if the one you personally use doesnt do so. He might have a "stronger" mobile phone operator than you do - so his works, even though yours doesnt iyswim - and he's therefore just assuming yours works too. Though I still think he is being unreasonable not to accept you having a landline and, of course, there's the point as to how you are getting your Internet access without a landline?? - followed by any buyer of your house will take it for granted they will have a landline/Internet access that way. I know I did when I bought current house and have been fighting and fighting since I came here to get "the norm - which I'm used to".

I know I'm in a town now where that seems to be the case (ie differences between mobile phone operators) - ie some people can/some can't - according to which operator we have.

We live in a village which is notorious for having no phone signal. My OH and I are on two different networks, mine is worse than the other, but both are pretty useless, you might get a signal 10% of the time but if you make a call you usually lose the signal half way through. Everyone around here moans about the lack of signal.

moneyistooshorttomention

As OpenReach/BT have clearly proved they couldnt organise the proverbial "p*ss up in a brewery" - then who knows what they've said to this couple and they may well have given the couple the totally wrong end of the stick and told them you've said all sorts you havent said at all.

Which does rather bring us back round to it sounds like an idea to at least try talking to the neighbours (hopefully him - rather than her) and, either way, say what a mess-up OpenReach/BT have been creating and "Who knows just how wrong they might have got things - regarding anything they've said to you. So I wondered if we could straighten this out between ourselves - as they've probably/possibly given you a totally wrong impression as to what I've said."

At least try that as Tactic 1. Then, if it doesnt work, try and find someone with some sense higher up in the organisation and maybe Davesnave has some hints about just how to find that person.

Davesnave

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

maybe Davesnave has some hints about just how to find that person.

I managed to get the mobile number of the surveyor guy, who promised he'd try to get his boss to 'progress the matter quickly.'


That was in mid May. By badgering the surveyor, the work was done on September 24th!

moneyistooshorttomention

Of course - there are more ways than one to get things done.

Picturing you and wife standing in a photo doing "sad faces" and expressing concern about how to make a phonecall if very necessary (eg emergency illness type stuff) because of BT/Open Reach's inefficiency. The newspaper article accompanying sad face photo giving details of the timeline of what they've put you through so far.

Don't suppose either of you has any illness that might need attention quick sharp with a phonecall to an ambulance? - ie a phonecall you wouldn't be able to make because of them? Or elderly/ill parent regularly visiting and ditto?

There will be occasions where (indirectly speaking) BT/OpenReach have indirectly injured/killed someone because another person near them tried to make a phonecall for an ambulance - and couldnt because there was no phoneline there (and no mobile reception either). It must happen sometimes...and compensation claims happen sometimes too...:cool:. Surely BT/Openreach wouldnt want someone's illness/death and the following compensation claim and/or publicity heading in their direction?