Virgin Have installed cable i didnt order TWICE advice sought

trevjl

Sorry for the waffle- and this is the short version !!, VM installed a cable drilling a hole in my garden wall and digging a trench in my lawn. It was a fraudulent order I did not make, but they did no checks whatsoever and carried out the work when nobody was home, even though the tried to contact number - which was not active. After much pain trying to get them to come and sort it out, together with them calling me a liar, they eventually removed the cable but did not repair any damage. After 3 weeks of contact through facebook (only way i could get any answer was doing it in public) they said their damage team would contact me, 3 weeks gone by and nothing. The today i come back from holiday and went to check if the damage had been repaired and to my astonishment they have gone and reinstalled the cable again, causing more damage. You couldn't make it up. As far as I am concerned they have trespassed and caused criminal damage.

Could anybody tell me how to go about getting this sorted. I cant get through on the phone as they wont talk to me as I am not a customer !!!!!

DoaM

Get 3 quotes for getting the damage repaired.

Send Virgin a LBA (Google it) stating your demands. (e.g. to remove any and all of their equipment from your land, to repair the damage to your satisfaction). Give them 7 days to respond to your LBA and 28 days to complete the required works, else you'll raise a claim in the County Court to recover the costs in getting the rectification works caused by their trespass on, and criminal damage to, your land implemented by local companies (mention the amount of this part of the claim based on the quotes), and the claim will include the costs in bringing the claim plus reasonable expenses.

If they decline to do so (or don't respond to your LBA) then raise a claim with MCOL (Google it).

[Deleted User]

trevjl wrote: »

i come back from holiday and went to check if the damage had been repaired and to my astonishment they have gone and reinstalled the cable again, causing more damage. You couldn't make it up. As far as I am concerned they have trespassed and caused criminal damage.

Could anybody tell me how to go about getting this sorted. I cant get through on the phone as they wont talk to me as I am not a customer !!!!!

Leaving aside the "fraudulent" order you didn't make, it's obvious there has been a distinct failure in communication between Virgin and their installation team. They have hardly caused "criminal damage", but they do need to make good their incompetence.

If they won't take calls from you on the 'phone, you'll obviously have to go back to them on Facebook (personal messaging will keep it private) detailing exactly what went wrong and exactly what you require them to repair. I can't see installing a length of cable will have caused any more damage than if you actually had a bonafide installation, so what is the extent of the "damage" other than drilling through the garden wall and a digging narrow channel (not "trench" surely?) through your lawn ?

If they are not billing you then obviously this is just some wires under your lawn which are not connected, can you not live with that? If not and they do not quickly respond to a Facebook complaint, do as the earlier poster says and send them a Letter Before Action.

trevjl

Thanks for your replies but Er, short answer is no I cant and TBH why should I. According to them it was ordered with a direct debit that is a company account with the co op bank. My main gripe is their attitude. They kept telling me I had ordered it and basically called me a liar on the phone. They had done checks and phone the contact number twice and spoken to me. It was not my number and the number is not activated so they are lying.
Basically in their world, I could pick any address in the country, take any bank details (freely available these days with everyone giving them out for bank transfers) make up a phone number and hey presto someone gets a cable they didn't order.
Surely that can't be right.
If you have ever had the misfortune to try to speak to their CS, you will understand why I feel like this.

DoaM

Based on your updated info, it sounds to me like an address mix-up has happened ... the real customer may be wondering why it's taking so long to get their VM cable installed.

Just to add to my earlier post (I've edited it) ... what they've done is trespass on your land, so include that in your claim.

trevjl

Definitely not a mix up in address as they sent a letter to my address - not my name after giving a connection date.
i could have accepted that if they had admitted it and said sorry.


have sent letter as you suggested.

DoaM

Yes, possibly a mix up ... the fact it went NOT to your name suggests it. The mix up being that they've mis-recorded the actual customer's address as yours. (E.g. you live at XYZ Street, the real customer lives at XYZ Close)

[Deleted User]

trevjl wrote: »

Definitely not a mix up in address as they sent a letter to my address - not my name after giving a connection date.
i could have accepted that if they had admitted it and said sorry.

If the address is yours but the order is not you then it could be the actual customer who has provided the wrong address (or postcode). The fact that it's company account suggests it might be a shop or pub that should be getting an installation. I fully expect they'll be as frustrated as you are by Virgin failing to install, but obviously don't realise the address mix-up. I can't explain why the other customer's phone number is "unobtainable", but therein lies the reason why Virgin are as confused as you are..

Edited to add:
Could the reason Virgin have "re-installed" at your premises be due to the original customer demanding an installation at "his" (mistaken) address?

trevjl

After 6 days, I am still waiting their response. We shall see


As regards the "mix up" - I have not really made it very clear previously. There is no mix up, there is a fraud, which they did not find because they did no checks.
The name used on the the supposed order is my stepson and he left home 8 years ago, lives locally and has Sky TV !! and yes I get on very very well with him.

photome

trevjl wrote: »

After 6 days, I am still waiting their response. We shall see


As regards the "mix up" - I have not really made it very clear previously. There is no mix up, there is a fraud, which they did not find because they did no checks.
The name used on the the supposed order is my stepson and he left home 8 years ago, lives locally and has Sky TV !! and yes I get on very very well with him.

Maybe he is winding you up

vuvuzela

photome wrote: »

Maybe he is winding you up

Or someone else is trying to wind up the step-son and has the wrong address for him.