Post Office HomePhone - STAGGERINGLY Bad Service...

hazelbunny

I am tearing my hair out trying to find out what has happened to my phone.
I changed to the post office in November and everythings been fine. Until today, I recieved a Bill from BT with a new account number. I called Bt to ask what this was about and they said they had sent it in Error and would cancel the account. I then called post office to check my post office account was ok, they said all was fine it was still a live account. A couple of hours later my phone stops working . I have a dialing tone but can't ring out and when people try to ring me it says number unobtainable. Called PO back they look into and sat BT have seized my linebut they will sought it because I am still PO customer. Noone called me back and phone still not working. The strange bit is my broadband is still up and running, how if my phone lines been disconnected.
Also when I call the 170701 number it tells me a phone number that i have never had. Why is that ?

Heinz

Just out of interest, why did you switch your line rental to the Post Office?

hazelbunny

Truthfully ? The man at the post office counter caught me on a day when my mind was elsewhere and I just went along with it.
However after being past from pillar to post by bt and po today I think that both have shocking customer services.

Heinz

hazelbunny wrote: »

Truthfully ? The man at the post office counter caught me on a day when my mind was elsewhere and I just went along with it.
However after being past from pillar to post by bt and po today I think that both have shocking customer services.

As everyone on here knows, I'm not a fan of moving line rental from BT but, for those for whom it works (e.g. some Talk Talk customers) there is no doubt it's a money-saver.

IIRC, you're not getting anything like the packager Talk Talk offer - just your line rental for £9.95/month (if you pay by DD) - just a saving of 55p/month on BT - and you're getting free evening and weekend UK 01/02 calls of up to 60 minutes for no additional fee.

It's interesting because, on the face of it, what you describe sounds like BT is trying to 'slam' your line but, as they run things on behalf of the Post Office too, that seems unlikely.

hazelbunny

Any ideas how my broadband is still working with no phone line?

Browntoa

2 different connections at the exchange

1 does speech , the other broadband

SillyBilly_3

I am a counter clerk for Post Office Counters who HAS to sell this product and others like it. I have to say that I am embarrassed by the poor customer service that people receive from the call centres. A senior manager has already admitted that they have delivered a poor service because the staff had not been trained adequately, but that they have employed more people and are putting more effort into training.

hazelbunny

Have spoken to post office again today. Bt refused to speak to them(even though they provide the bt line) so there was nothing the post office could do to get my line back up and running. I have had to sign back up to Bt in order to get my line reinstated. They say it should be up and running within 48 hours. So I will stay with BT (they win) in order to save future problems.

Lips

@SillyBilly - you have my sympathy; as the saying goes - it's difficult to soar like an eagle when you're surrounded by turkeys :rolleyes:

The Advisor at Post Office HomePhone was similarly sheepish when she had to admit to me that she knew nobody from her management team would call me back. I was beginning to wonder if perhaps Branson had infiltrated the PO's personnel system and was offering cash incentives to staff to get them to deliberately bodge things up and send clients scurrying off to Virgin...

Still, only a few more months to go...

- Lips

vicardave

I'm not surprised to see all the negative comments here about the Post Office Homephone and Broadband, it has taken me three years to sort out the mess they created.

I wont go into a long story, but the crux was that they had messed up everything and especially the direct debit time and time again, the discounts were not applied (friends & family and for paying by direct debit), so ultimately I owed them money but they never took the payments and never sent a bill for 6 months, which when it arrived was completely wrong.

I exhausted their complaints procedure because they took an hour to answer the phone, didn't reply to recorded delivery letters etc etc, and eventually got OTELO on the case, the ombudsman.

OTELO demanded a response to my allegations from the Post Office within 28 days. They never responded. How bad is that?! They were given a further chance by the Ombudsman to reply, and they still ignored The Ombudsman. The Ombudsman ruled as follows:

YOUR COMPLAINT ABOUT POST OFFICE LTD T/A HOMEPHONE
Thank you for accepting the Provisional Conclusion in full and final settlement of your complaint against Post Office Ltd t/a HomePhone.
Post Office Ltd t/a HomePhone has not provided us with a response to the Provisional Conclusion within the stipulated time period of 28 days and an additional reminder period of seven days which means that the Provisional Conclusion will become the Ombudsman's Final Decision.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Ombudsman's Final Decision requires Post Office Ltd t/a HomePhone to:
• send you a written apology for the inconvenience you have experienced due to this complaint and the customer service shortfall identified by the review;
• make a payment of £50 to you as a gesture of goodwill;
• maintain its offer to refund three months broadband rental to you;
• refund any discount you lost through the late provision of the plan between October 2007 and January 2008; and
• provide you with a full written breakdown of the account clearly showing all of the payments received and the bills that it has raised.
Post Office Ltd t/a HomePhone must provide the award to you within 28 days from the date of this letter.
Yours sincerely
******* *************
Investigation Officer

Where did the Post Office go from here? Well this was back in July 2008 when Otelo sent me the above letter. In November 2009 I received a letter from Roxburghe Debt Collectors demanding £274 outstanding debt to Post Office Homephone! Straight back on to Otelo as still no correct and accurate bill, they had still failed to implement the Ombudsman's decision from over a year ago despite the requirement it should be completed within 28 days. In February 2010 I received a bill from Post Office for £0.00. No apology, no explanation. I phoned the debt collector who advised the debt had been sent back to Post Office Homephone and was not being pursued. Has this finally been laid to rest?

Save yourself the stress people, take heed and avoid Post Office Homephone and Broadband - if they ignore the regulator, what makes you feel special?