Broadband provider withdraws providing service after my complaint - Consumer & Legal Rights

powerful_Rogue

buildingbee said:

I don't believe I have been nasty. The reason I said I believe your post was nonsensical was because you originally said the installer 'seemed to be drunk', then later on you said he was drunk. How do you know the installer didn't have a disability which may have made you think this? 

Because you could smell it from his breath.

So he could have been diabetic, have liver disease or suffer from ABS.

MattMattMattUK

buildingbee said:

@ MattMattMattUK - Thanks for explaining that to me.  The whole point I posted on this forum was to help me understand and I appreciate your advice.  Would this mean that another customer such as a family member would not be able to get the service in the near future?

Another person should have no issues getting broadband from the same supplier, it is you that they have decided they do not want as a customer, there may be a situation where they might not accept a contract from that address for a year if they have flagged it as a problem address, but that is unlikely. As others have said if they are really as bad as you claim they are do you want to give them your custom?

Have you looked at other broadband suppliers? 
https://www.openreach.com/broadband-for-homes

If they do not want to do business with you that is their choice, as it is your choice not to deal with them. 

MattMattMattUK

powerful_Rogue said:

buildingbee said:

I don't believe I have been nasty. The reason I said I believe your post was nonsensical was because you originally said the installer 'seemed to be drunk', then later on you said he was drunk. How do you know the installer didn't have a disability which may have made you think this? 

Because you could smell it from his breath.

So he could have been diabetic, have liver disease or suffer from ABS.

Or be in ketosis from a low carb diet, fasting day etc. 

LightFlare

buildingbee said:

Aylesbury_Duck said:

buildingbee said:

Aylesbury_Duck said:

Are there other options to get fast connectivity?  Do you really need really fast speeds?  I have 264Mbps but I don't need anything that fast - Virgin just kept on increasing the speed - and even with a couple of devices streaming, 30Mbps has been fine before.

I can't imagine tying myself into a contract with a supplier who I perceive to have treated me badly.  Would you trust them to sort things out when they go wrong?

You have a very valid point, but a number of family members work from home including myself so fast broadband has now become a necessity.  I totally appreciate what you've said about the fact why bother joining a provider after the perceived mistreatment, but in my opinion if everyone did that then many companies would just walk all over the customers, getting rid of those they felt were problematic, knowing that customers would just move on, so for me it's also a matter of standing your ground and sticking with your principles.  I don't know....maybe I'm getting too old 😆

You're determined to enter into a contractual agreement with a company you believe to have sent a drunk and abusive employee to your house and which you believe has discriminated against you.  That strikes me as a very unusual way to stick to your principles and stand your ground.

Contrary to what you suggest, if everyone walked away then there wouldn't be customers to walk over.

I'm afraid that if you're determined that this business take you on as a customer, you're going to have to change your approach.  Threatening them into supplying to you is not the way to do it.

I guess when you put it like that, then yes, your right and maybe I'm going about it the wrong way.   I think hearing all the advice from users on this forum, I'm going to let this go and call it quits. 

However I am worried that unless new broadband providers are available that if in the near future my family wanted to join this company they would block anyone who lives at that address.  If this happens then will my family be able to challenge them or again will they have no leg to stand on?

powerful_Rogue said:

buildingbee said:

powerful_Rogue said:

buildingbee said:

Thank you for all your replies and advice which is much appreciated. 

@eskbanker

• By “challenging it”, I meant that even though they quoted the right section, all they really said was that some internal team reviewed it. They still haven’t explained why the provider decided to use this clause in my case. From what I understand, the T&Cs give a company the right to act, but that doesn’t mean they get a free pass to skip explaining themselves — especially when their actions come across as retaliatory.  Surely if this was the case, then a company could hypothetically cancel orders if they didn't want them from customers of a certain race, creed or colour?
• I agree that there are two sides to a story, but if they had said that the reason they have cancelled my order was because my complaint was found to be possibly malicious, then that's totally understable, hence they could use their clause to not provide me with services, but they've not said anything other than it's an internal decision only after I closed my complaint and after I was given a new installation date.
• I have already requested a SAR, so waiting for a reply.

@Markdavid1962

• I could forward everything I've sent to complaints, but I don't have the CEO's direct email address.

@MattMattMattUK

• You might be right.  I'm just concerned that they have blacklisted my address, hence in the near future if someone else from my family wants to get broadband service they won't be able to do it and it would be banned.

@Ayr_Rage

• Yes I agree.  I've learnt that the hard way.  Although as I said to Matt, I'm concerned that they have banned my address and it would mean if anyone wants to get the broadband, they will be banned.

@Aylesbury_Duck

• That's a great question - Since I was advised that the matter would be dealt with internally, I just want them honour the installation and the matter would then be closed.  I appreciate it sounds desperate, but in my location where it's difficult to get fast broadband this was something I could really do with.  If that is not currently possible because of what has happened, then at least they need to confirm that they haven't blacklisted my address, hence that my family members can apply as new customers in the near future.

Houses don't get 'blacklisted' - People do.

From reading your original post, it all seems quite nonsensical and i'm not surprised they no longer want your custom.

What's your reason for being so nasty?  So you would be happy to have a drunk installer arrive at your property, be rude and aggressive and you'll just sit back and say it's nonsensical? 

I don't believe I have been nasty. The reason I said I believe your post was nonsensical was because you originally said the installer 'seemed to be drunk', then later on you said he was drunk. How do you know the installer didn't have a disability which may have made you think this? 

Because you could smell it from his breath.

How could they know who lives at you address - its more likely they will just "blacklist" you

You've phrased it very oddly

Jumblebumble

buildingbee said:

Hi everyone.

Apologies for the long message.  I am looking for some urgent advice regarding unfair treatment from a broadband provider.  I'm afraid I cannot reveal the company name as yet because I'm still hoping that we can come to some form of mutual resolution.  Otherwise I'm even thinking of possible legal action against the company (although unsure of my rights).

So I'm currently with a different broadband provider and I recently signed up for a new broadband provider.  The new provider gave an installation & switch date. However shockingly on the installation date, the installer that turned up seemed to be drunk.  At first I assumed that it's maybe me being melodramatic as I am not a drinker, hence I thought I may have been mistaken, so I let him continue.  I also told him that I had a disability and couldn't hear clearly and needed him to take a little more time to explain to me how he was going to proceed.  However he subsequently started to become rude, not willing to listen to anything and when I told him to be careful whilst working and take his time to avoid damaging the wall and my personal equipment underneath it, he became aggressive. My wife and young child got really scared to the point that I had to insist he stop the job and leave.

I subsequently made an email & phone complaint on the same day and after submitting my complaint, I spoke with a number of people from the company to resolve the issue.  They even sent around a senior install team manager who attended our house on that same day to reassure and discuss with me who they would send in his place.  I was happy that the senior manager seemed to be listening to me.  However since I had raised a formal complaint on the phone, I was told by the installer that the installation could not go ahead immediately as I still had to get the company to resolve the issue and arrange a new install date.  

So after a number of discussions on the phone, I eventually spoke to a representative who told me that the only way they would proceed with a new installation date was if I agreed that my complaint was “resolved.”  In return they would offer me a small incentive/discount on the package.

This felt a bit like I was being pressured into closing a legitimate complaint just to receive a service I had already signed up for. I reluctantly agreed just so the installation could move forward. I was also assured the matter would be dealt with internally and that things would move forward.  A new installation date was arranged and screenshots of the install date logs were also emailed to me as proof.

I was relieved that I could move forward with the matter without any further stress.  However to my disbelieve, the opposite happened:

A day later, I received an email from a Complaints Manager that the installation was suddenly cancelled again, without any explanation. No clear valid reason was given — only that they found the installer's conduct was fine and that given the circumstances and after a discussion with the internal team, they decided not to proceed with the installation.  

Since that email there have been further email discussions between myself and the Complaints Manager.  I clearly raised that there either must be mistake as I thought the issue had been resolved and that this was now an internal matter or if that was not the case then I believed this was retaliation and that as a disabled customer this would negatively affect me.

I received another reply, advising it was based on a clause XX in section XX in their Terms and Conditions which states that they reserve the right to cancel an order received without reason and since the installation did not take place and no service was activated, this clause applied to my order.  He also stated that the decision to not go ahead with my order was not related to my complaint, my disability status, or the fact that concerns were raised.

I have since then emailed back challenging the T&C clause used and that I still felt it appeared retaliatory.  I have asked them to reconsider their unfair decision as otherwise this would leave me no choice but to take further action against the company and that this included legal action too.  They were given 7 working days to respond, but have not responded as yet.

It feels as though the cancellation happened purely because I had made a complaint in the first place. The complete lack of communication, transparency, and consideration — especially after I had already been pressured/deceived into closing a complaint — has been extremely distressing.

To summarise:

1. The installer turned up drunk
2. I raised a formal complaint via email and on the phone about the installer.
3. I was told installation would only go ahead if I said the complaint was resolved and was offered an incentive to do this.
4. I agreed just to get an install date and get connected.
5. I was reassured the matter would be handled internally.
6. A new installation date was given and screenshots of the booked date were emailed to me.
7. A day later, the installation was cancelled again with no proper explanation other than it was an internal decision.
8. I challenged the internal decision and said that as a disabled customer this would negatively affect me.
9. The complaints manager replied with another email advising the cancellation was based on their T&C and not a retaliation.
10. I have emailed back challenging their T&C and warning them of legal action - I'm still waiting for their response.

At this point, I’m not just frustrated—I’m genuinely concerned about how acceptable it is for a company to treat a customer like this, pressure them into closing complaints, and then cancel service anyway.

I am now actively looking for legal advice about whether I can take further action against this company for the way this situation has been handled, particularly around:

• Unfair treatment after making a legitimate complaint
• Possible breach of consumer rights
• Potential discrimination
• Failure to make reasonable adjustments

If anyone has experience with cases like this, or knows the best way to escalate matters through consumer protection channels, legal routes, or regulatory bodies, I’d appreciate any guidance.

Thank you in advance

Looking4advice

To be fair to the company 
Any sensible company who is threatened with legal action will immediately stop engaging with the threatener and wait  for any legal action to start so I suspect that if you are waiting for a response you will be disappointed
They will probably have to work with the installer going forward.
They will probably have experience of the quality of the installers work and level of customer satisfaction and will make a call as to who is at fault 
They probably don't fancy paying to send someone else and risking that the new instraller may also be sent away mid job
They are aware that there may be 3 versions of the story  Yours The installers and the truth
I am never very pleased as a professional in my field if someone takes it upon themselves to TELL  ( your words)  me to be careful while working and quite often have to advise customers who "know" my job  better than I do that I have 25 years experience and therefore I might actually know what I am doing which they no doubt think is rude.

buildingbee

UPDATE:-

You may be wondering why I went quite over the last few days after posting the original message.

It's because the company did finally get in touch.  They have since apologised unreservedly about the original installer's behaviour and said that the matter will be dealt with internally and installed my broadband yesterday.  The installers that attended were very polite and professional and I couldn't ask for more.