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Oh Lord Give Me Strength! - Sky + Problem!

SallyUK
Posts: 2,346 Forumite

in Techie Stuff
Just before Xmas, on 9th Dec actually, I finally relented and had Sky + installed without any hiccups or hitches. All working fine, great.
I've been a Sky customer for years now and there always seems to be problems with them.
For example the last time was when I first moved into the house I'm in now, about three years ago, I arranged for Sky to be installed. All went well in the beginning, however, not long afterwards I started getting violation letters saying I hadn't got my phone line connected, when it was!
Eventually they sent out an engineer and this was a disaster! He hadn't a clue what he was doing and could never get a successful callback. He decided that the installation hadn't been done properly and started pulling up wires and my newly fitted lounge carpet!!! Then he wanted to start drilling more holes through the window etc and taking my phone line, broadband connection apart!!!
I'd had enough by now and told him that I didn't want him touching anything else in the house. He took the huff with this and left the house in complete disarray and looking wrecked. Not only that but I was left with no landline and no broadband connection, which had been working fine before he arrived!! Of course, I rang them up numerous times (as you normally do when you have to ring Sky), wrote to them, emailed them and months later eventually had compensation for the damage he'd done - not into bank account of course, but had Sky account credited!
So a week past Wednesday, I got home to find I had no sound. I turned the volume up to 100 and could only hear a faint whisper but it was commentary for a different channel from the one I had turned on! I rang up and the girl I spoke to asked me to unscrew the input cables and screw them in again. This didn't work and I ended up doing it about 7 or 8 times! She decided there was a fault and arranged for engineer to call last Saturday. He rang up and said "you're down for a replacement box, why can't I fix the one you have?" - I replied I didn't know!
So he arrives on Sat morning, has a fiddle with the Sky + box, only installed back in Dec and then couldn't get a callback. He was getting frustrated with this and then wanted to start messing with my phone line! I started to explain what happened last time someone messed with my phone lines and he said "Right then, I won't be finishing this job then, I'm cancelling it right now!" and he walked out!
Of course I was straight on the phone and after having been passed from pillar to post eventually got to speak to someone in Techinical department. She said that she would try and do the call back on Tuesday as she wasn't at work until then and if she didn't manage it, she'd arrange for another engineer to call!!
So yesterday when I got home there was a message on my answer machine which said he would be coming tomorrow morning.
I sincerely hope it's not the same one as last time!
But my question is this. How could a Sky + box be working fine when I left for work in the morning and not be working when I arrived home that same night? And how come when the engineer first installed the Sky + box he was able to do a callback fine, but this latest engineer couldn't? My phone line is showing as connected, so why do they have to mess with my telephone line etc? I don't want to have to go through the same thing again. Sky always blame BT and this is rubbish as I've not had any problem with my phone or broadband connections ever, it's only when Sky men are in my house!! lol
Why couldn't he just have replaced the box as the fault report said?
What do I do if he messes up again tomorrow? I don't relish the thought of another few months of arguing and having my blood pressure going through the roof!
If only, I'd cancelled the subscription like I had planned to do before!!!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sal
I've been a Sky customer for years now and there always seems to be problems with them.
For example the last time was when I first moved into the house I'm in now, about three years ago, I arranged for Sky to be installed. All went well in the beginning, however, not long afterwards I started getting violation letters saying I hadn't got my phone line connected, when it was!
Eventually they sent out an engineer and this was a disaster! He hadn't a clue what he was doing and could never get a successful callback. He decided that the installation hadn't been done properly and started pulling up wires and my newly fitted lounge carpet!!! Then he wanted to start drilling more holes through the window etc and taking my phone line, broadband connection apart!!!
I'd had enough by now and told him that I didn't want him touching anything else in the house. He took the huff with this and left the house in complete disarray and looking wrecked. Not only that but I was left with no landline and no broadband connection, which had been working fine before he arrived!! Of course, I rang them up numerous times (as you normally do when you have to ring Sky), wrote to them, emailed them and months later eventually had compensation for the damage he'd done - not into bank account of course, but had Sky account credited!
So a week past Wednesday, I got home to find I had no sound. I turned the volume up to 100 and could only hear a faint whisper but it was commentary for a different channel from the one I had turned on! I rang up and the girl I spoke to asked me to unscrew the input cables and screw them in again. This didn't work and I ended up doing it about 7 or 8 times! She decided there was a fault and arranged for engineer to call last Saturday. He rang up and said "you're down for a replacement box, why can't I fix the one you have?" - I replied I didn't know!
So he arrives on Sat morning, has a fiddle with the Sky + box, only installed back in Dec and then couldn't get a callback. He was getting frustrated with this and then wanted to start messing with my phone line! I started to explain what happened last time someone messed with my phone lines and he said "Right then, I won't be finishing this job then, I'm cancelling it right now!" and he walked out!
Of course I was straight on the phone and after having been passed from pillar to post eventually got to speak to someone in Techinical department. She said that she would try and do the call back on Tuesday as she wasn't at work until then and if she didn't manage it, she'd arrange for another engineer to call!!
So yesterday when I got home there was a message on my answer machine which said he would be coming tomorrow morning.
I sincerely hope it's not the same one as last time!
But my question is this. How could a Sky + box be working fine when I left for work in the morning and not be working when I arrived home that same night? And how come when the engineer first installed the Sky + box he was able to do a callback fine, but this latest engineer couldn't? My phone line is showing as connected, so why do they have to mess with my telephone line etc? I don't want to have to go through the same thing again. Sky always blame BT and this is rubbish as I've not had any problem with my phone or broadband connections ever, it's only when Sky men are in my house!! lol
Why couldn't he just have replaced the box as the fault report said?
What do I do if he messes up again tomorrow? I don't relish the thought of another few months of arguing and having my blood pressure going through the roof!
If only, I'd cancelled the subscription like I had planned to do before!!!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sal
0
Comments
-
Why couldn't he just have replaced the box as the fault report said?
Because you didn't insist. You must learn to be assertive.
"What does it say on your job sheet? Well please do it!"
Bear in mind that Sky don't employ "engineers" (someone with a degree in engineering). They employ installers who have had a minimum of technical training. Most of that is (believe it or not) how to deal with customers, how to assemble a dish and how to use a ladder safely.0 -
Thanks for the reply.
So have I a right to, or can I ask to see the job sheet when he calls tomorrow?
Sal
x0 -
Certainly. It's your house and your Sky system that YOU are paying for. You could also ask for proof of identity. It's a crafty way of finding out his name which you can use for two purposes:
1. To ask him nicely if he'd like a cuppa and a biscuit.
2. To report him if he screws up.0 -
Ah, I already had his name as he said what it was when he rang me the day before to tell me what time he'd be there.
Thanks for your help
Sal
x0 -
hI,
ASK THE SKY MAN TO CHECK THE BOX ON SAT DISH, AS I HAD SIMILAR PROBLEM, ONE MIN I HAD CHANNELS THE NEXT I DIDNT, AFTER SKYMAN CHECKING PHONELINE HE THEN CHANGED BOX ON DISH AND SAT WAS ABLE TO THEN LOCK ONTO SIGNAL.0 -
All is not well!
He rings at 07.10am - same one with the attitude!!! Again he asks my partner what the problem is and he tells him that we had a call to say that the callback was still failing and that Sky had arranged for him to attend and change the box! He said "ok, but I need to check the wiring first!" - my partner started to explain about the time before when they tampered with the wiring and so this engineer says: "Ok, I'm not coming!"
A few hours later he turns up at the door and I opened it. He says:"Hello flower, it's Richard from Sky" I say: "Yes?" He says: "you asked me to come today and look at your Sky box!" - I say: "yes, but you told my partner a few hours ago that you weren't coming!" - He started to say that he didn't say that and once again I told him he was talking rubbish! I started to explain yet again about the problem we had before and he turns and walks away again!
A little later, I received a phone call from someone at Sky asking me if I wanted to arrange another date for the engineer to call! I told her if she thought it was necessary, then yes go ahead but I didn't want the same one, to which she replied, it probably would be!! I insisted it wasn't the same person and she tried to tell me I might be charged for it this time!!!!
So she said ok I'll book you in for Monday. I said I couldn't manage through the week as I was working every day. So she asked me if I could manage Friday!! I again said I couldn't manage through the week and she then said she didn't have any weekends available for a while and her dates only went up till February! Then told me that if I wanted a weekend, I'd have to ring back at some other time and re-arrange it myself!!!
Grrrrrrr, I wish I'd never agreed to having Sky + installed and had gone ahead with the cancellation when I first contacted them to cancel!!!!
Oh and as it happens, this last person that I spoke to on the phone said they'd had a callback from both my boxes last Saturday!!!
The prat of an engineer asked my partner this morning to try it again and it was showing failed!
I can't tell you how stressed I am with them now, but I'm determined I am NOT phoning them, as I don't see why I have to subject myself to listening to their lies and their excuses plus of course incurring a massive phone bill!
Sal
xxx0 -
Ok, I don't know anything about Sky...
So the first guy left a mess and didn't fix anything.
So far you've said no to everything the 2nd guy has suggested trying, right?
His reaction has been pretty unprofessional, but you've kind of tied his hands by not letting him do anything.
If you don't have many local Sky engineers, aren't you digging yourself a hole?My TV is broken!
Edit: refunded £515 for TV 1.5 years out of warranty - thank you Sale of Goods Act! :j0 -
No, I've not said no to what he suggested trying. He was asked by the techinical people to attend and replace the box, simple as that, but instead of doing that he insisted on tampering about with the phone line, which wasn't in question and hasn't been causing any problems. I was merely trying to explain why I didn't want the phone line tampered with, but he wasn't prepared to listen. I certainly don't want to be left again with a non working landline or broadband connection again, only for them to turn round and say it must be BT's fault.
Sally0
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