BT - Please Help - Worst Customer Services Ever (Very Depressed)

matt8188

Hello,

I need to vent my frustrations about BT and hope that someone might be able to help me. I am sorry for the long post.

I have recently moved house to a new build apartment. Was under contract at Virgin Media who do not have cables laid at my new property. As I'm under contract Virgin offered to waive my disconnection fee at previous address if I set up Virgin "Beyond Cable" at £14.99 month at new property. Agreed to this but need an active BT line at property. Here lies the problem, Virgin might be bad (even very bad) but I have found out over the past few days they are nothing compared to BT...

Contact BT 30/01/08 requesting new line. Suprisingly get through to them straight away. Take my details, engineer booked for 8am - 1pm Saturday 09/02/08.

05/02/08 - Receive new details by letter. Name incorrectly spelt, Direct debit Details incorrect. Receive separate letter giving details of credit agreement I allegedly set up over the phone. Very vague details. Ring up BT - Wait for 40 mins before get through. Speak to english person - apologise for incorrect details - apparently amend them. Tell me that I agreed to set up to pay BT £32 a month (inc. £124.99 installation fee spread over 12 months) last time I spoke to them. Tell them I didn't but having been explained system, agree to this. Ask for confirmation that appointment is set for Saturday, 5 minute hold, confirmation affirmed. Tell my manager at work I have to turn down offer of additional 6 hrs overtime on sat morning as BT engineer coming.

09/02/08 - Big day, new BT line. No chance, they don't turn up. 1:01 pm ring BT. On hold 35 mins (off my mobile - assume I'll be charged for this). Speak to Non english person. Apologises numerous times, put on hold three times. Inform me appointment cancelled, very sorry forgot to inform me. I'm very angry. They tell me they will put me through to department who deal with new lines. Hold roughly 10 mins - Speak to another Non-English person. Apologises profusely for problems, again asks for my details. On hold roughly 5 mins. Inform me they need to contact BT Open reach who deal with new connections (told by the other person it was this department!). Tell me someone will contact me on my mobile from their Aberdeen base very shortly. No phone call, ring back at 4pm, Non-english person after 25 min wait, ask to make a complaint, put me through to their alleged supervisor, on hold, disconnect me. Very annoyed, ruining my weekend. Decide to wait until Monday to try again, might be able to speak to an english person who can help.

Today - 11/02/08 Whilst at work ring BT at 9.50am on complaints number. ITS THE SAME NUMBER AS CUSTOMER SERVICE. Wait 25 mins, Put through to non english person. Try and explain what has happened, Apologises loads. Ask them not to apologise just to tell me why no one came round, why appointment was cancelled. On hold 4 times, phone call lasts approx. 25 mins. Ask them to put me through to manager - on hold, line disconnects. AAaaaargggghhhh. Look at ineternet for other numbers. Try different number. Get through pretty much straight away but again non-english person. Have to re-expalin everything (does no-one keep any notes!) on hold numerous times. Ask me if I have paid my deposit! What depoist! Without telling me transfer me to credit referral line. Speak to english person. They ask me how they can help. I say don't know whats happened. Explain story to them, check my account number. Say everythings seems in order, not sure why I've been put through. Ask them if they can help me with my problems. Very empathetic, but say no, will transfer me to complaints department as I have been dealt with terribly. Tell me it should be someone english I speak to. Time now 11.05 am. On hold waiting for another 10 mins. Put back through to customer service!! Speak to english lady. Very sorry about everything, takes all my details again, tells me she will put me on hold for a minute while she looks into it. I ask her not to put me on hold, promises it will only be for a minute. Seven minutes later gets back to me. Informs me reason no engineer came round on Saturday was due to a system error! Info from customer services system wasn't fully sent to BT open reach hence appointment was never fully completed. She tells me their is some details she needs to complete on the system that then needs to be transferred to open reach. However if it can't be completed correctly will need to cancel account and set up new one. AAAAaaaargghhh. Ask to speak to manager. She advises that she will only take 3 or 4 mins to try and get info sorted. Asks for me to hold. What the hell, I've been on the phone for 1 hr 45 mins (time now 11:35am) why not hang on a little more. Sound genuine enough! ON HOLD ANOTHER 25 MINS. I am now nearly crying, I'm a 6ft 4 inch 18 and a half stone man reduced to tears due to BT. Slam phone down and go for early dinner.

I have not been this depressed for a long time. I have just sent an e-mail explaining all the above events to their complaints e-mail address. But don't honestly expect an answer. I can never remember service this bad in my life. Even worse, Virgin need me to have an active BT line within 30 days of me disconnecting the service from my previous address or they say they can't offer the "beyond cable" service, and I will have to pay my disconnection fee, £180, from my previous address contract.

Any help about what I can do about BT will be very much appreciated. Surely they can't get away with this level of service. Why is their complaints line the same number as their customer service. Please someone help, I am so depressed.

gt94sss2

matt8188 wrote: »

Any help about what I can do about BT will be very much appreciated. Surely they can't get away with this level of service. Why is their complaints line the same number as their customer service.

BT seem to be struggling as the regulator has made them change the software/IT systems they use to arrange new lines.

The complaints number you dial is probably the same as their general number as their system transfers calls depending on which option you select from the automated menus.

You can try calling [SIZE=-1]0800 671502 - I believe that is BT's high level complaints dept.

Regards
Sunil
[/SIZE]

jackieb

E-mail the CEO. I e-mailed him on recommendation from someone on this site. After being on hold for over 10 hours in total, e-mailing was the only thing that sorted it out for me. His name is Ben Verwaayen. Will see if I can find his e-mail addy.

jackieb

edit - i've PM'd you his e-mail address.

BritBrat

E-mail the CEO. I e-mailed him on recommendation from someone on this site. After being on hold for over 10 hours in total, e-mailing was the only thing that sorted it out for me. His name is Ben Verwaayen. Will see if I can find his e-mail addy.

Please don't post the Email address, send it via PM.

But if anyone puts the name into a Google search they can find it any way.

jackieb

BritBrat wrote: »

Please don't post the Email address, send it via PM.

But if anyone puts the name into a Google search they can find it any way.

Sorry. Sorted now.

matt8188

Thankyou Jackie,

I will try his e-mail address.

Heinz

matt8188 wrote: »

Agreed to this but need an active BT line at property.

It doesn't excuse the problems you've had with BT's inefficiencies but, if Virgin told you that, they lied to you because they, like any of the other line providers now in the market, could (I would say should) have employed Openreach to install the line.

daveboy

daveboy wrote: »

BT - 70 minutes on hold to answer a call to set up a direct debit, in the end had to hang up as I couldn't wait any longer.

Pay bill online because I couldn't set up the direct debit, get charged £4.50 for doing so. I write a letter asking for it to be refunded - it takes them nearly a month to ring me up about it.

BT has the worst customer service of any UK company. I only pay them line rental because the old NTL (now Virgin Media) were just as incompetent when I've been with them in the past.

I posted the above in another thread. I totally sympathise with you...constant waiting on hold seems to be a common thing with BT.

One thing I would never do is allow an 'appointment' to get in the way of earning money. I suppose the trick here is not to sign a 12 month contract and then move before the end of it. Whilst it's a lot of money, £180, I would consider biting the bullet and getting out of the Virgin contract. If you do have the BT line put in, costing £120, you'll be paying them line rental and will again be in another 12 month contract unless I am mistaken.

I am only a BT customer because I use the internet - it's either them or Virgin Media and both are as much use as a chocolate teapot.

Slayerx

Can someone pm me the email address as i have the same issue as the original person does and its really getting to me that they can get away with such poor service.

BritBrat

Can someone pm me the email address as i have the same issue as the original person does and its really getting to me that they can get away with such poor service.

Private Message sent.