BT to EE

[loriusgarrulus]

EE messed me about when I lost Andrew. I got in touch with them to inform them of Andrew's passing and cancel Andrew's mobile phone contract. I also wanted to cancel the internet as Andrew had an expensive superfast one for his online gaming. I wanted a basic internet for the few bits I do like 3 forums and online shopping etc. The one I spoke to said he would cancel the mobile, they couldn't give me a new contract in my name. I would have to transfer the expensive contract to my name and then apply to see if it could be reduced to a basic one. Not what I wanted to do as it had 18mths to run if the application was turned down. After pointing out the existing contract was void due to the death of the contract holder and I didn't want to take it over he still wasn't budging. So I told him to cancel it completely and I would find another provider. I found another provider, vodaphone with 2 year deal for less than half the EE one was. Everything went seemlessly. They sent a modem, Said they would let EE know and on the changeover day I swapped the modem and all worked fine.

In the meantime I found out Andrews mobile was still working as someone rang it. I then got a letter addressed to Andrew with a big bill from EE for early termination of contract. They were pieved as they couldn't get the money because the bank accounts had been closed. There was a phone number on the letter so I rang it. All this was going on during lockdown so phonecalls always had long waiting times. Eventually I got to speak to a Lady and explained it all again including the fact I would have stayed with them if I had been allowed to open a new account in my name. She checked their records and found no mention of Andrew's death or request to cancel the mobile. She apologised, got the records updated, cancelled the bill and the mobile account and said they would get back in touch with me when it was all finalised. The mobile went offline, but the only communication I ever got from them was a jiffy bag with a letter asking for any EE Kit back. I bundled the superfast all singing and dancing modem up and sent it back. It saved a trip down the dump.

[Scully]

Apparently some can’t get it into their heads that there could possibly be five properties sharing the same address ( it’s a courtyard comprising of a farmhouse and four outbuildings converted into dwellings about thirty years ago, with each property having a name ) and postcode.
I suppose it doesn’t help that two of the properties share the same surname, but someone somewhere sees the address and two same surnames and thinks ‘ why would  one property need five optic fibre supplies ?’ so disconnects four of them ( this is what has actually happened …twice ) regardless of their being five different property names and four different surnames! 
One couple had their internet disconnected and £300 withdrawn from their account as a premature cancellation of account penalty! They have had to re-apply as new customers and are still owed money! 
It would be hilarious if it weren’t so bloody annoying! 

[Scully]

20 minutes ago, loriusgarrulus said:

EE messed me about when I lost Andrew. I got in touch with them to inform them of Andrew's passing and cancel Andrew's mobile phone contract. I also wanted to cancel the internet as Andrew had an expensive superfast one for his online gaming. I wanted a basic internet for the few bits I do like 3 forums and online shopping etc. The one I spoke to said he would cancel the mobile, they couldn't give me a new contract in my name. I would have to transfer the expensive contract to my name and then apply to see if it could be reduced to a basic one. Not what I wanted to do as it had 18mths to run if the application was turned down. After pointing out the existing contract was void due to the death of the contract holder and I didn't want to take it over he still wasn't budging. So I told him to cancel it completely and I would find another provider. I found another provider, vodaphone with 2 year deal for less than half the EE one was. Everything went seemlessly. They sent a modem, Said they would let EE know and on the changeover day I swapped the modem and all worked fine.

In the meantime I found out Andrews mobile was still working as someone rang it. I then got a letter addressed to Andrew with a big bill from EE for early termination of contract. They were pieved as they couldn't get the money because the bank accounts had been closed. There was a phone number on the letter so I rang it. All this was going on during lockdown so phonecalls always had long waiting times. Eventually I got to speak to a Lady and explained it all again including the fact I would have stayed with them if I had been allowed to open a new account in my name. She checked their records and found no mention of Andrew's death or request to cancel the mobile. She apologised, got the records updated, cancelled the bill and the mobile account and said they would get back in touch with me when it was all finalised. The mobile went offline, but the only communication I ever got from them was a jiffy bag with a letter asking for any EE Kit back. I bundled the superfast all singing and dancing modem up and sent it back. It saved a trip down the dump.

As if there isn’t enough going on at times like that! 
I think they are such a huge company now that it’s just good luck if two people actually get to work on the same case. 

 

[Scully]

Two engineers turned up yesterday morning; I’ve actually lost count now but I think that’s 7 engineers now! 
One of them was the same bloke who came last time and told us what we needed, and linked us up with OH’s mothers wi-fi as a temporary fix. 
Anyhow, none of the work he had sent a report about last time he was here, has been done, so there was nothing he could do. 
He got on the phone to ask what was going on ( would you believe that even the engineers have to call 150 to talk to a rep’? ) and ended up having a helluva Barney with them according to OH. It was suggested at one point by his manager to cease both our supply and OH’s mothers supply, and start again! 😳

The engineer said there was no need as everything was now in place, he just needed the next phase completing as he had suggested, then he could connect us. 
OH has spoken to over 15 different reps now in the last month, including one yesterday who kept asking for the name of our developer ( the properties were built around the 1600’s ) which they seem obsessed with, and suggested the address ( which they claim doesn’t exist ) is registered with the post office! 😂

OH wasn’t impressed with this at all, and told them so. 

The post office have been sending mail to this address ever since it began, including bills from BT! 
Anyhow, someone is supposed to call again tomorrow. 
Day 32 without internet, and counting. 

 

Edited June 10, 2022 by Scully

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Gordon Bennett, how do these idiots sleep at night?

[Scully]

23 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Gordon Bennett, how do these idiots sleep at night?

🙂 Your guess is as good as mine. The thing is, the people you speak to when calling 150 are basically just receptionists; OH explained that we now had our own NAD key and the person on the other end of the phone had no idea what a Nad key was! 🤷‍♂️
 

[Scully]

OH received a text from EE this morning stating that they had tried to call and that our ‘complaint’ was about to be cancelled ( this we have discovered, means that they think the problem has been resolved ) and that they would try again in a few minutes. No missed calls on OH ‘s phone, and two hours later still no call, so OH decided to call them lest they simply cancel something!
There was a number on the text which wouldn’t call, so she called 150 as usual, and enquired about the text and it’s message. After going through the usual ID questions, the rep’ stated she had no record of the text nor it’s message, and said that even an automated text would be on our file, but it wasn’t! She did however, sound suitably amazed at the numbers of calls and correspondence that WAS on our file! 🙂

Day 33 and counting. 

[ditchman]

it hurts everytime i click on this thread

[billytheghillie]

Better the devil you know 

The problem here is yourself Scully, you said it on line 4 on your opening post. Never give into a woman.

[Newbie to this]

11 minutes ago, billytheghillie said:

Never give into a woman.

[Scully]

31 minutes ago, ditchman said:

it hurts everytime i click on this thread

Me too! I kid you not, OH is on the phone as I type, after receiving yet another call from EE! 
I’ll pause until she’s finished! 😀

Right. The farce continues! Rep’ asked what the problem was and if there was anything she could do to help! 
She noted we hadn’t had any service since the beginning of June….’June?’ Says OH. ‘We haven’t had any service since the 10th May!’ 
‘Oh, yes, I see that now’ says rep’! 
OH told her she had received a text regarding our bill, and sincerely hoped they weren’t considering taking any amount from us for a service we haven’t had at all. Guess what? They are! It is automated and therefore there is nothing she ( the rep’ ) can do about it! 
Anyhow, we are to be compensated apparently….we’ll see. 
She told us we have a new NAD key and that she will call us back on the 14th. Again, we’ll see. 
A main problem  ( one of many admittedly, but a main one ) is that everyone involved looks for the postcode which gives them a name, and then they look no further, which if they did they would discover that there are five properties at that name, all with different addresses within that location. It’s akin to looking for a street name and looking no further once finding that street name. 

[Scully]

Right. We’re back to where we started now! OH phoned today after they didn’t Saturday when they said they would, only to be told our case is closed! ‘How can that be’ she almost screamed down the phone, ‘we still have no service!’ 
According to reps notes the issue has been resolved, but looking further she discovered a note stating ‘unresolved’! 
Management advised a ‘cease and renew’ case, but that would mean cutting off all service to this address, where there are five dwellings! They just can’t seem to get it into their heads that there is more than one address in this courtyard! It’s akin to looking for a street name and then cutting off the supply to that entire street without thinking there might be several properties there. 
They even said that her Mother is paying our bill, but she’s with BT and the amount she has paid is significantly different to the amount we have paid…..’so who are we paying?’ Asks OH. ‘Oh, yeah, I see what you mean’ says rep. 
Anyhow, we are to be sent another new router ( haven’t used the other brand new one yet ) and another engineer will call on the 4th July! Another day of sitting in and waiting. OH was in tears today out of sheer frustration after 2hrs 56mins on the phone. 

It’s gone beyond incompetent now. 
42 days and counting. 

[billytheghillie]

feel for you scully,  they are just robbin ********!

[Scully]

Unbelievable! Neighbour has just called round to ask if we were sorted as they have just had notification via phone that ‘someone’ is taking over their line so they are to be disconnected! How the hell does that work? 
When she asked which company it was they were told that information wasn’t available! They’re with BT! 
Im starting to feel like I’m living in some sort of surreal Tim Burton film! 

6 minutes ago, billytheghillie said:

feel for you scully,  they are just robbin ********!

Thanks. It’s my OH I feel sorry for; they won’t talk to me as I’m not the account holder.,It’s just mind boggling! 🤷‍♂️

[discobob]

@Scully I believe it is time to start emailing top bods

https://www.ceoemail.com/s.php?id=ceo-9593

https://ceoemail.com/s.php?id=ceo-12015&c=EE-Chief Executive

https://ceoemail.com/s.php?id=ceo-9591&c=BT Group-Chief Executive

I would do the email to all three at the same time - they are all BT Group companies

[Cosmicblue]

BT's internal structure from an IT point of view is a shambles that stretches back 20+ years, it improved a bit when they binned 'Region 6' which as the dreadful Indian call centres but still left a gaping chasm of capability that's never been fixed.

The fundamental problems stem from the fact that the front-end sales systems - i.e. the bit that we see as BT,com and order services from is not integrated with the engineering systems used by the guys who do the physical work, add to that the fact that Openreach was spun off into a separate company that outsources a lot of work to 3rd party contractors and its easy to see why it feels so messed up.

As a legacy from the days of dial up broadband I used to have to incoming telephone lines coming into the house - as line rental prices rose steeply I decided to switch the broadband to the home phone number line - big mistake!  BT cut us off from Broadband, reallocate the line that had the broadband to another customer...

The solution is raise a formal complaint and find someone who will take ownership https://www.bt.com/help/contact-bt/complaints and then find someone to own your problem - the BT employees are as frustrated as the customers.  The key thing is to get a name - you'll have to ask for it and a direct dial extension number.  BT provide compensation for every day without service...my credit was so large I didn't have a bill for nearly two years.

[Scully]

6 hours ago, discobob said:

@Scully I believe it is time to start emailing top bods

https://www.ceoemail.com/s.php?id=ceo-9593

https://ceoemail.com/s.php?id=ceo-12015&c=EE-Chief Executive

https://ceoemail.com/s.php?id=ceo-9591&c=BT Group-Chief Executive

I would do the email to all three at the same time - they are all BT Group companies

Thankyou. I’ve been trying to contact Marc Allera as CEO of EE. He claims he can be best contacted via Twitter, but like his staff he’s full of **** also. He can’t; it’s an outsourced email which is picked up by minions. 
I’ll give your links a go. Thanks again, most helpful. 👍

[Scully]

1 hour ago, Cosmicblue said:

BT's internal structure from an IT point of view is a shambles that stretches back 20+ years, it improved a bit when they binned 'Region 6' which as the dreadful Indian call centres but still left a gaping chasm of capability that's never been fixed.

The fundamental problems stem from the fact that the front-end sales systems - i.e. the bit that we see as BT,com and order services from is not integrated with the engineering systems used by the guys who do the physical work, add to that the fact that Openreach was spun off into a separate company that outsources a lot of work to 3rd party contractors and its easy to see why it feels so messed up.

As a legacy from the days of dial up broadband I used to have to incoming telephone lines coming into the house - as line rental prices rose steeply I decided to switch the broadband to the home phone number line - big mistake!  BT cut us off from Broadband, reallocate the line that had the broadband to another customer...

The solution is raise a formal complaint and find someone who will take ownership https://www.bt.com/help/contact-bt/complaints and then find someone to own your problem - the BT employees are as frustrated as the customers.  The key thing is to get a name - you'll have to ask for it and a direct dial extension number.  BT provide compensation for every day without service...my credit was so large I didn't have a bill for nearly two years.

Thankyou. Yes, sounds very familiar. And Yes, we need someone to own our complaint. We were told they couldn’t take ownership as we had only had one engineer out, signifying it wasn’t a serious issue, whereas the next one to visit on the 4th will be our sixth! 🤷‍♂️
It’s like trying to reason with a lunatic high on something! My partner was in tears yesterday and is now going to have to contact them again before she goes to work this morning because they have now said they are going to disconnect next doors service to supply us! I just can’t get my head around that at all.
The incompetence and off the wall illogical confusion is staggering! 

[enfieldspares]

It is so much better now, BT, since Mrs Thatcher privatised it in the 1980s isn't it! Which input to the OP's issue isn't much help. However what is would be to suggest that the OP's mother demand "redress" (use that word) for the inconvenience, distress (use that word) and any financial costs. If BT have to refer the complaint to OFCOM it will cost BT a £500 referral fee. It will cost the OP's mother nothing. Therefore BT will, usually, be keen to offer a lesser payment to make it all go away. 

[oldypigeonpopper]

Hello, it's the adverts that get me thinking 🤔, they all talk the talk until it comes to complaining , it seem apathy has set in to call centres, my mobs on vodaphone and so far so good

[Scully]

The saga continues.
Came home today to find OH in tears out of sheer frustration. She had been looking at the bank account and saw another payment had been debited, but this one to BT! She had been on the phone for over an hour trying to sort it. 
Apparently EE have failed to inform BT that we had moved to them, despite assuring us that they would do this back in May when we changed providers. We are now paying both EE and BT for a service we aren’t getting. 
She eventually got through to someone at BT, put on hold as usual, and then an EE rep’ had taken up the call, not knowing what the call was about, so she had to go through it all again. The EE rep’ had no idea what was going on and agreed with OH when she suggested she had just been fobbed off! 
Anyhow, she hung up and got back in touch with BT, went through it all again, and they said they would end our service on 12th July. Grand, we just have to take on another complaint now to get our money back. 
Anyhow, as both EE and BT have made such a mess of our addresses, not knowing which one they’re supplying, she asked for a confirmation email from BT, and sure enough they have stated in it that the service will end on the 12th July……for the address next door! 
There is now just the little matter of getting back in touch with BT to tell them they have the wrong address…again. 
57 days and counting now since our seamless change over. 🤷‍♂️

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Blimey, they are useless, the poor woman.

[Scully]

14 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Blimey, they are useless, the poor woman.

Thankyou. Yes, they are. I’ve asked her to transfer the account holder over to my name, but she won’t. Not that I’d get any further probably, but just to give her a break. They won’t talk to me as I’m not the account holder. 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

1 minute ago, Scully said:

Thankyou. Yes, they are. I’ve asked her to transfer the account holder over to my name, but she won’t. Not that I’d get any further probably, but just to give her a break. They won’t talk to me as I’m not the account holder. 

That would be very sensible.

[mel b3]

8 minutes ago, Scully said:

Thankyou. Yes, they are. I’ve asked her to transfer the account holder over to my name, but she won’t. Not that I’d get any further probably, but just to give her a break. They won’t talk to me as I’m not the account holder. 

You do know that if you try to swap account holder names , you'll just make an already pretty grim situation , even worse.

Fair play to you both for sticking it out . I'd have cancelled the direct debit,  and told them to poke it by now , and gone without broadband for the rest of my life.