Forum Discussion

EFLL14's avatar
EFLL14
Joining in
9 months ago

Unservicable property fiasco!

Hi,

In early April I "contracted" with VM to supply Broadband to my Daughter's flat in Loughborough. Install date was the 29th of April.

One working day before install it was cancelled and arbitrarily changed to the 14th of May.

Couldn't do that, so arranged for the 16th, shortly before that they again changed that to the 15th (yes, a day earlier).

Couldn't do that, so arranged to do it on the 16th (yes, the day it was last supposed to be.

On the 15th they again changed the install date to the 31st of May!

By now I'm getting a little bit annoyed and spent yet another hour on the phone only to learn that the property was unservicable because of "safety and cabling issues"

I have received two emails stating such and was assured the "contract" was cancelled (you know, the one that never existed because VM could never supply the product).

I've just had a call from "cancellations" asking me why I want to cancel? Have I had an engineer visit? and other nonsense, like , how do I knoe the property is "unservicable"? Then he hung up before I could ask a few questions of my own... Nice!

You couldn't make this up!

Can someone from the team help me out here? I need to get this settled once and for all. This is beyond a joke now.

Thank you

 

  • goslow's avatar
    goslow
    Alessandro Volta

    Some further info on the property might help with possible reasons for refusal.

    What floor is the flat on?
    Is the flat in a purpose-built block of flats or a flat conversion of a building?
    Do you know how/if existing properties are serviced by VM (such as individual external VM connections feeding individual flats or is there a single communal VM feed to the building which is then split to individual flats within the building)?

    From past topics on here, VM regularly struggles to install (via external means) when the flat is above first floor. Past installations (by previous cable TV companies etc.) which involve cables running over roofs might no longer be deemed as 'serviceable' by VM now (because VM installers don't seem to do roof access along with work at heights).

    Other random issues might include wayleave access from the freeholder (if there have been problems with VM installing in the past). Issues with running cables internally in communal areas of flats has also been cited as a past problem on here.

    There is also the VM 'X-factor' where a random outcome of refusal happens, even when everything looks like it should be possible (often to do with the cost of an individual installation)

    You should get a reply from the VM forum team on here usually within a few days. They might be able to help or they may only be able to tell you the information you have already been given.

    • EFLL14's avatar
      EFLL14
      Joining in

      I couldn't care less about the unservicable nature of the property, all I need is a proper resolution (in writing) to the cancellation of contract. I'm fairly certain that contracting to a service you cannot supply, for whatever reason, would automatically render that contract viod.

      • goslow's avatar
        goslow
        Alessandro Volta

        Any contract with VM should only start once the service is activated when you have a tech install and you then would have a further 14 day cooling off period to cancel once that had happened.

        If you are only seeking confirmation of the fact VM has cancelled (rather than the reasons why), wait for the VM forum team to reply on here, usually within a few days. They may offer to help or may just refer you to the pre-installation team 0800 052 1734.

  • jpeg1's avatar
    jpeg1
    Alessandro Volta

    This may be annoying now, but you've probably been saved a lot more grief in the longer term by going elsewhere. 

    Go for the compensation, but be prepared to fight for it, particularly if VM claim they were prevented from installing due to H&S issues.