Looks like a typical over-utilisation pattern, meaning more traffic than VM's local network can handle. In some areas VM undertake work to rejig the local networks to balance loads and eliminate over-utilisation, and they spend millions each year increasing capacity, but the budget isn't endless, and some areas don't ever get fixed, or have to wait years for a fix. And sadly VM won't be transparent, so there may be a fault reference and a "fix date", but there's no way of knowing if that fix date is actually backed by an actual plan of action and programme of works. Quite often it seems not, and as the fix date approaches it is simply moved a month or two ahead. If the Networks team haven't investigated and made a formal diagnosis of over-utilisation, then there won't even be a fault reference, and forum staff are not allowed to suggest or admit the problem.
Only you know if you have other acceptable ISP options, but you may as well pile the pressure on VM, and ask for some compensation out of the company since if this is over-utilisation, then it is an entirely self-inflicted problem for the company. Use the VM complaints process, starting with the form in My Virgin Media, requesting:
- VM diagnose the cause of the poor connection and propose a technical solution within 30 days, including an assured fix date
- Compensation for any months that the problem has been occurring
- Compensation if you experienced any rude, slow, unhelpful or incompetent customer service
- A continuing discount against your monthly bill until VM do permanently resolve the problem, if you choose to stay
- Release from any remaining fixed term period without penalty
- A deadlock letter to accompany VM's proposed complaint resolution as you have no confidence in the company and expect to escalate the matter.
You'll probably get a fob-off letter and maybe some (possible desultory) offer of compensation. Review what happens; You can accept any offer, or even give the whole complaints thing up as a waste of your energies. Or you can wait for the deadlock letter, and take the matter to CISAS. You may get a second offer from VM before a full adjudication starts, if so see what that says, and reconsider again. In any CISAS complaint, offer every example you can recall of any poor support, delays, rudeness, call disconnections, broken call back or fix promises, obfuscation and denial (this is important, these are "aggravating factors" when CISAS assess any compensation that may be due). Include example BQM's if possible. If feeling strongly enough you could also complain to Ofcom, stating that VM are not complying with elements 4 and 6 of the Fairness Commitments, but don't put too much effort in as Ofcom consider complaints "in the round" rather than engaging in individual cases.
The grounds of your complaint to VM and CISAS is the poor performance and shocking customer service, and is based on the Consumer Rights Act 2015 that requires any consumer service to be provided with "reasonable skill and care", and on the Ofcom Fairness Commitment 4, that states "Customers’ services work as promised, reliably over time. If things go wrong providers give a prompt response to fix problems and take appropriate action to help their customers, which may include providing compensation where relevant. If providers can’t fix problems with core services they have promised to deliver within a reasonable period, customers can walk away from their contract with no penalty."
Before launching any complaint, give it a few days and see if the forum staff can leap in and offer an acceptable solution (perhaps even miraculously get the field team to find and fix a problem). They're a helpful bunch who want to see satisfied customers, but are sometimes constrained by company policies.
