Customer service

[SD69]

I called 150 from home phone a month ago to end contract - told I would have to pay up to 30 days notice and would receive package to send equipment back or would have to pay £40. Not heard back and now very happy with new provider, so called again tonight. Appallingly bad customer service - wasting hours with repeated chat / phone calls. Apparently no record that I am leaving, DD due soon for service I cancelled >30 days ago and nothing I can do about it or anyone willing to help me. Do I need a more powerful motive never to get involved with VM again and to tell everyone I know to avoid them like the plague? 

[goslow]

Unfortunately, plenty of topics on here mention phone calls to cancel which are not actioned or which are (in)conveniently cut off just at the point of the cancellation being put through. Some have even mentioned that a phone call to cancel was turned into a contract renewal by VM.

Have you managed to get your instruction to cancel actioned now? Have you got confirmation of any kind that your leaving instruction is now being processed?

[SD69]

No, no reply or action. Given up with chat or phone calls, sent a complaint but I gather that may take a while to be answered. More than annoying to have money about to be taken out of my account for a service I have cancelled (I know I did) and that I no longer use.  

[Andrew-G]

I've read repeatedly of late in this forum.  Whilst it won't help you directly, I'd recommend you complain to Ofcom that Virgin Media are making it difficult for you to cancel, and that this is whether through incompetence or intention, in breach of General Condition C1.4, para 1.14.  Whilst in legal terminology these aren't a licence to operate, in form they amount to the same thing, and a few complaints about this should result in VM getting a very well deserved boot up it's corporate backside.

[goslow]

My goodness, pretty much every 'I am not able to cancel' topic on here involves VM breaking every one of those conditions 1.13 to 1.15 and doing exactly everything described therein! Staggering!

[goslow · Accepted solution]

---

@SD69 wrote:

No, no reply or action. Given up with chat or phone calls, sent a complaint but I gather that may take a while to be answered. More than annoying to have money about to be taken out of my account for a service I have cancelled (I know I did) and that I no longer use.  

---

Well, FWIW, I am in a similar position (have cancelled and am happily using a new service). AFAIK, the cancellation seems to be progressing but haven't fully escaped from VM as yet. The process I went through was to:

• Write in by post to VM's Sunderland cancellation address (used first class signed for service)
• Day after the postal tracking showed delivery, an 'order' appeared in 'My Virgin Media' but gave no information about what it was an order for
• A few days after that I received a letter in the post from VM giving a disconnection date (now just over a week away)

If you have phoned in already and made your instruction to cancel clear then I can't see why you should be delayed from that timeline.

The forum team may be able to look into this and confirm details of whether your cancellation is underway or not.

I suspect that VM will simply try and delay you further by means of the complaints process etc.

[Beth_G]

Hi SD69,

Welcome to the Community Forums. Thank you for your first post.

I'm sorry to hear you've been struggling to cancel your services with us, I appreciate this must be quite frustrating and we'd like to help get this sorted for you.

We don't usually assist with disconnections here from the forums, however provided what's been mentioned in your post we're keen to help. I'll pop you over a private message now so I can take some details.

[AlexanderMTTH]

I still struggle to see why things aren't changing. I mean there is legal basis, regulator, complaints from customers, VM colleagues that are aware of this issue on the forum... Yet each case seems like such a shock to the company. 

It's unanimous that the customer service is poor... I think even folks working there go home and have a long look in the mirror contemplating their careers.

[Paulina_Z]

Hi @AlexanderMTTH,

Welcome back to our Community Forums! Thank you for your post and I'm very sorry to hear that you feel this way about our services and about our staff.

Is there anything I can help you with today? I'll be happy to help.

Thanks!

[AlexanderMTTH]

Thanks Paulina. 

Nothing in particular, but I've read so many times on the forum the poor experience, and I can't get my head around how it doesn't land with the call center trainers or policy makers or whoever is in charge of that part of Virgin Media.