Refused compensation for total loss of service

[robinotter]

Hello, hoping I can get some help on here as not getting anywhere with customer services on the phone.

On 25th July our broadband stopped working, and was continuously not working until 14th August when it was fixed. 

As soon as I noticed the fault, I logged onto the Service Status page and registered the loss of service. Each day, I logged back into the Service Status page and it said that I had already registered the service loss and didn't need to do anything else - I would receive automatic compensation. A week into the outage I also phoned up and an automated message confirmed I didnt need to do anything, compensation would be automatic. I also have text message updates on my phone across the period stating that the issue was not yet fixed but would be fixed at a later date, plus a final text on 14th August stating that the problem was now fixed (which it was). All this led me to believe I should be due around £180 of compensation.

I phoned up customer services today and they stated I would get no compensation. First, the operative told me that the outage wasn't Virgin's fault therefore they weren't liable. I quoted their T&Cs saying that even if they weren't at fault they are still meant to compensate. He then spoke to his manager and came back to me saying that because no repair was carried out, there was no compensation due. I explained that how could the service have been fixedif no repair was carried out? He went back to his manager again and changed his story again, now saying that whilst there was a problem in our area, there was full broadband provided to our house for the whole period from 25th July to 14th August. This is a lie as the router was flashing continuously and I tried restarting it several times.

He refused to believe this and said my only option was to accept a £25 goodwill gesture or go into deadlock and speak to the ombudsman.

I am writing here to offer customer services one final chance to give me the compensation due before I move into deadlock.

Any other support from other members of the forum would be much appreciated too!

Thanks in advance.

[goslow]

There is often a current topic running on the forum pages about incorrect, false or misleading advice which VM agents on the phone give out regarding automatic compensation.

You seem to be clued up on the rules and have an accurate record of the dates/times. If the fault was logged online and acknowledged via one of VM's automated test processes, that would be the date your outage is logged from.

VM has to credit your account within 30 days of the service being restored so there is not too much you can do about it just now.

VM gets two clear working days to fix the fault before any compo money is payable. Once the first two days have passed, with no fix, you get an initial £9.33 for the first few days of the outage (the 'payment trigger time'). So, if I have understood your timeline correctly, your calculation would be

25/7 Fault logged via VM's online testing processes
26/7 and 27/7 Two working days to fix the fault = £9.33 the payment trigger time
28/7 to 13/7 inc. = 17 days @ £9.33 per day
14/8 service restored

18 payments @ £9.33 = £167.94 compensation owed

The VM forum team may offer to look at the case for you. If you get no further via that route then your next steps would be a formal complaint to VM (a required bit of the process but unlikely to be productive) before escalating to the ombudsman after 8 weeks or via a deadlock letter.

[Reece_MH]

Hi robinotter 👋

Thanks for posting, and a warm welcome to the Community Forums.

I'm sorry to hear you're not happy with the Automatic Compensation Scheme outcome since experiencing issues with your service. So I can look into this further for you, I'm going to send you a private message. You can find this in the white envelope or by tapping your profile picture then "Messages".

Cheers,

[robinotter]

Thank you both for the help. I have now messaged Reece (above) and will report back on any resolution offered.

[robinotter · Accepted solution]

Hello, just wanted to update on this post. I raised a complaint which was escalated to a manager. They confirmed that I was indeed due compensation and added this to my account. My final bill came in mid September and we have just received the credit into our bank account for the full loss of service.

My advice to anyone in a similar situation would be to keep persevering!

Robin

[goslow]

Useful feedback and encouragement for anyone else reading in the future who is stuck in the same situation with VM refusing to pay up.

[Travis_M]

Hi @robinotter 

Thanks for your post

Fantastic to hear this has now been resolved for you on the back of the complaint, my apologies for the inconvenience caused with this also.

I hope you have a great day