Virgin Media Community

[Veganfeet]

I've been with Virgin Media for five years and it's been okay until now; My contract is up so the price went through the roof. I chatted online to the retention team and they couldn't offer me a good reason to stay. I also spoke to the retention team and again I made it clear I didn't want to stay and why. I also chatted to the Whatsapp retention team twice and again they can't persuade me to stay. I just want to leave for another provider and have made arrangements with that other provider to do so.

So I want to cancel all my services with Virgin media and here is where the problems begin.

On each occasion of chatting, speaking and Whatsapping to retention I was 'transferred' to the 'Cancellation team' - and left hanging indefinitely. On the online chat I was transferred to Whatsapp - no choice. On whatsapp I waited a total of seven hours and was first connected with ANOTHER retention team, who then transferred me onto no one. Again today the same thing has happened. Call -Put on indefinite hold once it's clear I want to cancel. Online chat - transferred to whatsapp once it's clear I want to cancel. Whatsapp - transferred to no one once it's been established I want to cancel.

I filed a complaint about the process and despite requesting cancellation of all services as a satisfactory resolution have not had that addressed.

I have written to Virgin media at the address in Sunderland - but have my doubts that it will be actioned. It was hard enough to even find an address. Has anyone ever had any success with writing to VM?

So, I've made arrangements with another provider and have a date for their connection. I put this date in writing to VM as the date to end service - it's slightly more than 30 days from now to allow time for them to action it. I'm still trying to be connected with the 'cancellation team' but am starting to doubt they exist. The whole process has been so needlessly frustrating and tiresome - what has happened to VM? It used to be so easy to actually speak to a human being and their customer service in the past has been good. Is it just because I want to leave?

Has anybody on here had any success in arranging to leave VM? If so, what worked for you? Have I taken a wrong step somewhere in the process?

I hope someone on here who took the time to read this has had more success than me.

Why is it so hard to leave?...

[newapollo · Accepted solution]

Hi @Veganfeet 

If you've written to the cancellation address in Sunderland then that should be actioned once they receive the letter. Hopefully you sent it via signed for delivery so you have proof of it being received.

If yo are wanting to speak to the cancellation team then it's options 1,4 and 4 when calling 150 from a VM landline or mobile. best time to call is first thing on a morning (8am) when lines first open and are least busy. The phone lines and other contact methods are extremely busy at present, mainly due to the impending price increase emails.

[Veganfeet]

Thank you for your reply and for your good advice - I will keep trying and let you know how I get on. It's been another day waiting on being transferred to the 'cancellation team' on whatsapp. Nonsense.

[Veganfeet]

Well, I'm half way through day three of being on 'hold' on whatsapp to the seemingly non-existent 'cancellation team.

I also had another painfully awkward fifteen minute phone call with retentions who referred me this time to an online form - Virgin Media Termination. It was explained to me that this was how Virgin were handling cancellations because there had been so many calls. I was assured it would be a simple and straight forward form that would initiate cancellation and the thirty day notice period.

it is not a Virgin cancellation form, it's an online service for generating letters which you would pay £24.00 a month to subscribe to, and it's in French. It will harvest your information (big red flag there) and generate a letter to Swansea -Which i understand is not the correct address anymore?!

and no doubt there will be no response.

Why oh why would someone in customer services refer you to this as the way to cancel services?! It's just another lie. 

Has anyone on here had any success writing to Virgin media and if so, what address did you use?

[newapollo]

Hi again @Veganfeet 

If you want to process the cancallation request in writing as per the terms-and-conditions  the address is

Virgin Media Sunderland SR43 4AA

If writing make sure you sign it and send it by registered (signed for) post.

[Veganfeet]

Thanks again Dave, If things don't work out with my original letter I will try again at that address.

[Veganfeet]

So, it seems after three days I may have managed to get  disconnected.

After another call to retentions - listen to their offers and decline - I asked to be transferred to cancellations and I was. I was on hold about two minutes and then put through. To say I was surprised was an understatement. The guy in cancellations also seemed surprised. He listened to my request to cancel services and put me on hold to action it. He came back a few minutes later and said he couldn't do it, that the account was locked and he would need to transfer me back to retentions.

So, I'm back talking to a different retention team operator. Fresh face, new offers, still decline, explain situation...put on hold. Wait. confirm I want to cancel all services. New offer; still decline. Talk about cancellation. put on hold. Confirm cancellation - email comes through confirming cancellation.

My advice to anyone trying to leave is write, then phone and persist but be patient - speak to retention, listen to their offers, decline and ask to be transferred to cancellations, again be patient.

This has taken three days.

Good luck if you're trying to leave.

[TresFrustre]

This is brilliant if I've understood you correctly

Virgin Media retentions refer you to an online service where you pay £24 to cancel your contract cos the cancellations team are inundated!

Are Virgin Media behind this website?  Great money making opportunity to profit from cancellations!!

Hilarious!!!

The correct address is now:  Virgin Media, Sunderland, SR43 4AA as per section N of the Terms & Conditions.

[Veganfeet]

It seems, at least at face value, that Virgin Media are nothing to do with the website in question. Parts of it are in French too. 

When I mentioned to the next retention team operator i spoke to I had been referred to it by her colleague she said that she knew for a fact that there were no online cancellation forms...

It seems it was just a lie to fob me off.

Thank you TresFrustre for confirming the postal address I should contact. I wrote to them already and will see if the cancellation happens.

[Veganfeet]

With regards to cancellation of services...

I received a confusing letter today from Virgin Media that referred to a complaint I had made - I made the complaint online around the time I started trying to get disconnected -but it doesn't reference any cancellation of services or date that it may happen. I had already received a garbled email from VM acknowledging this complaint a day after making it. The letter I wrote to them was not a complaint.

When I wrote to them I was very specific about what I wanted; the cancellation of all services and when it needed to happen by: 30 days.

Their letter of today assures me they will look into my complaint and that it might take as long as 28 days...

It seems to me that Virgin are not going to action the letter I wrote. There was nothing ambiguous about the letter I wrote insomuch as it couldn't be misinterpreted.The letter I received was also not dated (the date was strangely left blank) which in my mind is not just negligent but suspicious. 

I also received the expected call from the Retentions team  two days ago - They at least acknowledged that I had a cancellation coming up (but didn't mention exactly when it would be) and again I had the conversation about having another provider lined up and that I wouldn't be staying with VM. The call was made from a mobile phone - something the retentions agent even mentioned and at the time I thought nothing of ...but, in hindsight, this means the call was not recorded.

I have also received an email confirmation of my next bill (with the extortionate out-of-contract price rise applied to it) and a due date for the bill - a whole three days before I am supposed to be disconnected. Nothing, though says that it is my last bill. It is also a bill for a full month of which I will have services for exactly three days if the disconnection happens as promised -what then happens to the balance of that month?

Why oh why then am I left with the nagging feeling that my services are not going to be disconnected as promised and that I will be faced with more bills and the additional cost of overlapping services from another provider...

perhaps because NOBODY from VM has written back, emailed or phoned to say it is happening on X day...as was promised.

Has anyone on here managed to get VM to confirm a cancellation of services and at least what day it will happen?