Installation service is an absolute joke!

[andywolfy]

I am now on my 5th install date and no closer to getting connected. Is it worth the hassle?

They have dug past my linving room and layed trunking to run the cable to the far end of the property and loop it back around the building to the living room. I told them when they marked up for the work not to put it there, but to run it straight in towards the living room. I even told them not to do any work until they had spoken to me.

They completely ignored me and did what they wanted.

I had to almost scream down the phone to get them to listen and send someone to my property, who agreed it makes more sense to put the trunking where I want it and promised it would be sorted.

They have now rescheduled twice because no-one has been to put a 6 foot length of trunking in the road!

Every time I speak to someone I am fobbed off with empty promises. It is 10 weeks since I ordered broadband and I have had nothing but hassle from Virgin Media so far. What confidence am I supposed to have that this shower of **bleep**e will be able to provide a decent broadband connection?

[andywolfy]

An engineer turned up but had no more information about what was happening. All I have managed to learn is that there is a blockage somewhere in the conduit. He took pictures of the markings for where the conduit needs to go and said he will pass it on to his manager for them to investigate.

I am sick of being given the run around on this. Whoever I speak to seems to think it is acceptable to fob me off with non-information and empty promises. They have sent 3 people out to 'sort' this so far and none of them have had any information about it when they get here or done anything to resolve this. One of them even rang to ask what they were coming to see me about!

I will now be putting in a complaint via their website and will be looking at getting the ombudsman involved. This whole process has been a nightmare from the start and shows no signs at all of being resolved any time soon!

[Z92]

VM engineers don't have anything to do with the conduit, and they don't pull cables. That's all done by outside contractors, hence why VM know so little about it.All they know is that it needs to be done, so someone needs to come out and find the blockage, then someone needs to dig up the road and fix the blockage, then someone needs to try and pull a cable.

You can get customer services to send out an engineer before the above is done but they'll just turn up, shrug, and leave.

Getting the ombudsman involved won't do anything whatsoever as you are not guaranteed service in any particular time frame. It could be weeks or months before you get service, and that's assuming that VM don't decide it's not worth the hassle some time along the way.

[andywolfy]

I appreciate that, but when I spoke to the 'preinstallation' team last week I was told the engineer that was coming on Saturday would be able to tell me exactly what work needed to be done, what the delays were and when I could expect it to be resolved. The engineer new none of this which was not a surprise to be honest.

[andywolfy]

Another 25 minute phone call today trying to get an update on this fiasco. Customer service was very apologetic and insisted they would get me some answers today. Put me through to the pre-intall team and I was disconnected.

I still have no information about the delays or when this will be resolved. Virgin media have today connected 2 of my neighbours and spoken to a 3rd about connection.

I can't be bothered dealing with them any more today but next time I contact them this order will be cancelled.

[Akua_A]

We truly apologise that this issue is ongoing @andywolfy.

This is certainly not ideal and we want to best help. Have you had any update from our team via email since posting? If so what was discussed?

Thanks,

[andywolfy]

Nope, nothing. To be honest everyone says they want to help but no-one ever does.

Unless you're gonna perform a miracle all I really want to know is when you are coming to remove the trunking from my road. 

[andywolfy]

For the sake of completeness this is the content of my last attempt to contact Virgin Media via their complaints system. This complaint was submitted with reference C-2308211008:

Despite numerous attempts by me to find out what is happening with my order you have failed to provide any information at all. Everytime I phone you I receive the same 'I really want to get this resolved' story, get passed to someone else and am promptly disconnected.

You have had 3 months to connect my service and have failed to do so, yet you have managed to connect my next door neighbour and lay the groundwork for connecting a 2nd neighbour. Neither of these had even moved into their properties when I placed my order.

Cancel my order and arrange for someone to remove the conduit from my road.

Please be aware that West View Terrace is a private road and my property boundary extends to the middle of the road, including the pavement. You can verify this on the landregistry.gov.uk website.

Please also be aware that any wayleave previously given or implied with respect to my property is hereby revoked. If you wish, therefore, to connect number 15 you will have to approach from Albert Avenue.

A written response is required to this matter.

I doubt very much that I will get a response to this, especially considering that the complaint does not appear on my account (despite being logged in when I placed the complaint). Regardless of whether or not I receive a response this will be my last attempt to communicate with Virgin Media.

[andywolfy]

For completeness I have now put in a complaint via the web service informing Virgin Media to cancel this order. This complaint has reference c-2308211008 but does not appear in my account so I cannot track it. For the record here is the content:

-------------------------------

Despite numerous attempts by me to find out what is happening with my order you have failed to provide any information at all. Everytime I phone you I receive the same 'I really want to get this resolved' story, get passed to someone else and am promptly disconnected.

You have had 3 months to connect my service and have failed to do so, yet you have managed to connect my next door neighbour and lay the groundwork for connecting a 2nd neighbour. Neither of these had even moved into their properties when I placed my order.

Cancel my order and arrange for someone to remove the conduit from my road.

Please be aware that West View Terrace is a private road and my property boundary extends to the middle of the road, including the pavement. You can verify this on the landregistry.gov.uk website.

Please also be aware that any wayleave previously given or implied with respect to my property is hereby revoked. If you wish, therefore, to connect number 15 you will have to approach from Albert Avenue.

A written response is required to this matter.

-----------------------------------

That is all, I am done!

[jem101]

@andywolfy seriously, you’ve done the right thing, if nothing else, your blood pressure will thank you! Assume that VM just don’t want or are too incompetent to gain your custom and look elsewhere.

To be honest, probably for the majority of their customers VM works just fine, but, as you have found, when it goes wrong or something even slightly out of the ordinary happens, then it all falls apart catastrophically.

Now frankly, the chances of you getting a written response to your message is vanishingly close to zero, paradoxically, it wouldn’t surprise me if now, fifteen different construction crews turn up tomorrow morning and start fighting over who is going to get you connected up.

Such is the way these things seem to work! Keep a watch out to see if in a couple of months when all has been forgotten, they don’t start digging your land up on the grounds that ‘well haven’t you ordered and VM connection?’

All the best.

John

[andywolfy]

@jem101 I have I have just got off the phone with them and after telling them I want to cancel my install they have actually provided me with some information. It turns out that the crew who put the conduit in the road were a bunch of cowboys and didn't do it properly. Apparently they now have to reroute the conduit which involves digging along a public road, hence the delay getting a permit from the council. This should also affect the property next door as the only conduit to their property at present is the one in my road.

The work is due to be completed by the first week in September, 6 weeks from when it was scheduled. Why I was not given this information on any of the other occassions when I have contacted them for an update shows just how little this company think of there customers.

The bloke I spoke to was very appologetic and said I will be compensated for the delays. We shall see.