Virgin Media Community

[NoExpectations]

Hello everyone,

Nothing new here. Just another disgruntled customer that can't seem to get Virgin Media to carry out an installation. 

I'll try to keep it short. Ordered Broadband from VM on January 2021. Yes. 2021. Apparently though the is some sort of blockage that they need permission from council to dig up and fix. Unfortunate, but not their fault. Then the following happens for 3 to 4 months:

1. Installation person comes round for installation.

2. Notices blockage. Apologises for inability to install and contacts VM.

3. VM apologise and say they will fix the blockage and set a new installation date when done.

4. New installation date is set.

5. Go back to step 1

In that time I had to get temporary broadband which cost me an arm and a leg. Eventually I got so fed up I cancelled and went back to my old provider with my tail between my legs.

Oh and did I get compensated even after making complaints I hear you ask? Well no of course not! This is VM silly! There is no customer service! You are a funny one.

Anyway, I get a sales rep contact me a few months later. I go through my woes and he assures me, we will get it fixed. So I said fine, I don't really care as I know it won't get done. I sign up again, with an installation date around October. 

October rolls around and the tumbleweeds start to build up. Radio silence....... Until April this year. I get a shiny email that my installation date has been set. The. Fated. Day. It's finally arrived. 2nd of April.

Parallel universe me was probably jumping up and down with joy, but current universe me just shrugged it off. Roll around 2nd of April...... well...  please see the steps I have listed above.

It's the 20th of April now and I've just had a bloke from VM come round again today to repeat step 1 again. 

Btw if you guys need a new advertising slogan, I sugges: Virgin Media: We promise your first time will be painful*

*Promises only apply on appointment dates we keep, which is currently 50% of the time. Other T&C's apply.

[Andrew-G]

The previous known record for a delayed installation was twelve months, but I'm confident that it will come as no comfort to know that you're the new record holder.  Don't forget to demand significant compensation in line with Ofcom's rules for the full delay; VM will try and dodge that (as they did with the previous record holder) so you'll need to use the formal complaint route with VM, reject their "resolution" and demand a deadlock letter for the purposes of escalating to CISAS.  At £5 a day you should be on to a winner.

You might also want to check with your council's highways team about VM's claims over permit delays.  As a general rule Section 50 permits are turned round in a couple of days.

[-tony-]

yes and no to the new badge holder @Andrew-G - he made the mistake of cancelling the original install and as we say DONT do that - let it roll on and on and on [add as many as you want] even if you have made the decision to cancel when its finally installed because as we all know once the cancellation goes in all work orders are pulled so its start at square one again - snakes and ladders have nothing on the VM install process

so to the OP whatever happens this time DO NOT CANCEL - if - or is that as and when VM install you have 14 days to cancel at no cost - if you do cancel within that period you know 2 things - the cable is there for you in the future should you choose/be daft enough to give them a chance again and they have spent a considerable amount of money for no return

[Andrew-G]

I must hold my hand up, the error is mine.  And due to the cancellation, I'm afraid @NoExpectations will not (so far) be getting that coveted trophy of "Most Delayed Virgin Media Installation".   

[jem101]

How disappointing, for a while, I was sure we had a new record holder for the title. But having read the thread through it does seem that @-tony- is right and the OP has ‘shegged’ themselves (and according to my teenage daughters, this, indeed is the proper terminology)  by cancelling - so no record for you!

But all is not lost, they have started a new connection request so fingers crossed by May 2023 we can be crowning a new champion - unless, of course VM can extract digit and get the connection sorted out before then?

Nah, who am i kidding?😃

[NoExpectations]

Thank you all for the helpful replies! I appreciate it a lot. I have good news and bad news as an update.

So it is correct that I did cancel the first installation. But that second sign up I did via the sales rep? Well I dug through the emails and the earliest email I can find is one which states that "Your installation date has changed" which I received on 16/04/2021 where the installation date was pushed back to 10/06/2021. (Fun fact, I received another email a day later informing me the installation date had been pushed back to 05/05/2021).

Then I received the mobile sim which was a part of the deal on the 29th April 2021 (which has been unused due to the installation problems. After that the email chain went cold until April this year which prompted this thread. But it is highly likely I just deleted VM installation delay emails on sight for a few more months before things actually went silent from VM side.

So with that in place, am I right in saying I am still 2nd in this race as it we've just had our first anniversary recently? Being the typical man I completely missed it had been a year. Nice to know VM gave me an anniversary gift though by reigniting the installation process.

And what was the previous record holder length if I may ask?

[Kain_W]

Hi NoExpectations,

Thanks for posting and welcome back to the community.

So sorry for the issues faced regarding this installation.

For clarification can I ask, is the delay still affected by the construction work at all?

Also has a complaint been raised on the 2nd account too? 

Thanks,

[Andrew-G]

@NoExpectations am I right in saying I am still 2nd in this race as it we've just had our first anniversary recently? Being the typical man I completely missed it had been a year. Nice to know VM gave me an anniversary gift though by reigniting the installation process.

Your ranking in the Most Delayed Installation League will be against whatever was the first promised date of your second order.  Typically that's promised about ten days to two weeks from the order, looking at the dates I'm assuming that you ordered again on 16th April, and therefore the first promised date was probably around 1st May.  I think we'd rightly be able to use 5 May as that appears to be the first documentary evidence of a company date (even allowing they'd already deferred that later), so you're now at 11 and half months.  In terms of what we see in the forum, this would indeed put you currently at second place in the MDIL, and based on the company's performance you are in a good place to take the MDIL championship come 6th May.  Of course, there's a small but scary chance that VM pull their finger out, connect you in the next three weeks, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory - I'm not sure whether to cross my fingers for you to see a delay that takes you past 6th May or not.  The previous record was exactly 365 days, confirmed to me by PM from the affected customer, although bear in mind that the forum is a pretty small subset of VM's customers, so out there may be somebody who has been strung along for multiple years.  

Now, I'm making light of this, and that's unfair.  This is a massive problem, it affects many customers, Virgin Media's performance is persistently and wretchedly incompetent, it has been going on for years now, contributors to this forum have laid into the company repeatedly, but the utter nincompoop's VM employ for senior management know but just don't care.  But I go back to my first off comment to you - make sure you get every penny of the compensation due to you for a delayed installation, at the Ofcom rate of £5.25 per day.  Council permit delays they wont be liable for that time, the majority of councils will turn round a properly completed section 50 permit from a statutory undertaker in about 48 hours.  You may need to use complaints and CISAS to get this even as a credit to your account, if you cancel and want it as cash then you certainly will have to complain and escalate to CISAS, because VM try and wheedle out of their legal obligations by insisting that compensation is only offered as a credit to a live account.  Under UK consumer law, VM signed a contract with you, they are liable for the delays, and even if you cancel, you have a case for compensation up to the date you cancel.  You'll also see in that line that Ofcom have a note "Compensation should be paid no later than...30 calendar days after a delayed start of a new service is resolved or the service is cancelled". 

VM owe you around £1,800, make sure you get that.  If you need to escalate the matter to CISAS, the company will also be hit with case fees of around £400, which is no benefit to you, but you may feel is a well deserved extra.

[Carley_S]

Hi @NoExpectations, 

I'm sorry that your installation has been delayed. I would highly recommend you opening a complaint which will be assigned to the installation team to investigate the reason why the blockage as not been resolved. If you have not opened a complaint already, please join me on private message so we can pass some security questions and locate the account. You can see your private messages at the top of the page in the envelope icon. 

[-tony-]

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@Carley_S wrote:

Hi @NoExpectations, 

I'm sorry that your installation has been delayed. I would highly recommend you opening a complaint which will be assigned to the installation team to investigate the reason why the blockage as not been resolved. If you have not opened a complaint already, please join me on private message so we can pass some security questions and locate the account. You can see your private messages at the top of the page in the envelope icon. 

---

with respect -  delayed hardly covers it - the customer is coming up to a 1st birthday of the install date and the best VM staff here can offer is raise a complaint - how is that going to help when in all likelihood that complaint will be closed for no given reason other than is thursday or similar