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Removal of exterior cable

CeeJayBee
Tuning in

I am trying to get cables removed from the exterior of my mother’s house. She does not have an account with virgin media and is simply facilitating virgin media by allowing cables run across the front of her house. Virgin media were paying her a nominal sum (very very nominal ) to allow this but it’s been a serious tussle every year to get VM to pay up. My mother has run out of patience with the unprofessional attitude of VM. The cables WILL be removed by me or by a builder regardless of what VM say. I have complained twice and given the phone number for my mother to VM. I have phoned 4 times (I’m presently on my 5th call) and bar one call, I have been holding on 3 of the calls in excess of 2 hours. Virgin Media - this is a direct message to you - have no doubt, those cables are coming down and this event will occur in the short term. You have the opportunity to come and remove them yourself but if you don’t, my mother is under no legal obligation to keep those cables there. I suggest someone from VM contact me to obtain details for my mother. 

15 REPLIES 15

Hayley_S
Forum Team (Retired)
Forum Team (Retired)

Hello @CeeJayBee,

 

Welcome to the community page, thank you for posting on here.

 

I am sorry for the issues caused with our cables.

 

I would love to try and help you with this, you are not a customer with us are you? If not that is okay, I can still reach out to someone for help.

 

I will send you a private message so I can investigate this further.

 

Many thanks,

Hayley
Forum Team



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jem101
Superstar

@CeeJayBee tempting though it might be, I would seriously advise you to consult a solicitor before doing anything which has the serious potential to come back and smack both you and your mum very, very hard indeed.

The fact that VM were/are paying compensation (however little) would indicate that a formal, legally binding wayleave or easement arrangement was put in place.If that is indeed the case then you might well find out that contrary to what you say, VM could have every legal right to have them there and if you or your builders remove these you (actually more likely to be your mum) will be personally liable for the costs of putting them back as well as all legal costs. Ironically you may end up having to sell the house to pay the bills!

Really not trying to scare, you but these things can be a legal minefield unless investigated fully.

jem101, thank you for your response and your insight. I do appreciate it. I know that if VM were paying a sum, however nominal, they are within their legal rights to maintain the cable running across my mother’s house. However, they have stopped doing this with the result that my mother is no longer in any contract with them and has been outside of a contract for several months. Once it’s outside a contract, then VM have no legal rights whatsoever and if they refuse to remove the cable, I can get it removed myself. 
But….there is some light at the end of the tunnel. After 3 calls lasting 2 hours plus, and 1 call of 1 hour and 13 minutes, plus two complaints sent to VM quoting their case ID (and threatening to report them to com reg) someone has finally got in touch with my mother and I hope the issue will be resolved. Part of the problem here is that virgin media made promise after promise, all of which were broken. They said they’d ring me back - they didn’t. They told me a letter had been sent to my mother on the 20th of July. It wasn’t. I was assured the check was actually posted on the 26th of July - yes, you guessed it - it disappeared into the ether o of ‘it’s in the mail’ never to be seen again. Posting my issue up on this forum was last ditch. I went through all other avenues to get this resolved before posting this. Nothing worked. 
So yes, you are correct in saying that if my mother has a contract with VM, then the cable must stay. But if there is no contract, then it comes down whether VM like it or not. 

Keep us posted!




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Hayley_S
Forum Team (Retired)
Forum Team (Retired)

Thank you for talking to me in a private message @CeeJayBee.

 

This is currently being dealt with as you explained.

 

Please do let us know how it goes.

 

Many thanks,

Hayley
Forum Team



New around here? To find out more about the Community check out our Getting Started guide


Lotharmat, will do. 

CeeJayBee
Tuning in

I posted a complaint a month ago and guess what, Virgin Media have not resolved the issue. The complaint is exactly the same, Virgin Media are refusing to remove a cable across the front of my mother's home. A note to Virgin Media management - I don't blame your staff for this state of play, I blame the greed and utterly unprofessional attitude of Virgin Media who think that I am going to simply give up. Please let me assure you, I won't. Virgin Media, your customer service is appalling, disgraceful, atrocious, truly truly awful and totally shocking. How are you still in business? How? It's baffling. In my life, I have never seen anything so bad. Promise after promise after promise after promise after promise to remove this cable and all broken. Calls that are never followed up. Undertakings that aren't kept. How are you still in business? How have you not been shut down completely? Are you aware that the average wait time for someone who has the misfortune to call you is TWO HOURS PLUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Two hours plus!! T.W.O. H.O.U.R.S

19th July, Spoke to Daniel - call took 1 hour and 28 minutes. 26th July, waited TWO HOURS AND THREE MINUTES and spoke to Owen. 26th July, second call, held for TWO HOURS AND THIRTEEN MINUTES. Spoke to Lisa. Lisa assured me that correspondence had been sent to my mother on the 26th of July and on the 20th of July. No sign of either letter - disappeared with Gollum along with his 'precious' on the way to Mordor. On the 5th of August, I phoned VM AGAIN and waited for ONE HOUR AND FIFTY FIVE MINUTES. This time I spoke to Ian who gave me a complaint number, ticket number. Nearly 8 hours holding over 4 calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

On the 10th of August, I sent in a written complaint to Virgin Media via their website. No response. On the 11th of August, I sent a second complaint to VM. Still no response. On the 11th of August, I posted my first comment to the VM Community. I have the first ticket number but VM cheekily insist on giving me newer ticket numbers in the hopes that it won't look like this complaint has been outstanding for weeks. A more up to date number doesn't make it look so bad. Virgin Media - let me tell you, there is nothing that is going to make you look worse. It's just not possible.

On the 11th of August, I tried also to contact VM via WhatsApp messages - AMAZINGLY!!!!!!! , they don't seem to be working.

My mother has been phoned at her home number and advised that she will be phoned back within a few days to confirm that action will be taken - hasn't happened. Someone called Catherine phones my mother and assures her that she will make arrangements to get the cable removal people out - that hasn't happened either. On the 28th of August, I was sent a text message and an email from Virgin Media promising me faithfully that you are working 'hard' to resolve the complaint. I hope you're sitting down because this is going to come as a shock - I haven't heard anything since then. Virgin Media just keep stringing people along in the hopes that we will give up.  

Let me make it clear to you Virgin Media - the cable is going to come down. Have no doubt whatsoever. With your assistance or without. There are at least 12 homes that are linked to this cable running across my mother's home. When the cable comes down, and it's coming down whether you help me or not,  all of those homes will be without service. Virgin Media are going to be sued because you are not supplying service when people are paying for it.  

Please take note - my mother was and I emphasise WAS being paid a truly paltry sum of money to keep this cable running across her home but as the paltry sum was due to be paid at the beginning of July 2021, and taking into account the dozens of calls and emails to get this ridiculously tiny sum of money paid, my mother has decided she doesn't want to be paid and she simply wants the cable to come down. So my mother is not in a contract with Virgin Media, she doesn't want the tiny sum VM were paying, it's just not worth it. My mother wants the cable to come down right now. Please don't send her any money to keep the cable up - the cheque will not be encashed. 

 I would like someone from Virgin Media to come back to me on this. Please respond. I will give you my mother's phone number and the complaint ID. If you do not make arrangements to remove this cable, it will be removed anyway and it is going to be considerably more difficult for Virgin Media to resolve the fact that a dozen homes or more require service that Virgin Media is unable to provide. 

 

 

 

 

 

-tony-
Alessandro Volta

i can add nothing but have flagged your last post to VM - hopefully someone can [actually] resolve this

____________________

Tony.
Sacked VIP

Hi there @CeeJayBee

 

I am so sorry to hear this has happened! I'm going to send you a PM now so we can look into this closer. 

 

Please keep an eye out for the purple envelope in the top right corner alerting you to a new message. 

 

Thank you.