Virgin Media Community

[RJMD]

Hi,

Re-contracted today from Ultimate Oomph with 600Mb to Volt - as I was previously on 600Mb, I should automatically be upgraded to Gig1 as it is in my area, yet the contract says 600Mb - why is this?  Apparently Virgin have no supply of upgraded hubs (I still have a hub 3), so am I not entitled to a discount until they can supply what they've advertised? Why does the contract not specify Gig1, when it should?  Where do I stand with getting the upgrade once routers are available?

Have to admit, I'm not very impressed that you're charging full whack for a service you can't provide. Think I might have a chat with trading standards. Some kind of idea as to when you'll be able to provide hubs might be good as well - frankly I don't care about chip shortages or any other excuses, if you advertise a service and take payment for it you should be able to provide it.

JD

[RJMD]

OK, no response so I've officially raised a complaint with Virgin - you can't advertise gigabit broadband, get someone to sign up to it on that premise, then go "oh, sorry, we can only give you 600Mb as we got no routers - we'll leave this contract at 600"; that is totally unacceptable, and is bordering on fraud.

I'm going to have a chat with trading standards, as it seems Virgin think they can do whatever the hell they please and that is most definitely not the case.

JD

[101Haslam]

I'm faced with a similar issue.

I also upgraded from Ultimate Oomph to Ultimate Volt, with the only difference between the packages being the unlimited sim is now O2 instead of VM and broadband speeds should be boosted from 600Mb to Gig1. When I upgraded I was also told the same speil as OP that the Gig1 is available in my area but the Super Hub 4 was out of stock and I won't be able to get the Gig1 straight away, however, I was told that once they are back in stock I will automatically be sent the Hub 4 and be upgraded to the Gig1 at no extra cost. The next day I get my contract emailed to me and it tells me that I'm still on the M600 with no mention of Gig1 anywhere. Under broadband on MyVirginMedia app, it tells me that one of my Volt benefits is "Your broadband speed has been boosted to the next available level (if you aren't already on the fastest speeds you can get in your area)" but this is not true as I've been on the same speed for almost 18 months.

Since then I have rung Virgin Customer Services multiple times, and spoken to multiple departments (mainly retentions who did the upgrade) to get them to clarify the exact details of my contract. Almost every advisor I have spoken to has been contradictory. Some are saying that it isn't on my package however they can process the upgrade right now and get the Hub 4 posted out to me but there'll be an additional charge, some are saying that I am eligible for the free automatic upgrade once the Hub 4 is back in stock and that I just have to be patient, and others telling me that they can process the free upgrade but their system won't allow them to build the package and process it. I was expecting a callback yesterday (that never came) from one of the advisors, Susanna who was chasing their Team Leader for updates about my problem.

After not receiving the call, I contacted VM once again. This time the advisor informed me that because it's been 15 days since I upgraded I can no longer back out and cancel my contract, however, he advised me that I should complain and get my upgrade call listened to by management and anything that was promised over the phone I'm entitled to receive. He also advised me not to process the complaint today as it would "rock the boat", instead I should wait for Susanna to call me back with an update.

Needless to say, I'm not happy about the whole ordeal.

[RJMD]

Hi, 

You most certainly can cancel your contract,  as you have not been provided with what is advertised therefore Virgin are in breach of contract - I'd advise them of that fact.  As for rocking the boat,  well that's not really an issue - rock away 🙂

JD

[RJMD]

OK, can't get through to Virgin, so I've raised a call with Trading Standards - if anyone from Virgin on here wants to retain a customer that has been with them since the dialup days, now would be the perfect time to attempt to resolve this; by "resolve" I mean either providing me with a Hub4 (like you're doing with new customers) and gigabit as part of my Ultimate Volt contract, or updating the contract to state Gig1 broadband and giving me a discount whilst you try to source a Hub4. I won't tolerate being treated like a second class customer.

JD

[RJMD]

40 minutes on hold waiting to get through to someone - just how incompetent is your company that you can't even support your existing customers?

JD

[RJMD]

And after 50 odd minutes, got answered - spoke to a lovely lady who said she'd see if she could put Gig1 on the package, and then promptly cut me off. For a telephony provider, you're not very good at communicating...

JD

[Gareth_L]

Hello RJMD,

Thanks for your post 

Sorry though to hear about the issues you have had 

Can I just ask if anything has changed since your last post 

Gareth_L

[RJMD]

Hi Gareth,

I've had confirmation that I will be upgraded to Gig1 once routers become available, however I'm still not happy that the contract I've signed up to for 18 months only mentions 600Mb - rule one of any contract is to ensure it contains the correct terms; in the event I have issues getting a new hub or gig service later on Virgin will legally be able to wriggle out of it by stating it is not in the contract, which is a position I do not want to be in. I also have no idea when I'll receive a Hub4, despite new customers seemingly getting them as soon as they sign up. Can you give me a date when one will be available, and if not, is it acceptable that new customers are treated better than those who have been with you in excess of 20 years? 

JD

[RJMD]

And the funniest thing is.....

Today I logged onto the Virginmedia site to see if I could change my package to something cheaper - as I'm not currently getting Gig1, doesn't hurt to look, right?

First thing I see:-

"Enjoy speeds of up to 1 Gig for just £28 a month for the first 6 months"

Are you seriously taking the p.....? I bet if I signed up to that today under my wife's name, a new Hub 4 would miraculously appear....

JD