Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

Ive never tried answering any of these mailshots, but i agree they are annoying.
Atm i have had cable just over 2 yrs and the phone with NTL, but no digital tv.
Yet they send me everything to do with what i have, and very little if anything about digital tv. My point of view is why keep sending me out offers i cant have, i'm on 1.5 meg, so i cant even be upgraded there. Still its their paper to waste, but i'd rather it went to people who might read it. ;)

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

Just a little true story about what is happening to my daughter at the moment that I think illustrates more than one get out clause is possible.

Some weeks ago my daughter and her boyfriend moved into a house in Leicester, postcode LE3 9xx. Just before they moved the boyfriend was approached by a NTL salesperson in a shopping centre who persuaded him to sign up for Digital TV, telephone and Broadband.

An install date was arranged but NTL did not turn up. A new install date arranged and guess what? They didn't turn up. After each no show and after every problem experienced throughout this tale either my daughter or her boyfriend rang NTL on their mobile to try to get matters sorted out. It has cost them a fortune in mobile phone calls and it has olso cost myself and others a fortune when having to ring them on thjeir mobiles because of their lack of a landline.

Eventually a NTL installer did arrive and one of the first things he told them was that he couldn't complete the install as it would need a two man team to pull cables through to the property. He said he would do the internal work as far as he could in readiness for them.

A few days later the second install team arrived and pulled the cables. They installed a STB and told my daughter that it would take a few hours to get the channels sent to it. They then asked them about the broadband and what was their telephone number. The installers said that they knew nothing about the broadband and didn't have a modem for them. They also said that NTL should have already informed them of their new telephone number but as they hadn't they dialled a certain number which told them the number of that line.

Off went the installers leaving another call to NTL to be made. Just as they were about to use their new phone for a free call at last to NTL the phone rang. A foreign gentleman speaking his native language was on the other end. As they were trying to work out what he wanted another foreign voice came on the line. It transpired that their new line was connected to an existing line of another customer and both their telephones rang when someone called the number. Another call to NTL who said that the problem would be sorted out in a few days and the engineer would install the broadband as well as sorting out the telephone.

Afew days later they still did not have all the channels they should have and also discovered that they had analogue TV instead of digital with a STB that looked out of the ark.

Eventually an engineer arrived to sort out the telephone and broadband. What broadband was his response when asked about it. Another lengthy call to NTL resulted in them being told that DTV and BB were not available in their area. Pushing this with NTL they were then told that it would be about a year before DTV and BB were available to them but they were trying to link them to the other side of the road which had DTV and BB availability.

So the only part of their order that was done correctly was the telephone. Wrong!!!!! The next time they tried to use the phone there was nothing there, dead as a dodo.

Now I don't think in this case that NTL could force them to stay for 12 months. do you? With all the problems they have endured, all the time that they have had to waste waiting for install teams that didn't arrive, all the money they have had to spend using their mobiles ( not only for calls to NTL but also every other call that could have been made from the contracted landline)and the hours spent on the phone they should qualify for everything free for the 12 months. I should also get a free month for what it has cost me ringing their mobiles instead of their NTL landline at 5p per hour.

There is a moral to this story, but daughters have an habit of thinking they know better than their parents. ;)

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

BT use 3 month contracts though.

As for the offer. Cancel your service and then signup again, make your appointment for the same day (if you really want to go to Ntl for your services).

On the point about there being no get out clause, in fact there dosen't need to be. If Ntl cant provide you with a service to the spec they advertised (as happened with me) you can get out anyway :)

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

I don't understand what this would achieve :confused: the offer is only for new customers.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

Yes it is but I have also known NTL customers get these offers infact one person has had three different offers in the last 2 yrs. Maybe if the powers at be could look at ways to allow a perk for those who have stayed loyal customers far beyond the 12 month contract... then they wouldn't be loking for ways to get the perks used to bribe new customers into signing on the dotted line...........

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

Ok so I'm probably going to get spanked for not searching for the answer to this but here goes.....

How long do I have to wait between cancelling my contract and asking for a new one to be considered as a new customer?

I was thinking of going for the broadband again.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

Not for broadband they don't.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

That wouldn't work. You'de advised that as you'd had services in the last 12 months you were ineligible.

That's correct...if the service cannot be provided correctly and ntl are unable to fix it, then of course you won't be held to contract.

The whole point of contracts is not to 'screw' customers....if the company totally stuff up, they'll not try and pin you to contract. It's to protect the company against people who sign up, allow ntl to install (at great cost to the company) and then weeks later say 'I've changed my mind' and then start ranting when they are told 'hard luck'.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

It's classed as 12 months in most cases.

What region are you in?

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

ok some points to make as to why I am peeved off.

1 - Like kits I had no such discount when I signed up I paid the full price the same as existing customers.
2 - Yes it is true BT and other companies do similiar things to get new customers but they dont send out the leaflets to existing customer's this is the main difference, why do I want to know about a special offer that I cannot get? This is what made me upset in the first place.
3 - Existing customers do get discounts, but it seems to be pot luck in if you can get it or not, like Kits mentioned the 1 guy who had it 3 times in 2 years, I know a friend who has been paying 24.99 for the top tier package for a year.
4 - "Offers are discretionary and if one isnt offered to you then tough luck" Sorry I dont buy this, if NTL are not prepared to give me this deal then dont send me the crap in the post that offers it.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

The fact still stands - you don't qualify for a discount.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

There are two main reasons why NTL (or any company for that matter) give discounts. To win new customers and to retain customers that they are in danger of losing. The services that NTL provide are ones that you don't change every week unlike things like grocery shopping where you can shop at different outlets every week and loyalty discounts can affect your choice.

NTL and many other companies have retention departments who look at every cancellation to see if there is any way that they can retain the customer and what the costs / losses will be. If you were to ring them up and demand a discount or else you will cancel your services you will probably be offered nothing. If you actually give notice that you are cancelling then you may be offered some incentive to stay.

It probably costs NTL less to include a offer leaflet with every bill that it sends out than it would to be selective and only insert leaflets with the bills of customers who may benefit from the offer.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

They do...........I always used to get rubbish about coming back to BT (through the letter box) when I was a BT Customer and Getting Sky Digital Family Pack when I was with Sky Sports and Movies. Or a classic in the BT bill, get Broadband when my exchange wasnt even enabled.

Its Junk mail every company does it with offers.

You can tell, if its a offer specifically targetted at you it will most likely have your name on and come in its own envelope

If its something everyone gets, it will just be a flyer. The person who puts the leaflets in wont know who subscribes to what.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

What is the moral to the story?

Other than them going somewhere else? where this is equally likely to happen.

Unfortunately in this country with every single communications company, its luck of the draw, obviously on this occassion they have had the worst possible experience with ntl.

Not one single one provides exceptional levels of service be it BT, ntl or Sky, and if they fail to provide you with a service they arent partcularly bothered because there are plenty of mugs out there who will contniue paying and not bother complaining aout substandard service.

Re: how to get discounts? the latest half price offer
 

I'm in bedfordshire.