Ntl On Watchdog
 

Im happy to see that a lot of people complained to watchdog im glad to see that watchdog did take notice of my call unlike NTL do

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Just watched that myself

NTL only care about new customers or old ones taking more services, Cos NTL only try to make shareholders happy

They dont care how these new customers are added

I install for NTL (3 days left)

You can not get the right tools (I still using borrowed and my own tools to make up)

You can not get right equiptment (Once I went 3 weeks with no new drill bit cos they not ordered any, Once blunt you can not exit without hammer and blowing out)

You can not get the right consumables (Lots of install items not always avaliable)

Oh and you def. dont get enougth time (Try doing 10 installs in a day and you live over one hour from town of install)

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

To be honest i'm very suprised it's only now that NTL have hit watchdog...

Let's be honest here we all know NTL have the worst customer services of any company, even british gas and that takes some beating!

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

They've been featured before, I believe.

And on the CS side, I personally think BT/Sky are just as bad. I waited 45 minutes to get through to Sky a few weeks ago - never had to do that with ntl (although I know others have).

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Actually, periodically ntl do feature on watchdog. Indeed sooner or later any large company providing services to the British public will cross swords with Watchdog.

It's not to say that those complaining to Watchdog did not have a legitimate issue, more that the very nature of Watchdog is that is highlights complaints rahter than the silent majority who are satisfied. Indeed that is alos true of this forum, in that we frequently attract those that have an issue, rather than those that are happy.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Funniest thing was the article on spam where people were saying they get 30 to 40 bits of spam a day. With the ntl: filtering we don't hardly any ! (or at least I don't). Perhaps ntl: isn't all bad......

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

what gives them the right to delete my email :mad: providing spam filtering is fine but it should be user controllable

not just drop anything NTL consider to be spam as what NTL consider to be spam I might consider to be an imporant email

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

You can alter the spam filtering manually via webmail if I remember correctly :)

EDIT: Thought so...

[img]Download Failed (1)[/img]

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Are you a contractor or in house installer,(didn't think in house installers existed anymore). If you are a contractor, I.E Kellys or Cobra or whoever i suggest you make your complaints to your employers as they are the ones that provide you with the equipment and stores ect

---------- Post added at 21:34 ---------- Previous post was at 21:33 ----------

You can never please some folk!!:rolleyes:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

I take it you mean "cross swords with Watchdog"... :rofl:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

So true, so true.. NTL are great when its working, but their CS is amongst the WORST in the world. Merging with Telewest is just going to make things more complicated.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

all companies that deal with there customers over telephones are all bad in my opinion

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

So what do you suggest ntl do? Have teams of staff stationed at every cabinet? :rolleyes:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

totally agree and disagree on some fronts.....

okay how many call centers do you guys/gals use all the time or have to dial into often?

have to say that the amount of time that I had to call NTL (got lucky a couple of times that India wasnt working) and was helped very professionally with India they do everything from a script so yeah then you dont get a real good service if you know what you talking about.

I myself work in a call center and thankfully NOT for English as my own honest opinion is that the English (not against any of you) are sometimes the most demanding people (rude and obnoxious) you can have on the phone.

okay Paul11974 say you have a problem with your computer and the company that you got it from doesnt deal with phone calls then what you going to do?

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

I was a BT customer for over 10 years and never had any problems with them! I know they are really slow to repair a line but other than that I can't fault them!

As for sky I have nothing bad to say about them, when I was with them I never had a problem. The turn around for repairs was three days. I found that with NTL it's next day which is good but that may be cause they have a depot just down the road from me! ;)

When I used to call sky I would normally have my call answered within five mins, this could be as much as 20 mins if there was any majour problems but this was very rare!

Everytime I call NTL i am either on hold for anything up to 30 mins or I get a message telling me there is 50 or so people waiting for an advisor and to call back???

50 customers on hold for a company the size of NTL and they can't cope????

The only reason why I went for NTL was for faster BB as I could only get 1MB via my BT line, and I thought it would be easier to pay for all services in one!

How wrong I was!

I love NTL's services and when everything works all is ok, but once you call customer services for anything god help you!

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

In which case i take my moan about their spam filtering back, I very rarely use webmail and tend to always use a pop3 client so i didn't know that option was there. :tu:

pretty sure it wasnt there last time i used webmail but that was quite a while ago :shocked:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

i caught a bit of the programme and all i can say is that i have had cable for 8 years and the broadband for just over 2 years. and in all this time i have logged 1 fault which rectified itself and the only fault i have had withthe broadband was a network fault
i have also had no problems or waiting to get through to them regardless of the time of day, my longest wait was between 5 - 10 minutes, also when you ring them on the recording it tells you what the waiting time is also it gives you the option to leave name and number to be called back
all my bills have been correct and in the past 8 years i have never had to complain about anything also i have no problems with the internet
i am very happy with the service that i have received and hopefully will continue to receive:angel:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Hi happygolucky, and :welcome: to CF!

Glad to hear there's at least one happy customer! ;)

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

ok my post is based on problems my father had with his ntl connection where he was put on hold again again and again and fobbed of with lies time and time again and after 40 minutes on the phone he was told ntl will be there in the morning. This went on for weeks and all that solved it was a email to the top in the end. Myself has never had any real major issues with ntl and my problems have allways been fixed by ntl or this and other forums have helped me fix them . But when dealing with people over the phoneline it is oh so easy to fob them off and make the customer angry. I must also praise ntl however i have now noticed that when you phone them up to change a package they keep you on the phone till the very end when the services you have added/removed have been actioned so a very good move on ntls part and hey ive been on cable since the nynex days and overall im pretty happy with the service or i would have stuck with bt.I just think we like a good nag sometimes and ntls name seems to fit the bill :Yikes:

---------- Post added at 22:59 ---------- Previous post was at 22:50 ----------

ALSO NTLS RESPONSE TO WATCHDOG


We agree that the standard of service experienced by the customers featured on your programme is unacceptable and we apologise to them and to any other customers who have experienced similar problems. We have investigated each of the cases, and have taken action to resolve the matters and to learn from them to help avoid future repetition.

"However, to put the cases into perspective: today, NTL has 3.3 million residential customers using over 6 million services. In the past 12 months we managed the process of moving home for over 350,000 customers and received 24 million calls about a wide variety of matters. Yet, the number of complaints reduced to 0.31 per cent and customer recommendation has improved by two per cent over the past four months. While any complaint is one too many, we have seen real progress through 2005 with the number of complaints received directly by NTL falling by over ten per cent.

"Last year we highlighted an investment of over £100 million to replace a multiplicity of outdated facilities and systems. This ongoing programme of product and service enhancement continues and is our number one priority."

Background information

Over the past year we have introduced a raft of new processes and initiatives which together with additional training and the introduction of specialised teams are contributing to the ongoing improvement in performance levels. Additional investment in customer response and feedback mechanisms means we can accurately gauge service levels and react appropriately. For instance:

* New call centre technology has been introduced which helps us to keep customer waiting times to a minimum.
* We have overhauled our processes and introduced a dedicated team to ensure that customers moving house and transferring their services find the experience as smooth as possible.
* Field-based staff have undergone intensive training and new working times have been introduced with the result that 87 per cent of customers surveyed (September to November 2005) who had a fault were satisfied with the engineer who came out. This continues to improve.
* Calling ahead to our customers on the day of their appointment is now standard practice and the majority of our customers also receive confirmation details via text message.
* In response to customer feedback, new call centre opening hours have been introduced. We operate three UK call centres, employing 3,000 people in customer services. We have recruited significantly for the call centres and continue to do so.
* New procedures are now in place to help in the handling of deceased customer accounts, change of address billing and the auditing of erroneously high bills.
* Billing processes have been revised, a new simplified bill design is being introduced and specific explanation pages are being included to inform customers how charges and transactions have been calculated.
* We are developing a Customer Charter that will outline in black and white our vision of what our customers can expect from us.
* Our products continue to improve: over £5m has been invested to make our internet customers among the best protected on the internet with new anti-virus and anti-spam initiatives making a significant difference; we have introduced Video on Demand to our digital TV service which has had outstanding feedback from customers; new self-help online tools have been launched which will analyse a customer's PC to check and solve problems automatically.
* Customers continue to save money by choosing NTL in comparison to other providers. For instance, we offer the opportunity to have three services (TV, Telephone and Internet) for £33 per month. This cuts bills by over £100 a year.

Results:

* Customer recommendation has improved by two per cent over the past four months.
* In December, of customers surveyed post-call, 82 per cent said they were satisfied with the service they received on the call.
* On average over the past 12 months customer calls have been answered in just over three minutes.
* The number of complaints received has reduced over the past year to 0.31 per cent.
* We have measured a genuine improvement in service, product performance and customer advocacy.

NTL is more customer focused now than at any point in its recent history. We will continue to place the customer at the centre of our business with real and sustained focus on areas that affect the customer experience, from answering the phone promptly to resolving complaints at the first time of asking.

Cases featured on the programme

* Mrs Bloomfield - We are very sorry that this unfortunate sequence of events occurred at what was already a very difficult time. It was not NTL's intention to cause any frustration or upset and in September 2005 we contacted Mrs Bloomfield both by telephone and writing to offer our apologies and resolve the issues.
* Mr Easton Meade - During a third party investigation into an outstanding debt Mr Meade was unfortunately involved in a case of mistaken identity. We have since established with the third party that the person involved was another man of the same name. We have apologised to Mr Meade and ensured that this error has been corrected.
* Mr Adam Cameron - We have spoken to Mr Cameron and apologised that because of an error his original account was not fully cancelled and he subsequently continued to be billed after he moved house. Our processes are constantly under review and we recognise that on this occasion we failed to meet the customer's requirements. We have cancelled all accounts and have arranged for the appropriate credits and backdated refunds to be applied.
* Mr Brendon Airey on behalf of Mr Peter Airey - The issues highlighted by Mr Airey have been investigated fully. Although any service is liable to faults, we recognise that Mr Airey and his family have encountered more than their fair share whether attributable to ourselves or to third parties. We have arranged for our technicians to complete a full service health check and if any further goodwill credits are due these will be applied.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

oops: - I've corrected that now :(

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Well said. Totally happy with my ntl experience.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Everyone has a diffrent experance with every company they call - I will NEVER use o2 again as every month after taking the money from my account they would send a balif round to the house. Ususaly had to wait about 2 hours to speak to someone who could help (being put on hold about 30 times - I did keep asking which department I was talking to and when I called the next time was told its not thier deaprtent) - ended up demaing to speak to the head of custoemr services.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

I've been an ntl customer for some years, have phone, internet and recently, TV with them. There have been problems, yes, but the ntl staff have always been polite and helpful, and problems sorted out in a reasonable time.
I emailed this info to Watchdog as well.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

I would suggest that every company has a "silent majority" of customers that are happy - or they wouldn't be in business. The problem comes when the unhappy minority starts growing in size - that's when they get featured on programmes like Watchdog.

In my nine-plus years with ntl I maintained that they were always OK as long as you didn't need to call them. This, IMHO, got worse towards the end rather than better. Before the centralisation of call centres you at least took your chances that the person you phoned knew what they were talking about. Now you know before you call that they don't. After my cancellation escapades it's extremely clear to me that there are elements of the system and people that plainly do not work - if I hadn't spent over ten hours on the phone trying to do their jobs for them then I would have probably called Watchdog too as I was getting nowhere fast (and being insulted by a nasty person in the Moves dept to boot).

Fortunately I Sky+'d Watchdog last night, so I will find out what it's all about later - but it sounds to me like similar problems to my experience.




I'd like detailed information as to where the statistics come from. What is a complaint? How is it recorded? I gave my new address three times to three people and that wasn't recorded, let alone my disatisfaction with the fact. Indeed even when my complain was taken to the "Executive Office" there was no trace of my complaint on my notes or the person I spoke to. So I dispute ntl's offer of those figures as pure misinformation, until proven otherwise.

Granted, call times are lower now than ever. As is the chance of speaking to someone that knows what they are talking about. What has increased is the rudeness of the staff - if that was possible.

Ho ho ho! This is the wonderful Moves and Transfers department. The only department that "doesn't talk to customers" but has a call queue of customers waiting to talk to them. It is also the worst department in ntl that I have dealt with. I gave my new address to one guy in this department on 31st October who assured me that he had all the info and he'd personally take care of it. Two weeks later I got to speak to him again, and he flatly denied speaking to me. No record of my call, no notes. This is also the department that has one "manager" who takes it upon herself to be verbally abusive rather than admitting their mistakes and sorting it out. The actual manager of the department talks the talk, very good with customers, says all the right things and then does absolutely naff all afterwards. So don't get me started on this "dedicated team". I find the offer from ntl of this bullet point personally offensive.


Yes, I'm sure customers fed back that we wanted to be able to contact them in shorter opening hours, and not at all on Sundays.

Is this like one of those shampoo adverts. We surveyed 12 people and 86% said their hair looked better? No-one asked me. Even so, 18% of customers are by nature disatisfied - that's nearly 600,000 customers. Oops.

I'm looking forward to watching the programme now!

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Congratulations to the Moves and Transfers, after a few minutes conversation with them today, they agreed to call me back in 20 minutes with an appointment for an engineer. I gave very little notice, days in fact because the move was a bit badly planned due to problems with the keys, so I was not expecting anything soon.

Got a call back inside of ten minutes with an extremely fast installation date, much quicker than my previous move with ntl 6 years ago, so I would say that they have improved, and the efficiency in my opinion has improved as well, no complaints here.

So, worse department in ntl? Not based on my experience no, nor those of my family and friends who have had to deal with moves and transfers as well. :)

---------- Post added at 12:37 ---------- Previous post was at 12:31 ----------

Well done that man, and :welcome: to the site :)

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

You've not moved yet... ;)

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

No true :)

BUT, in fairness, they have yet to let me down with an appointment. There is of course always a first time for anything.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

In fairness, I think you need to stop counting your chickens ... I don't wish for it to go pear shaped for you but be warned, moving day is when it all seems to go wrong, if it is going to go wrong.

Post back from your installed-and-working broadband connection when your house move is complete, and let us know what happened. :D

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Lucky you, when we first got Sky+ installed we had to wait a P!$$ Taking 2 weeks to get our box repaired and then it got replaced so we lost all our saves on the HD. 4 box`s later and were now jumped ship

42 Minutes on hold to Sky the otherday at 8p a minute thats a nice profit considering NTL charges 0800 so even if i was stuck o nhold for hours with NTL it`s freecall anyway

On their 0800 Freephone number..

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Indeed i can back you up on that. Had Sky+ installed the other day. works fine and i am happy with it. However they have charged me for december even when i did not have the service. Sky's customer service has since fixed that, However the point of my post.

*********49 mins waiting to talk to a customer service agent then 20 mins to fix the problem.*************

They are taking the **** in my eyes, i hope this is not the norm for Sky's customer service levels or i will only be with them for 12 months, Or untill the NTL pvr is up and running.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

What number were you calling? The Sky Customer Service number or the Sky+ Customer Service number?

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

08702404040

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

No idea which number that is, but on your box if you go Services then telephone numbers you'll see there is a number for Sky and one for Sky+. I've found that if you call the Sky+ number you get through faster

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

will remember that :tu:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

After the NTL assault on Watchdog last night I felt that I must comment...
Maybe NTL did deserve, what was in my opinion, the rather one sided attack; but I want to post in NTL's defence.
I had problems after a contractor botched my NTL installation, NTL then spent 2 weeks sending me various new remote controls to add to my growing collection, and then failed to show for the second appointment.
I complained via this website, and by telephone, and my case was immedietley taken up by NTL's Director of Fault Management, David Earlam. He appointed his PA Claire Gwillam who wasted no time in solving my problem. She arranged for the senior technician for the Staffordshire area to visit my house and, at my convenience, and the fault was repaired.
David Earlam himself then called a week later, at 7:00pm in the evening...!!!, to ensure that everything was ok, and to inform me that they would be giving me a months free services.
And, and I'll probably regret saying this (touch wood) the service has been excellent since.
So in my experience NTL acted brilliantly.
And I have now have a fantastic remote control collection to show visiting friends and family...!!!

Paul.T

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

I'm glad you had a positive experience, but bear in mind that Watchdog's report was only 'one sided' because NTL wouldn't put anyone up for interview.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

That just sums it up really then doesn't it! ;)

Obviously NTL know they are in the wrong hense hide in the corner and keep your mouth shut until it all blows over! :dozey:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Bill Q's to get through to sky c/s have been taking to long for the last couple of months.
tbh with the software upgrade next week which usually causes more problems I cant see these q times reducing for the next month or so till then if you have not already got it use this free phone number need to press option 3 0800 731 6965

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Another good bit of info to keep :tu:

Thanks :)

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Our queues have been consistently 11-15 mins max wait since Xmas, from about 9am until 10pm. Not just ntl but it's the busiest period of the year as people have had new PCs, internets, stuff like that for xmas...

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

This really hurts.... I've been a Senior Service Tech for 8 years at NTL and 10 years previous at BT. When I was at BT on Business most customers complaints related to CS, this is exactly the same at NTL.
When I visit a customers property I make sure everything is working as do all in-house service techs I know in the North West.
We are totally let down by Tech Support, Customer Services, installs, Sales and senior management.

Moan over i feel a lot better now.....

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

See, most people in those positions would see it exactly the opposite way... Unfortunately, there are far too many people in the company who just don't care.

But I'm not going to get into my opinions on that in a public forum, and I fear we may be veering off topic somewhat!

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Totally agree about the 'dont care' bit, figures are king and it always seems to be somebody elses fault or problem to fix.

As for veering off the topic isnt this what watchdog were highlighting, total lack of communication and care for the customer.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

I sat in a que for 30 mins to Dial a fone and O2 before now and the longes ive sat in a que for NTL is about 7 mins. Which i can appriciate i guess, you dont get everything at a snap of the fingers

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Indeed, the theme of the Watchdog item was different parts of NTL not talking to each other.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Just make sure you keep your head down. The senior Managers only have one thing on there minds at the moment and that is, Is my **** protected come the merger, So they will do anything that makes there figures look good in the short term, But will not help the customer in the long term .

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

when was NTL shown on watchdog?

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Good because i want to know why they are blocking my website, btw is over 13 freindly :mad:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

I think the merger will be worse than the cwc/ntl one, the managers with expert skills in survival are the ones remaining.

I reckon the underhanded tactics will be worse this time around, you probably remember seeing and hearing the promises about tiers of management. We just sat back and watched our region create another couple of tiers of managers, place some engineers miles away under another manager so he could keep his job, and to create and give technical management jobs to some shiny ar**ed office woman as a favour for services rendered. I was also told by a boastful manager from cwc about a department highly populated by contractors, he had kept them on for about 12 months without work so he could get rid of them in the cut backs to save his empire.

Lets just hope that Telewest come out on top in the engineering battle, and some of the old ntl hangers on are shown the door this time. I doubt it though, skills had very little to do with it last time.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Engineer in by 10 AM

Telephone line with my old number up and running in minutes, broadband worked straight away, TV online and engineer is just running the extention for my second STB.

Lets see, ntl, 100% record with me so far, well done moves and transfers for liasing correctly with installations and keeping their promise of being here on the day they said they would.

Not everybodies experience obviously, but it has been mine, and others many, many times :)

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Yes, but you wait until it doesnt work any more. :)

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

What?????

It's never not worked, my BB connection has been stable for 5 years, when it has gone down its fixed in minutes.

Come on please, a little faith in those who can give a good report on ntl for once.

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Good to hear! :) :tu:

Re: Ntl On Watchdog
 

Well I can't speak for CoBI, Home or Business.

But I do know that ntl have won the Networks side of things and Telewest will be conforming to the ntl:Networks model and group structure.