NTL Customer Services: Your personal experience

[Scott_Lee67]

Hi New to this so please forgive any lapses in forum etiquette or if I go on a bit...

Ok, I recently tried to use NTL's website to arrange my home move. Because of the dates that I had entered I was told that I could not proceed and that I would have to contact the normal 0800 052 2000 and speak to the 'Home Move Department'.

Whilst at work I used my mobile thinking that it would be cheap enough to call a freephone number but after a considerable amount of time queuing and £6.44 later, my network cut me off as no more credit!

Eventually with the aid of my girlfriend I was able to get someone from the home move dept to call me back and arrange my home move for the 18th of August.

18th of August whilst I was at work my gf calls me and tells me that the NTL guys are here and don't seem to have a clue what they came to install and were under the impression they were installing a tv package. My gf explained to them that we don't watch tv and they should only be installing the telephone and broadband. Engineer goes out to his van for a minute comes back and confirms that he now knows what he is doing... Gf assumes all ok when engineer says that he is finished but felt a little on the spot when asked to complete the customer satisfaction postcard there and then so he can take it with him...

I get in from work to find another cable modem and a customer welcome pack... Am a little confused as am an existing customer and had all the equipment already. I decided to plug my telephone into its new socket to call them and check but find no socket for one... They only put broadband in! had to go to a local call box to ring them but they were shut! This was just before 6pm, operator that I spoke to said that I could not leave a phone number for them to call me back and that I would have to call them "during office hours".

The next day I call and get through to them quite quickly and a very polite professional person takes my call and informs me that the person that placed the order for the home move put through a cancellation for "telco" (telephone). I only requested that they move my services from one address to another! The operator assures me that he has emailed the person responsible requesting that they call me the next morning... Nobody calls! Another trip to the call box and a different, much less clued up operator on the end of the line... Had to explain the problem again, then again! Operator goes away briefly, comes back and informs me that there is a fault on my telephone line. I agree with her and tell her yes, the fault is that you haven't put one in! (for the 3rd time). Eventually we agree on the earliest possible date (because of my work) for them to come and rectify their mistake for the 3rd of September.

I have been an NTL customer for many years and have always found their customer service to be very inconsistent. Often swinging from the absolutely brilliant to the downright rude and incompetent.

NTL are great when you don't need to speak to them directly but as soon as you need their help or advice they are either a nightmare to get through to or they mess up what is usually a simple task.

This time last year I changed my phone number and the engineer crossed my phone line with a neighbours and we were both sharing a phone line and I was paying the bill and it took an age to sort out!

I'm in the process of drafting yet another letter of complaint and am beginning to wonder if I want to stay with them...

Incidentally I only moved next door so they used the same box and still got it wrong!

Originally Posted by Scott_Lee67

Incidentally I only moved next door so they used the same box and still got it wrong!

Welcome to CF.I have to say that I just laughed in disbelief at your last sentence.Sorry!

I hope you get sorted out without too much trouble.If not then a relevant post in the appropriate forum will surely get you some assistance if things get too out of hand.

[Safeman]

hi i have been with NTHELL for nearly 5 years now... i had a bad one with NTHELL customer services dont know wot there doing sometimes i phone them up i was on the phone for 30 mins before they answered then she said i was in the wrong department so she put me truw to a another person i spoke to them they said you have been transferred to the wrong department ffs when i did get to the right place where i wanted to be in the 1st place. they need to get it right and some of them dont know wot they are doing sometimes they need to get better staff or give them more training coz some of them have not got a glue wots going on and thats a fact a few other people i know have said the same thing...............

[JeLLyMaN]

Never really had any trouble, Called up a few times and stuff and it was sorted out a-ok

[Marge]

Originally Posted by Safeman

they need to get it right and some of them dont know wot they are doing sometimes they need to get better staff or give them more training coz some of them have not got a glue wots going on and thats a fact a few other people i know have said the same thing...............

not being unkind but if you spoke to me on the phone the way you typed, I wouldn't have a glue whats going on either

[cos]

Originally Posted by Undisputedtruth

I can recall several incidence of poor customer services from NTL.

At the moment I'm current going through a bad situation caused by NTL of course. The imbecilles at retentions have managed to disconnect my phoneline without my consent. Being the liars they are, they accused me of giving them my consent but the CS from telephone billings says otherwise.

You may like to read my Blog or even add to it also take a looke here http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...399#post837399
__________________

Originally Posted by Scott_Lee67

Hi New to this so please forgive any lapses in forum etiquette or if I go on a bit...

Ok, I recently tried to use NTL's website to arrange my home move. Because of the dates that I had entered I was told that I could not proceed and that I would have to contact the normal 0800 052 2000 and speak to the 'Home Move Department'.

Whilst at work I used my mobile thinking that it would be cheap enough to call a freephone number but after a considerable amount of time queuing and £6.44 later, my network cut me off as no more credit!

Eventually with the aid of my girlfriend I was able to get someone from the home move dept to call me back and arrange my home move for the 18th of August.

18th of August whilst I was at work my gf calls me and tells me that the NTL guys are here and don't seem to have a clue what they came to install and were under the impression they were installing a tv package. My gf explained to them that we don't watch tv and they should only be installing the telephone and broadband. Engineer goes out to his van for a minute comes back and confirms that he now knows what he is doing... Gf assumes all ok when engineer says that he is finished but felt a little on the spot when asked to complete the customer satisfaction postcard there and then so he can take it with him...

I get in from work to find another cable modem and a customer welcome pack... Am a little confused as am an existing customer and had all the equipment already. I decided to plug my telephone into its new socket to call them and check but find no socket for one... They only put broadband in! had to go to a local call box to ring them but they were shut! This was just before 6pm, operator that I spoke to said that I could not leave a phone number for them to call me back and that I would have to call them "during office hours".

The next day I call and get through to them quite quickly and a very polite professional person takes my call and informs me that the person that placed the order for the home move put through a cancellation for "telco" (telephone). I only requested that they move my services from one address to another! The operator assures me that he has emailed the person responsible requesting that they call me the next morning... Nobody calls! Another trip to the call box and a different, much less clued up operator on the end of the line... Had to explain the problem again, then again! Operator goes away briefly, comes back and informs me that there is a fault on my telephone line. I agree with her and tell her yes, the fault is that you haven't put one in! (for the 3rd time). Eventually we agree on the earliest possible date (because of my work) for them to come and rectify their mistake for the 3rd of September.

I have been an NTL customer for many years and have always found their customer service to be very inconsistent. Often swinging from the absolutely brilliant to the downright rude and incompetent.

NTL are great when you don't need to speak to them directly but as soon as you need their help or advice they are either a nightmare to get through to or they mess up what is usually a simple task.

This time last year I changed my phone number and the engineer crossed my phone line with a neighbours and we were both sharing a phone line and I was paying the bill and it took an age to sort out!

I'm in the process of drafting yet another letter of complaint and am beginning to wonder if I want to stay with them...

Incidentally I only moved next door so they used the same box and still got it wrong!

Please read my Blog I think we should get together on this one, share the cost of the court order parhaps

[MovedGoalPosts]

Originally Posted by cos

That quote is from a post made way back in November 2003. Given the lapse of time, it is a bit late to be raking up past service issues. Let's deal with current events please.

[Nikko]

Originally Posted by Marge

not being unkind but if you spoke to me on the phone the way you typed, I wouldn't have a glue whats going on either

Glue seems to be the operative word here. Not to be sniffed at.

[cos]

Originally Posted by Rob C

That quote is from a post made way back in November 2003. Given the lapse of time, it is a bit late to be raking up past service issues. Let's deal with current events please.

Hello to you too and thankyou for the welcome. I have never come across such a volitile forum has this may be you could learn from www.moneysavingexpert.com.

[Nikko]

Originally Posted by cos

Hello to you too and thankyou for the welcome. I have never come across such a volitile forum has this may be you could learn from www.moneysavingexpert.com.

There is a difference. That site is for those unfortunates who have little aptitude for conducting life with any degree of aplomb, whereas this one panders to those with higher aspirations. As the man above said, welcome.

[cos]

Originally Posted by Nikko

There is a difference. That site is for those unfortunates who have little aptitude for conducting life with any degree of aplomb, whereas this one panders to those with higher aspirations. As the man above said, welcome.

Being one of those so called unfortunates one of the 60000 it probably explains why I was stupid enough to seek advice on this site when all have have received is negativity other than from the Mod Stuart C whom I am greatful too..........

[Nikko]

Originally Posted by cos

Being one of those so called unfortunates one of the 60000 it probably explains why I was stupid enough to seek advice on this site when all have have received is negativity other than from the Mod Stuart C whom I am greatful too..........

This site is inordinately helpful, but like in any walk of life, it depends how you ask.

I am sure someone will be happy to help if you stick around.

[Scott_Lee67]

[QUOTE=Scott_Lee67]Eventually we agree on the earliest possible date (because of my work) for them to come and rectify their mistake for the 3rd of September.[QUOTE]

Ok heres an update for you... Several days after my visit from NTL's 'engineers' (I use that term loosely as it implies a certain degree of expertise!) I got laid off from work so naturally I urgently needed the phone to be calling round for work.. I call NTL and reschedule for Friday 26th (an altogether, relatively painless experience).

On the 25th whilst i'm out cleaning my windows an NTL van turns up and 2 chaps get out. "have you come to install a telephone for me?" I ask them. "No, there's engineers coming tomorrow to do that". They both look into the cable hole outside my wall for some reason. I ask therm what they came for and they tell me that it is to do with the position of the box on the house next door. They ask me if anybody lives there and as I had just moved out I confirm that the house is empty which seems to please them. Apparently, instead of me getting a new box put on the outside of my new house they have just plumbed my connection into the box attached to the house next door where I used to live...

I ask them if this is a temporary arrangement and they say no and that the box will just be moved over to my property. Apparently they did not want to put another box on my wall as their service cabinet is in a precarious position and they weren't willing to risk life and limb with the local traffic to do the cabling...

Anyway, 2 more guys turn up as arranged the next day and simply cable my phone to the box on the wall next door and leave it in that position. This took ten minutes to do so why the guys the previous day couldn't have done it baffles me). They assure me that this is ok and that if anybody else moves in we can simply share the same box.

Several questions arise from this which, I am loathe to approach NTL for answers for given their track record. Which are:

1) Can 2 properties share one wall box?
2) Should the box have been moved over to my property?
3) If somebody does move in next door and uses NTL, won't I be using their cable from the street?

Any answers to these questions would be much appreciated.

Finally, I sent a complaint off to NTL but as yet no reply. I should imagine that being so inept they are inundated with them, hence the delay... Will let you all know the outcome so watch this space

[MovedGoalPosts]

Simple answer here. If your cable feed is coming via another property you need to have an easement (legal right) for the passage of the service over that property.

When you sign the Ts & Cs (contract) you grant ntl an easement over your own property for them to run the cable across your garden. You can't grant ntl that right over property that has nothing to do with you.

Regardless of the health and safety or whatever excuses, simply put any new owner of next door would be well within their rights to simply sever the cable from their property to yours, leaving you high and dry.

time for complaints to ntl me thinks. Responsetek works well.

[Cerberus]

I have been with NTL for 3 years now and I have never had a single problem with them. Any enquiries I have made to the CS team have been dealt with efficiently and accurately.

BTW can anyone shed any light as to why I havent been able to view this site for about a month? I've missed this place so much, especially when I heard about NTL and their 10 megabit offer.