aggravatedẀe recently moved house, and I’ve been at university. The man came to fit the internet before I got home, but my mum said she couldn’t get it t work, so was waiting for me. She had told the man who fitted it we don’t have a modem, but a wireless router. He said that would be fine. So I get home, try to get it working and nothing.
I phone NTL/Virgin’s customer service – which must be the worst customer service on the planet. The first guy I speak to doesn’t speak very good English. I explain my problem – I have a wireless router, and ask how I get on the internet with it. *Three* times he gives me a website address to go to to register my modem. I keep trying to explain we don’t *have* the internet for me to go to a website, hence the phone call. Eventually he catches on – and transfers me elsewhere.
Next guy answers, better English, not great. Have to explain entire problem to him again, including my account number, postcode, address etc. He doesn’t seem to understand the problem, we talk in circles until he tells me I need to use the cable modem provided to get on the internet, then set it up via wireless. I inform him the man who set it up never left a modem. He keeps asking me what cables are missing, and I try to explain over and over there *is* no modem. He transfers me to someone else. (Each transfer puts me on hold for several minutes at a time.)
A Scottish lady answers, who actually reads my notes to find out what has been going on so far. While reading my notes, she spots a recent phone call from us to them enquiring how to keep out phone number from our old house – one my mum has had for just under 30 years. When we phoned NTL, they told us to disconnect the number from BT, and they would transfer the number, which we did. When we phoned NTL to tell them it had been disconnected, we were informed they couldn’t transfer the number once disconnected. The Scottish lady explained we had to phone back BT, ask them to reconnect it then they can transfer. She apologises for the wrong information from NTL. She also apologises for the guy who was fitting the internet – it’s his job to explain you can’t originally connect to the internet using a wireless router – he should have given us a modem and made sure it worked. She looks up how long it will take to get another person out to fit it. It won’t be until the 13th of April. She tells me she’s going to put me through to the Fault Department – as I’ve had the router more than 24 hours, and they should be able to get someone out to me quicker. Back on hold again. At this point, the fire alarms in the house go off, and I have to reluctantly put the phone down to sort it out. In all honestly, I could have put the phone to one side, sorted it out, got back and still found myself on hold, but I didn’t think it was fair for someone to pick up the phone and find me not there.
I phone back, and ask the man who picks up to put me through to the faults department. He wants to know the whole story – so I go through it again. He transfers me. Another man picks up and mumbles something. I ask if this is the faults department. He tells me it is in fact Broadband Technical Support. I explain I’ve *been* through all this, and just want the Faults department now. He wants to know the whole story again, account number, postcode etc. He tells me faults wouldn’t go out to me. I say that someone else told me they would – the so far only helpful person. He asks me what cables are missing from my modem. I once again explain I don’t HAVE a modem at all. He tells me they can send one out by post, but he’ll have to speak to his colleague. I’m on hold for ages, before he comes back and asks if I have an Ethernet port, or does he need to put a USB/Ethernet converter in. I tell him I do, back on hold I go for another long period of time. He comes back and says it’s all sorted now, one will be out to me by Friday. The phone call – minus five minutes for me to sort out the fire alarms, took from 1pm until 3:30pm – on MY bill.
Friday – no modem comes, but it does come Saturday – so I’ll let them off. I open the box and the modem is in there – but NO CABLES. No coaxial cable to go from the modem to the phone line, no Ethernet cable. I have a spare Ethernet cable, but now I need to a) face their customer service asking for another one, or b) go out and try and find one to buy.
I’ve now been around a number of shops, and the cable that’s needed is specialised. I phone up their customer service again and ask to be put straight through to a manager. I go through all the troubles we’ve had, and he says “I’m sorry, this is the wrong department. I’ll put you through to customer services.” Argh! I speak to a guy there, and he says they can’t send the cables out, but they will send a repair guy out on the 5th.
In the meantime, my friend finds the right cable, and I’ve got the internet working on my laptop, but can’t get it working via my wireless router, and it’s very slow.
I’ve had problems from NTL before. When we first got them, the internet went slower than dialup. I was phoning them constantly asking them for help, and was told so much shit for months and months before they finally said it was my computers fault. Even though I’d tried it on a few computers to make sure. They eventually upgraded my connection speed to 1MBs (as they did all their customers, not just me) and it sorted itself out, no thanks to them.