Why did I select VirginMedia again?

[oolon]

At my old house I have internet, tv and phone from virgin. When moving to a new house, I thought I would look at other options, however I thought the hassle with sky-multiroom and the phone line, then looking at the expense of it, it was easier to stick with virgin, as it came in 15 quid a month cheaper with not upfront costs.

How wrong could I have been?

I check if I can get cable in that area on the web site, it tries to sell me broadband over the phone. I think this is strange I can see cable boxes in the street and have a tube for a cable outside my house! I phone virgin they tell me there was a previous failed install, I ask what that means they tell me they do not know, but will send someone to area to check if I can get cable, I will get a call in 3-4 days. No call. A week later call call them back, and they say they will put the call in again. 3 days later I get a call from a salesman, (I was at work so a bit flustered), so after provisionally I said yes over the phone, however thought cost was rather high (virgin had crept them up over time), so decided I would say no deal when the salesman came to visit. They had a play with the costs and got them down a bit. I could see there would be issues with my new home for access to the second bedroom explained it to the sales person, and was told it was not a problem and they would install the cable where I wanted. So I reluctantly agreed.

Tuesday virgin call, I miss them they leave a voice mail to phone in and confirm the install, that an over 18 would be there, and what parking was like. I call into customer services, confirm the details and am told that it is all booked in. Later I get a call to confirm the appoint for the next day when i say I have already do it they tell me I haven't!

Yesterday was my virgin install day, the man arrive promptly at 9:30, start show him around the job, tell him there are two boxes 1 phone and internet and he till me they have only put him down for 1 TV!!?!?! Ok he will do they rest... downstairs no problem can go in through the side wall rather than front, great. Second room which is at the top at the back of the house which is 2.5 stores tall. Can't cross the sloping roof as it is "not safe", I have an easily accessable loft, (through door from that room), where they can just run the cable across (after going up the side wall), we can't go into to lofts virgin will not allow us. Hmmm.... anyway we agree a cause of action, where we are both happy. So he goes into the street, lifts the lid on the tube in the street, no cable there! He places a call to get one installed and tell me some men would be there to do it in 1-2 hours (he tells me he wants to do the job because if he does not he will not be paid)., 2.5 hours pass no signs of anyone!

I call the salesman who puts me though to the installs department, they tell me a crew will be there to pull the cable within the hour and and the area manager will visit me personally after he has checked his email. The pulling crew showed up gave it a go complaining all the time how hard it was. After a while they decided the main tube is blocked underground give up and go. (Apparently when the roads were narrowed it caused problems underground in all the streets in the area, hence why they were moaning about having to do it because the would not be paided.)

No one tells me what is going to happen next! I call the sales man again, who puts me through to the install department, who tell me a crew is going to try again in two hours, the reason why the previous crew had not been able to pull the cable was a car was parked over the top of an access hatch, when I explain I know this is not true (as I have spoken and watched the install guys) I am told I am wrong. Anyway someone would be there in 2 hours to try again and in the mean time the area manager would call me. 2 hours pass, no one phones up no one turns up to do work in the street. All virgin customer servers to complaint, they tell me they cannot take complaints and I will have to speak to the "install department" (they guys who lied to me/broke promises). Get transfered to a 22 minute queue my moble phone they runs out of power. There is only so much I can take of sitting in an empty house all day waiting for people to not turn up so return home to my old home, to charge my mobile (because I cannot use my virgin phone beause they have cut it off to transfer it to the new property!). At 5:30 I call the sales man back he says he will ask what is happening, well another day has passed and he has not called me yet. A days leave wasted, I only get 20 a year (so its not a small thing), because virgin could not be bothered to do the prep work in advance of the install.

So now it looks like I will have not have internet, TV of phone for Mithrasday. (yes I do have moble broardband and a mobile phone but it isn't the same).

What have I picked up from this experience?

Virgin must make a fortune with their call queues on 0845 numbers, Grr I had to call them from my "virgin moble", guess I will be getting a new supplier soon.

The cable install guys told me virgin were actively trying not to install cable in the area because they know about the problems, and do not what to spend the money to fix them. (How many customers have the lost because of that!)

If you have cable installed make sure they have laid the cable to the edge of the property BEFORE you take the day off.

Installers are paid by the job, if you have a difficult job they (try to) put it off till the end of the day so they can complete as many (easy ones) as they can.

Are virgin going to install or are they no I have no idea! So I can't even try to get in alturnative services. If I had have taken a line with BT the install would have been on the 21st, now its next year!

[Consfearacy]

Your tale my friend has led me to re-assess my ISP options when I move after the Christmas period.

[Jay]

tell them to stuff it. Its no end of trouble with VM when you have problems VM are to ISP what OcUK are to etailers and I think I may be being a little harsh on OcUK there!

[IronWarrior]

You are just unlucky.

In the 10 years I been with Virgin/NTL, we never had any real problems, the few we had was easy fixed.

[oolon]

Well I spoke to a rather sirly lady in disconnection department, when I tried to enquire as to what the problem was, no explanation was given. I explained what the problem according to the cable pulling guys was in the street, so they would be unable to install anyone new in that bit of the road. I was told perhaps they would need to dig up the street and can't. I mentioned they had a previous failed install in the street (2007) and if they had known this was an unresolved problem why did they try to sell me cable? This fact was lept on by the woman as meaning I was stupid and the fact the cable installed failed was infact my fault. When i said something else (I forget now exactly what), I was told "Don't you try to twist my words.". So talking was now at an end and I just wanted to cancel and get out of there. The strange this is, the lady claimed Virgin had already cancelled it, and I was told there was a cheque on the way to me, however no one actually bothered telling me! When I asked for the boxes to be collected at my convenience as I didn't wish to take time off work to return their junk, even that seemed to much trouble!

When was originally looking at broadband, the automatic system on Be gave me an install date of 21st of December, now its going to be 14th of January, thank you virgin media for messing me around (3 weeks extra of living in the stoneage (well victoria era)). What a way to run a business, I doubt I will ever to be a customer of them again and I have had Cable for 15 years in 4 different properties. I will have to open a short position on VirginMedia.

I am looking forward to having Be and a finally a static IP address.

[cheesemp]

Well if its any consolation I had similar issues with broadband. When i took over the property I had to phone O2 and BT several times to get ownership of the line as the previous owners had not stopped their broadband service (even though line was now in my name). Bt didn't want to know as I didn't want BT broadband and O2 said they could do nothing but put through a request to BT. It was a real pain but eventually the line cleared (I'm guessing the previous owners activated broadband at new address) and I was able to get service - I've no idea what would have happened if the previous owners hadn't cleared the line. Took me 3 weeks so I understand how frustrating it is!

I think the moral of this story is all telecoms companies are poor at handling anything out of the ordinary day to day activities.

[b0ned0me]

Why did I select VirginMedia again?

You selected them because no-one warned you what a shower of **** they are when it comes to new installs?

Your story sounds uncannily like my friends brief attempt at getting Virgin TV/phone/internet, except he had an allegedly working cable that then turned out to be not working three days after they came and drilled his house etc. He was told it would take six weeks to get a new cable put in, and since he'd already had the usual treatment (3-4 missed appointments, lost details, etc. etc.) he just cancelled the whole thing and got a refund. Needless to say, he got a call six weeks later from some bloke who had turned up at his house to run the new cable through his garden.

I was with Blueyonder broadband when it came out, and they were a totally useless shower as well - three visits (plus a missed appointment) to run the cable to my flat, an hour on the phone to tech support followed byanother visit to actually get it working (the idiots hadn't removed the filter from the cabinet end).

To be fair, if getting ADSL involved running a new wire to your house, it would probably be a similar story - it's just that most residences already have a phone line. If anyone asks me, I tell them not to bother with cable unless they either have a working connection (i.e. there's a socket in the wall and a pile of recent bills on the doormat when you move in, or they really desperately need something they can't get with ADSL + Sky. New installs are just not worth the grief IMO.

[oolon]

The difference in communication between Be* and Virgin is amazing, Be* sneeze and I get a text message update about it. Virgin seem to have a system where the customer is responsible for organising things. I had not realised how downhill they had gone, when I had Cable London do my install I had 3 vans turn up to do it. I will not make the mistake again+, the main reason for keeping virgin was the continuity of service (not losing phone number) and service. I should have got a new service installed in my new property and just accepted the overlap cost and accepted the loss of the number. That way I would be sure to have something, rather than now were I have nothing.

+ I am now getting a service and to be frank doubt I will need to change it. BT are activity my area for FTTC next month so there seems little virgin could offer me I cannot get somewhere else. Unless they wish to give me 2 years free service or some such, I see no reason to have my house have more holes drilled in it.

[bogart]

I've been trying for ages to get internet via cable. When the property was built 10 yrs ago cable was laid into the garage and terminated there. So in my nieveity I thought cable broadband would be a doddle. Oh no. I contacted NTL who were the providers then and told the service was only being provided to number 23, next doors property as I am in number 25. Have tried getting an answer out of VM numerous times. All I'm told is not in a cable area, so what the hell have I got in my garage. Oh and by the way number 23 cannot get cable broadband supplied either!