Plusnet signup, Bad to Worse where BT Openreach concerned!!

At the beginning of this year I bought my first home and one thing that was my priority due to the nature of my work was having a working broadband connection ready for when I move end of June. with this in mind I thought I would do my homework first too see what deals were around and what speed I could potentially get.

So March came and I decided analyzing my options, In the end I decided to give PlusNet a shout. After giving the sales advisor my address they said they couldn't find my address on the system due to being a new development and that before they could offer me anything I needed to phone up Royal Mail and register my address, then phone back in two days once their system has synced with BT�s address database.

This seemed reasonable enough as it was a new building, after phoning a few departments at Royal Mail I managed to get this done also echoing the two day rule that my address will appear on the Royal Mail database. True to their word I checked Royal Mails address system two days later and I was listed. Back to PlusNet sales line but still no joy, a number of theories were given that BT dont have enough data about the lines yet etc.... try and call back later as they couldn't help.

Few weeks passed and just accepted I could not go with PlusNet and put it down to that they couldn't provide new line�s and only take over existing ones (Although the website contradicts this but anyway). Then I had a brainwave, I could just take the phone line with BT and then take broadband only with plusnet which the sales guys confirmed that once I had a BT number the broadband order could be placed.

Hasten to add I ordered the telephone line with BT and they gave me a engineer date of Monday the 10th of June. After getting several notifications on email and text reminding me to be there I thought great my broadband connection is in sight. The evening before the line was due to be installed I got a text saying your installation has been delayed please phone to re-arrange your next visit.

Next date I was given was 17th June, In between this I received a call from an Openreach engineer for him to say that no way would my line be installed by then its more like last week of June. He informed me that I will get BT representatives from India phoning to say my BT line is all going to plan with texts constantly reminding me to be at home for the date but I need to phone and re-book another appointment for beginning of July and he can't do it because he needs to remain impartial! As expected I got countless reminders to make sure im in on the 5th July in which unpaid holiday was booked off from work.

It got to 6pm on the Friday evening and no sign of anybody turning up, not even a notification to say the engineer want coming. Before I decided to phone BT up and complain I decided to put my details in on the PlusNet online order facility and voila. This time the website was letting me sign up for a new line and also showing me I could have 60mb fibre broadband with the chat now assistance box appearing. Before I phone BT and cancel I thought i'd better clarify this on the online chat facility, After chatting the the advisor I explained the situation providing my address and he said I can cancel with BT and signup with PlusNet right now.

I then got on to BT�s Indian call center again and explained the engineer never turned up and that I wanted to cancel. The lady on the other end apologised and was cajoling me to accept another engineer date but couldn't give me a reason why they hadn't turned up. In the end I demanded I wanted to cancel which she put me through to a UK based call centre, funny that! Anyway seem�d like this lady had a reason why, apparently there was a blockage in the duct outside. I couldn't quite see that was the case as had been told by the builders that BT had been in weeks before and rigged up the internal switch for all the flats in which the builders even had a line in to their office with broadband in the show flat. Even more reason to ditch BT being given fictitious information, bogus dates and their own engineers not having confidence in them. After a bit of a battle to try and keep me to stay she eventually let me go and refunded me.

6th of July I placed my PlusNet simultaneous fibre broadband and phone order is what the sales advisor called it and would be ready on 30th July after their engineer had been out between 1pm - 5pm. Quite a bit longer than I wanted to wait but anyway I had been waiting this long so far! What's another month tethering off my 3g connection if i'm going to get what I originally wanted? July was coming to an end and Tuesday 30th July was upon us.

I just get into work for the Morning and I got a phone call from the engineer to say I'm just on my way to your property! in which I replied you're a bit early but if you're there I can ring round and see if I can try and get one of my family members to let you in. Success I got someone to let him in and arranged them to meet him at the property.

On questioning him about the broadband I got a deathly silence eventually continuing with �he had no idea about that and he was there just to connect the phone line�. My stomach sank so I thought I had better get on to PlusNet to be informed that theres a very unusual problem with the order, they can't explain why but BT have cancelled the broadband order and that they need to wait for the telephone line to activate and they will call me tomorrow advising me about the broadband.

As you can imagine I was very disappointed but by this time i'm used to being let down! I get home and thought well lets at least check the phone line is working. So I phone the number I was allocated on the PlusNet registration and hear the ringing tone but my analogue phone is not ringing which was very strange. Eventually a woman voice picks up and says �Hello� which I put down straight away as I thought I'd made a mistake dialing. This time I dialed out from the land line to my mobile, instantly I see a completely different number to what I was allocated.

Again I phone PlusNet in after 30 minutes of being on the phone, technical doing tests on the line the conclude they have my line crossed with someone else. Now I need to have unpaid time off again or find a family member who will let another BT Engineer in to fix this phone line problem before they can even consider sorting my broadband. Yes you've guessed it I would need another BT Engineer out yet again to come and install the fibre when signing up I was promised it would of been simultaneously done on the 30th July.

Id make it 4 months + and trying but seems like i'm never going to get broadband!

I just want to put my head in my hands at this point, I have spent hours and hours with BT, Plusnet and Openreach engineers to try and get this right but its just a complete mess which is going to cost me more money and time off to help PlusNet and Openreach to put this farce right!!!!

Complaints about Openreach are unfortunately fairly common, not as bad as 2012 but still some areas seem to have more than their fair share

Have others in the block of flats had similar experiences getting connected, if so a mass complaint to the BT Group CEO office.

If it is just you, then PlusNet should pursue their wholesale provider and one hopes chase compensation, and you have a reasonable case for compensation to cover hassle and days of annual leave wasted. A day for the install and perhaps one more to solve snags is reasonable.

Advice for others reading this, is generally moving provider midway through a line install very rarely improves thing, if the issue is actual installation, as the same backroom systems at Openreach, and sometimes adds extra complications.

Wow. My two cents, firstly if you can get virginmedia in this scenario I would give it a go! (doubtful as it's a new build) The lines not via openreach.

Secondly I think switching between BT and PlusNet has confused things somehow. BTs orders and Plusnets orders are all going to BT openreach, so when you're cancelling a line order with Plusnet, ordering one with BT, then cancelling that and ordering a simultaneous provide for phone and BB on Plusnet openreach are getting all of these messages.

So to openreach they see new line, which is cancelled (for whatever issue) then another new line, then a cancellation, then a new line with broadband. It might not even be in this order that they receive the info. Amongst all of this what you actually want is lost along the way. Not to mention what you ask each ISP to do might have a time delay in notifying openreach (by which point you've ordered something else so they don't know if to cancel one order, both orders, if you want them etc...)

That's my best guess anyway!

Edited by ukhardy07 (Wed 31-Jul-13 18:44:01)

Sounds like it is flats, so VM cable very unlikely. I expect it's impossible.

I don't think from the OP there was an initial order on PN. Just a straightforward phone order on BT.

Coincidentally, I saw two Virgin Media guys in and out of the flat next to ours yesterday, seemingly confused. Then I saw them out on the grass where there's some services gratings, as though they were looking to see if there was any cable routing. There is a cable going up the wall of our buildings, branching to those to decided to subscribe then, which was put up probably the late 80s/early90s. This enclave is not (Virgin) fibre enabled from checking on their site.

Virgin media would of been my first port of call but unfortunately not available! My father and a couple of guys at work have it (the cable version that is). I remember they came to install phone & broadband in one engineer visit which took a matter of hours.

Engineer phoned today earlier than expected to say he's outside to sort the cross phone line issue. Scrambled someone to go out and let him in.

After fiddling about for a while he leaves saying that the building is not even connected. Which is obviously a lie because I phoned up when the line was working to report the cross line issue.

Roll on more BT Engineers, more time wasted, more money lost!!!!! If we had another choice and didnt have to use BT lines im pretty sure they would go down the pan the way they run their business!