At Last Pt (who knows)

finally ordered FTTP on the 26/11 and from then it has got worse and worse with BT taking the order only for the system to cancel it and when I ring they reinstate the order and it fails again. today I manage to talk to the FTTP team who now say that in order to have ultrafast FTTP I need a new telephone number as I cant keep the number I have had for 26 years. as BT originally allocated the number to me then waitrose took it over can someone on hear please explain the logic behind this. for info the copper pair is on the pole in the garden as is the fttp manifold so as I understand it the old copper is jointed to the copper in the hybrid cable and connected to the existing NTE.
when waitrose release it surely BT can then take it back or have i got it all wrong

HEEEELLLPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They are probably asking the wrong people.

Are you with Waitrose phone and broadband now? In which case, Waitrose are John Lewis and the underlying line and broadband is with Plusnet. Who incidentally are owned are owned by BT.

The number is probably owned by Plusnet and whoever is being spoken to at Waitrose to release it simply doesn't understand the system. They only know how to pass on an order or cancellation to possibly John Lewis or maybe Plusnet direct. They won't know how migrations work.

How you should handle this is another question, but it should be being handled by whoever you have ordered the FTTP from. Which ISP is that? BT Consumer (Retail) by the sound of it. Whatever you do for the minute don't tell Openreach they can just dump your number.

You may need to go to the top of BT with a "High level complaint". It is possible to email them and get heavyweight control from that team who report to the Group CEO. (You actually email the CEO).

If I read your post correctly, yes at some point your existing copper line will be connected to that hybrid drop cable.

One solution might be to move the phone line to BT first and then the porting of the number to the FTTP is simpler

.. or port the number to a VOIP service, and then the copper pair is redundant.

I agree entirely. But BT could do that without the OP being involved at all, unless we are to assume that his FTTP contract is not bundled with taking BT�s phone service.

If the contract is not bundled, then his phone line would be staying with Waitrose, if that is where it is.

Something does not add up. The reason given to the OP, that Waitrose will not release the number, doesn�t make sense in any scenario.

Edited by RobertoS (Sat 08-Dec-18 10:05:28)

hi all
thanks for the replys, according to BT I cannot keep my number as the systems they have wont allow it(something about different platforms) but as the phone will stay via copper and the waitrose bb will cease from that what is the problem? i wonder if the BT system is trying to move the phone on to FVA but that is not what I asked to happen
yes i am trying to take a bundle of fttp and phone
the lady in the fttp team i spoke to admitted that she didnt understand the way it worked!!!
one person i spoke to said that they had talked to waitrose and sorted out the migration of the number then others come back and say nope cant be done. during one xall yesterday i spoke to five different people in different offices!!
i think this might have to go to high level complaints sooner rather than later if i have any hope of a solution
does anybody have the e-mail of the ceo

Edited by threelegs (Sat 08-Dec-18 11:41:04)

It seems to me one option is:

- tell BT you want to take a new fibre service without voice (*)
- keep the existing Waitrose/Plusnet service until close to end of contract
- transfer your existing number to a VOIP provider and cease the old service

(*) Or if it's cheaper, then you can take fibre with voice and a new number, and just not use the new number.

It *might* be possible later down the line to transfer the number from VOIP back to FVA. But the VOIP provider is almost certainly much cheaper, if you make outgoing phone calls that is.

Another option is: first transfer the Waitrose copper service to BT, *then* migrate to fibre. But you'll likely lose the incentives for new fibre customers.

And another option is: forget BT, and buy your FTTP service from a provider who has a clue, like Zen.

hi candlerb
bt did suggest a fibre without voice at £57.50 a month!

at this rate I will have to keep with waitrose as isp

if i transfer the number to a voip provider i lose internet

I mentioned to the woman in the fttp team that if i went to zen or cerberus would i have the same problem ie any new provider couldnt migrate my number and she confirmed it

You might or might not have the same problems.

The issue I believe is more around the way the BT Consumer systems are set up rather than the underlying systems.

The others might not be as cheap, but this is why BT Consumer can be cheap, it does not cater for every permutation. Irony is PlusNet direct ADSL customers who have FTTP now as an option can apply to join a FTTP trial

Currently it is [email protected] but that might be blocked. If it is there will be other ways.

He in fact leaves at the end of the month, but the High Level Complaints team should still be there and pick it up if it is still open.