Potential sharp practices from VM

I'm currently getting Virgin's cable broadband and TV service (which is fine), but I have to move house (landlord issues).

Am moving literally across the street in London, but into a cable blackspot.

This means switching to Virgin's ADSL service, they say... does anyone have any experience with moving out of a cable area? I really don't want Virgin's ADSL service, but they're insisting that I either buy out my contract or sign a new one for their (I hear) terrible ADSL service.

This seems sharp because my options are pay a significant sum of money or sign a new contract, with no option to see the current one out paying for the services they can provide.

Also, an addendum--does anyone else know of Virgin black-spots in otherwise entirely cabled areas? This is South London, and all the surrounding streets have cable--it seems to just be one section of two roads that's throwing the availability checker.

If no-one wanting it during original roll-out you can get areas with no cable, and no obligation to provide service.

The terms will be in the contract, only if they are not is it sharp practice, i.e. one should check the various exit clauses when signing up.

If you have a mobile phone with 24 month contract, and want to end it to go to another firm, it is normal to have to pay the remaining months, so how is broadband different?

In reply to a post by sebFlyte:

... does anyone have any experience with moving out of a cable area?

Yes. Bye bye broadband...

Next month we're moving back to one.

On your point about sharp practice, as I see it Virgin don't need to let you downgrade to ADSL, they could simply force you to pay to end of term as the contract was for services at a particular address.

Given the quality of VM's services it wouldn't be unreasonable to imagine they could offer shorter contracts, but since they don't you end up rather stuck with it.

Virgin ADSL services don't have a particularly good reputation on here from what I read, and you're best going for an LLU option which I assume you can get being in London.

There are lots of cable blackspots - a little facetious to say "half the country is one" but where we used to live once, the entire town was cabled, except for the 500 or so house estate we lived in. It's very hit and miss - seems any sniff of a wayleave or permission problem means an area is skipped.

You could email [email protected] - from what I read last, they may cable a street if the cost is < about £350 per home and there are enough enquiries.

If you're in an ADSL blackspot as well, there might already be a waiting list of people who've emailed them already.

From what I've read the Virgin Media ADSL service isn't very good, they're just reselling BT's network I think, I'd look into your best options for your area, use samknows.com to search your exchange and find what LLU providers you can get.

Reselling, if you can call it that....resell implies BT Wholesale is managing end to end, where in actual fact it is not.

It may be BT Wholesale DSLAM and BT Wholesale backbone, but from the BAM and onwards it is under Virgin control, and it is the purchase of BAM's to reduce contention that does not appear to happen.

In short don't tar all IPStream products with the same brush, many Virgin National customers have gone to other providers and had a better experience.

It could be suggested that it is in Virgin's interest to ensure its ADSL product does not perform too well.

Broadband is different because the agreement goes both ways; I have an obligation to pay them, and they have an obligation to provide me with services.

If I could get cable on the other side of this street, I'd have no problem honouring the contract. The issue I have is being effectively forced to sign a new contract rather than (a) moving the current one or (b) being given the choice for both parties to void the agreement as the services they agreed to provide can no longer be provided.

Thanks, have done. Much appreciated!

And yes -- this is a very odd little blackspot. It's one tiny island of darkness (maybe 20 houses tops, probably more like 15) in an area that is fully cabled for miles in all directions.

Oh well.

And in response to those suggestion LLU services, I fully intend to switch to Be as soon as I'm released from Virgin's clutches; unfortunately that's over a year away as (according to them) I need to sign a new 12-month contract to get the ADSL service so I don't have to pay a huge cancellation fee on this contract, and that won't start until they've managed to get an engineer in from Openreach to sort out ADSL at the new property.

In reply to a post by sebFlyte:

Broadband is different because the agreement goes both ways; I have an obligation to pay them, and they have an obligation to provide me with services.

And this is different from any other contract how ?

In reply to a post by sebFlyte:

If I could get cable on the other side of this street, I'd have no problem honouring the contract. The issue I have is being effectively forced to sign a new contract rather than (a) moving the current one

It does not seem unreasonable to ask that the term on the replacement service is that of the service you currently have. Now according to your other post,

In reply to a post by sebFlyte:

I fully intend to switch to Be as soon as I'm released from Virgin's clutches; unfortunately that's over a year away as (according to them) I need to sign a new 12-month contract to get the ADSL service so I don't have to pay a huge cancellation fee on this contract,

this term is longer than the ADSL term you are being asked to sign, so they are offering even better than the term you are already tied to.

In reply to a post by sebFlyte:

or (b) being given the choice for both parties to void the agreement as the services they agreed to provide can no longer be provided.

Virgin can provide the service you contracted them to provide. You asked them for cable at your current address, they can still provide cable at your current address, it is not their fault that you intend to move from that address. If they had unilaterally decided to decommission the cabinet(s) serving this current address and said we can't provide you service any more, would you then be saying, "OK, no problem, you just do that and don't worry about my expenses to find another connection." ? I think not.

In reply to a post by sebFlyte:

Broadband is different because the agreement goes both ways; I have an obligation to pay them, and they have an obligation to provide me with services.

I am sure it is the same as ADSL supplies in that it is specific to the property supplied and not specific to the product.

If it were different Virgin would be obliged to give you fibre wherever you moved.

EDit. Spell checker got it wrong...he said diffidently

Edited by Sadoldman (Thu 28-Oct-10 16:44:10)

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

It could be suggested that it is in Virgin's interest to ensure its ADSL product does not perform too well.

It could also be suggested that buying insufficient capacity for the user base is in the interests of every ISP that has a lengthy minimum term and doesn't mind a bit of churn. I'd certainly suggest that appears to be the business plan adopted by many ADSL ISPs as well as Virgin National.