This topic

BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 12:04:28 GMT

BT/openreach cut my copper line in error in may 22 so I have had no internet since then.
They say it cannot be reinstated as not enough capacity at the cabinet….apparently!

agreed to install fibre at their own cost, as it was their fault. LIES

Now want to charge me £1000s

I am at my wits end…we can no longer work from home, kids can’t do their homework, my doorbell/heat/security system all down due to no internet…has upended our lives the stress is unreal. Devastating impact on our work, family life and mental health

has anyone had same issues and ever managed to get it resolved? Ombudsman appears to have no power to do anything….HELP. I was told by BT this has never happened before to anyone

Re: BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

DavidM — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 12:50:24 GMT

Hi @Catrionajs and thanks for posting.

I'm really sorry this hasn't been resolved yet. I can see you sent over your details previously and @RobbieMac looked into it. The position hasn't changed since then. Our executive level team are case managing this and are due to contact you again on the weekend.

Cheers

David

Re: BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 13:32:39 GMT

Unfortunately the “executive level team” has now told us nothing more they can do. I have no confidence in this team hence why I am reaching out on this forum, in sheer desperation, to see if anyone has ever experienced this before. I find it hard to believe we are the only customers this has happened to, as Bt suggest….can anyone help?????

Re: BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

gg30340 — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 16:55:00 GMT

The Executive Level Team are at the top of the tree. Other Customer Service teams including this forum's moderation team can not intervene once they are involved.

Re: BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 18:12:58 GMT

In that case we basically have no hope of resolution…..shocking and devastating in equal measure

Re: BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

licquorice — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 18:41:45 GMT

If the Executive level team can't resolve the problem there is clearly far more to this story than is being posted here.

Re: BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 18:44:46 GMT

To clarify….They can indeed resolve, but want to charge us thousands of pounds to do so, when it was their mistake that has caused this situation

Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 19:13:07 GMT

Has anyone taken their complaint either to their local MP or to the press? Not sure which to approach first….

Running out of options now as BT are unable (read unwilling) to fix their mess and reinstate my internet

Re: BT openreach shambles - no internet for 5th month

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 19:36:50 GMT

Thank you David, yes shocking nothing has changed in that time…in fact it is actually much worse now. Previously Bt were actually pretending to make an effort to resolve. Now have simply washed their hands of us and are due to issue deadlock letter….again. I am not sure why the need to contact us on Saturday to simply repeat the same message over and over 🤯

Re: Deadlock - last resort

iniltous — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 19:45:34 GMT

So, reading between the lines , you had FTTC ( fibre to the cabinet ) and somehow your connection was mistakenly removed ( presumably someone else benefited from this and now has FTTC ) and it’s not possible to reconnect you to FTTC as there are no available (spare) ports in the FTTC cabinet.
Perhaps you could clarify what you mean by BT promised to give you ‘fibre’ at their own expense, as OR ( not BT ) supply ‘fibre’ , and if by fibre you mean FTTP ( fibre to the premises) , then it’s difficult to see how BT could realistically promise it , BT don’t offer FTTPod, ( where a Openreach build a bespoke FTTP network to a particular address ) and OR decide where and when areas get upgraded to ‘native’ FTTP , so BT would have no way of prioritising your address to get ‘regular’ FTTP with OR….,
If BT said they would do something ( whatever that may have been ) and now won’t , what exactly is the ‘£1000’s’ for ?
If it’s just FTTC not available, ( because there are no spare ports ) have you been offered exchange based ADSL2 as a stop gap ?, if you had FTTC there is always the possibility that a port will become spare through normal ‘churn’ .
If the issue isn’t the one I’ve presumed , perhaps you could provide more details, although ultimately, if your issue is already at the highest complaint level , and you are dissatisfied with what they have suggested there isn’t anything that the readers of this customer to customer forum could offer as a way forward

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Hooba — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 19:48:08 GMT

What did the ombudsman rule last time you had a deadlock letter?

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:01:25 GMT

That’s basically correct, BT removed our connection to the cabinet in error. Eventually offered to restore our home internet via an overhead solution/distribution poles, and they would cover the cost, as this was all down to them. Sorry I do not know all the technical terms.
now have backtracked and want us to pay (it was £4313 the last estimate I received, though this has increased from £1500 a couple of months ago so who knows what it will be next week)
as you say I am now at the mercy of this team who have now basically told me we are at the end of the road. Sadly there seems no more j can do.

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:29:06 GMT

At that stage BT were still promising to fix so it was simply daily compensation (pretty pointless really).
I am not sure the ombudsman can really do much to resolve this so we probably just have to accept we no longer have home internet unfortunately.

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:30:59 GMT

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Hooba — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:39:01 GMT

Ah well. Good luck.

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:47:19 GMT

Thank you

Re: Deadlock - last resort

iniltous — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 21:44:47 GMT

So how do these extra poles etc , get around the lack of capacity at the FTTC cabinet ?, was the ‘solution’ to effectively provide you with new distribution from another FTTC cabinet that does have spare ports ?.

FWIW, BT cannot really offer solutions regarding new line-plant etc as it’s not really within their gift , it would be the same with Sky or Talk Talk , Openreach would have to offer a solution , but in the same way that someone asks for FTTC but is denied, because the FTTC cab is full , and basically that’s the end of the it, the consumer presumably can take an exchange based service ADSL2, and hope a port becomes spare ….in the case where due to an error someone loses FTTC and cannot be quickly restored to FTTC , then ADSL may be the solution…..legally ( I dare say ) the ISP ultimately saying sorry , ADSL or alternatively we can cancel your contract and you look at a totally different provider ( like mobile for example) is allowed.

There was a case ( I read somewhere ) a customer ordering ( native) FTTP was such a long way from the FTTP equipment that the install required the consumer to contribute to the install ( excess construction costs ) , they were unwilling to pay these ECC ‘s , so asked to cancel FTTP and return to FTTC , but they couldn’t as the area was in a ‘stop sell’ for copper products , they were unable to go back onto copper .

Presumably you can take an ADSL solution..not ideal but unless you are a great distance from the exchange, presumably would be something , FTTC ports do become spare ( people moving out , bereavement, going to mobile only , changing to other network providers) so it may not be as quick as you would like but it’s not impossible that a port will become spare

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:52:26 GMT

Can I ask….What is an ADSL solution? It’s not something I have been offered

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:56:47 GMT

That is what happened to us….we tried to get fibre which was apparently available at our address. The order appeared to be progressing, openreach engineer came out etc no mention of excess construction charges until they told us it would cost £1500. We said no thanks we will keep the service we have, but somewhere in the background our copper was mistakenly switched off before the fibre was installed. Apparently we were the only people this has ever happened to, according to the BT contact at the time!! Obviously not the case by the sound of it

Re: Deadlock - last resort

Catrionajs — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 20:58:41 GMT

The solutions were being offered by openreach after yet more engineer visits…BT were simply offering to cover the cost of said solutions…until today that is…now backtracking