House move

[carolynch]

My elderly parents have just (Tuesday) moved house into a new build.  My father phoned BT around 2 weeks before the move to advise and request that their landline, fibre broadband and BT sport package was transferred to the new address.  He also requested a new phone number rather than keeping the old one.  He was told that everything would be transferred over on the move day and that he should take his equipment (phone, hub, box etc. with him).  He received no mail or email regarding this.

After not having a phone line or internet access on the move day, he phoned again (using his mobile) and has done so several times since.  Each time he is connected to a different office and each time someone reassures him that "it will be all sorted by noon" or "we will call you back" or other similar.  Each time he has also asked if they could tell him the new phone number and as been told "it will be sent to you in the post".  Still  no mail, email or call back.  He last phoned on Thursday (I heard the call) and was told that it was being sorted out and in the meantime they were sending a box which he could plug in to get internet access (I assume that this would be a 4G connection?).  He was told that this box would be with him by today.  The box has still not arrived and he has still not received any mail, email or contact.  The online account does not show anything as pending (as far as I can see) and the old phone number is still shown on that account.

Is there anyone on these forums who can look into specific cases or help in any way?  My Dad can't do anything except phone as he doesn't have any internet access.  Phone calls do not appear to be achieving anything.

[Keith_Beddoe]

@carolynch 

This is primarily a customer to customer help forum.

If existing BT customers who post here cannot help, then a moderator can be requested. They are part of a very small team and are not available all of the time.

Most new build properties are now direct fibre, so if you could find out whether there is any equipment installed in their house, which looks like the picture below, then that would be a good start.

[carolynch]

Hello and thank you for your reply.

Yes, they have that type of box in the new house.  I did search online about this box and it did imply that it would mean direct fibre but I couldn't find anything else out about it.  BT have not mentioned this to my Dad either.  The builders did give him a long number (serial number?) which he has quoted to BT.

The main problem is that BT are not telling him anything.  The other concern is if they haven't cancelled the old line in the old house and the new occupants plug in a phone and start making calls.

[Keith_Beddoe]

@carolynch 

Thanks for that.

Unfortunately these types of connections can take a very long time to sort out, depending on whether Openreach have completed all of the external fibre work in conjunction with the developers

From the BT side, these connections are dealt with by a special team, whose number is 0800 587 4787, so these would be the best people for your parents to talk to.

When you get the chance, can you ask them what lights are showing on that box, and whether they are steady or flashing on and off.

There are a number of people on this forum who know these installations very well, and can advise you.

As far as the old number being active, if they specified a day for the home move, then the old line should have been made into a stopped line, and no calls could be made on it.

They can always check their bill to make sure.

The moderators who run this forum, cannot help with these types of installations.

As for their existing home hub, it will not work with these installations, and BT will have to send a different one.

[carolynch]

Thank you for replying again.  There are already people living in other houses on the development and at least one has a BT connection as I managed to (intermittently) connect to a BT FON with my phone.  I assume that this means that the external fibre work that you mention must have been completed.  The Power light and the PON light are constant.  Do you know if the leads (phone & ethernet type) which come from the bottom of the box are supposed to be plugged into the sockets by the side of it or if they are supposed to be plugged into the phone and router?

I have checked the bill online and there aren't any calls since the house move date (we don't have any reason to believe that the new occupants would use the phone maliciously but if they are also waiting for their connection they might try it and find that it works).  Shouldn't there be something on my Dad's online account to say that it is disconnected though?

Do you know if they could change to a different supplier (assuming that Openreach have done all that is necessary)?  Obviously we are not too happy with BT to say the least and they are paying way over the odds for their service too.

I'll give my Dad the number you quote and ask him to try them.  

[imjolly]

There is nothing BT Retail your ISP can do until the joke is connected by openreach. If your parents are still in contract with BT then changing ISP will incur cancellation charges and moving won't improve the time until they are connected. This is all in hands of  openreach and probably the developer

[carolynch]

I don't think they are in contract any more.  As I said, I think that the Openreach/developer stuff is done as others are already connected (next door and across the road).

[imjolly]

Then as suggested phone 08005874787

[Keith_Beddoe]

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@carolynch wrote:

The Power light and the PON light are constant.  Do you know if the leads (phone & ethernet type) which come from the bottom of the box are supposed to be plugged into the sockets by the side of it or if they are supposed to be plugged into the phone and router?

Do you know if they could change to a different supplier (assuming that Openreach have done all that is necessary)?  Obviously we are not too happy with BT to say the least and they are paying way over the odds for their service too.

I'll give my Dad the number you quote and ask him to try them.  

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@carolynch It does sound like its ready to go.

The Ethernet connection will go to the new home hub as shown below.

The phone (TEL1) socket would be used to plug the phone in, or if the builder has provided extra phone sockets, then it will connect to one of those, using a lead like this.

Lead to link ONT TEL port to phone socket

As far as changing provider, once their initial new contract period is finished with BT, which could be 12, 18 or 24 months, they could look for another provider, but there are not many who sell FTTP, and prices are much the same.

Its also possible that the developer has entered into an exclusive deal with BT Retail, for a period of time.

[iniltous]

If the address is FTTP ( and it seems it is ) then asking your folks to take their existing router would only work if it were compatible with FTTP, older ‘hubs’ are not compatible.
If the PON light is lit, then the fibre is connected but possibly not authorised ( the ONT serial number is needed for that )...as far as any phone sockets the builder has supplied, it’s not really BT or Openreach’s responsibility to connect them to the ONT.
Have your folks tried connecting their phone and hopefully compatible router  to the ONT ?

As far as the old address, if the number isn’t being moved, then the ‘old’ number should be ‘stopped and renumbered’ at the old address, so calling that number ( best done from a landline) should return ‘number unobtainable ‘ tone ( NU), as far as contracts, moving home starts a new minimum term, so even if out of contract at the old address, they would be in contract at the new address