BT customer trying to take over my Zen broadband

[JamesCoco]

I’ll start by saying I’m not a BT customer - our full fibre package is a business package with Zen Internet. Yesterday I received an automated email from them saying they were sorry to see me going and that my line would be terminated on the 24th March. Which came as a bit of a shock.

So I contacted them and asked them what was going on. After a bit of digging they said another customer, they could only identify as through BT Retail, has created a new order with our address. They said they cannot stop this process anymore due to new Ofcom regulations and that the only option is to ask BT to look into the matter on our behalf.

Two unsuccessful phone calls later to BT and I’m no better off. BT say there’s nothing they can do for ‘data protection reasons’ and Zen say only BT can stop the order.

Currently I’m looking at termination of my broadband line (and cut off of our VOIP service) on the 24th and then 10 months of early termination charges as we’re in contract.

Can anyone point me in the right direction for getting this resolved and offer me someone who may be able to help us? It seems crazy that somebody can effectively sabotage our broadband service without any form of confirmation or acceptance from the individual who currently owns it.

[gg30340 · Accepted solution]

See this link from Ofcom about "slamming". This applies to Broadband as well.

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/switching-provider/how-to-protect-yourself-from-slammi...

"The switching process for telephone and broadband services includes measures to protect you from slamming.

You will receive letters from your old phone company and new company to let you know you are moving provider. It will include the date that the transfer will take place.

If you don’t want to move to a new phone company, tell the provider who has taken over your service that you did not agree to the transfer. If you do this within 10 days, they will be able to put a stop to the transfer and you can carry on as before.

If the provider refuses to cancel the transfer, ask your current provider to cancel the transfer. This should be possible up until 24 hours before the transfer is due to complete, but it is best to do this at least 48 hours beforehand.

If the service has already transferred, ask your original provider to transfer you back to them".

[iniltous]

It does seem that this new OTS ( One  Touch  Switching ) service has a pretty fundamental flaw , in that although you get a ‘ sorry to see you leave’  communication from the losing provider, Zen in your case ,  there is no longer a ‘cancel other’ process where the losing provider could cancel another providers order because their customer contacted them to say this is not something I requested  so don’t allow this migration to take place , the ‘cancel other’ facility was available on the previous NOTs system, as you have found it seemingly isn’t available with OTS .

You have no right to discuss someone else’s order with a company you have no relationship with , GDPR   data protection rules do apply,  meaning you cannot cancel that other person’s order with their provider, but have no way to alert them they have made an error with the address , and although it’s  BT in this  case , this is not unique to BT or your provider Zen, it’s the ridiculous way Ofcom set up the OTS system, apparently with no way for the losing provider to intervene when it’s a mistake, like someone selecting your address in error for the address they were really trying to arrange service for ( that’s assuming it’s an error and not someone deliberately targeting you ) 

[JamesCoco]

Yes, that’s the exact situation we’re in. So are we saying that there is no way to stop this flawed one way system now it’s in process? BT won’t do it for data protection reasons and Zen can’t because they physically can’t?

Or is there still a way for BT to intervene here on our behalf before transfer?

[gg30340]

The Ofcom slamming guide lines still apply. Call BT and tell them that you have been slammed and you do not want to be transferred. If the Customer Service rep does not know what to do ask to speak to a manager. 

I would also contact your present provider and tell them you have been slammed and to stop the transfer. Again if the Customer service rep can not help ask to speak to a manager.

[iniltous]

There was a similar post on here , AFAIR , in that case it was a BT customer that got the ‘ sorry to see you leave’  communication, because their address was very similar to another neighbour’s address , they found out (by asking them  ) that the occupant of that similar address had indeed requested a new provider take over their service , this  other provider selected the wrong ( although similar ) address … in that case the non BT customer cancelled their order once their neighbour spoke to them saying this is obviously a mistake, (they realised it was going to impact their neighbour the BT customer) so short of asking around, especially if your address is easily mistaken for another address to see if anyone is migrating providers, otherwise, unfortunately there seems nothing you can do , ridiculous as that seems .

This  is actually by Ofcom’s design , they deliberately took away the ability for the losing provider to cancel, considering it a barrier to switching , in their opinion presumably it’s better to allow errors like this rather than having the losing provider the option to cancel a competitors order .

[iniltous]

This isn’t slamming in the accepted sense, that’s where there isn’t a problem with addressing , it’s a deliberate attempt by an ISP to move a customer without their agreement , in this  case it’s almost certain there will be a customer that wants service from BT , but they or BT selected the wrong address for that new BT service , impacting this Zen customer…

The OP cannot request BT do anything as they are not the BT customer that made the incorrect order , if Zen can’t intervene, the OP certainly can’t as they have no legal ‘standing’ with BT as far as that other person’s order even if it has the wrong address .

[gg30340]

I agree it is not slamming in the "traditional" sense but it is still one ISP taking over the line of another ISP without the permission of the loosing provider. It matters not whether this is a genuine mistake or a deliberate act. 

The loosing customer, in this case the OP, is not asking for any information regarding the gaining customer so GDPR does not apply.

ZEN and BT need to talk to each other so that BT can contact their customer to inform them that a mistake has been made and meantime the transfer should at the very least be put on hold or preferably cancelled.

In order to do that the OP should do as has been pointed out by Ofcom in the above posts.

[iniltous]

I’m not sure I’d agree , the conversation would be something like
OP , ‘Hello BT , you don’t know me , I live at No 10 Consternation St, I believe you have an order for that address ‘
BT , ‘What’s your account number ?’
OP , ‘ I’m not a BT customer, but a BT customer has arranged to take over the service at this address , but that’s my address , so it’s obviously an error , please check against my address ‘
BT ‘ Even if I could search the ordering system by address  ,  as you are not the person ordering service , I can’t cancel that order on your say so , and I can’t tell you who made the order , even if I confirmed there was an order for your address (but you already know that ) , I’m unable to assist you further , sorry , goodbye’ 

The old NOTs system in this scenario, it would be Zen that cancelled the BT order using the common ordering portal ( the ‘cancel other’  order ) …..if Zen can’t help ( because the OTS system has no similar cancel other function, I don’t see how anything other that the instigator of the bogus order , realising the error and contacting BT themselves to cancel can stop the inevitable 

[Paul608085]

I suppose from OFCOM's point of view, this new process will see more people changing ISP - albeit against their wishes.

OFCOM could then say that their new process has resulted in more customers changing provider - and hail it as a success, and justification for changing the procedure!

🤔

.