Leaving BT & retaining email messages etc

[FEDUP2016]

Hi All,

I have decided that BT has been overcharging me for its simple broadband, email and telephone service, so I have decided to proactively find and switch to a good alternative.  i.e. this long term BT customer has been sufficiently cheesed off and is working ahead of the end of the contract.

Just one question, but it is not a 'Switch' show stopper, what are the arrangements for transferring important email messages, records and the like and/ or continued access to these from BT?

What is BT obliged to provide under OFCOM regulations ?  No doubt BT will try to wriggle out of its obligations ?

The moral of the story is -

a) never ever take advantage of longstanding customers

b) never use an inflation plus a further % price inflation escalator

c) never try and further increase the cost with further pricing plans.

I anticipate that this will be my last post as this particular dinosaur will shortly be free from the contract and free to roam - one of the benefits of having the time to challenge and seek new pastures.

Cheerio & thanks for any comments - now to cull my email message records...........and calculate my actual landline phone usage - as they say 'Just Do It'  !!!

[gg30340]

Contrary to what you think about BT wriggling out of what happens with your email when you leave, BT are one of the few ISPs that let you keep your email account for free.

You will get the BTMail Basic account.

See link.

https://www.bt.com/help/email/bt-email-products

[licquorice]

As an aside, BT has no obligations to keep any of your messages, they are your responsibility. If you choose to leave them on the BT server rather than on your devices that is your choice.

[FEDUP2016]

Thank you very much to you both for your speedy replies. 

Yes indeed it has come to that time to reconsider my complete hardware & software replacement together with the service provider after many years. 

Importantly, the Open Reach Engineer was unable to satisfactorily access the EE network to deal with my old wall master socket as it was not compatible with the replacement router, so that makes the new Digital Service problematic as far as I understand it.

So there is a lot to be resolved, with these real life basic services. 

[verkosh]

I'm not sure what the engineer means.

If you are on FTTP you don't need a master socket. If you are on ADSL or FTTC and it's an old style master socket without the separate ports for phone and internet you can still get filters which plug into the socket and provide the necessary phone and internet splitting 

[iniltous]

EE only have a ‘network’ in regard to ‘mobile’ communications, so I don’t understand your statement,
Open Reach Engineer was unable to satisfactorily access the EE network to deal with my old wall master socket as it was not compatible….also what’s this got to do with BT Consumer ?
Unless you are joining VM or an Alternative Network, not much would change using a different ISP on Openreach network, obviously items within the ‘gift’ of the ISP will vary ( customer service, pricing , etc ) .
As already stated, especially with email, at least your current provider maintains a rudimentary email service for ‘ex’ customers, many ( the majority ) simply delete your email account once you leave ,

TBH , most mainstream ISP’s  build in an automatic inflation based increase , I’m  somewhat perplexed by those that laud ISP with  ‘no increases inside your minimum term’ as somehow being ‘fair’ to the consumer, they overlook the undeniable fact that ( especially in periods of ‘high’ inflation ) that they must be overcharging at the start of the term , so that by the end of the term they are still profitable, if these were companies that have only a  tiny margin at the start of the minimum, guarantee no price increases , but have their own costs increase , they won’t stay in business very long , or are loading the front end of the contract….ISP are not ‘non profit’ or charitable organisations,

….they may of course be backed by hedge funds , or equally unsatisfactory foreign investors that will loose money on each new customer to gain market share , funny , the regulator doesn’t allow predatory pricing by BT , you may argue from a consumer point of view ‘so what, I’m saving money ‘ but shouldn’t all companies in the same industry have to follow the same rules ? 

Anyway , don’t let the door hit you on the way out , hopefully whatever company you do select , doesn’t let you down .

[FEDUP2016]

Well aware that EE is a mobile network.  Open Reach engineer demonstrated its very poor connectivity  in my house, despite what the EE mobile coverage map might suggest.

The imposition of inflation plus pricing two years ago has left an EXTREMELY BITTER TASTE - now it is pay back/motivation to change time!!!!!!  

Perhaps BT is going to feel the full consequence of cheesing off a very long term 43 year BT customer, who for the first time is looking ahead, before the end of the contract period, at alternative telecoms & broadband suppliers. 

I would agree that the market should be an open playing field, but on the other hand initial discussions with BT have already  revealed a further step increase on telephone charges- further cheesing off the customer.

Obviously I will be looking at reliability of supply, especially in the light of EE's poor performance.

Not a good idea for any BT employee to use the phrase:  " don’t let the door hit you on the way out , hopefully whatever company you do select , doesn’t let you down "

Not a very good interaction at all  -  is it ?     OK

[iniltous]

You are correct , it’s not a good idea for a BT employee to use such a flippant term as ‘don’t let the door hit you on the way out ‘ , but I am not a BT employee, this forum is for BT Customers,  my ‘status’ here , like the majority is simply as a BT customer ( oh and shareholder ) the only authorised staff are the Moderators, who obviously use much more diplomatic language, but my other sentiment is equally valid , I do hope you don’t get let down by whoever you use next .

[FEDUP2016]

Yes,  you are absolutely correct that the customer service's effectiveness to resolve  an issue is high up there with cost.   There are particular electricity outfits and banks that should be avoided as matter of course. I do not like wasting 100 minutes each month dealing with a service provider's **bleep** up, even if £50 compensation is unexpectedly given.

Yes it is interesting and quite apparent that I have stretched the life of my assets -hardware &software - as far as possible over the last 15 years.  So that now a review of the mainstream technological, hardware and software; indeed a reconsideration of all my communication processes and ultimately the telecommunications supplier needs to be undertaken. (actually I would like to get rid of the phone to get rid of the idiots from Africa and Far East)

But fundamentally at the end of the day all that is being provided is access to a data-link - which is a commodity - this feeds into my communication & calculating machine.  That is all BT has to do.  

I would not wish to offer any comment on BT's share dividend nor the commentator's chatter about the cheapness of BT's share price; only to say that may be I would like to access to a personalised AI forecasting algorithm so that I don't even have to switch on the computer tablet tool.  I suspect that in a further 15 years time that this will be in place, but new challenges will emerge.

So off to find some new hardware, software and a rigorous telecommunications benchmarking source.  

I wish you and yours a joyful Christmas.

[FEDUP2016]

YES THANKS-  I GOT THE ANSWER & QUOTATION & NOW THE HUGE MOTIVATION HAS BEEN GIVEN BY BT TO WALK AWAY FROM BT FOR GOOD.

A VERY SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN COST FOR THE SAME SERVICE THAT I GET NOW.  £42 to 58.49 plus the INFLATION PLUS ESCALATOR THIS SPRING. 

STILL GOT AN OLD FASHIONED WALL BOX THAT THE OPEN REACH ENGINEER (OPEN REACH IS OWNED BY BT) COULD PLUG A REPLACEMENT ROUTER INTO - RUBBISH SERVICE

HAVING TO PAY SUBSTANTIALLY MORE FOR DIGITAL VOICE BACK UP THAT USES AN EE MOBILE SERVICE THAT ONLY GIVES A VERY PATCHY COVERAGE - DOES NOT COVER AN ACCIDENT BLACK SPOT ON A ROAD JUNCTION - 2 DEATHS THERE, EE DOES NOT WORK IN THE HOUSE THIS BACK UP SHOULD BE FREE.