Until 8th July 2015 Tesco Broadband were the service provider to my landline. On that date I switched to Plusnet. I was unable to make outgoing calls following the switch. I complained to Plusnet and they carried out various checks on the line. Plusnet advised me that I had a product called CPS [carrier pre-select] which was causing my issue. Plusnet said that this was not a service they provided so it had to have been added by my previous provider (Tesco). Because it was added by my previous provider they had to be the ones to remove it, so Plusnet told me to contact Tesco and ask them to remove CPS from my line. In the meantime I was able to by-pass CPS by dialling 1280 before each outgoing call.
Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Over the next two months and after extensive correspondence between me and Plusnet and Tesco, it ended up with each company saying it was the responsibility of the other to remove CPS. There is much more detail I could go into but I won’t at this stage!
The one interesting matter that Plusnet told me was an enquiry they had made of Openreach whose records showed that CPS was successfully removed on the 8th July by request (Tesco). Openreach’s records then show another order to provide CPS on the line shortly after. The agent Plusnet spoke to stated that this order looked like it had been generated under an automated computer system rather than an agent but that he couldn't confirm 100% one way or another. Therefore it is a result of the second order that CPS was still operating – Tesco’s re-order may not be showing in their records which is why they were claiming that CPS had been successfully removed. I asked Tesco about this and to check with the Openreach/CPS Helpdesk, but they did not, stating that CPS had been removed and that as my account with them was no longer active they had no authority over my phone line.
All of that was over six years ago. I was never able to get CPS removed and I learned to live with dialling 1280. I am about to switch from Plusnet to another provider for my landline and broadband. Before I go ahead I would like to resolve the CPS issue and get it removed so that I don’t have a similar problem with a new provider. Can anyone please help?
