Their remit isn't to defend the customer as an individual, sadly, a bit of another toothless regulator. Helps you understand why the defecit is so high.
Bizarrely, it cost me less to put the phone line in at the farm (two men, three posts and some kind of Unimog and approx 150m of line) than at my old house, brand new on a housing development with all cabling built in - I think there was about £20 difference from memory
Hope you manage to get it sorted. I get mail constantly from BT trying to lure me back and even the occasional call. The last time, the girl on the other end needed me to explain what I meant by 'I've changed to an ethical supplier' because she didn't understand what I was on about...
Nothing I like more than being given free airtime to explain the wrongdoings of large corporations to their often bewildered staff
You'll be glad to know that in this particular instance, mainly because I couldn't think of much that BT had done to really annoy me, she only got the five minute version rather than the full half hour!
I've ordered broadband and calls with the line this time, on an 18 month contract because they were offering free connection. I'm figuring that they will be more inclined to install a line if they know they've got me for 18 months, rather than just installing a line and going with someone else for broadband as I'd planned to do. I've not heard many good things about BT Broadband but it's got to be better than dongle broadband and I'll switch when the 18 months is up. There is nothing in the offer details about 'subject to survey' so maybe they'll just do it under the USO. If not, however, I've got it all worked out that they are over charging, so I'll drop the CEO a line and tell him what I now know. It worked for someone else on the BT forums, so fingers crossed, but hopefully the carrot of 18 months broadband and calls will be enough for them to get on with it.
Great news - they're going to connect the line with NO excess charges. They (BT retail) don't know how Openreach have come up with no excess charges when there were such large charges before but who cares? it feels good!
If anyone else is in the same situation, do your homework on and fight them - it's worth it in the end.
alison Downsizer Moderator
Joined: 29 Oct 2004 Posts: 12918 Location: North Devon
Probably - Nat has put me on a once a day limit, and busy days I don't even manage that. I won't publish my new phone number yet, as it could change when they activate it.
OK, here's the latest, we've now had another survey and here are the costs;
Quote:
Total Excess Charges are £175.00 excluding vat.
Survey Charge £350.00
Breakdown of charges items :-
By BT: Poles: 2 X £ 550.00 = £ 1100.00
Duct Soft: 50 mts @ £35.00/Metre = 1750.00
Cable in duct: 50 m X £7.50 = £ 375.00
Product Exemption = £3400.00
I'm not particularly happy that ten minutes of his time measuring up and another ten minutes working it out comes to £350 but at this stage I'm prepared to let it go, so it looks like we will now be getting a telephone line, after parting with £210.
It seems like last time they were just trying to recoup the full cost and ignoring the Universal Service Obligation. The survey guy said that it was up to BT Retail whether they charged the USO or not, which didn't sound right, given what the USO is, but I'm not going to pick a fight while they're playing ball.
12Bore
Joined: 15 Jun 2008 Posts: 9089 Location: Paddling in the Mersey
Well, we have a BT duct running from the pole to 50m away,now waiting for the pole erectors to come - it seems stupid that they have to call one team out to do half a days work and then call another one out when most of the cost will be in transport from the depot for such a small job