topic Re: A second 'follow my order' thread in My Order

A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 20:01:12 GMT

As a follow up to this earlier thread....

https://community.plus.net/t5/Full-Fibre/FTTP-getting-to-the-CSP-box/m-p/1992437/

This is a house with underground duct that comes up through the concrete slab.

I have added 'learning points' in [square brackets] for anyone in a similar situation.

Ordering FTTP duly went live and I ordered on the 6 Feb choosing a 20 Feb installation date.

Current checker output attached, stating "Single Dwelling Unit Residential UG premises served by 2.5 Inch plastic duct 56"

but what I don't have is the checker output from the day I ordered - so I don't know if the KCI2 note was there at the time. Suspect not or I would have noticed

[Should have kept a screenshot !]

With no confirmition email or router I called Plusnet on 13th. They sent the router out manually and chased OR, getting a reply of 'a two-stage order... step 1 ...... to complete by 19th Feb'. So I still thought they might hold to the installation date of the 20th, maybe just a paperwork check.

[ WRONG - no email means no appointment, and the confirmation is what would trigger Plusnet to post the router ]

Update dates just kept being kicked on by OR a day at a time, then on 21 Feb updated to:

'an external engineer (step 1) visit to assess work required to provide FTTP service. In this area it takes an
average of 13 working days from order acceptance (KCI1)' So no date at all now.

Plusnet apologetic but it is hardly their fault or in their ability to fix. Suggested asking OR to tell me when the engineer was coming so I could be in.

27 Feb Openreach van appears unannounced, the engineer tasked with trying to find the duct. Show him the master socket and inward copper A-B wire, we poke about outside but find nothing duct like near the house. Disconnect indoors, open the road chamber, connect a signal source each end and go hunting with the cable wand. Trail goes dead 20 foot from house until the wall with the master socket behind it. Decided trying to pull the copper to see if it is free is too risky and might disconnect me so it is a new dig to put a fibre run across the lawn.

[They prefer across the lawn to versus a gravel path as it should just be a slit not a real trench]

Painted up the agreed route, took photos and notes about drains and I signed off the dig permission there and then. Over to OR 'civils' who should dig and fit the CSP - which will now be conventional outdoors with a short run outside.

[Just as well I was in, or the permission would have had to be written up and posted out, and no guidance about the drain runs]

Next update tomorrow so we will see.......

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 13:26:33 GMT

The 13 Feb update was that OR have no new date for anything and Plusnet will update me again on 24 March, if OR have a date by then.

Not even clear to Plusnet or me if there is an order on the local OR civils dig team to come and dig at some point in the future, or if it is still stuck in admin or hoping to lose it as it is too inconvenient.

If OR were giving a reply such as 'You are now order 47 in the queue and Civils get through 4-5 a day depending on emergencies' this would give some confidence.

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

jab1 — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 13:48:25 GMT

The chances of getting any useful information like that from ~~GPO Telephones~~ - sorry - OpenReach , are zero.

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

MisterW — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 14:52:32 GMT

It sounds like it might be time for an email to Openreach CEO, that seems to spark some actual 'action' in these cases rather than just the 'we'll update in x days'. The ISPs have their hands tied to some extent and have only very specific situations where they can escalate to a high level in OR. You don't have those restrictions and can email the CEO...

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

jab1 — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 14:57:39 GMT

As a general comment, @MisterW , isn't it time Openreach were dragged into the 21st century, instead of being stuck in the 19th?

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

MisterW — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 15:17:55 GMT

It is but I'm not sure anyone has sufficient power to drag them anywhere!!

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

jab1 — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 15:19:52 GMT

Sir Kier Starmer? 😂😂

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

MisterW — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 15:33:38 GMT

Maybe if there were delays installing HIS (or his friends?) FTTP then he'd do something.

Otherwise I suspect he's got more pressing problems...

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Wed, 26 Mar 2025 18:13:43 GMT

Next 'update day' has come and gone.

On 24 March OR provided their update (dated 17 March) - simply saying what happened on the 27 Feb visit !

"An engineer visited to provide the external network however has identified that further civils work is required. What’s next? We have identified that dig work is required.
When? We expect the relevant work to be assessed and a completion date provided by 2025-03-31."

However today the OR dig boys turned up and ran in the new duct & fibre - although they chose a different (shorter) route mostly through the chippings on the driveway rather than the lawn. Maybe what I left showing around the original route put them off ?

Checker has immediately updated to showing a '1-stage' installation.

Advised Plus via the open question, let's see if I can book a date or not ?

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Thu, 27 Mar 2025 10:51:57 GMT

Call from Plus, who had called OR after my note. (very prompt - 0810 from a note posted at 1800 last night)

OR recognise that the dig work has been done, but it is still not ready for installation.

However the OR message is that :

"they have now finally managed to install the underground pipe to feed the fibre cable to your property. We are now waiting for the chief engineering team to complete the remaining cabling work."

Odd as there is a few feet of fibre poking out of the new duct.

So there is yet another OR visit, this time to fit the CSP, BEFORE any date can be set for actual internal works & connection.

Does this mean that the 'final' connection folks cannot (are not allowed to) splice to the underground grade of fibre so someone else has to come and do it ?

Next chapter on 1 April (ominous ! LOL )

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

HitcherAJC — Thu, 27 Mar 2025 12:32:20 GMT

I posted on here last month - the dig work/ducting and cable was run on the 29th January and it took a lot of complaining and eventually emailing the Openreach CEO to get something done - 04th March my install was finally completed.

After I received a response from Openreach about sending an engineer next day to complete the work, Plus Net phoned me and sent an additional engineer to ensure the work was completed.

Hopefully you don't have to go through the same headache bud. Below for my timescale;

Ordered: December 05th
Install date: January 06th
Dig works: January 29th
Cable connected: March 04th

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Thu, 27 Mar 2025 12:51:36 GMT

Thanks

For information, which visit fitted your CSP box ? I currently have bare fibre sticking up in the air.

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

HitcherAJC — Thu, 27 Mar 2025 12:57:10 GMT

So everything was fitted between 06th Jan to 29th Jan with a spool of fibre sticking out of my driveway. Final Visit 04th March they connected the fibre cable to the box outside of the property and the CBT under the drain cover

Edit** it was the same as your situation "a senior engineer is required to connect the cable" for over a month

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Thu, 03 Apr 2025 13:33:19 GMT

Here we go again.....

The update of 1 April is that there is no update, nor any clue as to what / when anything is going to happen.

Yet another promise of 'escalation to our supplier' as it is 42 days overdue now.

The next update is 7 April.

As we are now into April, will need to discuss contract pricing with PlusNet, might be premature just in case it does not get installed before NEXT April !

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Sat, 05 Apr 2025 12:33:06 GMT

Here is a photo of the current physical situation.

Any ideas on why this needs another OR visit rather than allowing a 1-stage install to be booked now ?

Fibre is coiled exactly where I'd want the CSP.

Broadband checker (as noted above) now shows this as a 1-stage install.

On my open ticket I have asked PlusNet to get the same question answered by OR (OK fat chance but it puts it all on record).

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

jab1 — Sat, 05 Apr 2025 12:40:41 GMT

Looking at that - all they have to do is drill a hole through the wall and install the CSP and ONT - half-an-hours job for one man.

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Sat, 12 Apr 2025 15:45:52 GMT

More can kicking from OR despite asking that very question.....

PN message after conversing with OR:

"I can see the Chief engineer is required to carry out external cabeling work before the internal installation can be progressed. I have messaged the case handler to confirm this."

Assumption from PN is that 'external' in OR-speak just means something not 'internal' - in other words anything that sits between the world and my door.

So could there be something still missing in the chain to the exchange(s) ?

However I happened to meet the OR test and signoff manager who showed me the fibre 'head' (CBT) in my chamber was working in November - as he was there to sign off all the work to that point. This is a rural Scottish 'R100' setup so sign off had financial implications - as in OR wanted to be paid for it !

Back 'on hold' to 15 April

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 18:07:24 GMT

Found an OR installer at work a couple of houses down, friendly sort so had a chat.

He was trying to install fibre there - and on the same CBT as my run of fibre. 'Ah you must be the 3rd fibre'.

So that proves the CBT is alive and happy in the eyes of OR. He could see no reason that I was not connectable. Unfortunately for my neighbour he could not rod back from his house into the main ducting.

So now the road has 3 partial installs - two with fibre but no CSP/ONT and one with a CSP & ONT but no fibre !

He explained what a 'Chief Engineer' is (the level that gives out jobs to him) and that if your work gets tagged as 'complex' you can be stuck for months. 'Complex' so gets referred up, but nothing to do so nothing gets done. Nobody actually responsible for removing the 'complex' tag to allow installation

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

MisterW — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 19:26:23 GMT

If you haven't already, then I think it's time for an email to the Openreach CEO. That usually gets things unblocked...

Re: A second 'follow my order' thread

mwwagain — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 15:34:44 GMT

Required PlusNet to either get an installation date this time or raise as a complaint on OR.

Plusnet CS "We are seeing a lot of these jobs stuck on 'Chief Engineer' and 'Complex' but we don't like to complain too often"

Complaint raised on OR - "Customer and passing OR engineer do not see what this work is - prove it or clear the flag"

Within 4 hours

OR area chief called me direct, engineer booked to install tomorrow (yes that's Good Friday)

He stated even he had trouble persuading the 'Directors Office' that it is ready to install - they kept insisting there was still work outstanding. Suspect some abrupt wording was employed along the lines of I'm looking at a **** photo of it

[So it was a classic computer-says-no scenario]

[Also note this is so quick that had I not obtained the Hub up front it would not have arrived in time]

Are PlusNet reluctant to push OR too hard due to OFCOM concerns about BT group in-house favouritism, or are PlusNet put to the bottom of the queue due to being the 'cheapie' brand ?

Maybe next update will be over my fibre ......