topic Re: get the call centre back in the uk in Plusnet Feedback

get the call centre back in the uk

createascape — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 22:42:02 GMT

Being at plusnet for 4 trouble free years...recomended to loads of rfiends ...nice helpful friendly uk based staff....then big error ..moved phone service...totaly seemless ..no problem... plusnet sold to bt... call centre moved abroad... service awful...big balls up ..old supplier still charging... also bt charging... 3 companies charging all for the same service...lots of promises... no action... just what do you do...they all promise to sort it out but ...despite being friendly they dont understand the frustration they do not use english as a first language and when you are on the other side of the world what does it matter I cant go round his house can I or shout in the street .....it is difficult ...even if I speak another I still think in my native ... so what to do ???? find a supplier who does use a uk centre??? I thought I had that... so rip the phone out???? or just yell loud
your service is xxxxxx

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

pierre_pierre — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 07:12:43 GMT

exactly whos call centre are you Talking about, you think you have trouble with three.
BT is in India,
No 2 ?
PN based in Sheffield, overfllow in Durban SA - inherited from John Lewis, Native tongue English

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

artmo — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 07:16:59 GMT

If you dial 01142965198 as opposed to the 0845 number you will get through to Sheffield and not SA. I had need to call them this week and had excellent service

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

bobpullen — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 10:54:18 GMT

Quote from: createascape
Being at plusnet for 4 trouble free years...recomended to loads of rfiends ...nice helpful friendly uk based staff....then big error ..moved phone service...totaly seemless ..no problem... plusnet sold to bt... call centre moved abroad... service awful...big balls up ..old supplier still charging... also bt charging... 3 companies charging all for the same service...lots of promises... no action... just what do you do...they all promise to sort it out but ...

I notice your phone service has been with us a while now, are you *still* being billed by your previous provider? I can see from the ticket on your account that you've queried some calls from the beginning of April. Have you checked your itemised billing with us to see when we *started* charging you for calls? I've looked and this seems to coincide with the date that the previous provider stopped.

Quote
despite being friendly they dont understand the frustration they do not use english as a first language

Our offshore call centre is in South Africa and as Pierre has implied, most South Africans have English as their first language. Just to be clear, we do still have a call centre in the UK, you can read more about this here. I recognise that their might be cultural differences but our colleagues in Durban are equally as well equipped to deal with your enquiry as the provisioning guys we have in the UK.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

VileReynard — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:30:24 GMT

Quote
South Africa is known for its diversity in cultures, languages, and religious beliefs. Eleven official languages are recognised in the constitution.
English is the most commonly spoken language in official and commercial public life; however, it is only the fifth most-spoken home language

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

dottsthescot — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 10:10:49 GMT

Quote from: createascape
Being at plusnet for 4 trouble free years...recomended to loads of rfiends ...nice helpful friendly uk based staff....then big error ..moved phone service...totaly seemless ..no problem... plusnet sold to bt... call centre moved abroad... service awful...big balls up ..old supplier still charging... also bt charging... 3 companies charging all for the same service...lots of promises... no action... just what do you do...they all promise to sort it out but ...despite being friendly they dont understand the frustration they do not use english as a first language and when you are on the other side of the world what does it matter I cant go round his house can I or shout in the street .....it is difficult ...even if I speak another I still think in my native ... so what to do ???? find a supplier who does use a uk centre??? I thought I had that... so rip the phone out???? or just yell loud
your service is xxxxxx

Ahhhh thanks to Createascape!! now I understand what is going on here at Plusnet, I am a long time customer of phone and broadband also and done all the same things as you, great service, trouble free, super friendly staff who always fixed any problems.....I always raved about Plusnet, then in the last year everything changed!! my questions were never answered to my satisfaction and the replies became less friendly and informative, unless you have been with them for years you might not have noticed anything different.
I am leaving the company now, with no choice as I am moving remote to an Island where there is no Plusnet, I just had my final conversation with a barely understandable customer service rep (and now I know which accent that was!!) , I still find it hard to believe that I have to pay a 20 pound fee to leave, after all the years of monthly payments the least they could do is cover the 20 pound fee on my behalf as a thank you for all the thousands I pumped into Plusnet right??? after all I have no choice and I'm not leaving for another company. Oh well...... nothing like a kick up the a** after some loyal service eh!! cheers and goodbye

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

James — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 10:34:26 GMT

Hi there,
I'm sorry that you feel that way and it's certainly a shame to see you leave.
The cessation charge is something that was relatively recently introduced by BT Openreach and costs us approximately £20. As such, we pass the charge on to our customers who are cancelling their broadband service with us.
Can I ask where you're moving to?

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

dottsthescot — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:29:06 GMT

Ah James, customer service used to be just like you lol. I guess all things change in the end. Thanks, yeah I know about the fee! but maybe if you've been a customer for 3 or more years then it could be waived you know! I am hesitating to pay.
I'm moving to the Western Isles, communities connected, using base stations and antenna!! a very interesting project and a life saver for me.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

James — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:59:25 GMT

Good luck with the move!
You'll have to let us know how your (satellite?) broadband works out.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

Diamond — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 12:28:13 GMT

Overseas Call Centre
The only reason I moved to Plusnet in the first place was I wanted to support a company that employed British resident workers only, rather than a company that is farming out to poorly paid foreign workers whilst the bosses pocketed the difference.
I searched for a UK only based ISP of which Plusnet was one of two.
Telephoning sales, I was assured that ALL calls were handled in Sheffield, how sad that this is no longer the case.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

artmo — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 12:45:38 GMT

Look at the info I gave in post #2 in this thread and you can always get through to the UK call centre.
I don't know what wages are paid in SA so can't say if it's cheap labour.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

VileReynard — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:02:37 GMT

SA labour is obviously cheap.
Why else would PN pay to divert calls halfway round the world?
They also have to pay for all that training about cultural differences.
I wonder if they provide training materials in a foreign language?
Personally, I've never had any dealings with SA (see my sig).

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

artmo — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:15:41 GMT

I wonder if they do get training in SA on cultural differences.
No need for foreign language training as I believe they speak English in SA.
Can't answer for labour rates but someone from PN might be able to tell us.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

James — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:17:42 GMT

I'm unsure on pay in South Africa, but it's unlikely that I would tell you anyway. In the same way that I wouldn't tell you what I earn
English is their first language. I'm not sure on cultural training, but certainly noone there's ever asked me about Eastenders!

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

Lurker — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:21:05 GMT

And would you know anything about Eastenders if they asked you?

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

itsme — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:26:34 GMT

If they do get training on British Cutural they probably would not believe that a country that once had a Empire was such a bigoted place.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

jelv — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:43:49 GMT

@Crucibleofevil!
I suggest you should edit your signature to point out that home phone users may have to pay if they call that number whereas taking their chances with 0845 is free.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

pierre_pierre — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:18:10 GMT

CSV Phone charging is a bit of a jungle. the 0845 number is free 24/7 but only to Home phone customers, other people pay. The 0114 number cant be free to anybody that has free minutes on their phone. i.e. when my BT line went down, although I am a home phone customer, on my Mobile the 0845 was expensive, but I could call the 0114 for free (I get 500 mins a month from home with O2). Likewise a BT customer can get both numbers free during their Included Call Free time.
Secondly. PN inherited the SA call centre when they took over the Waitrose ISP

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

VileReynard — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:44:21 GMT

Quote from: jelv
@Crucibleofevil!
I suggest you should edit your signature to point out that home phone users may have to pay if they call that number whereas taking their chances with 0845 is free.

Shan't!
If I call that 0845 number in the daytime - then I have to pay.
If I call 0114-296-5198 in the daytime, that is also chargeable.
If I call either number in the evening or at weekends, then they are both free.
I suspect that a geographical rate number is never more expensive than a premium rate number.

Re: get the call centre back in the uk

itsme — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:53:40 GMT

Think you need to check with your telephone supplier.
BT charges for Day time calls are
01, 02 and 03, numbers 4.5ppp plus setup charge
0845 numbers 1.96ppm plus setup charge
Edit Checked my bill and found that 0845 numbers do have a setup charge.