Issue with Plusnet Chat and my Adblocker

[#1]

@Anonymous You needn`t worry about Live Chat.... its still disbled,,,    

despite this...

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Residential call stats

Current calls waiting	Longest call waiting now	Average answer time today
0.00	Currently unavailable	0 seconds

Last updated: August 22, 2017, 9:50 am

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So ... what`s the excuse now for showing..... This???????

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Sorry a Plusnet chat agent isn’t available at the minute,

please refresh the page to try again.

Chat is available 7 days a week from 7.30am – 10pm.

Outside of these times, or if you want to talk about moving

or faults, call us free of charge on 0800 023 2221

or 0330 123 9123 from a mobile

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After clicking "Join the Queue".....

(or is that an invitation to joint the queue for teas and coffees  ?  )

[#2]

Thankfully @shutter I don't need to use the services of chat, but was looking at it out of curiosity. Even then I find a system like chat pointless for tech support because it is so time consuming. Not everyone can type with speed, so by the time they have formulated their question / response they could have said and done much more on the phone!

Which may explain why it is disabled as I would think it it much faster to deal with support queries via the phone than this medium.

[#3]

@Anonymous thankfully.... me too... however.. it is a lifeline for me... with my "almost" no hearing... and I have been dealt with quickly and efficiently on 99% of the times I have needed to contact pn...

I do like to make sure it is available... and consider it an essential service, in the same way as being able to call on the police/ambulance/fire/coastguard services when they are needed... it`s nice to know they are there to help.

Unfortunately... Plusnet management see it as an "accessory" to the "Award winning customer service"... and what do they do ?     

they "Do us proud" by disabling the service, so vital for disabled people.

[#4]

That's a very valid point @shutter, shame on me for not considering that.

[#5]

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shutter wrote:

@Mook thankfully.... me too... however.. it is a lifeline for me... with my "almost" no hearing... and I have been dealt with quickly and efficiently on 99% of the times I have needed to contact pn...

I do like to make sure it is available... and consider it an essential service, in the same way as being able to call on the police/ambulance/fire/coastguard services when they are needed... it`s nice to know they are there to help.

I'm sorry that you're unhappy with the temporary closure of our online chat service and I do understand how useful it must be to people like yourself who are hard of hearing. Are you aware that we offer a full range of accessibility options for people with disabilities? You can find them here one, that you may be interested in is called Next Generation Text Relay and you can find out more about it here.

I am however unsure that I'd put us in the same category as the the emergency services when they are needed.

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[#6]

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I am however unsure that I'd put us in the same category as the the emergency services when they are needed.

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 @JonoH

You obviously "miss the point"... When something goes wrong... disabled people get to the back of the queue as far as you are concerned.. Live Chat is an emergency service for disabled people like me... ( not just me )...

Those of us with hearing difficulties know how to use the phone...but have great difficulty in hearing the many different frequencies in peoples voices... there is no problem using the keyboard to "chat" when you are "deaf".... so if you take away that service for disabled people, like myself,  ( and another point is that you are directing your response to me "personally".... as if I am the only person it affects).. is tantamount to discrimination of all disabled people..

There is a law against that now, i believe....  Whilst you are touting some other form of communication, as an alternative.. these are not advertised as accessible from the page that says "Live Chat"     "Chat Now"  when it is disabled..

If you can make something difficult for disabled people to communicate with and access the "normal services" able people can access, then you ( PlusNet ) are failing miserably.  and should be ashamed of yourselves for doing it.   it appears to me, that so long as  your phone service is working, and you can see no reason to re-enable the Live Chat for the disabled customers to use, ( or indeed anyone else that prefers this method). you will do your best to keep " the status quo".

I have just checked the phone call status...

Current calls waiting	Longest call waiting now	Average answer time today
1.44	Currently unavailable	25 seconds

Last updated: August 22, 2017, 12:50 pm

I notice that there has been a "surge " of calls this morning... but nothing "out of the ordinary"... and certainly your call centre staff should have been able to manage quite easily.... yet you are still promoting the excuse that you are so busy  that Live Chat should continue to be disabled, so that the staff normally employed on it, can help out with the overwhelming number of calls waiting   .... 

1.44 and a waiting time of 25 seconds seems to be the benchmark for keeping Live Chat disabled, does it  ? ? ? ?

So... When can we expect Live Chat to be available for the disabled ( and other customers ) to use....

seeing as you say it is a "temporary" situation.... ? ?? 

[#7]

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@shutter wrote:

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@JonoH

You obviously "miss the point"... When something goes wrong... disabled people get to the back of the queue as far as you are concerned.. Live Chat is an emergency service for disabled people like me... ( not just me )...

Those of us with hearing difficulties know how to use the phone...but have great difficulty in hearing the many different frequencies in peoples voices... there is no problem using the keyboard to "chat" when you are "deaf".... so if you take away that service for disabled people, like myself,  ( and another point is that you are directing your response to me "personally".... as if I am the only person it affects).. is tantamount to discrimination of all disabled people..

I'm sorry if you think that I'm discriminating against disabled people but I can assure you that is something I'd never do. I'm simply saying that should you need to contact us (and indeed anyone else that requires it) our accessibility page does offer some alternatives for people to use.

So... When can we expect Live Chat to be available for the disabled ( and other customers ) to use....

We're not in a position to answer that at the moment unfortunately, however as soon as we're able to I'll gladly communicate the details.

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[#8]

So you junked the ticket system and brought in Chat and now that is junked at present and all we are left with is phones which explains the quick answering times but also leaves us with the problem that the customer hasn't a record of the call

Do Plusnet have any objection to the customer recording the call

Perhaps a person who knows can comment on why all the Chat agents seem to have been moved over to phones

[#9]

@Oldjim  Lack of Staff maybe ? 

[#10]

@JonoH Obviously, you are just "speaking the lines"... someone else has to "make the decision"... based on the information he/she receives.... Well, you should be passing on the information received, from your very own "status page"... which has shown, that todays phone traffic has not been anywhere near " exceptional ".. and the staff that have been seconded to the phone duty roster, would be better employed helping out on their respective computers. on the Live Chat...

I am not a personnel managerial genius,   but even I can see that the more people are spread about the more help can be given... It also strikes me that the "management"/"leadership" system is disjointed. in asmuch as using only the phone lines as point of contact, actually increases phone line numbers and waiting times

.  As I have said before in this post... using the Live Chat, relieves the phones of a number of calls, and by doing so, it also reduces waiting times...

The phone stats at 18:05 

Residential call stats

Current calls waiting	Longest call waiting now	Average answer time today
47.21	Currently unavailable	15 minutes and 40 seconds

Last updated: August 22, 2017, 6:05 pm

You have failed to answer the criticism that your "alternative" means of contact, for disabled people, are not showing in the "Live Chat"   "chat now" page... when Live Chat has been disabled,...

If you go for a drive along a familiar route, and the road is closed... there is usually a "well signposted" alternative route... Plusnet should be ashamed, that they cannot even provide that, being in the "communications industry" .

Another failure in the "we`ll do you proud"  department... and also heading towards the "worst isp for communcations" in the "Award winning customer service."....

Its no good "resting on your laurels"   as the saying used to be.. You have to keep on working at it to ensure that your live up to your previous reputation,   ... nay... to ensure you exceed your previous reputation.....

. you may well have got a "good or excellent" award for customer service at some time in the past...but you cannot trade on that, with the dismal service you are providing at the moment... more shame on you...

@Oldjim Live Chat, became DEAD CHAT some time last week, because the phone staff could not cope... I think it was about Wednesday... since then... (possibly because of the poaching of the live chat staff) the phone lines have been busy,...but not overwhelmingly so...   as @rongtw said... it is indeed a "shortage of trained staff"... which then comes back to my thread of NOVEMBER 20009.... Employ more staff to answer the phones... and has been running ever since on the failed platitudes of....  "I`m sorry  if you are not happy..... but give us time, and we`ll get there "...

Every person, whoever complains in a serious manner, about the service gets the same  "I`m sorry if you don`t like it....... "  answer.... we can`t do anything about it  

As in this classic response to the question......

So... When can we expect Live Chat to be available for the disabled ( and other customers ) to use....

We're not in a position to answer that at the moment unfortunately, however as soon as we're able to I'll gladly communicate the details.

Phone stats now..... 18:35

Residential call stats

Current calls waiting	Longest call waiting now	Average answer time today
58.51	Currently unavailable	18 minutes and 10 seconds

Last updated: August 22, 2017, 6:35 pm

Hardly an overewhelming work load, considering Plusnet record in the past for long waiting times..

Update  on  status at 20:38 

Residential call stats

Current calls waiting	Longest call waiting now	Average answer time today
30.49	Currently unavailable	18 minutes and 48 seconds

Last updated: August 22, 2017, 8:35 pm

[#11]

"Don`t answer any more of shutter`s posts, and he will go away... so will the problem... then we won`t have to do anything, and we can carry on as if nothing is wrong with PlusNet services in general or to disabled people.

Live Chat is still DEAD...

currently, there are about 21 calls waiting... and the response average is just over 4 minutes.... granted it was busier early on...but no busier than usual... so why can`t we get Live Chat ....

Oh, of course.... " we are not in a postiong to reveal that...... "..... or put it another way.... "Give us time,.... and we will get there"...

Shame on you ....

[#12]

@shutter  well another customer has noticed Chat not working still

https://community.plus.net/t5/Plusnet-Feedback/Contacting-customer-services-An-utter-nightmare/td-p/...

[#13]

@Mav & @MauriceC

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@Mav wrote:

Issues regarding the Chat Service itself and staffing should be posted here which is in Plusnet Feedback.

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@Mav as this has turned into a thread about Live Chat  AND staffing levels,... perhaps you should be moving it back to PlusNet Feedback...

@MauriceC  So,... what have you found out, and failed to report on this thread since your post last Sunday  ?

LIVE CHAT is still DISABLED...

On this page.... https://www.plus.net/help/chat/

It is now showing a ridiculous statement...

"

Loading chat...

This should only take a few moments.

"

Yes... It SHOULD only take a few moments.... but it won`t....

and on this page   https://www.plus.net/home-broadband/contact/residential/customer-services/

after clicking through to get  to Live Chat... you still get no helpful information.. 

Live chat is unavailable, please use another option 

Disgusting way to treat customers who are DISABLED.. 

[#14]

Moderator's note:

Locked in favour of this thread.