Seems like everyone is having the slow downs - I'm down by 20%

[#1]

Absolutely nothing has changed here - everything is the same as it was last week, getting 46 megabit.

Now it's 37 megabit...

I had a similar issue with BT, the lying *&^^*, and Plusnet promised a "guaranteed 40 minimum or I can cancel my contract without penalty)

If it stays this low for longer, I will be...

[#2]

and Plusnet promised a "guaranteed 40 minimum or I can cancel my contract without penalty)

We would ask that we are given a chance to investigate any issues before this is agreed to, however your estimates are from 35Mb/s so unless we see connection speeds below that it wouldn't be classed as a fault I'm afraid.

Featured Products	Downstream Line Rate(Mbps)		Upstream Line Rate(Mbps)		Downstream Range(Mbps)	WBC FTTC Availability Date	WBC SOGEA Availability Date	Left in Jumper
	High	Low	High	Low
VDSL Range A (Clean)	49.5	35	10.1	7	--	Available	--	--

[#3]

So what the sales staff said over the phone doesn't count?  That becomes fraud then...

I was complaining about BT's service and was told that PN would guarantee a minimum of 40, allowing for the odd drop due to faults (expected).

I have been on 45-47 ever since changing over about 4 months ago... now it dropped to 44 for a day (nothing to worry about), today it's at 37

Something interesting, from the "helpdesk" on the hub

4. Board version: Plusnet Hub One
5. DSL uptime: 0 days, 22:11:59
6. Data rate: 7115 / 41405
7. Maximum data rate: 7288 / 49301

8. Noise margin: 6.1 / 6.6
9. Line attenuation: 28.2 / 21.9
10. Signal attenuation: 27.7 / 20.0

And BT Speettest says:

1. Best Effort Test: -provides background information.
Download Speed
38.91 Mbps

0 Mbps 40.08 Mbps
Max Achievable Speed

Download speed achieved during the test was - 38.91 Mbps
 For your connection, the acceptable range of speed sis 28.05 Mbps-40.08 Mbps .
Additional Information:
IP Profile for your line is - 40.08 Mbps

So my MAX is the minimum I was promised - and the IP profile has set itself too low, again!

[#4]

The IP profile appears correct, it should be about 96.7% of the "Data rate" in those stats.

And the low end of that A range estimate won't even be the MGALS (minimum guaranteed access line speed).

[#5]

you miss my point - I negotiated a guaranteed 40.

I wasn't going to sign on for 18 months unless they did - and the sales rep agreed to it.

So if he's going to be ignored, or he hasn't the position to make the agreement - that is fraudulent behaviour. and the ombudsman's office will hear of this.

I signed on for a minimum of 40 (and I accepted the odd speed drop due to faults and such) - I was happy with the 45 to 47 I was getting..  Now I;ve lost TWENTY PERCENT of my speed and am below the guaranteed speed for about a week now (5 days)

[#6]

What actual difference does the reduced speed make?

I assume that issue is that you would have signed up for the 40/2 speed or with another provider for 40/10 or 55/10, had you known what would happen to your line speed.

However, from the stats you posted, your line speed is actually just over 40Mb/s. All the estimates are in terms of sync speed / data rate, not throughput / speedtest results, so presumably any "guarantee" would also be in terms of the line rate, not speedtest result.

[#7]

5.8 megabytes per second download rate dropped to 4.7 megabytes/sec - that's the difference.

But that's irrelevant - If your magazine subscription was for monthly mags then they drop to two monthly without any warning or mention... and expect you to pay the same?

Or you buy a 2.0 litre car and they supply you with a 1.6L - it doesn;t matter becasue "what's the diff?"

Bloody ISPs... if anyone else supplied 20% less than contracted for there would be trouble... but the ISPs get away with anything, almost..

If it stays as it is I'm filing an ombudsman's complaint - if it drops more and stays there I'm suing PlusNet .

[#8]

So if something used to take 20 minutes to download, it now takes 25 minutes?

I don't work for Plusnet and don't particularly care how many of their customers leave - in fact I would encourage dissatisfied customers to leave, because that's the only real thing you can do that they'll take any notice of. Your FTTC line speed, however, will be the same regardless of the ISP you choose. From the last information you gave us, your line speed was still over 40. But good luck with suing Plusnet if it comes to that, please let us know the outcome. I hope you read the Terms & Conditions before you signed up.

[#9]

What does it matter what time it takes - I;m not getting what I was promised when I signed up.

And I've been  on 45-47 for months... So I KNOW the line can do it... this 38 is an artificial crippling.

Three + months on 46 didn't exist? And the 38 is the line speed, all I can get?  Smells like BT's c.r.a.p (why is c.r.a.p censored? Pathetic!) now...

I had 4 years of 47 with them then they crippled it to 35 and said that was all my line could do and I was a liar for saying I got 46 before the speed drop.

I told that to PN's people and they checked my line and promised be a minimum of 40 - three months of 46 and then the last week of 38...

ISPs are the conmen of the computer age... 100 years ago they'd have been the scumbag trying to sell you a bridge or scam you with fake watches...

[#10]

Plusnet should never have promised or guaranteed any particular minimum speed, there's not a lot they can do to raise your line speed. They can send out engineer after engineer after engineer, there's not necessarily anything an engineer can do to find you a few more Mbps.

So you don't think it's possible that someone else might have signed up for FTTC, increasing the crosstalk which will reduce your speed, or someone did a lot of work re-arranging things in your cabinet, and as a result your speed happens to be less than it was before, or there's probably plenty of other explanations for a speed decrease besides "artificial crippling".

I'd really like to hear or read a transcript of whatever Plusnet actually said, but I don't think that's likely to happen.

[#11]

If I had a transcript of it I'd be talking to my solicitor right now (well, maybe not NOW-now.. he charges the earth for out-of-hours talk)

What you mention there is part of "artificial crippling".

Plusnet should never have promised or guaranteed any particular minimum speed, there's not a lot they can do to raise your line speed. They can send out engineer after engineer after engineer, there's not necessarily anything an engineer can do to find you a few more Mbps.

I'm not after "extra" speed - I'm after the 46 I had for three months. Surely the fact that i had it, stable, for three months shows the line can do it?

No, I trust ISPs about as much as I do politicians and lawyers.

Any other business run on those practises would be investigated by various "ombudsmen bodies", ISPs seem to get away with anything (maybe they are owned by politician's families?)

"Oh, you've got 20% less fuel in your tank than the bowser says?... Oh well... how much farther would that 20% take you anyway, it doesn't matter"

[#12]

None of the analogies you've made to the supply of various goods really quite applies to the provision of a service.

Crosstalk is not artificial crippling, it's a limitation of the wires and the technology. There are a lot of things outside of Plusnet's control which affect the service they are supplying.

It really doesn't matter what speed you currently happen to be getting, whether it's above 40 or not, Plusnet still should never have promised or guaranteed any particular speed.

---

@Casey wrote:
I'm not after "extra" speed - I'm after the 46 I had for three months. Surely the fact that i had it, stable, for three months shows the line can do it?

---

It shows your line could do it at that time, but it doesn't mean your line can still do it now. There is nothing to guarantee your line will never get any worse.