With Plusnet for 3+ years 2 days late with monthly debit and you cut my internet access ok...

[#1]

Well this is a new one on me.  My DD payment was due on the Monday but i didnt have enough funds for Monday but i did today.  I am sent an email and text message by Plusnet saying if i dont pay within 14 days then i will be charged £5.56 and my internet will be restricted.

This is fine by me, no argument here.

I didnt expect you to cut it off within 2 days of the non payment? I had no internet and the message url just points to outstanding bill... wow ok.

I'm sure a lot of you will be saying what can you expect you had not paid your monthly DD.

I'm surprised firstly because i didnt see anything in the updated t&cs that said they would do this (and ergo i didnt sign off on them doing this). 

And secondly because the emails and txt messages explicitly said i must pay within 14 days or my account would be restricted and fines etc.

That is the complete opposite to what you did Plusnet.

I mean  whenever there is an outage to my internet do you see me automatically deducting X amount from my monthly payment?  No i don't... a little latitude would be nice.  The door swings both ways if you want to keep customers Plusnet.

Good news for me is this makes my decision on leaving after May (finally end of current contract) a whole lot easier.

/rant

[#2]

Sorry to hear that.

From what I can see your service wasn't restricted. Mind if I ask what page you saw when you tried to browse the web?

There should have been a splash page which advises you to pay your bill, but also provides a link to "acknowledge and continue browsing" for the next 14 days.

Thanks.

[#3]

this is what you see.  Yeah i saw that plusnet splash page appear as you mention but after that i just got this on every website.

I was still getting the blue light from the router saying my fibre was on but i guess you guys just put a software block in place until i paid my bill ^^^^

[#4]

this is what you see.  Yeah i saw that plusnet splash page appear as you mention but after that i just got this on every website.

Thanks for this.

i guess you guys just put a software block in place until i paid my bill ^^^^

We don't restrict your service within the first 14 days following your payment failing.

Ideally you should have been able to browse the internet following clicking the "Acknowledge" button.

Our failed billing process is that if the payment remains outstanding on day 14 following a failed payment, then we'd in essence deactivate your login to our radius servers, so your router won't be able to authenticate.

It's difficult to investigate the reasons behind why you saw the above page without the issue actually occurring still.

Can you let us know if it happens next month?

[#5]

No offence but you saying "you dont restrict my service within the 14 days"  means absolutely nothing if you actually do.  Saying something doesn't happen when it clearly did...slight discrepancy there.

I dont think it will happen again because i will be switching providers asap.  Not cancelling because i know you guys slap a cessation fee on your customers for "cancelling" your service.   At this point the standard reply Plusnet gives is that its a fee imposed on you by BT openreach and is mandatory.

Firstly - its a fee on you the ISP not a fee on customers.  Your business has a choice whether to pass it on (and thereby pass the buck when complaints arise)

Secondly - just about every single other ISP on the BT network has stopped charging their customers this cessation fee.

The last one to do so is Plusnet and Plusnet is notoriously silent on queries about this.

You will probably hear from my new provider soon.

[#6]

Sorry to hear that.
To help us with investigating this problem, when you saw that error message were you able to navigate away from it to a different site? Or were you redirected back to that error?

Thanks.

[#7 · Accepted solution]

Hi Gandalf,

Well i was dead set on leaving Plusnet....

However i do a little digging (i always research each isp for the best offer vs fastest speed vs reliability etc)

And surprisingly it seems its the devil you know which wins out. 

 I was thinking about Vodafone (cheaper but a heckuva lot of bad reviews)  Bt Infinity (more expensive but faster)  and NOW fab fibre  (similar price but unknown quantity)

If i listen to my emotion then yeah i would have chose another ISP very quickly because i disagree with a few of your policies.  

Luckily i listen to common sense.

A)  i get a good offer from plusnet via email £22.99 for 18 months ( that includes the £1 increase in June.)

Sure 1 or 2 ISPS can be a little bit lower but they are completely unknown quantity to me.  Ive had Plusnet internet for 3 or 4 years and i have only had to use your customer or tech support once or twice in that time.  

B) if something works do not touch it!

Basically... so you still have the best internet for reliability and price ....for now! 

Cya in a year ish  xD

[#8]

@Zerinth,

Good to hear that you've got a deal which suits you.

As for @Gandalf's comment, in the first 14 days you SHOULD NOT be blocked ... but there have been some reports such as yours which breaks the rules.  There should be an ACKNOWLEDGE button, which when clicked allows you to continue browsing until the end of the 14 days.

This is something I know Gandalf is investigating on a more general front, so any clearer experience you can share with him (as requested) will be of great help.

[#9]

Glad to hear you're sticking with us @Zerinth

Let us know if you need further assistance.