bullied into 2 year contract

[#1]

is this normal?
Put in for house move, agent said they will waver the engineer fee of £130 if i commit to a 24month contract, the speed is pretty slow in the area and so would rather not be bound for 2 years!!!
There is a phone line in the propertry but it cannt be found on the system hence the engineer fee!!

[#2]

Unfortunately if there is no line detected we have to place the order as a new line install, which costs us at a wholesale level. Combining this with the cease fees for the old line soon adds up.
I'm sorry if you feel bullied by this, but we do provide the option of taking a longer contract or paying the fees up front, I'm not sure how this is bullying.

[#3]

Hi there,
Yes, a big part of that fee includes £49.99 which is a charge we have to pay to our suppliers to install a new line into a property.

Quote

There is a phone line in the property but it cannt be found on the system hence the engineer fee!!

If a line is physically present we can usually arrange for this to be activated remotely. If there are sockets already in your home it's likely that the lines running to the property have been removed at some point hence the need for a new line to the installed for you.

[#4]

Quote from: _Adam_Walker_

Hi there, Yes, a big part of that fee includes £49.99 which is a charge we have to pay to our suppliers to install a new line into a property. Quote There is a phone line in the property but it cannt be found on the system hence the engineer fee!!

Seems like a bit of a scam to me, BT unhook the line at the telegraph pole, then charge you for a NEW LINE, when it's the same old line!
I told the engineer I paid for a new line and I'd like it to come in through my office window, he refused saying he'd be sacked for installing a new line, and just reactivated the old one in the hallway.
When will the PPI lawyers get all over this one?

[#5]

Quote from: Doglet

Seems like a bit of a scam to me, BT unhook the line at the telegraph pole, then charge you for a NEW LINE, when it's the same old line!

If there is a stopped line available for us to restart, we would always prefer to take this option, as it is much quicker and does not require an engineer to attend the property. It also costs less which means there is generally no charge passed on to the customer.
Restarting a line would be making use of the same old line that is already in place but has been stopped.
If a line has been stopped for some time, Openreach may well have re-routed this to get someone else connected up in a timely and cost effective manner. Just because a new line has been installed to a pre-existing socket doesn't necessarily mean that it is the same old line, although I do appreciate how it could seem this way.