Well, I don't even have my Plusnet connection yet. In fact, I'm not moved into the house where the connection is going to be, but I've just had the most horrendous poor service from Plusnet!
I have a hearing impairment that means I am not easily able to use the phone, and always prefer to deal with support issues online anyway as it suits my lifestyle. I don't think I can be the only person in the world that this applies to.
Unfortunately, Plusnet seem intent on just hiding themselves from customers. I've tried their chat system and while I've managed to get one issue resolved, I now have another one that needs sorting and this has just become an enormous headache.
The main issues I have had so far:
• Chat support agents have been unable to handle the range of requests that a phone support person would
• Absolutely no method to contact by email - Plusnet just make this entirely impossible so as to hide from their customers.
• Although it is possible to raise a ticket for support, this option is so utterly hidden that the only way I can find to do this is to get a chat support agent to raise a ticket, then keep a note of the link to access the ticketing system
• The tickets won't be read - but may be marked as having been resolved, even if Plusnet have done nothing
• No apologies will ever be forthcoming, no matter how many times you have to contact or ask or end up in tears
• Plusnet apparently don't have a complaints department, they outsource this - and completely ignore any complaints anyway
• Trying to find out anything meaningful? Read the forums or external sites - the Plusnet website and support pages have no useful information whatsoever. No technical specs for the provided router, no help for if your Direct Debit fails - or information on why this has happened, no method for contact other than phone support
• Oh, and when you finally do read through enough forum posts from other unhappy people, you'll discover things like Plusnet supplying an archaic version of BT's router and, of course, locking it down to prevent anyone with any knowledge of networking setting the device up or making any of the common configuration changes that they are used to
Result so far... Well, I've been a Plusnet customer for 4 days. I've been on their site and support forums for at least 7 hours now - a massive 14% of my life has been dedicated to trying to work with a service I don't even have yet and won't be getting for another month. Though given feedback about engineers not bothering to turn up, I expect it's likely to be longer still. I've cried 3 times, I've been made so angry by support staff that I swore at one of them in pure desperation and abject misery.
I've written to Ofcom to point out that a company that advertises itself as having good customer service but has no appropriate methods for those with hearing issues is both discriminating and also lying.
I wish I'd done more research before signing up, but sadly the options for ISPs in the UK are so utterly appalling that despite all the above issues, this may still somehow actually be the best!
I'll know in around 30 days.
For now, I just hope that somehow this gets picked up by Google so people thinking of moving to Plusnet can be warned what to expect.
