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First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

Omaraj17
Dabbler
Posts: 13
Registered: ‎16-12-2014

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

Can I get a reply before it turns 5pm again and I get the same "suppliers have finished work today can't help you with anything" response.
cripplesmith
Newbie
Posts: 3
Registered: ‎24-12-2014

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

Omaraj17 - your experience and mine of PLUSNET sound very similar:  I have been waiting since 2 Nov for a functional service, and PLUSNET have failed to keep me informed, arranged appointments for engineers where no-one turns up, had engineers turn up without notice, totally lied to me about (a) me not being in when an engineer called (b) about me cancelling the service so they could treat it as a "new order" and as at today, cancelled another appointment without confirming a new date.  Their latest advice  - and I couldn't make this up, even if I wanted to - is "go to the library, they have internet there".  I would never recommend PLUSNET to my friends.  To my enemies, maybe. 
markfrompompey
Grafter
Posts: 39
Registered: ‎27-11-2014

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

Omaraj17 - Just like yourself, Plusnet failed to keep me informed when they promised they would.
They booked re-installations on 15/12/14 for the 24/12/14 and said they would keep me updated after calling their supplier to try and get the date brought forward.
I heard nothing from them, just like yourself.
Eventually they informed me I would not get my fibre bb re-installed until 31/12/14. Meaning they had even messed up AGAIN on that first re-installations for the 24/12/14. Let alone trying to get the date brought forwards, which I never heard any more about from them.
I think it's appalling the way you have been treated by Plusnet for such a long time too. Costing you time & money too.
They should have pulled out all the stops to get your phone & fibre bb back online.
All the best Omaraj17
Townman
Superuser
Superuser
Posts: 23,051
Thanks: 9,642
Fixes: 160
Registered: ‎22-08-2007

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

For Mark and everyone else who refuse to understand the real world and seek to blame PlusNET for everything done by BT, here's a tale from A&A the ISP thought to be the personification of perfection by many - http://www.revk.uk/2014/12/bt-hate-site.html - enjoy the read and recognise that the grass is not greener else where.

Superusers are not staff, but they do have a direct line of communication into the business in order to raise issues, concerns and feedback from the community.

HPsauce
Pro
Posts: 7,017
Thanks: 162
Fixes: 2
Registered: ‎02-02-2008

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

True, but the difference is that AAISP are brutally, openly honest about failings wherever they occur and seek to do something about them.
Once upon a time (oh, that's how fairy tales begin) it seemed as if PlusNet were in the same camp, or at least followers.......  Cry
markfrompompey
Grafter
Posts: 39
Registered: ‎27-11-2014

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

Townsman - 1) In my case plusnet admitted that it was their fault that my services were cancelled & shouldn't of been. Because they did not pick-up on the fact that my phone service did not get closure. And that they had that information on their system before it was cancelled & should have picked-up on it. They did not blame BT.
2) Plusnet failed to contact me when promised, about bringing the re-installation date forward. The 'special dedicated team' dealing with my case, told me I would be contacted by them by the end of that day or by the following morning at the latest & I heard nothing from them ever.
3) Plusnet had only booked the phone line re-installation to correct this, and failed to book the fibre broadband re-installation at the same time as promised.
The fibre bb only got booked after I asked plusnet to double check if it had been booked along with the phone re-installation. But they had not, which put it back another week. So they messed up AGAIN.
So speaking for myself, your link provided, has absolutely no relevance to my case & plusnet.
I'm sure others may say the same with their cases.
tijara33
Pro
Posts: 1,360
Thanks: 50
Fixes: 6
Registered: ‎22-06-2012

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

I notice that this thread isn't exactly over populated as there are only 2 other complainants who have joined the OP for a winge. Although any foul up is regrettable PN is staffed by human beings who now & again unfortunately do make mistakes. Fortunately for their 700,000+ customers this doesn't happen too often.  Smiley
Omaraj17
Dabbler
Posts: 13
Registered: ‎16-12-2014

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

I gave an update on my case in another thread but obviously it seems more reasonable to keep this one updated too - below is unfortunately another demonstration of Plusnet repeating the same mistake they did on my first order:
Quote
Hi Mark,
Sad to see you go - for selfish reasons I enjoyed having another trooper on the front-lines with me that shared my experiences.
Although I am happy for you. I was with Virgin for 6 years at my last property and they were excellent - unfortunately they are not available in this region so I couldn't go for them.
To be honest with you, Plusnet reached a point where they wouldn't reply to my Help Assistant tickets, my forum posts, or anything. I had to call them every time (50 minute hold etc etc.), and then whoever I get would just blame their suppliers and say "We will find out from them and get back in touch with you tomorrow morning" - to which they would never get back to me.
Yesterday I finally decided I've had enough, spoke to Talktalk and they confirmed they would be able to turn on my internet on the 2nd of January so I called Plusnet to cancel. They got the manager to contact me back and she said she would personally handle my case and get the internet activated by the 29th December - I thought hey why not (at this point I am just desperately waiting to have internet up ASAP). Funny thing is this manager seemed to be more clued up than any staff member I have spoken to throughout my time with Plusnet, she (like me) also questioned why there was a need for engineers when it was up and running, and why they needed to access the flat when everything was installed.
Also, what I got told yesterday over the phone, was that the reason Plusnet couldn't meet my request for an engineer on the 24th December 2014 (today), was because I responded to the Help Assistance ticket (to actually request the engineering revisit to be rescheduled) - which for some reason caused the case to be pushed to the back of the line, meaning no one actioned it and so the order managed to cancel itself AGAIN!! (THE SECOND TIME!!). I burst out laughing on the phone hearing this - in the space of over two months, I am on the third order with Plusnet, 2 of which have been cancelled directly through their own fault, and I STILL don't have internet.
So, for new customers (if they read this and somehow still want to go ahead with Plusnet) do not reply to your Help Assistant ticket otherwise it chucks your case to the back of the line delaying it even further - instead you should wait on hold for 60 minutes on the phone until you get another useless staff member to tell you that he will give you an answer in the morning once BT Openreach brainwash him into believing four more faults with 10 more engineering visits are required.
Enjoy your Christmas anyway Mark, and hope you have a great new years.

I can understand Townman's point, sure in a lot of cases it is BT's fault - but to be honest, from what Plusnet themselves have told me, and from what I can see/experienced - Plusnet are significantly worse than BT. The massive delays in my case heavily lay on Plusnet's incompetence.
To be honest, I am not even angry that Plusnet made the first mistake in cancelling my working order - sure, it happens, someone messed up. That's fine. But it's that they don't seem to now be jumping through hoops to reconnect me, it's as though I am a low priority customer who gets pushed to the back of the line, even though they have made a mistake which they ought to be looking at every possible avenue to correct. That is what I cannot. ever. understand. Because any other big company would react in that way and the fact that Plusnet hasn't tells me a lot about the fact that they don't care for their customers.
The complete and utter lack of communication with the customer and repeating the same mistakes is also mind-boggling - once it happens the first time you'd expect them to learn from it, but again, Plusnet just seems like a big disorganised mess who are only happy by being the middle-man who takes all your money and looks to blame their suppliers for their own mistakes.
EnglishMohican
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 311
Thanks: 55
Fixes: 1
Registered: ‎08-04-2009

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

Quote from: tijara33
.......who now & again unfortunately do make mistakes. Fortunately for their 700,000+ customers this doesn't happen too often.  Smiley

Your statistics are biassed to the point where this arguement is meaningless. A huge number of the 700000+ customers are "stable". That is, they are not in the process of being connected, upgraded or suffering a fault. Plusnet do of course provide the hardware/software between the peers and the gateways (but given the recent gateway problems that cut off large numbers of those 700000+ let us not dwell on that) but a large part of that stable service is down to BT Openreach and the quality of their exchanges, lines and maintenance procedures.
Plusnet are mainly involved in providing service when they have to connect somebody up (and all they do is ask BT Openreach to do that), when a fault occurs and when they collect our money - something they are specialists in (no -  thinking about it that is not true - look at the referrals mess). So 700000+ is irrelevant. At most the number you quote should be the number of people who are joining Plusnet at any one moment plus the number who are suffering faults - a much lower number than 700000+.
Further - it does seem that when Plusnet get it wrong - they do so in style. It strikes me that if BT Openreach get it right the first time they are asked, then Plusnet look good. When Openreach get it wrong, Plusnet are incapable of sorting it out and getting things back on track. Add to that their antiquated billing system that is going to be replaced with a system that will solve all problems (in some undefined time frame) hopeless ticket system and their two customer service centres that a senior manager assured me were going to solve the call wait times by February 2014, and I have little doubt that Plusnet are wonderful until they have to do something.
I am sorry this does not help the OP much - perhaps a note of commiseration - but not more. The forums are great when they can utilise the power of the "ordinary" members, some of whom provide far more help than ever Plusnet do but this is not one of those cases. It is a great shame that Plusnet's systems are so appalling that the only way of getting them to concentrate on a problem is to come on here and publicise their failure - and despite Townman's views, I suspect that if Openreach were as bad as Plusnet at managing things - nobody would have a stable connection of any sort.
I have no connection with Openreach but do get a bit fed up with Plusnet fans bigging up a cheap but otherwise hopeless organisation - Plusnet.
PeterLoftus
Pro
Posts: 2,599
Thanks: 182
Fixes: 5
Registered: ‎27-05-2011

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

Wow I wish I could type like you but on this touch screen its not possible for me anyway  Smiley
I don't agree, people on forums like this are self selecting and a sub group of the population, those with issues and out of the ordinary problems. The sample is skewed by the number of satisfied customers who don't post and those who don't even know this forum exists, never having sought it out!
I give Plusnet some credit for providing this forum uncensored with fellow customers as mods where issues are delt with in the open warts and all.  Smiley
To do is to be - Neitzsche
To be is to do - Kant
do be do be do - Sinatra
EnglishMohican
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 311
Thanks: 55
Fixes: 1
Registered: ‎08-04-2009

Re: First time Plusnet Customer - Biggest regret

I agree with you that forums tend to contain unhappy  posts. This is not a kindergarten where tiny children are given 9/10 just for turning up. Plusnet sell themselves as having superb customer service - see their adds if you do not believe that. Therefore that is what we should expect and receiving it should not be  worthy of comment. I support a polite thank you for a person, a testamonial for the company for doing what it claims - not a chance. I buy lots of satisfactory products. I do not expect to praise a company for achieving what it set out to do. Doing more than it should would be a different matter but that tends to be down to individual employees, it is rarely part of the company philosophy.
That does not alter my point that using 700000+ as the "number of happy customers" and comparing it to "a couple" of unhappy ones and giving Plusnet the credit for that is unreasonable. Openreach are at least as deserving of credit for the happy customers as are Plusnet and Plusnet do get things mammothly wrong on occasions and seem incapable of getting things back on track to judge by the posts on here. I expect that the staff are overworked, under-trained and having to cope with management systems Noah would have recognised. That is an excuse for the people but it is not an excuse for Plusnet as a company. The senior management of Plusnet are clearly more interested in offering cheap than in offering service.