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Ticket system yes / no?

mssystems
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Registered: ‎10-08-2007

Re: Ticket system yes / no?


@Townman wrote:

Is "moving" the account actually necessary?  IIRC any account ID can be used on any PN broadband connection and the static IP address is associated with the account ID. 

It would be desirable to separate the business from my personal life.  We might want to sell the house, for instance.

I have done the log in with an alternate user account before but only on ADSL.  If it works on fibre all for the good but how would my wife know without PN suggesting it at the time of order,  which they did not.

My intention from the start was to have a new line and fibre account provisioned at the new premises.  I am really struggling to accept PN could mess it up quite as badly as they have.  I do believe that 30 minute hold times and being forced to rely on real time conversation are largely the cause.

 

 [edit] Apologies.  Meant to add thanks for a constructive suggestion

 

pjmarsh
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Re: Ticket system yes / no?

I did something similar to what @Townman suggested a number of years ago, though Plusnet where able to fiddle my accounts at the time so that the usernames matched up to the new addresses.  I don't know if that would still be possible, but I think if is where you'd need someone "higher up" the support chain, such as @Chris or @bobpullen than one of the call centre guys.

I think what @AlaricAdair was getting at is that if the internet connection is essential to your business, then you need to look at the risks.  One of those risks is being without internet (or power) for a period of time and how that would effect your business.  You need to weigh up the costs of redundancy vs the effect of not having a connection for a period of time.

Making any kind of change to your connection is always going to increase the risk of failure.

 

I myself have a different requirement to @AlaricAdair.  As a software developer, I need very regular internet connectivity to check in code and such like.  A short period of no connection would be inconvenient but not disastrous. As such my backup plan involves a number of local locations that I am able to get online at.  Failing that a lot of (not all though) wifi hotspots would do for me.  And failing that I could travel 280 miles to somewhere else where I can get a good connection.  That is suitable for me and my business.  What is adequate for you and what risks you are prepared to take are one only you can decide.

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.

bobpullen
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Re: Ticket system yes / no?


@pjmarsh wrote:

I did something similar to what @Townman suggested a number of years ago, though Plusnet where able to fiddle my accounts at the time so that the usernames matched up to the new addresses.  I don't know if that would still be possible, but I think if is where you'd need someone "higher up" the support chain, such as @Chris or @bobpullen than one of the call centre guys.


@mssystems, sounds like a bit of a calamity, so firstly - sorry!

Horse has probably bolted, but what @pjmarsh@ and others have suggested is what I would have done i.e. brand new account at the new property, get it up and running and then you can take your time swapping things across (just configure the router at the new property to use the login credentials to the 'old' account and vice versa). Once you're happy everything's up and running, me, @Chris or somebody like that could have switched the address details on the two accounts.

To answer the initial question - large parts of the ticketing system are still available to business customers.

Bob Pullen
Plusnet Product Team
If I've been helpful then please give thanks ⤵

mssystems
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Posts: 290
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Re: Ticket system yes / no?

@pjmarsh wrote:

I did something similar to what @Townman suggested a number of years ago, though Plusnet where able to fiddle my accounts at the time so that the usernames matched up to the new addresses.

Earlier in the thread I acknowledged I have _in_the_past_ been assisted by some absolute stars at PN.  There was _in_the_past_ an effective ticket system too.  The facility to reach 'humans' and refer to a written conversation, is one of the main reasons I have referred dozens of businesses and consumers to them over the last 10 years(ish).  The ground has changed and it looks to me, today, that BT's worse practices have finally taken over.

 

I think what @AlaricAdair was getting at is that if the internet connection is essential to your business, then you need to look at the risks.  One of those risks is being without internet (or power) for a period of time and how that would effect your business.

My frustration with @AlaricAdair is that I never asked for that advice.  At best @AlaricAdair presumes I have neglected to consider the risks to my business and at worse, suggests I am somehow at blame.  I indicated earlier why redundant lines would not help in the slightest.

 

Making any kind of change to your connection is always going to increase the risk of failure.

I am beyond making excuses for under-investment by PN/BT/OR and large ISPs in general.  Week in, week out, my schedule is being disrupted by ISPs failing to deliver basic 'bread and butter' work, right first time.  I can live with things going wrong but being forced to wait up to 30 minutes before you can even point out what is wrong, shows a shocking level of contempt for customers.  How much do you think I should charge for waiting on hold when customers insist, and are visibly distressed by the prospect of calling the help desk themselves?

It is so disappointing to see PN go the same way as their parent company.  First it was the marketing, now it is CS.  PN have gone from winning CS awards to being the most complained about, in a matter of a few years.  It really isn't just me.

 

As a software developer, I need very regular internet connectivity to check in code and such like.  A short period of no connection would be inconvenient but not disastrous.

As a jobbing network engineer for the last 20 years, I do everything from helping vulnerable customers change passwords, to providing 3rd line, shared hosting and colo to SMEs, and last line to some international branch offices.  When the automatic failover doesn't, when no one has a clue how the VPN works, when the contracted IT gives up, I am who they call.  Do you see the problem with a redundant line yet?  Of course my IPs could be changed but to do all at once is a major undertaking.

 

mssystems
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Re: Ticket system yes / no?

Thank you for the attention @bobpullen.  Shame it wasn't earlier. 

 

@@@mssystems, sounds like a bit of a calamity, so firstly - sorry!

 Love the understatement.

 

Horse has probably bolted,

Unfortunately you [PN] have me over a barrel.  Continuing with PN is the best of two extremely poor options.  We ordered the phone line with you and as you don't do phone only, the choice is a fibre upgrade (2 to 3 weeks) or cut off the line and start again (2-3 weeks for the phone, 2-3 weeks for the BB).  Waiting on the fibre upgrade will cost us £100s in rent on an empty building.  Starting from scratch would be over £1000.  Keep in mind that is money I have to earn personally.  So yes I am a tad irritated, exactly as any of the PN staff would be if it was taken form their pay-packet.

 

but what @pjmarsh and others have suggested is what I would have done i.e. brand new account at the new property, get it up and running and then you can take your time swapping things across

Pretty much what we were trying to do all along.  My wife may have been 'stupid' enough to mention we had an existing account when she ordered and it went wrong from there.  Of course my wife is not stupid and mentioning we have business with you should not cause the disaster it has, but I suspect the op may have heard a keyword and veered onto a pre-programmed route.

To add even more insult to the injury, my wife has tried three times to contact the Options[sic] team to order the fibre upgrade but has yet to get an answer within 30 minutes.  We got through once to explain the predicament, Monday evening - Oh how I love to bring my work home with me.  When the op tried to 'blame' my wife for not noticing the order was for ADSL I stepped in; although I was trying to avoid it because I knew it would end with me agitated.  I have worked 1st line and do not wish difficult customers on anyone but honestly, your systems are driving people to it.

I got as far as the op finally acknowledging that PN branding ADSL as Broad Band might just have contributed to my wife not realising she had been sold a lemon; during the Ts&Cs monologue or when we received the Welcome e-mail...And then the battery on the phone ran flat.  I told my my wife what would happen next; the op would close the call, customer terminated.  She didn't believe me, plugged her phone in and waited for the call back which never came.  The next day sure enough, the ticket is marked, customer hung-up. 

The account is emscom by the way, if you can do anything to help.

Here is an idea.  For one week only, each time any of your top managers have a meeting, get them to sit there for 30 minutes with the on-hold music blaring out, before anyone can say anything.  I guarantee we will see a rapid shortening of wait times and an uplift in CS morale.  It must be awful working there at the moment.

 

To answer the initial question - large parts of the ticketing system are still available to business customers.

Phew.  I had to reprogram a router/firewall for another PN customer Monday after a fibre upgrade.  Customer got one days notice of the switch and I had to push back my diary to fit them in.  Another straight forward job PN failed to get right first time...You left the cap on (4.5Mbps down).  At least they are a business customer and I can point it out in a ticket.

bobpullen
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Re: Ticket system yes / no?

All valid observations. Thanks for the feedback, and sorry again that it's caused so much griefg.

Which fibre package does the ADSL account need upgrading to?

Bob Pullen
Plusnet Product Team
If I've been helpful then please give thanks ⤵