Sluggish broadband

[Gliwmaeden2]

Could you possibly check stability of my line? It's not down to the low speeds of the summer, but sometimes dips considerably. 

I've noticed a very few disconnections since the upheaval in the summer, but one was several minutes, in the past 3 weeks. Got back from holiday on 4th September, so you are looking at records since then.

The Service Centre is showing a marvellous 16, and I usually get 12 - 14 on my smartphone. 

Computer is not now plugged in and will need huge updates if I ever get it installed down in my living room (where it will be a real nuisance).

So I have changed absolutely nothing with the set up since the engineer was here.

The first speed test I did today showed 8Mbps and I ran that because I had noticed slow responses. Therefore it is affecting performance. 

Speed Centre has not shown previous speed test results now for over a year, regardless of which router I was using. 

Am still giving occasional lessons on Skype, and there have been warnings about Poor Connection on there too.

[Chris-TalkTalk]

Hi Gliwmaeden2,

Apologies again for any inconvenience caused by this issue. I've closed the complaint as requested

Thanks

Chris

[Gliwmaeden2]

@Chris-TalkTalk, they have just sent this:

 

On no occasion have they attempted to call nor leave a message. 

This came in at 16.01 while I am waiting for the next pupil to arrive.

The above text they sent is packed with lies, I am afraid. 

Please do close the complaint and send them feedback. 

If this is the way they behave, Talktalk loses customers. 

[Gliwmaeden2]

@Chris-TalkTalk, yes, please close the complaint.

It's not "resolved" it's just that the Complaints procedure is disproportionately cumbersome when they never phone at the time promised and then they expect us to keep phoning up to cancel texted call times that are totally inappropriate. 

Even when I do get through,  they keep trying to offer more times....

I don't believe that they will ever, ever call at the right time, and this means that cases can't ever progress further in the Complaints process. It's a farce and exhausting and stressful for customers. 

Totally out of proportion to the size of the problem. 

So cancelling will just get rid of the whole thing. Thank you for cancelling it for me - am too worn out to do it myself!

[Chris-TalkTalk]

Hi Gliwmaeden2
 

I'm sorry for any inconvenience, just to confirm, would you like us to close the complaint?

Chris

[Gliwmaeden2]

I have tried several times this morning, @Michelle-TalkTalk.

The first time I the message was still about the fault being worked on - it's as though they don't clear the "last incident" from the automated system. 

So I said, no, this is about a complaint.

Not easy to follow the accent to start with, but he tried to put me through to the technical department. Nobody got back. 

17 minutes on that call. Tried again, and this time the message was "we've found an open complaint on your account".

Got sent straight to the technical department. A lady said would I tell her when would be a convenient time for a call back.

That was already supposed to be in the notes. I said that I was fed up with being given times that they didn't honour and they would have to sort it out now or never. On hold but endless total silence. That was another 10 minute call.

This Complaints process is a complete waste of time.

The nuisance level with all these false promises is incredible, and they are impeding the process of complaining by all this messing around.

PLEASE CLOSE THIS COMPLAINT for me. If Talktalk chooses to ignore what was effectively constructive feedback and continue to remain dysfunctional, that's its problem. 

But it puts the relationship with the customer under severe strain and I fully intend not to continue that relationship when I need to move to Full Fibre eventually. Talktalk will not be entrusted with my business ever again. 

[Michelle-TalkTalk]

Morning,

Sorry about that, I should have been clearer in my post. Yes please, if you have a chance just to test if you are still getting that same message.

Thanks

[Gliwmaeden2]

For anyone else who also doesn't know:

IVR = Interactive Voice Response....!

[Gliwmaeden2]

What is IVR, @Michelle-TalkTalk ?

Maybe you mean call the number again?

I don't recognise that jargon!

[Michelle-TalkTalk]

Hi,

I've just re-checked, and I can see that the fault ticket is definitely closed. Would you mind trying the IVR again to see if you still get the same fault message please?

Thanks

[Gliwmaeden2]

@Chris-TalkTalk, when I try to phone in they play a message about the fault still being open..... it's not recorded as closed.

And they keep sending more texts to rearrange the complaint call, but when I said that phoning up was not about the technical issue, the robot didn't understand NO.

This is DIRE! The service appears to be totally uncoordinated. Just sending customers around in loops. APPALLING!

[Gliwmaeden2]

@Debbie-TalkTalk, sadly, having been sent 2 confirmation messages that they would phone me this morning, nobody has been in touch....

 

Sadly, as expected.

Then, would you believe it, another text comes through, again not offering a call within the parameters we have been asking for:

 

I am not going to waste more time phoning them up.

They should have a far more efficient system set up, instead of sending repeated texts and then not following up in practice. 

As this is my last ever contract with Talktalk, they can now try phoning whenever they like and, if it's at an  inconvenient time, they'll either get no answer or short shrift. 

[Debbie-TalkTalk]

Hi Gliwmaeden2

I have left notes on the complaint to advise that you have asked to be contacted 8am - 10am on Thursday/Friday this week. 

Thanks

[Gliwmaeden2]

Hi @Debbie-TalkTalk,

My most recent post is concerning the complaint I lodged yesterday. 

The poor Chat assistant took forever to lodge it - she felt she needed to make sure the appt. was cancelled before lodging the complaint about those texts about the engineer coming through. 

She carefully made a note that the Complaints people would phone 8am - 10am on Thursday/Friday  this week. 

As described in my previous post, I  then received a text from the Complaints department saying they will call today at an inconvenient time. Both phone support and Chat support were closed early so I couldn't reach them to tell them not to call me then. I'm not going to waste more time on it today.

Customers have far more important things to do! But the Complaints process does seem to be quite farcical. 

So you could add to the original complaint about the Openreach engineer texts to say:

1. Changing call times from the Complaints department having already been advised of availability is just adding to the nuisance level.

2. Closing support centres earlier in the evening than advertised is causing massive inconvenience to people who may well be working earlier and can't take time out to call Talktalk. 

A further text has just come through with today's call time on it, and NO this is NOT CONVENIENT. Please do contact them on my behalf. 

My own efforts yesterday ate seriously into my day.

The current complaint ref. is:

 

Thank you!

[Debbie-TalkTalk]

Hi Gliwmaeden2

Chris has confirmed with Openreach that the engineer visit has been cancelled.

Would you like me to raise a complaint?

Thanks

[Gliwmaeden2]

Oh dear,

Communication issues with the customer - we get sent texts concerning our complaints. 

Ana, on Chat, carefully noted 8am - 10am Thurs / Fri. 

Text tells me I'll get a call between noon and 2pm Wednesday, or phone 03451 720088.

The text came in just before 6pm. I had time to try to phone at c 6.20pm to tell them this won't be OK.

After pressing the buttons, I'm told you are closed. What happened to staying open till 7pm for phone calls?

Now finished teaching. Tried using Chat c 8.45pm. Bot says closed. 

So what's happened to Chat staying open till 9pm on weekdays?

Many customers have complained that the help lines seem to be closed, and it's easier to assume that they just don't know their way around the options. No, the helplines are not actually open the full advertised hours. 

And they also complain about not getting calls back when promised; getting them rather randomly  etc - all wearing customers down.

Over 90 minutes on Chat this morning to try to set up the complaint and now they are messing around with the time.

I am not going to waste more time trying to ring etc tomorrow to change the time. Customers just generally don't have this amount of time and energy to waste.....

If it's inconvenient tomorrow (they are likely to phone when the piano tuner is here, on the landline and the phone has to be in that room.....) it will be a very short conversation indeed, to tell them to read Ana's notes!

[Chris-TalkTalk]

It doesn't appear to be a communication issue between TalkTalk and Openreach systems as the visit was cancelled directly on an Openreach system and is showing cancelled on the Openreach system. I have fed back to the Openreach help desk agent that text messages are being sent in error.

Chris

[Gliwmaeden2]

It's very odd, isn't it?

It looks like the system set up between the two companies is not functioning well. 

I'll let you know if anything useful comes of the phone call.

The least that Talktalk should be doing is letting Openreach know that it reflects badly on both companies and relay my feedback! TT at least has that responsibility, as far as it goes.

[Chris-TalkTalk]

No problem. Unfortunately I not sure that there's anything we can do about this as I cancelled the appointment directly on the Openreach portal and Openreach are sending the text messages so I don't think it's an issue with our systems. 

[Gliwmaeden2]

Thank you , @Chris-TalkTalk.

I have started a Complaint, but they have vanished off to check that the appointment really doesn't exist....

I want this formally registered , as it's intolerable that this nonsense with the texts goes on and on.

But It's now an hour later. Ana, on Chat, said she needed 2-7 minutes to take a look....

I had better try to grab some breakfast.

It looks like communication on Chat may have failed ....!

Had to open this in another browser as anything on the Talktalk pages on Chrome gets superseded by that Chat page.

Her last message was at 09.49. No sign of her.

So even the Complaints process isn't functioning correctly .... 😪.

Edit : she finally resurfaced.

It took from 9.08 to 10.36am to establish that yes indeed it had all been cancelled ....I was simply trying to complain about the out of sync texting that goes on, but I suppose she had to check that there was indeed no appointment anywhere on the books at all.

Then a bit of a hassle explaining that a phone call coming in at the wrong time of day will be inconvenient  etc etc. Got it narrowed down....

Will report back...

However, mine isn't really a complaint that they are likely to deal with well for an individual.

It's a systems problem that needs addressing.

Having closed CHAT, I was given very few seconds to add my email address. Just managed it in time and I have the transcript .

Altogether NOT a positive experience, I am afraid to say.

Thank you for the help on the forum.

Without this, other customers must be completely at sea!

[Chris-TalkTalk]

Hi Gliwmaeden2,

I'm sorry about the text messages. I've chatted with the Openreach help desk, they've confirmed that the visit has been cancelled, I've also fed back that you are still receiving text messages about the cancelled visit. 

Chris