NTL Headache

[LJL]

Hi Guys,

Anyone else here had any headaches with NTL?!

Since the regrettable day we signed up we have had nothing but bother...

Mis-sold the service – we were told that we would defiantly save money on our BT bills
Illegal Installation – an over ground cable was placed on our neighbours garden without permission resulting in a potiential legal dispute with our neighbour, my neighbour has now removed the cabling and I have it here waiting for collection
Poor Intermittent Services – none of the services have ever worked correctly
Incorrect billing month after month – bills have appeared at random with random charges for services we have not ordered
Inability to respond or deal with complaints – time after time we have tried to call and write (recorded delivery) to resolve these matters.


In the end we had to stop paying our bills in order to get them to stand up and take action, we have been passed from pillar to post in complaints. finally being told that we were being dealt with by 'Serious Complaints'!!!

Then whilst we were trying to get the matter resolved, they set Moorcroft Debt Collectors on us, thanks to you guys at Consumer Action Group, I sent them the standard CCA request letter, low and behold within a week they wrote back to say that they did not have the CCA and were closing our account and passing the account back to NTL!!!!

Trouble is, we have heard nothing since, any ideas what happens next with these lot at NTL?

Any advice would be appreciated!!!!

[buzby]

Well, you're heading in the right direction, the Manchester-based custoimer complaints section are pretty good as resolving issues, however I have a few obserevations;
1) This isn't mis-selling. Anyone can make a claim, but the real cost savings depend on the countries ytou call, numbers you dial and the frequency of the calls. Tariffs never match up to provide like for like, so there will always be winners and losers. FWIW, I have NEVER found NTL cheaper than BT for my calls, I have the line, but use it for incoming calls only.

2) An overground cable - by this I assume you mean suspended - is not illegal, and your neighbour has no right to complain if a cable is suspended across their property. As public licenced operators, BT and NTL have full rights to do this, and if your neighbour complains, it is up to them to take it up with the network, not to approach you.

3)Keep a log of what the problems are and how the services were affected. They provide refunds and compensation for services that do not work as they should. If this is linked to a bad installation, then the repair crewes can renew the cable.

4)Incorrect billing. I get this all the time, and the main reason I'll never give them a DDM. Keep checking the bills, and requesting compensatory bonuses for having to do their accountancy for them.

5) Complaints handling. Agreed, when it works fine and you donl't have to contact them it's all worth having. When it goes wrong and its off to India by phone... anything can happen. Your serious complaints folk in Manchester are pretty good at resolving problems.

[LJL]

Hey Buzby,

Thanks for the advice and support, not having a DD from the start would have been a great idea.

I'll keep you posted, thanks again...

[LJL]

Hi,

Sorry, by overground cable, I meant it lay across my neighbours garden (on the ground), basically it was co-ax cabling protected by a piece of hose (simaliar to a hoover hose) very ugly and obvious it should not be there....

[buzby]

Originally Posted by LJL

Hi,

Sorry, by overground cable, I meant it lay across my neighbours garden (on the ground), basically it was co-ax cabling protected by a piece of hose (simaliar to a hoover hose) very ugly and obvious it should not be there....

No that is not on - this is usually done prior to the crewe returning andcompleting the job, if they haven't call faults on 151 and explain that your cable has never been buried and this needs to be done otherwise Health & Safety liabilities may arise.

[chunky1977]

Sorry to hijack your thread. I to have had problems with NTL and had my account passed on to Moorcroft. I have tried to find the CCA letter you mentioned and can not find it on site anywhere. Can you please post a link to the template.

[buzby]

Not relevant, I'm afraid - your NTL contract is not regulated under the CCA (it is a service contract, not one for credit), what you want is to make a SAE to NTL (use their Manchester customer services address).

[chunky1977]

Thanks Buzby,

Slightly confused as op stated they sent letter to Moorcroft regarding CCA and account was passed back to NTL. I am in the same situation.

Can you explain what a CCA is pls.

[buzby]

Consumer Credit Act, certain financial dealing require the firm (if lending money) to be licenced and have contracts regulated by the CCA. Cable service is just that, they don't loan you money, so the CCA is irrelevant.

OP said he sent Moorcroft a CCA letter, but this would be in error as no CCA contract was in force.

[highroyds]

Hi, A little advice here, contact the guys on the ntlhell board as theres a few engineers and customer support staff on there that will help you.

I had a samular problem after my neighbour had ntl installed and after pm'ing the guys on that board and loads of phone calls we got it sorted out. The only downside was it took around 3 months and £15 worth of calls to their so called "Support line", but one engineers phone call to his area boss after he came out to have a look.

We are in the process in writing a letter to get some money back from ntl as we had to suffer with a degraded service as the neighbours box was connected to our cable feed.

[LJL]

Hi Guys,

My account was passed to Moorcroft, I sent them a request for a copy of my signed CCA, they wrote back and said they couldnt supply me with it (returned the £1 cheque), closed my account and referred the matter back to NTL.

LJ