Help with 3 mobile broadband contract

[Tudorrose33]

Hi, I was wondering if anyone could help. We took out a contract mobile broadband (18 months) with 3 last october 2008. For the first few months it worked ok but now we cannot get a signal, so for the past few months have not been able to use it. Speaking to our friends who also have 3 they too can no longer get a signal either. We called 3 who said tough you are in a contract. We are still paying but wondered if we had any rights here.

[buzby]

You have many rights, but none related to coverage - the nature of the beast is wireless signals are variable and cannot be guaranteed. Only when the network itself in generally unavailable (that is, it cannot handle voice/data) are you entitled to a rebate.

 

However, it is worth finging out from their coverage checker whether they have ever promised good coverage, ir whether you were just lucky.

 

(See here: Coverage checker mobile )

 

If your problem has arisen due to them closing or relocating a base station, then they have been known to be sympathetic to a compromise.

[Tudorrose33]

Thanks for this, we were promised a really good coverage. We already had a 3 contract phone and they called us about broadband. When we asked about coverage we were told it was really good. It was good but then all of a sudden we had nothing as did our friends. How would we find if they had closed or moved a base station?

[buzby]

There is their standard 3G network, and an overlay broadband 3G network called HSDPA that permits the broadband dongles to work really fast. When there are problems, you lose the high-speed signal, but still have access to the relatively fast 3G network (but at a lower speed) - none of this will affect 'coverage' - and looking at the Desctop utility will tell you the type of signal you are using 3G/HSDPA, and you can compare this with the online coverage map to see if this confirms your fears, or they show coverage to be good when there isn;t.

 

The network won't tell you directly when base stations close, just react to exact questions as to which is your local base. OFCOM have an online checker that doesn;t give coverage, it plots WHERE your local BTS (Base Transmitting Station) is located. Finf this, and you get it's network ID and can make a guess as to whether it is doing what it should. Another useful resource is to check historical Plannig Applications going back 5-6 years. Has there been a BTS approved that is no longer showing on the OFCOM site? That may mean a recent remival.

 

Alternatively, try the coverage outside your front door. A friend had been in your situation and he lost his signal shortly after he had new double glazed uPVC windows installed. They dut down his reception by 20%, and boy was he hacked off!