Talk Talk problems

[casey]

I recently transferred my broadband service from Orange to Talktalk. I didn't really want to change supplier but they were ringing constantly and eventually I caved in. They convinced me that it would be cheaper. However, I now find that I have no second line like I had with Orange which makes things a lot more expensive. Also, I do not seem to be able to email - emails are returned, sometimes up to 24 hours later saying they cannot be delivered. The occasional email does get through so it doesn't seem to have been a problem with my setting up the email. Also, the telephone - I am having problems dialling out - as soon as I pick up the phone I get an engaged tone before I even try dialling. Talktalk told me they would handle everything - I would have nothing to do but now I find that Orange have charged a disconnection fee because I did not apply for a MAC number. I also have a bill from Orange for next month's rental. The internet keeps disconnecting causing problems.

I just want to get back to the way it was - I am told that I can cancel the service up to the 6th February but it appears that I won't be able to go back to the second line as they don't offer this for new customers.

I don't know what to do next, especially as I can't seem to email (I can receive emails okay), and the phone doesn't work. I have tried using my PAYG mobile but just run out of credit waiting in a queue. I don't want to keep spending £10 on a phone call that doesn't get me anywhere but to listen to music.

Any advice welcome.

[julieredknapp]

The best advice anyone can give you is that if you are still within your 30 day trial period, you should cancel IMMEDIATELY!! TalkTalk are the worst company of all time... famous for their slow and intermittent connection. They have stolen from and lied to my family repeatedly!!

 

If you are on Facebook... come and join the TalkTalk Resistance League... At The TTRL, we have landline and 0800 numbers that you can use to contact TalkTalk. MANY, MANY people have problems wiping out their mobile phone credit on those 0870 numbers to India... call them no longer... the TTRL can supply 020 numbers for your mobile or an 0800 number for the phonebox... the numbers are in our description and there is a much larger list of landline numbers for TT on our NOTES tab.

 

TalkTalk has just been awarded the Wooden Spoon award by the Daily Mail for the WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE in all of Britain for 2010... I have just placed a link on our Facebook group about the award... THE WORST IN ALL OF UK!!

 

Avoid this dire company at all costs!!

 

Hope you will come and see us at the TTRL... we DO offer support!

[casey]

Thanks for your advice. I will send a cancellation notice via snailmail. The thing is we have been with talktalk for telephone services for around 12 months now and have never had any problems. It was only when we took out the broadband that we started having problems. My children have been complaining that it keeps disconnecting and they are losing out - avid poker players and it disconnects when they are on a winning streak!!! I can't say that orange never disconnected but it was only on the very rare occasion. I just tried emailing orange again to see if they can reinstate but twelve hours later email bounced back. Will try and have a go at emailing from my hotmail account but can't seem to find an email address for orange. I have been able to make a few phone calls today but it is still intermittent and just doesn't seem to disconnect when a call is finished.

[casey]

Looks like I'm stuck with Talk Talk. Rang Orange and asked to have account reinstated or if not open a new account. Was told that they could not connect me to broadband if I had a talktalk line, even though it was a talktalk line rental when I was with orange originally. Was told that I would have to cancel talktalk first and then would be about 5 weeks before a phoneline and broadband could be set up with orange and just could not cope without phone and internet for five weeks as my husband and I both work from home, have four children and elderly parents that we need to be in contact with. Even so, I don't know where I would stand with Talktalk as my original talktalk package with line rental still had six months to run so don't know if I did cancel package whether or not it would still revert to the old package.

They don't tell you when they say you can easily cancel within 30 days that yes, it is easy to cancel but you can't go back to your original provider.

All I can think of doing is having another line put in and when this is up and running then cancel the talktalk.

Any suggestions welcomed.

[locutus]

google the "TalkTalk Members Forum" they are pretty good at sorting any issues out.

[casey]

Thanks - just looking for that now. Problem I had a couple of days ago and I could just not get to talk to anyone at talktalk - it was just pressing buttons - I had to borrow a mobile phone to contact them and then found all my home phone calls were being diverted to this mobile that I had just borrowed for a few minutes.

Talk talk is really an inappropriate name because you just can't get to talk to them.

[casey]

How do I get to post on facebook page - have liked page but can't seem to find anywhere to post. Do I need to be added as friend?

[casey]

Have I found a loophole to get out of a talktalk contract?

I was with talktalk on an 18 month contract for calls + line rental and with orange for broadband;

I took out the 30 day trial period for calls + line rental + broadband with talktalk.

I asked if I cancelled within the 30 day trial period would I just go back to the original 18 month contract which still has around 6 months to run. I was told NO as it was a voice only package. So does this mean that, technically anyone can upgrade their package, cancel within the 30 day trial period and then just walk away? This is what it sounds like from the correspondence although practically I cannot do this as I would be without a service for approximately 5 weeks.

[Surfer01]

Even if you have to sit without a phone and broadband for a month, cancel with Talk Talk it will be the best decision of your life. These people should not be allowed to operate!

[casey]

Cannot manage without phone and broadband as my husband and I both work from home. I think I'm going to have to stick with talktalk and get another provider to install a second line for us, even if I do have to pay another 18 months of talktalk

[locutus]

The only other option I can think of is mobile broadband.

[casey]

Yes, but I'm not very good with mobiles and small screens

[locutus]

I was thinking more a dongle that you plug into your PC like this : -

 

If you have good 3g coverage (or even better HSDPA) on a mobile network, you may get better speed and stability (or even just get one as backup for when the internet on the router is down)

[casey]

Thanks - will look into this. In the meantime I have received another two emails from talktalk (both with conflicting information) saying that there is a cease on our account and if we want to lift the cease then we have to contact BT. I don't know why this should be as I can't see why BT are involved.

We rang BT on Tuesday (at a premium rate) when our phone line went down and just could not make ourselves understood. About 12 times we were asked to spell a four letter word (DOVE) and eventually the phone just went dead. Tried again and still could not make ourselves understood - he just kept randomly saying (How are you today Mrs. C) so do not relish the thought of ringing them again as we were on the phone for over 90 minutes in total and did not get anywhere and were eventually told to contact talktalk

[locutus]

Dial 151 from your phone line... a cease will cost to undo if it goes thrugh!

[casey]

It seems like the cease may have been for the original talktalk calls + line rental only and it was cancelled to put us on the new package but talktalk are telling us that the service was due to be cancelled on the 6th January which was the day we went onto the broadband package and they say that as our "NEW SUPPLIER" did not take up the line then it is still active.

Can anyone recommend a good broadband provider - I was going to look at BT but after our experience last week I'm not so sure now.

[walkinthepark]

I'm with TALKTALK - they've been ok until something goes wrong. I've had many arguments with them. My telephone doesn't work either. They checked it out many times but they say it's ok. I can receive calls but like you get the engaged tone when I try to dial out. My second phone is fine.

[Guest naillig]

Can sympathise - i am in the same predicament - been with Tiscali /TalkTalk and running as fast as i can from them -thinking of BT but still unsure -but not a good area here for much else!

[casey]

Thanks locutus - I contacted BT - they couldn't understand why I had contacted them as it was nothing to do with them -so just going round in circles again - may try Ofcom next.

[casey]

After contacting BT and being told that the cease notice had nothing to do with them - they couldn't understand why I had been told to contact them I went back to talktalk and they just replied that I should contact BT to have the cease notice lifted. What a nightmare this is turning out to be.

[afcwben]

I have been through many BB suppliers, Sky, Talk Talk, BT, O2, Dongles etc, I have found the most stable BB I have ever had is Virgin totally reliable, and great for working from home. Of course some others may have had a total mare with Virgin but its good for me. As for Talk Talk, it is good till it goes wrong and it will eventually go wrong unless you are very lucky

[locutus]

This is all to do with location.

 

Virgin is currently the best, but not available to everyone.(especially small villages and rural areas)

 

I've been with TalkTalk for 5 years ish? Since they started with the free broadband. The only problems I have are due to the length of my phone line, and I'd get these problems no matter who I was with.

 

BT is s'posed to be rolling out the same style broadband as cable to everyone, the government gave them a deadline of 2012. I think they're gonna miss this deadline for most, but fast broadband is on it's way, and once it's arrived, all broadbands will be more equal in what they can supply.

[casey]

Thanks for all that information. Will have a look at Virgin. I was considering BT but after our nightmare conversations with them last week I've changed my mind.

I received an email from talktalk yesterday again saying that I had to contact bt to lift the cease on my line - they were adamant that they could not do it for me. BT could not understand why I had to ring them as it had nothing to do with them. Contacted talktalk again and they sent another email again telling me that they had done it for me.

I still cannot understand why there was a cease on the line. I had wanted to cancel the contract within the 30 days but had not done so as I had been unable to return to my previous provider.