[aol broadband] terrible service - questions.

[padi123]

Howdy,

 

So my experience with AOL started over 6 years ago. There were some good and bad times just like in a normal relationship between partners. However, I had to move homes 3 months ago so I took my internet with me and of course had to renew the contract with AOL for another 24 months which was a big mistake. At my previous address the internet was super, I received from 6-7 MB/s daily. Every time I restarted my router I received the same speed, my line was stable.

 

Unfortunately when I moved and also my internet trouble began. AOL service dropped dramatically, my internet speed for the past 3 months is 1.5MB/s. I am paying for 8MB/s speed as it is in my AOL contract for the sum of £19.99.

 

I already made multiple calls to AOL Customer Support, the first one was at the very beginning, so around 2.5 months ago. The advisers resolved my issue with the speed for a short period of time because for 3 days as I remember correctly. After the 3 days everything started all over again so I called ACS again, they said that there is a fault on my line and they have called a team of technicians and they are currently working on my line outside of the house - I didn't see anyone outside my house, a bunch of lies. They asked me to wait and the team will contact me within 48 hours to give an update. Did I receive a call? I think you know the answer, NO. So, I waited a few days and called them again to see whats up, they said that my issue has been transfered to someone else and then someone else again, but then they had some mistake in their database so they lost my info and couldn't contact me. At this time I was frustrated and yelled at the adviser (which are all ****ing Indians), however she could not do anything apart from re-creating the issue and again passing to a team bla bla... She did, I was suppose to get a call back the next day. Did I get a callback? No. So, I called them again and the adviser told me that the technicians are working on my line and doing tests while changing profiles on my line, so I was suppose to wait 72hours for a call back. Did I receive a call back? No.

 

After 3 days I called again to see whats happening because my internet was still the same, standing at 1.5MB/s and the line was very unstable as I was getting completely lagged at times, so I guess this profile isn't stable at all. The adviser informed me that the fault has been escalated to BT Openreach and they will contact me within 72hours, did they? No, nobody ****ing contacted me.

 

I waited another few days hoping that they are doing something and will finally fix my line, nothing was fixed so I had to call them back TODAY. I told the adviser that I've made multiple calls and requests but nobody is contacting me, she sighed and obviously didn't give a ****. She informed me that all she can do is to re-update my case and I am to expect a call back either from BT or one of the technicians tomorrow between 8-10AM.

 

My question is:

 

1. Can I make a complain to request some kind of compensation because I've spend a lot of money on calls..

2. What do I say to the technician tomorrow to really point out my situation and make it a serious one, so he will take some kind of action and resolve my issue and stop ignoring it..

3. Ultimately can I cancel my AOL Broadband based on this situation if they still won't be able to help me without paying the stated fees on their website? If yes, who do I call or contact?

 

Thank you for any help I really appreciate it because I am really frustrated and angry with the internet I am receiving. I hope you can help me.

 

Pat.

[locutus]

1 Sure, complain all you like Read HERE for their complaints code, which shows how they will handle a complaint.

 

2 Lets make sure your current address should be getting faster speeds. I know they bumped you up, but if your internet disconnects a lot, the system will lower your speed to try to increase stability. So, check HERE to see what you should get. That is what you should convey to the technician, although he will probably know, as an Openreach engineer this is probably a big part of his workload

 

3 Who are you paying Line rental to? If BT you will need a MAC to move your broadband, however if you move to another supplier you may hit the exact same problems. If this is your ultimate aim, convey that in your complaint. Try to keep everything in writing so that if things do go wrong, you have a record of what was said.

[locutus]

Did the engineer turn up and was anything sorted Pat?

[padi123]

So, I got a call from a lady yesterday morning and she asked me for all the basic info first and what seems to be the problem.. I got put on hold and she completed some tests on my line, after some time she said that the problem is in the exchange and not on my tel line. The issue will be fixed up to 42hours and I am to expect a call. What if nobody is actually gone call and the issue won't be fixed? Can I write a formal letter to the headquarters demanding to cancel my contract basing it on that issue? I dont want to pay any fees regardless of cancellation..

[locutus]

TalkTalk (the owner of AOL) frequent this forum, maybe they will pop in.

 

Can I ask who you pay line rental to?

[padi123]

Line rental is with BT.

[locutus]

You will need them to agree and send you a MAC to port your broadband to a different supplier. Did you try checking HERE to see what speed you should get at your new address?

 

You could email the CEO of the TalkTalk group [email protected] and see if her department will be able to offer any assistance. Explain how long you have been a customer, and how long you've been having problems. Hopefully they will find some amicable resolution.

[padi123]

Your exchange is ADSL enabled, and our initial test on your line indicates that your line should be able to have an ADSL broadband service that provides a fixed line speed up to 2Mbps.

 

Our test also indicates that your line currently supports an estimated ADSL Max broadband line speed of 8Mbps; typically the line speed would range between 7Mbps and 8Mbps.

 

Our test also indicates that your line currently supports an estimated ADSL2+ broadband line speed of 8Mbps; typically the line speed would range between 5.5Mbps and 12.5Mbps. Our test also indicates that your line could support an estimated ADSL 2+ Annex-M broadband upstream line speed of 1Mbps and downstream line speed of 8Mbps; typically the downstream speed would range between 5.5Mbps and 12.5Mbps.

 

Our test also indicates that your line currently supports a fibre technology with an estimated WBC FTTC Broadband where consumers have received downstream line speed of 35.9Mbps and upstream line speed of 5.9Mbps.

 

I dont understand that...

 

What do you mean to port my broadband to a different supplier, meaning to change ISPs?

 

***UPDATE

 

I am trying to register on TalkTalk forums but they don't let me. When I type my phone number & account number thats on my AOL statement it shows an error. I already wrote an email to a forum admin, I hope hell be able to assist me.

Edited May 10, 2012 by padi123

[locutus]

The important bit for standard broadband is this

Our test also indicates that your line currently supports an estimated ADSL Max broadband line speed of 8Mbps; typically the line speed would range between 7Mbps and 8Mbps.

 

Another option for you would be fibre optic broadband. Although they are not selling any as AOL branded, TalkTalk do a fibre optic broadband service which is up to 40 meg broadband. Maybe they could sort you an upgrade for your troubles? See if the CEO's office can offer any assistance to you.

[padi123]

Okey, I am writing email to the CEO right now, briefly describing my problem. I hope they will do something about it. However, I am still hoping that the adviser that is suppose to call tomorrow with an update will bring good news and everything will be fixex because as of now, nothing has been fixed. My net is laggy as hell!

 

***UPDATE

 

Okey, I've sent an email to the CEO yesterday and I've pointed out your suggestion, thank you locutus. I did not get any answer from the adviser today, what a bunch of liers. I will call them for the final time tomorrow and I'll ask for the supervisor because I am sick of hearing those Indian peoples lies.

Edited May 11, 2012 by padi123

[padi123]

I have received a reply from Dido. This turned out to be a good idea locutus, thank you for that.

 

Dear .........,

 

I am very sorry that you have had to contact me directly to resolve this. I have asked one of my team to investigate this immediately, and we will be in touch asap.

 

In the meantime, please accept my sincere apologies.

 

Kind regards

 

Dido

 

What you think locutus are they actually going to do something about it, or is it just one of those empty talks?

Edited May 12, 2012 by padi123

[locutus]

Personally I take the "scattergun" approach and if things are going wrong I like to try all different approaches.

 

I think that is a standard email, but I think it will be forwarded to their highest complaints team.

[padi123]

I really do hope that it will be forwarded to their highest complaints team because they lied to me for the 55th time today as I was suppose to get a call from them... however, in my email I also included a question about the fibre optics upgrade that you've suggested. She didnt answer on that though : )

[padi123]

***UPDATE

 

I've received a call from the complaints department this afternoon and the gentleman said that there is evident fault from their side and that we will need some kind of an upgrade. He said he will work on it today and he arranged a BT Open reach engineer visit for tomorrow morning. I hope he will resolve my issue because when I saw on the internet forums open reach visits aren't as effective as there suppose to be.

 

Once again than you for your suggestion locutus because everything started to move forward rather than sit in one place.

[locutus]

Good lets hope that things get resolved amicably.

[padi123]

So, BT Open reach engineer visited me today and made some tests on my telephone line. He also said that he cleaned up & changed some of the wires inside the master socket + siliconed the inside for protection. He said that there is no fault on my line, everything is in perfect condition. He also made some speed tests on his modem that he brought with him and received 8MB/s and when I performed them on my laptop I received from 1-3MB/s for some weird reason. We called AOL and spoke to the adviser and he arranged an engineer call back for tomorrow which probably won't help me at all.

 

BTW. that engineer said that I am 0.9mile from the exchange and still receiving such a low connection...

 

***UPDATE

 

I've received an email from CEO's office today:

 

 

Can you please confirm if you are running your laptop off a wired or a wireless connection as the wireless is prone to loose speeds? However in order to overcome this I have sent you a new router so I will follow this up with you tomorrow to see if it has arrived.

 

I will also look into the possibility of upgrading you to our unbundling service which will provide you with a better speed.

 

Things are looking good I guess.

Edited May 16, 2012 by padi123

[padi123]

BTW. for whoever it may concern, I am still active in this topic because I want other users who are experiencing same problem as I am to read this and it may somehow guide you into the right direction of actions.

[tlal05]

hi Padi

i am currently at logger heads with Aol i have been a loyal customer for 7 years and i must say there service has gone down hill every year and everytime i call ACS i get 50.00 credit on the account

 

today i noticed they had taken 24.96 out of my account even though i was in credit and spent the best part of 2.5 hours to explain to the billing dept and then the custmomer dept then i went through to the cancellation dept i have now been placed in a complaints section and they are going to ring me back to sort out the missing credits to my account

 

i have also had intermitting speeds and lots of disruption to my internet service to which an engineer visited and told me that the exchange was 1.5 miles away and my true accurate speed would be 5-6 meg (this was on the 02/05/2012)

 

However doing my own homework i am 0.9 miles away from the exchange and have been told i will get 8-14 megs of speed so the engineer that came round told me wrongly and also my neighbour who is on BT is getting 14 megs from the same exchange tells me that they are not really concerned about quality anymore

 

Since TalkTalk has taken over they have really dropped in my estimations

 

I shall keep you posted on what they do next

 

 

Tlal05

[padi123]

Thank you for your reply tlal05.

 

There is some improvement since my last post. Thank God that I wrote an email to CEO's office as TalkTalk forums aren't gone help you as fast and effective as the CEO's complaints team. My case has been handled well and I am pleased with the outcome. At the start they though that there was fault with my equipment so they send me a router, however this router has been sent to my old address, so they sent another one which ended up with me possessing two routers now as I received the one from my old address due to good contact. Good job TalkTalk! Then BT Openreach engineer has been booked and he changed all the old cables and socket for a new one. On top of that, I have been set to un-bundling service which improved my speed from 6-8MB/s. I am still monitoring my line to see if this speed is prone to change, but hopefully not. I am now thinking of the fibre optics that TalkTalk offers, but I am going to have to transfer my phone service from BT to them and pay additional £10 which is 19.99 + 10 = 30 for both phone and broadband I suppose. My speed should then change drastically to 36MB/s as researched by the customer service.

 

All thanks to locutus for bringing up the suggestion to email CEO as I wouldn't think of that, but I would most likely write a letter to AOL Broadband rather than TalkTalk and it would probably take a lot longer.

[padi123]

***UPDATE

 

Despite my previous post, I am currently in the state of cancelling my contract with TalkTalk / AOL without paying the cancellation fee. I've already been provided with the MAC code. I am moving to BT to get the Infinity. I am sick of TalkTalk as my issue has not been resolved. I still receive 1,5MB/s max, this is ridiculous. As suggested in the previous post that I am going to move to TalkTalk with the line rental to get the fibre optics I am totally against that right now. The speed is terrible, customer service on the forums is terrible, EVERYTHING IS TERRIBLE!

 

I am aware of that 50% of the clients of TalkTalk do receive good connection as they are in the region that may provide them with the best connection, however clients that live in the section like me, receive the worst possible service.

 

 

I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS ISP TO ANYONE THAT WANTS A STABLE CONNECTION.

[tlal05]

Hi Padi123

 

just gonna cancel my contract as i spoke to the complaints dept and they have waived the cancellation charge

 

what a terrible company to get service from they dont care about customers only money

 

 

tlal05

[padi123]

Who did you talk to about this? Complaints department on the phone? I am directly in contact with CEO's complaints department but he stopped replying to my emails 4 days ago and I dont have anything in writing apart from email that I suppose don't mean much? I am worried about this because I already signed up with BT and have 10 days to cancel my order if TalkTalk will make it hard for me and by any chance inform me that I still have to pay the cancellation fee.

 

To locutus - can you tell me if I've already been provided with the MAC code and passed it further to my new ISP, does that mean that my current contract with TalkTalk has been cancelled? I've read this somewhere that the only time they can provide you with the MAC is when your account is cancelled and have no outstanding charges.

[locutus]

They are legally obliged to give you a MAC even if you are in contract, and then they sort payment out after.

[padi123]

I'm with Infinity now, thanks for all the advice. Leaving this topic opened for people with same problem. Hope this will help. Cya.

[michellealdridge]

I have been with Aol, now Talk Talk for over 10 years. I just phoned them and requested a MAC code after doing alot of research on their devious ways of trying to keep you with them, and the unscheduled visits from engineers costing over £100. I am well aware that I am out of contract with them and this is 'definitely' the time to go. Repeated connections drops, sometimes 4 or 5 times in half an hour has been going on far too long, also when incoming calls come through the connection has repeatedly dropped. I might add that this 'never' used to happen when it was just AOL. I was actually more pleased with the 'dial up' connection i had 10 years ago than the rubbish service they are offering me now. Yeah i might have an older router, a Netgear but I actually do not believe this is the problem. I have spoken to their useless customer services and they originally just go through the crap about you using an ADSL filter. I moved the router to the main BT socket over 1 year ago and the problem has just remained the same. They also suggested changing some of the settings on the router and that worked for about a day!! I phoned to obtain a MAC code today and was put through to the Customer Loyalty and Disconnection department (oh the irony !!) and was asked why i had had a 'change of heart'. I assured the lady it wasn't about a change of heart as that would imply emotions were involved. They offer a service through a 'business' and their is only so long you will put up with paying for a 'service' that is totally useless. I just hope I don't encounter the same problem with another company.....will keep you posted.

 

I would recommed anyone to absolutely steer clear of AOL/TALKTALK. Useless ISP