Dear UPC/NTL
In February I opened an account with NTL – it was for digital tv and broadband at an introductory offer of €14.99 per month- I also ordered sky sports. I organised to pay by direct debit.
I then received bills which indicated that I was not on the intro offer and that the direct debit had not been applied. I paid the bill of 170 euro with the promise that the offer would then be applied. I kept receiving inaccurate bills and was told by NTL staff to ignore them as it was being sorted out. In the midst of all this I then lost service for 2 weeks (I even blogged about it) – and NTL could not send someone to fix it and appointments were then missed by NTL staff – when it was fixed it was found that someone had disconnected my supply accidentally or maliciously and I was told it was not a billing issue.
I kept receiving 2 bills for some reason – one for the broadband and one for the television service. This is despite a FAQ on the NTL website which says that you only issue one bill per household. I was again told that it would be sorted out.
Then there was a direct debit taken from my account last month – HALLELUJAH! But it was only for 11.98. But it was a start.
Today I received a bill which indicated a minus balance of 4.98 and told me that my service was disconnected.
- I still have my service would you believe – and I would love to keep it (I know it’s hard to fathom but it’s a television service and broadband and it works most of the time and I can’t have a dish and don’t want a landline).
- I would also like to pay for my service properly by direct debit, the correct amount at the offer I ‘signed’ up for. I know I owe you money but I have no clue how much! Your staff kept promising me that it was sorted – I thought you were starting to finally debit stuff from my account – but now its only for broadband it seems.
- I would like to receive one bill also. And I would like to be compensated for the time I had no broadband or television and the day off from work I took when your people did not show up to sort out my service.
- I would also like you to ring me back when your staff promise that a senior member will sort out the matter and contact me.
Could someone at a senior level who can kick the appropriate ass please call me – thanks!
cc Conor @ Pricewatch in the Irish Times…. I’m sure he’s only delighted (not…)
All this story needs is a clown in the corner of your living room making ‘balloon animals’while reciting Bhudha incantations… and we’re back. I agree: NTL are just shite, i don’t recall these problems when they were “cablelink”. Keep up with the ass-kicking, MP … must hurt if you’re taking a run at it in the mothership … What? Too surreal?
When I ordered an upgrade to digital from ntl, they sent a very nice man around to disconnect us.
He was apologetic and as it was Saturday at 8am, we all just said our goodbyes.
Maman Poulet » Maman Poulet 1 UPC 0 - Pricewatch refereeing? // Aug 23, 2007 at 23:57
[...] Posted by suzybie on 23 Aug 2007 at 11:57 pm | Tagged as: Consumer blogging, UPC Message on my mobile today indicates that this matter has been sorted, more tomorrow! I think Conor had a lot to do with it! [...]
Maman Poulet » Blogging about buying // Sep 11, 2007 at 01:04
[...] Posted by suzybie on 11 Sep 2007 at 01:04 am | Tagged as: Uncategorized, Blogging, Social Media, Consumer blogging Conor Pope writes about consumer blogging and online activism in today’s Irish Times (something I’m not adverse to myself you might have noticed…I’d be interested in any reactions to the piece. I regularly check into Iwillnothold.com and ValueIreland – where you’ll see questions asked that are never asked in the mainstream media – particularly on the denial of Aldi and Lidl as a factor in Irish shopping, their market share and value for money. Many other bloggers write about poor service and other consumer issues – indeed the women at Beaut.ie provide an excellent place for readers to comment on their experiences of many products and treatments (Happy Birthday Beaut women – well done!!!) [...]
This is a tame example of NTLs incompetence. I have a better one.
I requested NTLs offer of Broadband and TV for their special offer. They called out to my house and said they couldn’t connect me up before they put in a new cable. so I made an appointment as requested for ntl to do a cable installation. after 6!!! failed attempts numerous missed days and hours at work I told them to forget the whole thing and cancel the order.
you’d think that would be the end of it…
the next I heard was a call from my girlfriend saying they were outside the house ready to do a cable installation. By this stage I wasn’t willing to deal with a company that had proved so useless and told them to get lost.
still not the end of it…
a month later I get a bill in the post for the tv and digital tv I didn’t even have the cable for!!
this went on for months sending emails pointing out I wasn’t a customer and didn’t owe them anything. eventually they gave in accepted reality and told me they would take care of it.
ha ha ha …
after this I got another bill. once I finally got them to sort this out I got a bill crediting the account they had in my name with the amount they said I owed. end of story? no an automatic €2 non direct debit was added on.
2 more emails sorted it out, but the mental scars remain.
Go to your TDs and push them to legislate for these cowboys – the Consumer Protection Association has no powers.
The Small Claims Court is another option and it can be processed online.
If you can get the name of a Manager with that outfit you are a genius – even the Companies Office can’t help.
Nothing new at UPC, which has a long record of consumer “services”:
http://www.upcsucks.eu
October2007 after seven attempts I finally contacted NTL regarding the poor reception my neighbours and I were receiving. The reception was so bad that we had lost 3 channels. I was told, that my area was in the process of being upgraded and that the problems would sort
themselves out when the upgrade was completed. This now March 2008 the upgrade is now completed and Surprise surprise we now have four channels which are functioning as expected. Tried ringing NTL again and after another couple of times around their customer circuit. I am told that due to ” Adverse Weather Conditions and Atmospherics” When I mentioned the Upgrading and the fact that this was to reduce these problems My listener began rather blunt and rude. So much for *Customer Support” Any dealings with NTL/Chour/?UPC is a total waste of your time. This Monopoly as gone from strength to Strength and as they get bigger so does their attitude towards the people they deem as (SUCKERS)”OPPS “that should be customers. It now appears that their Customer Support have one main rule and that is to adapt the attitude of “Screw the Customers”
Since this company is paid in advance for their “Services” sic..sic and from they number of complaints listed on the various internet areas. Would it be feasible to bring this company to the “Small Claims Court” and to claim a refund of monies for services not rendered to customer. I base this point on the proven fact that Holiday companies who have failed to rendered or incorrectly stated services to their booked customers . These customers have being successful in bringing their cases to the Small Claims Court.
Since there now appears to be a fair amount of people who have been badly treated and ignored by NTL/CHORUS/UPC
regarding overall services and complaint .Surely it is possible to form a group to initiate a course of action against this parasite of a company
one of our two upc MMDS boxes has been “blanking”. Phoned today to set up an appt for a tech visit. I work 5 days a week till 3.30 and explained this to the girl I was speaking to. She told me that they only offer all day service to MMDS customers (why?). I replied that Saturday would be fine – no they don’t do visits on Sat. I again explained my work situation and again was told only all day appts 9-6. I said I wanted to speak to a supervisor. The girl asked me to wait and a few minutes later told me she could offer me an afternoon appt. Hallelujah – but no – that consists of 1-6. She kept trying to set up an appt and I pointed out that I would be the “baddie” having set up an appt and not being there when someone would arrive. Eventually I pointed out that they were supposed to be offering a service and if they couldn’t provide it that I would take my business elsewhere but that I would be contacting someone who would be in a position to review policy. After a little bit of work on the web I found the following names:
Mark Coan sales and marketing director of UPC Ireland.
(http://www.emigrant.ie/article.asp?iCategoryID=556&iArticleID=61331n)
Simon Kelehan, Head of TV at UPC,
(http://www.enn.ie/article/10123799.html)
A list of Liberty Global’s Executive Officers is provided below. (Liberty Global owns UPC).
(http://www.lgi.com/ireland.html)
John C. Malone – Chairman of the Board
Michael T. Fries – President and Chief Executive Officer – Biography
Amy M. Blair – Senior Vice President, Global Human Resources – Biography
Charles H.R. Bracken – Senior Vice President, Co-Chief Financial Officer
(and Principal Financial Officer) – Biography
Miranda Curtis – President, Liberty Global Japan – Biography
Bernard G. Dvorak – Senior Vice President, Co-Chief Financial Officer
(and Principal Accounting Officer) – Biography
Bob Leighton – Senior Vice President, Programming – Biography
Elizabeth M. Markowski – Senior Vice President, Secretary, General Counsel – Biography
W. Gene Musselman – President & Chief Operating Officer, UPC Broadband – Biography
Balan Nair – Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer – Biography
Shane O’Neill – Senior Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer; and President,
Chellomedia – Biography
Mauricio Ramos – President, Liberty Global Latin America and Chief Executive Officer, VTR Global Com S.A. – Biography
Rick Westerman – Senior Vice President, Investor Relations & Corporate
Communications – Biography
(http://www.lgi.com/officers.html)
Thank you for providing the opportunity to share my experiences. In one sense it is good to know I am not alone. I am paying money for this “service” and if I am not provided with a “service” I will take my custom elsewhere.
Thank you Marie Campion for the list of names above. I want to write and make my complaint. I am having the same problem trying to get my digital tv and digital video recorder working again. At the moment I only have a few channels working on the television side of things. I cannot believe how this company is still allowed to operate in this way. Surely there is some Ombudsman or TD or someone who can get this company to deliver the service we the customers are paying for and not receiving. I want to leave NTL and have been told I must give a months notice – does that mean I have to pay for another month of bad service! My letters will go to the people on the above list within the next few days.
Hi there,
I’m having a very similiar enraging episode at the moment. We too tried to get connected for 3 months! we were booking time off work by the end trying to get the cable in- and NTL were a no show, eventually after my friend blew up on them they got someone around.
As you probably know- NTL will not install a contract without first taking direct debit details. we gladly gave them- here’s where this whole episode gets great;
After 6 months of service- we realise they haven’t been taking the money from our account, and they have people ringing us (and texting) threats!
We never received a bill- and just assumed they would be taking the money all along- now they want us to pay it all in a lump sum!
Thanks NTL- I’d rather be stuck with terestrial channels than deal with your mountain of incompetance again!
hey
I’m not even going to get in to my own story, you’ve all been there! what I am going to do though is take it to the small claims court, €15 and you can do it on-line…when you ahve a connection that is!!!!
Breifly, after more than a year of terrible service I have not had broadband since June and have stopped paying. I sent a registered letter, mid-June,to end all dealing with this company. I had never signed a contract. I am still recieving bills, texts and now telephone calls at work. As far as I’m concerned, they owe me money for not providing the service I paid for and for the time that I took off work to let them into my house and that they never showed up.
There has to be an agency to take this company to task. I just want them to go away. No service, no payment. Just stop harrassing me. Has anyone successfully shaken them off.
Arrrrgggghhhhh my UPC/NTL has been down now for 3 days all over Easter. Anybody else? and do you know a fix for it? The “help” line tells me to reset the modem which I tried in vain many times. HELPPPPPPPP!!!!!
I rang UPC in February to cancel the service and the direct debit from my account. They said yes no problem. With all the direct debits from my account I failed to notice that in August they were still taking money form my account. I rang and explained the situation but now they are giving me the blank shoulder because the upc account was in my girlfriend name and the bank acc was mine and their excuse is they cant deal with the bank acc as it refers to the upc in my girlfriends name and at this stage its a joke that the lack of customer service is soooo bad and no one cant get their finger out a sort it out. Still they take money form my account. anyone have similar problems and how did they sort it. Its funny previous message from Elaine cant get rid of them and i cant get an answer but then again they owe me money.they seem to be able to act dumb when they want to.