Virgin Media Cancellation deals

colm_mcm

Nah, I'm on my second round of it.

Millem

colm_mcm wrote: »

Nah, I'm on my second round of it.

Ok well then they might give me 9 months again! Tell me again sorry what you have and how much for 9 months and then 3 months? Do u get the netflix too

colm_mcm

No Netflix.

Have the horizon max TV (think that's called full house now) 240mb and Anytime World. €40 for 9 months and €80 after that.

Millem

Colm just off the phone. I got the same deal as you but it is €90 per month not €80? The first 9 months are €43.50 and the last 3 are €90. Also got 6 months netflix, she told me to ring tomorrow about the boards.ie €50 voucher! I think though she may not of understood me!!! But said I would get it!
Also signed up for 2 sims €5 each for 5 months 30 day contract!
Getting a point moved in the kitchen €20 and also getting the white modem.

chocandgo

Pardon my ignorance- what's an FT satellite and how do you get it?!

chocandgo

Pardon my ignorance- what's an FT satellite and how do you get it?! Oops FTA satellite? I'm sick of paying nearly €90 to Virgin every month for TV, phone and broadband. Most of the channels are awful too.

bromley52

chocandgo wrote: »

Pardon my ignorance- what's an FT satellite and how do you get it?! Oops FTA satellite? I'm sick of paying nearly €90 to Virgin every month for TV, phone and broadband. Most of the channels are awful too.

FTA

skippy15

daheff wrote: »

Never got any notification of this increase...they are insisting they sent an email (I know they didnt). Told them I was closing my account over it...not even directed to customer loyalty...just said fine. contracts up 21st march so need to find new provider.



They aren't blinking much these days

I phoned yesterday and talked them down to 9 months half price and new box within 5 mins,
Stated wasn't happy network had been down a few times, not really and price increase never told about. Refused 4 months and 6 months half price offer, and got 9 months and a new box delivered the next morning. Result

The_Conductor

beauf wrote: »

You need to talk to the people in Limerick.

I just got gibberish from the other place wherever it is.

Manilla.
I tried switching to Spanish- however, their Spanish was even less comprehensible than their English.

LiamaDelta

cutthegrass wrote: »

First phone call I got the 6 month deal.

Second phone call I pointed out any problems I had and everything that was wrong with their service: slow TV guide on Horizon box, phantom TV recorded programmes that I can't delete, deleted series links that keep re-appearing, WiFi no where near speed advertised (ask for their new media hub, much better WiFi speed) - basically any problem with their service. Got the 9 month deal.

I find dealing with Virgin for discounts better than Sky. Virgin customer service folk are decent enough I found - just be polite and firm. Ring a 3rd time if needs be.

Was this with the Irish based loyalty team or the Customer Care team in the Philippines?

cutthegrass

LiamaDelta wrote: »

Was this with the Irish based loyalty team or the Customer Care team in the Philippians?

Ireland - last January. I think they may have put on extra staff to deal with the price increase so maybe that is why I got the Irish customer care team.

yoshimitsu

Hello, just wanted to share my experience:

The brief version: called Loyalty y’day, was offered 3 months half price, I said no; went to ask “manager” and came back with 6 months half price, said no; asked “manager” again and finally came back with 9 months half price plus the new hub/router on a 12 month renewal. The whole thing took about 20mins including wait time. It was a bloke with an English accent, pretty polite overall.
So a big thank you to all the people above who posted their experience. I saved about ~400€ on a 12 month basis so pretty happy.

The longer version if you’re interested in the details: called 01-2458000, Virgin Media reception picks up, asked to transfer to Loyalty Dept, no issues. Waited about 4-5min max. Bloke with Northern British accent picked up… this was my pitch, quite polite and matter-of-fact in tone: I’ve been a customer since 2008 without interruption. Started out paying ~€40/month, am now paying €94. My “neighbor” just told me that he called you guys and got this 9 month half price deal (“he showed me the email confirming the offer”) plus the new hub. I said I was a bit upset as he’s only been with Virgin 2 years and he’s getting these offers while I’m with them for 8 and I’m paying €4 a month more than the full price equivalent package at the moment. The guy on the phone said that there is no way to compare 2 contracts because my neighbor may be gaining more “loyalty points” than me through high phone bills, video on demand, premium Sky packages etc. I said that’s not the case, same usage as me, no premium TV. He comes back saying the most he can offer me based on what the “system” allows him to do is 3 months half price; I said no. He gave me the whole loyalty points story once again and said he couldn’t do more than that. I said I wouldn’t settle for less than 9 months half price. Said he would ask his manager. Comes back with 6 months half price “best we can do for you”, that’s what other operators offer if you start a new contract. I said thanks but no thanks, please initiate my cancellation request then. I said I receive these Sky flyers in my mailbox which offer half price for 12 months and I would take that offer. Said he would speak to “manager” again. Came back with 9 months half price, then €90/month for the following 3. Hub will sent in a few days. He closed the call with “you got what you wanted”. Email summary of the offer came a few minutes later.
For reference: I’m on Horizon MAX TV; 240Mb broadband; landline for €94/month, out of contract for about 7-8 months now due to laziness. The trigger to renegotiate was the price increase at the beginning of this year (read about it here, no email received) and the fact that I really don’t care for the TV product any more. If I hadn’t received the offer I would’ve cancelled and opened a new account on my partner’s name for the broadband/phone bundle. That would’ve been €600 for 1 year (6 months at €40, 6 months at €60) vs the offer I got which is a total of €675. In 12 months’ time I’ll downgrade to the broadband/phone package only unless they improve the TV product (more HD, less commercials… unlikely though). The TV product is really sub-par in my view.

daheff

i rang a couple of times (talked to irish & phillipines teams)...wouldnt offer me the same deal as new customers.


best i could get would be 6 months tv/broadband (240mb) & value tv & 6 full price - total 744eur a year. new subscribers get better tv package for 720 a year


told them no way. they said i can call back the day after the contract expires on 21st(and i'm no longer a customer as i gave them my notice) and look to be taken on as a new customer...but they wont look at that until then.

not much point as I have Eir connecting me on thursday

jca

daheff wrote: »

i rang a couple of times (talked to irish & phillipines teams)...wouldnt offer me the same deal as new customers.


best i could get would be 6 months tv/broadband (240mb) & value tv & 6 full price - total 744eur a year. new subscribers get better tv package for 720 a year


told them no way. they said i can call back the day after the contract expires on 21st(and i'm no longer a customer as i gave them my notice) and look to be taken on as a new customer...but they wont look at that until then.

not much point as I have Eir connecting me on thursday

Maybe I'm just lucky because the system in town is brand new but I'd see a move from VM to eir as a step backwards.

daheff

jca wrote: »

Maybe I'm just lucky because the system in town is brand new but I'd see a move from VM to eir as a step backwards.

would have taken sky /vod, but would have to pay for phone line first to do that.

Eir it is for 18 months & then reassess. Most likely go to sky then.

VM have been a nightmare to deal with recently. They increased prices without notification...keep referring to an email that was not sent. Finally asked them to tell me who in VM I should send an FOI to to provide the documentary evidence that a mail was sent and miraculously they agreed to credit my account with the over charged amounts.

Never got the 120mb speeds promised (hardwired maybe, but not via wifi -cos its not possible despite what their sales people tell me).

have found them very difficult to deal with overall. Glad I have alternatives.

jca

daheff wrote: »

would have taken sky /vod, but would have to pay for phone line first to do that.

Eir it is for 18 months & then reassess. Most likely go to sky then.

VM have been a nightmare to deal with recently. They increased prices without notification...keep referring to an email that was not sent. Finally asked them to tell me who in VM I should send an FOI to to provide the documentary evidence that a mail was sent and miraculously they agreed to credit my account with the over charged amounts.

Never got the 120mb speeds promised (hardwired maybe, but not via wifi -cos its not possible despite what their sales people tell me).

have found them very difficult to deal with overall. Glad I have alternatives.

Be careful eir don't sting you for the phone line install. 120 meg is easily achieved over wi-fi with the new hub and a decent WiFi card. At least VM gave you a refund and will haggle with people to get them to stay. I wish you luck getting any of that with eir who resolutely refuse to haggle on price. Oh, don't be stupid like me and accept the free trial of their TV service because that will start you on a fresh 18 month contract. The service was rock solid to be fair to them.

daheff

jca wrote: »

Be careful eir don't sting you for the phone line install.

Was quite clear to them on the phone i wasnt paying for install....even if i cancel withing 14 days. They agreed.

jca wrote: »

At least VM gave you a refund and will haggle with people to get them to stay. I wish you luck getting any of that with eir who resolutely refuse to haggle on price. .

thats fine...if they wont haggle i go to Vod/sky....the VOD offering is the same as Eir...just a little cheaper

VM weren't really haggling....didn't seem like they wanted me to stay. And I would have if they offered the deal they were offering to new customers....but they werent willing..

jca wrote: »

Oh, don't be stupid like me and accept the free trial of their TV service because that will start you on a fresh 18 month contract. The service was rock solid to be fair to them.

thanks for the headsup.

keepkeyyellow

My housemate moved his Virgin media over into our new house but it's up in June. I'm thinking of getting him to cancel it and me signing up as a new customer. Has anyone ever done this before?

Seve OB

Any offers for a newbie to virgin media broadband? I'm sick of crap speeds on my eircom line. Don't need to or anything, just phone and broadband

mossy464

Quick question. Parents bill for BB went up 2.50 in January and they never rang to cancel within 30 days of being notified of the increase. I take it they wont be able to get any deals at this stage and would incur a penalty by cancelling?

dub45

mossy464 wrote: »

Quick question. Parents bill for BB went up 2.50 in January and they never rang to cancel within 30 days of being notified of the increase. I take it they wont be able to get any deals at this stage and would incur a penalty by cancelling?

It would depend on their current contract status? Are they actually in a 12 month contract at the moment?

After completion of the initial 12 contract period (or any subsequent full contract period entered into as a result of change of product etc) the customer is in a rolling 30 day contract which can be terminated at any time with 30 days notice.

So be careful to check what their current contract status is.

enviro

Currently on BB and home phone package E58.50 per month. Out of contract since last month.

Rang 1908
Selected 4 for moving home/change service/cancel service
Selected 1 for cancellations
Selected 1 for cancelling due to moving to a new provider

Transferred through to an agent and I made it clear to them that I wanted to cancel as I was moving to Sky for E27.50 per month, even though I was happy with the current service the lower price was my motivation for moving.

Got the sales pitch about the superior service, all the technical info about how Sky share their lines with Eir ect... I just reaffirmed that price was my only issue and still wanted to switch over to Sky.

I was offered 9 months @E25.74 and last 3 months of a new 12 month contract @E54.99.

Pushed for 12 months... rejected by agent, only additional offer was to introduce a 30GB cap which was offered at E22 for 9 months and E45 for last 3 months on a new 12 month contract.

Took the first offer, saved E353 over the 12 months. All changes were confirmed by email afterwards.

JohnnyChimpo

Just to share my experience, especially since people have been wondering if Loyalty will budge on the 9months half-price in back to back contracts (spoiler: they will, with some cajoleing)

Attempt 1

- Rang on Friday evening, got through to Mark in Limerick. Mark was a fairly surly chap. He seemed more interested in rubbishing the competitors than trying to make a deal with me. Informed me that I wasn't entitled to their top-tier discounts because I was a long-time customer, tried to offer me 3 months half-price. That got my back up slightly, being told that being a long-time customer was a disadvantage. I pushed him on 9 months half-price, his response was "absolutely no way, that would be my job" to which I had to just chuckle at the sheer level of spoofery. Best he would do was 3 months with some Netflix vouchers, lol.
His response to my complaints about issues with the Horizon box (which are entirely real and familiar to any Horizon customer here I'm sure) was to offer to downgrade me to the old grey box (wtf). I told him you might as well proceed to cancellation, which he did with zero delay, seemed happy to have me off his phoneline.

Attempt 2

- Rang on Saturday afternoon , when I figure you're only going to get the lads in Manilla. I got on to Albert, who was a sound chap. I gave him the same opening spiel (long-term customer, looking to go to competitor unless I can get a deal similar to what they've offered before). Albert was keen to make a deal, as soon as I mentioned issues with connectivity he upgraded me to the 360Mb new router. He offered 6 months half price off the bat, when I asked for 9 he insisted he couldn't do that. I persisted and asked if he was sure, and said I was happy to wait if he needed to take a few minutes to "check with a manager". He did so, and after a few minutes I got the 9months half price, 3 months full (95).


Conclusions
- back-to-back good deals are on the table
- don't be afraid to go to cancellation, you still have a month
- be prepared to walk away (I was just going to get my partner to re-up and get new customer deal, or else go to Sky)
- complain about your issues, but be nice
- it's a small sample-set, but in the last few years Philippines have been way more flexible, so call at the weekends

At some point in the future, we might get a company that deals transparently with their customers, but until then the dance must be danced

loup

My 6 month deals are up now, is it worth ringing again to see if I can get an additional 6 months? My BB service drops all the time so have rung to request the new hub (thanks for the heads up!)

coldfire1x

loup wrote: »

My 6 month deals are up now, is it worth ringing again to see if I can get an additional 6 months? My BB service drops all the time so have rung to request the new hub (thanks for the heads up!)

If you are out of contract then worth trying. Not before that.

dodzy

loup wrote: »

My 6 month deals are up now, is it worth ringing again to see if I can get an additional 6 months? My BB service drops all the time so have rung to request the new hub (thanks for the heads up!)

As coldfire says, don't waste your time. Put a reminder on your phone for 6mths from now and you'll get the discount again for the first 6mths of your renewed contract.

garyskeepers

SO i just signed up for virgin this week.

I had cancelled my sky tv, but kept the broadband as they gave me a good deal..

So i just needed the tv...

Got it for 10 euro for 4 months then up to 30 euro, which seems pretty decent..

but i seem to also have a broadband ? whats the story with that?

yoshimitsu

yoshimitsu wrote: »

Hello, just wanted to share my experience:

The brief version: called Loyalty y’day, was offered 3 months half price, I said no; went to ask “manager” and came back with 6 months half price, said no; asked “manager” again and finally came back with 9 months half price plus the new hub/router on a 12 month renewal. The whole thing took about 20mins including wait time. It was a bloke with an English accent, pretty polite overall.
So a big thank you to all the people above who posted their experience. I saved about ~400€ on a 12 month basis so pretty happy.

The longer version if you’re interested in the details: called 01-2458000, Virgin Media reception picks up, asked to transfer to Loyalty Dept, no issues. Waited about 4-5min max. Bloke with Northern British accent picked up… this was my pitch, quite polite and matter-of-fact in tone: I’ve been a customer since 2008 without interruption. Started out paying ~€40/month, am now paying €94. My “neighbor” just told me that he called you guys and got this 9 month half price deal (“he showed me the email confirming the offer”) plus the new hub. I said I was a bit upset as he’s only been with Virgin 2 years and he’s getting these offers while I’m with them for 8 and I’m paying €4 a month more than the full price equivalent package at the moment. The guy on the phone said that there is no way to compare 2 contracts because my neighbor may be gaining more “loyalty points” than me through high phone bills, video on demand, premium Sky packages etc. I said that’s not the case, same usage as me, no premium TV. He comes back saying the most he can offer me based on what the “system” allows him to do is 3 months half price; I said no. He gave me the whole loyalty points story once again and said he couldn’t do more than that. I said I wouldn’t settle for less than 9 months half price. Said he would ask his manager. Comes back with 6 months half price “best we can do for you”, that’s what other operators offer if you start a new contract. I said thanks but no thanks, please initiate my cancellation request then. I said I receive these Sky flyers in my mailbox which offer half price for 12 months and I would take that offer. Said he would speak to “manager” again. Came back with 9 months half price, then €90/month for the following 3. Hub will sent in a few days. He closed the call with “you got what you wanted”. Email summary of the offer came a few minutes later.
For reference: I’m on Horizon MAX TV; 240Mb broadband; landline for €94/month, out of contract for about 7-8 months now due to laziness. The trigger to renegotiate was the price increase at the beginning of this year (read about it here, no email received) and the fact that I really don’t care for the TV product any more. If I hadn’t received the offer I would’ve cancelled and opened a new account on my partner’s name for the broadband/phone bundle. That would’ve been €600 for 1 year (6 months at €40, 6 months at €60) vs the offer I got which is a total of €675. In 12 months’ time I’ll downgrade to the broadband/phone package only unless they improve the TV product (more HD, less commercials… unlikely though). The TV product is really sub-par in my view.

Just a follow up to my experience above. 1st bill post renegotiation came in at €2.61 (vs €40 expected) which I believe includes a partial credit for the previous billing period. All good on that side
On the delivery of the new hub, this look like a sales tactic to avoid having to give away a piece of free hardware: I was told by the Loyalty department I would receive the hub within 48hrs max and I could self-install (consistent with what was written by others above). So 4 days later, not having received the hub I called back customer service. An abrasive lady with a foreign accent told me that because of the set up in my home (I live in a large, new built apartment complex) she would have to send out an engineer and that I would need to be available for a 4hr slot between 9am - 5pm. I'd say a good number of people who work and can't be at home during the day without taking holidays would've said "fcuk it, I'll keep the old Horizon sh*te-box". But since my partner is at home on maternity leave I told I was fine with that. Booked the appointment for the next day. No exaggeration, within 15minutes I got a call back on my mobile from the same lady saying "I've double-checked internally and you can self-install. The router will be with you tomorrow"

coldfire1x

Just got this mail:

XXXX, 6 months of Netflix compliments of us
XXXX, have Netflix on us. Seriously – no strings; we just think you’re awesome

You’ll find no conspiracy here. 6 months of Netflix, just for you. Call it a gift from us to say thank you for being a Virgin Media customer.

Enjoy 100s of original series, movies and documentaries at your fingertips – just click the link below and follow a few simple steps. Seriously – that’s it!

Seems like a 6 month free Netflix. Happy Days!!

van_beano

coldfire1x wrote: »

Just got this mail:

XXXX, 6 months of Netflix compliments of us
XXXX, have Netflix on us. Seriously – no strings; we just think you’re awesome

You’ll find no conspiracy here. 6 months of Netflix, just for you. Call it a gift from us to say thank you for being a Virgin Media customer.

Enjoy 100s of original series, movies and documentaries at your fingertips – just click the link below and follow a few simple steps. Seriously – that’s it!

Seems like a 6 month free Netflix. Happy Days!!

Just got that e-Mail myself. Does it say something about me being paranoid or something that I am looking for what the catch is? Haven't redeemed it yet, do they look for card details or anything or how does it work?

I'm sure they're hoping you don't cancel by the end of the 6th month and end up paying for Netflix or something.