NTL Billing, faults, etc

patrickmooney wrote:

Yes, NTL moved into their new call center on Friday. It's Limerick based and seems to be taking calls for both Chorus and NTL. I rang them to upgrade to Movies/Sports, and what an ordeal. Basically they are only talking calls as the system doesn't go live until tomorrow. The new teams are being trained up and it's obvious they are being coached as you can hear their mentor prompting them. They are unsure of what products the company offers yet alone how to deploy them. I was told I'd need an engineer out to upgrade to movies! I know it's only early days, but lets hope things improve!

I presume it is simply an old ex-Chorus call center in the ChorusPlex in old Krupps factory in Limerick at Roxborough. But I could be wrong.

SteM wrote:

I've been hold for the last 30 minutes and can't see me getting through in time for them to do anything about it. We're getting our first house in January and I'm defo off to Sky, NTLs customer service has gotten WORSE and I wouldn't have thought that would have been possible 3 months ago.

This is pretty amazing, I really hope someone from the new UPC is reading this. It's virtually impossible to get through to the NTL call center. When you do they either hang up or are under trained and pass the buck. I wonder what SKYs customer care is like in comparison?

Sorry it's so long winded but I have had unreal trouble with NTL the past month and a half. I moved house on the 1st of November and decided to bring the NTL digital and broadband with me. Big mistake!
I rang them the day we moved to see what we had to do. I was told just plug everything in in the new house and it will work. I had no problems with the tv but the broadband didn't come on.Anyway to cut a long story short I have called them every few days since then only to be told someone would call back or come out to the house within 24 hours but with no sign of it actually happening. As if this wasn't irritating enough I was on hold every time for anything between 10 and 40 minutes before either reaching a CSR or being cut off.
Eventually 2 weeks ago i cracked and rang demanding to speak to a supervisor or someone who could tell me what was going on. They told me that they don't deal with complaints or service problems...honestly what kind of a customer helpline is it?????
Last week i had just had enough of arranging to be at home for this mysterious tecnician and rang to tell them I no longer wanted their broadband service as they were not upholding their end of the contract. The CSR assured me that in my next bill i would be credited for the services lost and my broadband contract cancelled.
Lo and behold but what should land on my mat this morning but a bill from ntl including broadband for the next 2 months. I actually broke down in tears!

If you give a good reason they always remove the late payment. I have never actually had to pay it before.

Indeed Cable is no longer regulated apart from content by BCI.

bronn wrote:

Effectively, NTL are raising charges on their customers just becasue they can. Dreadful.

Welcome to Boards Bonn.

I know it's not what you want to hear, but businesses do it every day. They all raise prices. When have you ever heard of a pub lowering their prices? They don't give you any added benefit by doing so. Everybody kicks and screams but they still go to the pub.

Sky also raise their prices without any real benifit to their [Irish] customers. Actually, if I'm not mistaken, Sky recently increased their prices for various packages. UPC had to increase those packages too or make a loss. Blame Sky for that one, not UPC.

Fair point on the other charges, late payment, DD payments etc. No call for it. Quite a few companies do a similar DD scheme but they REDUCE the price for DD customers with the saving that DD brings, rather than increase it for the rest.

I have just cancelled with them.

Dreadful behaviour.

Redman

I know it's not what you want to hear, but businesses do it every day. They all raise prices. - IrishTLR

I know they do – God, don’t we all! I didn’t phrase my anger clearly enough. What I meant was NTL are raising the equivalent of bank charges on their customers and getting away with it. Look at it this way; it seems every other bill I get from NTL includes a “notified price increase as approved by Santa” or whoever approves NTL’s prices these days. The actual cost of the service gets higher and higher every year, outstripping the rise in inflation. Fine.

This next bit gets a bit tricky but do bear with me. It’ll be you paying the money in the end. Now we have NTL sticking an extra €2 onto the bill if you don’t set up Direct Debit. However, I bet it’s actually MORE than €2. We won’t know this until April but I bet VAT @ 21% will be added on. So your bill will look something like this:

1) Go Digital Max Pack = €52
2) Non Direct Debit fee = €2
3) Total (ex-VAT) due = €54
4) VAT @ 21% = €11.34
5) TOTAL DUE = €65.34
6) PS - Cough up losers and there’s €7.68 (ex-VAT) on your next bill if you’re late.

This is typical and I got into a serious row with Eircom about this VAT thing ages ago. They introduced a fee and added a total ex-VAT. The way it’ll work with NTL is like this;

Their non Direct Debit fee of €2 actually costs you €2.42 (€2 + 21% VAT).

Now, let’s say we, the customers, decide en masse that NTL can swing before they force us to pay the €2. Rightfully, you should deduct €2.42 from your total of €64.34 and you pay NTL €61.92.

NTL does nothing until you get your next bill which will now look something like this.

1) Go Digital Max Pack = €52
2) Non Direct Debit fee = €2
3) Amount outstanding = €2.42 [note this amount already includes VAT]
4) Total (ex-VAT) due = €56.42
5) VAT @ 21% = €11.85 [includes VAT on the VAT in step 3]
6) TOTAL DUE = €68.27

Having gone through this with Eircom, I can assure you that this VAT on VAT thing is nothing short of gansterism. They will tell you, straight out, that they do NOT charge VAT on VAT. It will take infinite patience to take them through a bill and show ‘em. I’m willing to bet NTL will start the same thing.

However, my first big issue is not paying that €2 fee. They can sod right off before I give them access to my bank account to charge what they like.

My parents NTL was cut off for two weeks- they eventually got through and waited around all day for the repair guy to show up.

They rang again the next day after no show and were given a new appointment. Again no show.

They told me and I rang up the main office looking for the complaints department, screamed blue murder at the girl on reception and even offered personally to comedown to "talk" to them. I was put thorough to a manager - was polite but firm - everything was sorted out within 2 hours.


RIng up the main office and make things difficult for the managers you find things sorted out pretty quick.