If you’ve wondered where Hugh has been for the last week, well here’s the story.
Last week we moved house, here in Wales. The move itself went very well, but what did not go as planned was for British Telecom (BT) to move our home phone line and broadband.
Despite informing BT of the move three weeks before moving and informing them we were moving into a ‘new build’, they didn’t seem to check that we could get connected at the new house until two days before we were moving in.
They took twelve months landline rental from us and encouraged me to sign a new 12 month contract with them to avoid a £135 connection fee at the new house. One week later and we are still without a phone line that works, meaning no wi-fi or broadband.
I’ve spent countless hours on my mobile phone to them, mainly trying to communicate with a voice recording that tells you how BT care so much for its customers. When I finally get to talk to a human being at BT I get so many excuses from them as to why our phone line and broadband can not be connected. Here are some of the excuses I’ve had so far.
- Your builders have not informed us that your house is ready for occupation.
- The mountain outside your house means we need to lay extra cables so you can get a good signal.
- Your whole developement has network problems and needs cables running to it.
- You live in a poor reception area so we need to do some work at the exchange to get your phone line working.
Needless to say that as we are not the first ones to move into a house on the new developement and as we only moved two hundred yards down the road from a house which had both good phone and broadband connections, I asked BT why then do some of our neighbours have broadband and phone lines that work? Their response – “due to data protection we can not discuss other accounts with you.”
I’ve hated not having broadband, yet I’ve also quite enjoyed the break away from planet blog and the web. However, we needed to check emails so purchased a small mobile wi-fi device. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t and, when it does work, it is slow. It’s certainly made me feel how much I appreciate having broadband and to never complain about its speed again.
So while we have builders in the house (who are all a very nice bunch of guys) finishing off a rather long snagging list, I’ve taken this opportunity to write this post and to update you on just where I have been and what I have been doing.
During my time away I’ve been amazed by my blog stats. Despite being offline for a while I’ve had many visitors to my blog, picked up a few new followers, and have had some lovely emails, tweets, messages, and text messages, asking if I am OK. Well thank you so much to everyone who has been in contact. Just goes to show how powerful and wonderful this whole blogging community is.
As for when we will have a phone line and broadband, well the latest is that we should be connected on or by July 6th. Fortunately we are heading back to Hove on Saturday but we are coming back to Abergavenny one week later on July 4th. I’m just hoping that when I walk through the door on that day and pick up a phone, I will hear the ‘purring’ of a dial tone and see the wi-fi and broadband symbols on the BT router are flashing blue instead of red.
© hughsviewsandnews.com
Many of these Tell – a -Com places are run by absolute twits. Their technical staff has the savvy of a bumbling troglodyte trying to impress their paying customers with their supposed expertise and know how.
My previous cable company fits this bill perfectly. They offered me a peach of a deal based on a mere one year sign up contract. The offer seemed a bargain and so I signed on the dotted line. What a mistake that was.
Once a month the cable and internet and telephone connection needed to be physically tweaked…..unplugged from electrical outlet, turned off one minute, plugged into outlet, rebooted and cable connections once again set up.
For the twelve times I called technical support for assistance I was placed on hold for 30 minutes, offered the same litany of possible solutions to the problem, informed that the layout of my suite did not conform to the technical schema required for optimal reception and so on and so on.
Needless to say I dropped that company after the one year lease and found a server that is one million times better and customer responsive.
I can appreciate your plight and share your frustration with this company. The internet has become a way of life for us all. It is an important factor. I hope that your situation resolves itself when promised.
The only other alternative is learn how to send smoke signals. Hopefully the wind currents will allow you to get your messages out without too much technical interference. 🙂
It seems many of us have been where I find myself now with no proper broadband or home phone line connection. Problem is that for the last three years there have been no problems, then, as soon as we move house the problems begin and the excuses get bigger and bigger.
I have an engineer booked to arrive tomorrow and I’m hoping that the problem will at last be fixed. If it is not then I am seriously thinking of starting to publicise the problems more and more, especially given the fact that British Telecome have been sending me messages all week saying that my services are now all working and that they hope I am enjoying the them.
I hope that this is all sorted now, Hugh (I’m guessing yes since you’ve been pretty active here in the online world). What a nightmare. I’ve heard of horror stories like that from my friends here in Australia who move often and it’s always a hassle dealing with the telco providers. A lot of us – or at least my generation – don’t have a fixed phone line at home and we just need broadband. Sometimes it takes up to three weeks to get a connection at a new place.
I’m afraid not Mabel. At our house, here in Wales, we still have no home phone line or broadband. We were back at our home in Hove last week, hence all the posts from me. An engineer is due tomorow to try and fix the fault but I am not going to kid myself that it will be sorted out. That way, I won’t be disappointed when he tells me he needs to get some spare parts and will come back on another day.
Yikes! And we thought those days of dial up where it took hours to connect only to be bumped off by an incoming phone call were bad! Good luck, Hugh! Miss you!
Thanks Kat. I am back in Hove now so have broadband and a phone-line. However, we are going back to Wales on Saturday so no broadband and phone-line until the 6th July. It’s only a few days and I am keeping everything cross that the phone company will have the problem fixed by then.
I’ll keep everything crossed here for you too! While we know we CAN live without it all, it does help to have it, right? 🙂
Absolutely. I can’t imagine life without the internet anymore.
I hear you loud and clear. There’s nothing great about a move. I’m an authority on it. 🙂 Good luck!
Thanks Debby. The move went well, but we are still without a home phone-line and broadband at the house in Wales.
We are back in Hove for a week now, so it’s service as usual for this week 🙂
Reblogged this on theowlladyblog.
Thanks for reblog Viv. 🙂
Crossing my fingers for you, it never goes smoothly does it!
NO, there is always one that lets the side down 😦
Oh dear! You can’t live with them, and you can’t live without them. Very frustrating! I hope it is all sorted when you get back. Purr, purr! 🙂
Exactly. If I don’t hear that ‘purr’ next week then I’ll have to go and buy myself a cat!
I hope that won’t be necessary! 🙂
Me to, because I’m allergic to cats!
No matter where you go in the world. all cable companies are the same it seems *sigh*
Ugh… what a nightmare. I hate that kind of frustration.
Good luck and sunshine super hugs!
Poor Hugh! I feel your pain. 😫. It seems that nothing in life is achieved easily ….. I’ve been missing your fun posts and stories. Wasn’t there a song once about Abergavenny? It seems to ring a bell. 😄
Think how marvellous it will be in your lovely new home when everything is working. It will all be worth it. How is Toby liking the change?
We are going back to Hove tomorrow Maria, so I will once again have full access to wifi and broadband 🙂 However we are coming back to Abergavenny on Saturday 4th July, so I am hoping when we walk through the door that day we will have wifi and broadband here in Abergavenny as well. Keep your fingers crossed for me 🙂
Yes there is a song about Abergavenny. I’ll have to hunt it out on YouTube for you and paste it here in the comments.
Toby is loving the new house. It took him a while to settle in but the bigger garden is too his liking.
I will do anything rather can get on the phone with our internet provider, absolute torture! My complete and total sympathy.
It’s been a struggle, but what I hate most of all are the talking machines you have to go through to actually get to talk with a human being who will then sprew out a lot of lies about why you don’t have a service. All I want is the truth and an idea of when I will be connected.
Yep, those automated, “Press 3 for…” make me nuts. They never have the option I need.
There should be an option for “self destruction” and one for “if you want to know what the real reason is”.
Good to have you back Hugh, hope they fix your internet soon.
So do I. Thank you so much 🙂
Reblogged this on NEW GENERATION MEDIA TECHNOLOGY.
Thank you very much for the reblog.
Ur always welcome
July 6th – that’s ages! You are a very patient man, Hugh.
When I want to be, Jill. After all, there is little I can do about the situation as the problem is totally out of my hands. For now I am making best friends with my mobile wifi device (even if it does annoy me several times a day – but don’t tell him that). 🙂
Telcos are ‘adorable’, aren’t they? Hope things go smoothly…soon!
Thanks Florence. I’m trying to stay positive about the situation especially as it is totally out of my control.
Yes… what’s a few more days.. in the grand scheme of things.. 🙂 Good luck!
Poor you, Hugh! I feel your pain! I haven’t had internet of my own for almost a year. It is awful. I hope you’re reconnected soon! (I come over to a sweet friend’s house while he’s at work.)
Melinda
What a wonderful sweet friend you have, Melinda. I wish I was living close by so I could share the wifi as well 🙂
C’mon over! I’ll keep the light on!
You have my most sincere sympathy. Hope when you’re up and ready you broadband will be to your liking. Good luck. 🙂
So do I Tess. Goodness knows what will happen if there are problems with it once we get reconnected.
Ugh. Perish the thought. All fingers and toes crossed for you. I know the pain.
I changed providers to get away from the “telephone Company” mentality. I ran into the same mentality only it is called the “cable company mentality.” The only consolation is you will get service eventually although now it seems like that may be optimistic.
True. I’m sure I can see the light at the end of this very long tunnel 🙂
Here is hoping sooner than later.
When we move we had no broadband for months so we “borrowed” other people’s by using a DIY sat dish made of tinfoil and cardboard…don’t ask…hope the new mountainside house is fab!
For months? OMG, now you got me even more worried.
I can see the links to access other broadband services in the area but they are all password protected. I’m thinking you could be a little bit of a hacker?
Oh no not me, I wouldn’t know where to start. Do you ever use FON?
Yes I have, but it doesn’t seem to want to work in the house. I’m guessing beacuse we have no landline as yet?
So long as you have a fon account you can use it to log in to any other fon connection and sometimes bt
Have tried but failed. We do have a BT account but it’s not liking me. I think I may have upset BT. I know it worked at the other house, but not here in the new one. Maybe they have cancelled my account? Maybe they think I have moved into a cave? Maybe I’ll never ever be connected on broadband ever again 😦 Oh dear, I think I’m having a nightmare.
I’ll go and get some metal coat hangers and tinfoil tomorrow 🙂
So sorry about your troubles. If it’s any consolation, I think the same guys work here in Ohio. They must be on a traveling schedule.
Yes, I think these guys get around quite a lot Michelle. If there is one thing I hate from service companies, it is not being tolded the truth.
I agree. Covering up with lies really gets my goat.
That frustration is universal. Hang in there, Hugh. ☺
I’m hanging…and hoping 🙂
Thanks, Van 🙂
I have been thinking, “Where is Hugh, I wonder?” Now I see you have been fighting the monstrous dragon that is BT! 😉 It is difficult enough moving house, but without internet it must have been a nightmare. I hope you manage to tame them soon and get your internet installed at your new house. At least you could take relaxing walks in beautiful countryside in between BT battles 😀
Very true Peggy. The walks here are absolutely gorgeous.
Hopefully I will be able to tame the BT monster and get connected very soon. He has been tough so far, but with a little patience I hope to be able to put him in his cage.
I can imagine – the scenery will be amazing. HA! The BT Beast! I hope you tame him soon! My fingers and toes are crossed for you Hugh 😀
I’ll be cracking the whip soon to tame the beast. I’m seeing myself as some kind of Superhero now 🙂
Watch out BT … here comes SuperHugh 😀
I’m so sorry there have been so many frustrations with the move and I’m sorry you’ve been off the air but since I have too, I’ve been hard put to notice. But there is a great piece of news about all this that has me cheering ( sorry Hove). More of my friends are actually moving closer. YAY. Cymru am byth.
Thank you David. We will still be living in Hove, with a holiday home down here in Abergavenny. I hope to take some pictures of the area vey soon as it is so beautiful. We’ll be spending a lot of time down here (providing BT connect us with a phoneline and broadband!) It is great to be back home even if it has been a bit of a bumpy start.
Wales, how wonderful, Hugh! I do hope your issue is sorted out sooner rather than later, but it is at times rather nice to disconnect. Hard now to imagine he time when the Internet was new and computers and cell phones were a luxury 😀
Thanks Stacy. Yes, I have relived those days before broadband and the web, this week. I must admit and say that I have enjoyed the break as well. I’ve caught up on lots of outstanding issues, yet have not done any writing. It’s almost as if there is no writing without a wifi connection, but I know that is very silly 🙂
It took a week to get connected when I last moved house, I had to go to McDonalds for a burger each day!
What a great excuse for a burger, Andrew. Yes, I could have gone to an internet cafe but I just can’t write with too much noise around me. Now I fancy a MacFlurry!!
I really feel you here Hugh. Living were I do, we don’t always have reliable internet connection and sometimes it is soooo slow or just not working. I’ve become accustomed to it. However it is somewhat better than what we had just a few months ago, before the our old “box” thing broke and a new one had to be installed. It took three weeks for the people to do that and a lot of arguing on our part. Connecting via the mobile line is much faster but soooo expensive. I was grateful that my mobile provider had free data between midnight and 6AM during this time.
I do feel that when I hear stories like yours Serins, I should be grateful for what I can get here in the UK. Yes, I complained that the mobile wifi unit is so slow and doesn’t always work, but I guess I am complaining more beacuse I know there is a good service here yet it is the customer service side of the coin which is so dreadful. I only wish I was told the truth right from the begaining instead of all the excuses. It may have made the situation a little more bearable then.
Makes you proud to be British 😁
Well good old Marks & Spencer made me proud to be British a few weeks ago, so I’m not going to let BT spoil the party 🙂
Good for you 🙂
Glad you’re back. The bureaucracy when it comes to moving house and service providers is sometimes nothing short of medieval. I’m glad you’ve managed to get through it eventually and that your blog hasn’t suffered for it 🙂
Hey Christoph, I should have maybe popped to the otherside of the Brecon Beacons and used your wifi. Of course I would have bought over a bottle or two as as thank you 🙂
My minor frustration about Brighton’s West Pier is as nothing to what you’ve been going through. Oh my. Plus ca change. BT stinks. As ever!
It has been rather frustrating with them Sarah. Hopefully it won’t be long before we are connected to wifi and broadband again. Keep everything cross for me 🙂
Will do!
What crazy excuses BT managed to come up with! Lucky you moving to Wales, I bet it is beautiful there at the moment. Roll on the weekend! 🙂
It’s lovely surroundings Judy, only let down by no phoneline or broadband. I think BT think people in Wales still live in caves 🙂
Ha Ha! 🙂
AARRRGGHHH! BT are the devil incarnate. I am currently locking horns with the buggers now. The hours I alone have lost trying to get online, stay online, call them about having no internet, waiting in for engineers… the lost productivity is mind-boggling. People say the Tories are ruining this country – personally, I think BT is to blame.
So I’m guessing you are no fan of BT either? 🙂
It could be time for a change of I.S. provider for me. Trouble is I’ve signed another 12 month contract with them.
There has been a recent change to the law about getting out of contracts with service providers who do not deliver what they promise. It’s worth looking into. I am in the process of claiming compensation (also I am billing them for my wasted time at national minimum wage) once I have that I shall be looking at getting out of my contract. They are a disgrace.
Good for you. Please do let me know how you get on and if there is a more caring broadband provider out there. I may be looking for one in the very near future.
I certainly will. I use Plusnet at my business location, although not totally problem-free they are far better to deal with.
Thank you. I’ll put them on my list and check them out 🙂
Hugh, nice to have you back. Sorry that you’ve had broadband access problems. I can imagine how frustrating that is for you. Christine
Thank you Christine, although I am only here at the moment when the mobile broadband device allows me. Keep your fingers crossed that BT will have me connected to broadband soon 🙂
You must be the epitome of patience. I would have jumped off a cliff by now 🙂 Nice to see you back in the blogosphere!
Arr, you mean like Lemmings, Terri. I tend to stay cool in situations like this, but I can become a monster if I am really pushed. Lets hope it is service as usual on or by July 6th 🙂
Well, look at the bright side– you have a mountain outside your house 😉
I did notice your absence, actually my Reader has been quite light lately. Busy, busy, busy time of year for all it seems.
Enjoy settling in and good luck and loads of patience dealing with the corporate techie stuff. Xx
Thanks Melissa. I’ll take some photos of the surrounding area and post them on my blog soon 🙂
Fabulous. I look forward to it Hugh 🙂
Reblogged this on Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life and commented:
Hugh is suffering from BT induced Internet woes.. not the first and probably not the last customer to do so. When they are good they are very good but when they are bad!! Being ex-telecomms but their competitors I can relate some hair raising stories first hand but don’t want to be sued! Good luck Hugh and we will keep your seat warm for you.. Hugs
Thanks as ever for the reblog Sally. I’m hoping they dont have to move that mountain too much to get me connected 🙂
As they say Hugh – because you are worth it… oh no that is the hair coloui! hugs
I still voting for you to have your own comedy sketch show on prime time TV Sally 🙂
I will have to find an open mic night somewhere anonymous Hugh.. just you and me and see how I do.. hugs
I’m your biggest fan Sally, you know that. I was thinking more of a slot on The Graham Norton Show. I’m sure you and him would hit it off with the comendy 🙂
He is more likely to tip me out of the red chair… but if you can get me a slot!! hugs
Last week I had the same problem – I was at my mom’s and she hadn’t paid the bill (laid up in hospital) so nada, nothing, zip!!!!
Oh dear. Well first of all I hope you mum is better. Secondly, how did you find the break away form the internet and the world of blogging?
Oh my goodness. This craziness exists everywhere, Hugh. Here’s to hoping BT gets it done soon. 💗
Indeed it does Colleen. I’m just amzed by the excuses they come up with. 🙂
We get it here too with our cable company. Nightmares!
Good to have you back, Hugh, even if only intermittently!
Thanks Sue. I missed you all. I can only connect to the mobile wifi on my iPad, and I’m not enjoying writing posts on it. It’s great for reading and replying to emails, but not for blogging.
That I can sympathise with having used one myself for a while with the laptop. Apparently… and I’ve no idea how… you can use your mobile as a portable wifi modem. That might be worth a try 🙂
Already used all my data up on the mobile, Sue. That was in one day! It was Geoffrey West who suggested the mobile broadband device. It cost me £19 which I am hoping to get back from BT…with interest 🙂
So you should too! Tell Geoffrey I said Hi to Jack 😉