Talk Talk connection and phone line problems
I've been with Talk Talk Broadband now for around 11 months (connected for maybe 5 months) and all I can say is, how the hell can they call themselves a Internet service provider?
When we first joined Talk Talk I told them that I didn't need a router as I had my own. A few days later a router comes through my letter box and an extra 30 charge on top of the so called 'free Internet' package. I rang their customer service department and explained to them that they had sent me the router after I had explicitly told them that I had one and therefore did not need theirs. Well after a couple of hours arguing about it they finally waived the charge for the router.
Two and a half weeks after joining Talk Talk the disconnection problems started and we lost all Internet connectivity and phone lines for a fortnight. After running up a 40 bill on my mobile contract they told me the problem would be sorted within 6 hours as there was a fault at the exchange. It was fine for a few days but then I began to loose my connection to the Internet every 10 to 20 minutes and at the same time the phone line would drop.
After a few day's of putting up with this I started losing my patience and the frantic phone calls to Talk Talk began. Calling customer services was a nightmare and it would often take over an hour to get speak to someone. You would then be put on hold and the phone line of course drop! After 9 attempts I finally got through to a customer service agent who then passed through several more departments just to get to a 'higher support technician'. This person clearly knew absolutely nothing and like a robot talked me through all the basic things (modem, filters, interferences etc.), all which I had already checked several times. After my first encounter with the 'higher support technicians' the process became even more repetitive. We then had a three week interval in which I we had no telephone line or Internet connection, and because I'm supposed to work online at the time I lost a fair amount of money. Thanks for that Talk Talk, much appreciated!
After finally getting our phone line back I rang them and demanded they cancel my service immediately so that I could go with a different provider. They told me I was then in breach of my contract and I'm afraid to say at this point I kind of lost it and ended up yelling at the poor guy. How can I be in breech of my contract when you can't even provide me with an Internet or phone line connection? They then had the nerve to tell me that I would be charged 70 for the disconnection and cancellation. Most of the customer service agents I spoke to where either unhelpful or occasionally rude and obnoxious. They didn't seem to have any idea what was happening as they passed you through to some other department just to end up disconnected again! One guy actually put the phone down on me!
If I can give anyone one piece of advice, research very carefully when you choose an Internet or telephone provider. Personally, I would rather be back on AOL than have to go through the hell I had with Talk Talk. I am currently migrating from Talk Talk to Be Internet, so let's hope I have a better level of service with them.
By: Danny
Comments from visitors
I offered a company my ongoing custom after they sent me a mailshot, all good. But then they said they couldnt give me an appointment time for the installation, just a date. No problem, a quick call to my mobile (number already taken) 1 our in advance of their installation engineer arriving and I could nip out of work and let them in. As they only work office hours and I've used all my holiday allowance it would be the logical step. They said the simply can not call me and that I would be charged a fee for a missed appointment.
I reminded them they were trying to sell me a tele-communications service and that I had already had to specify with them that I did not want calls about 'other marketing' or be cold called in general.
They argued they could save me money, totally forgetting they could make some (ie 'dial a number and speak for ten seconds - it's not difficult or expensive, in fact - it's your line of business').
A company called 'Talk (repeat that - Talk)' can't do what it says on the tin. Hopefully you see the irony - they obviously don't. Nor has their mailshot amounted to anything. Big fail, big waste of time. Talk Talk, needs to listen.
I reminded them they were trying to sell me a tele-communications service and that I had already had to specify with them that I did not want calls about 'other marketing' or be cold called in general.
They argued they could save me money, totally forgetting they could make some (ie 'dial a number and speak for ten seconds - it's not difficult or expensive, in fact - it's your line of business').
A company called 'Talk (repeat that - Talk)' can't do what it says on the tin. Hopefully you see the irony - they obviously don't. Nor has their mailshot amounted to anything. Big fail, big waste of time. Talk Talk, needs to listen.
-1
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I've been with talk talk now for a couple of years and had connection speed problems on and off. They consistently there is nothing wrong, however after each time I complaint about this my connection speed rises for a few weeks to months then down again! mysterious! The last few months my connection speed has been extremely bad again, considering complaining to the ombudsman whilst searching for a new provider. I need the internet connection for study and I don't have the energy or time to go through their incompetent help lines and days of pointless checks when I know from the ping rate to my router the problem is at their end.
I would advise anyone thinking of becoming a talk talk customer to consider the quality of their customer care and technical support and naturally be willing to accept the fault is always at your end even though the evidence proves otherwise.
I would advise anyone thinking of becoming a talk talk customer to consider the quality of their customer care and technical support and naturally be willing to accept the fault is always at your end even though the evidence proves otherwise.
-2
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Hi great site . I have been with talk talk for several years and never had a problem untill 2 weeks ago, so for the first time of needing help I am experienceing the rudest incompetent bunch of liars i have ever encountered. I have been with out a phone line for 2 weeks , after trying to report it i have been given story after story after story they really need to get there act together, no one has ever rang back, each time I have to repeat the whole saga, I am passed onto people I cannot understand, I have spent 70 minutes on hold, I have requested Every time for a call back to this day nothing, they once told me there engineers where coming out to fix the lines LIARS! BT tell me thet are not allowed to touch there lines.
I am still with no line absolutely no fault of mine. I have sent emails Nothing! WAIT I sent them an email for 11 new connections to a block of flats EUREKA they sent an email back happy for the work but sill no human call. I am sending this to Watchdog to safe guard others from falling victim to this incompetent firm!!!!
I am still with no line absolutely no fault of mine. I have sent emails Nothing! WAIT I sent them an email for 11 new connections to a block of flats EUREKA they sent an email back happy for the work but sill no human call. I am sending this to Watchdog to safe guard others from falling victim to this incompetent firm!!!!
-1
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have you been in touch with the ombudsman... we as consumers have a right to pay for what we get and not a service thats not fit for purpose ..
-4
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ssssssssssssssss - 30-Jun-11 21:48
it was my second day without Internet..... :*( no talk talk services today and yesterday...
+3
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Talk talk sales rang my doorbell today...no talk talk - ...but we are offering freee broadband services.....I stated that whilst thery may indeed provide free broadband, they dont know the meaning of the word service.....when asked who my current provider was I said 'someone else inc'...byeee...cold calling from a provider who has had all the problems in 2006 and beyond ...no thank you!
0
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Happy with non talktalk thanks - 1-Jun-11 16:33
I am unable to send/receive talk talk emails but CAN browse the web??!!
Tallk Talk dont provide my broadband,hence, do not recognize my tele # when asked via the custom service fault lines.
Any help please
Tallk Talk dont provide my broadband,hence, do not recognize my tele # when asked via the custom service fault lines.
Any help please
+6
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after a telephone call and an e mail requesting a cancellation of there services in november 2010 and getting an e mail back telling me that this would be done in 24 hours. u can imagine my surprise when I got a letter from a debt collection agency telling me that I hadnt paid my bill for the last 3 months and it had been put in there hands.the fact I hadnt been sent a bill to pay was seemingly irrelevant.after ringing talk talk and spending hours on the phone getting passed from dept to dept by customer svs agents who must read from the same script they admitted that it was on my account that I had contacted them and they didnt know why the account had not been disconnected.i am disgusted with the quality of service that they provide or should I say dont provide and the way its all handled.stay well clear is my advice.
-9
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I am fed up and disgusted with trying to get in touch with cutomer service, My phones keeps cutting out. and I wont waste my time talking about how slow computer is as I know I won't get any satisfaction, I do't know how you get away with it. It is criminal, But of course it seems most bussiness these days are run by con men or crooks business's but come to think of it, the bank managers get away with it so I expect some directors think WHY NOT ME.
-7
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Recently have lost connection to my landline and broadband, after talking to technicians, the nos. was diverted to my mobile. Spent time ringing talk talk with my mobile costing money as it is a pay as you go mobile. Was told that it is their policy that they are unable to ring back on mobiles. It will take 3 days to sort out my problems. Having read all your problems, I am not too confident in getting my connection. I will give them a benefit of a doubt. If they do not deliver, I WILL change provider without any hesitation.
-3
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I have been without a phone line since october 19th,got onto talk talk they said the problem was a software upgrade at my local exchange and would get technical to call my mobile number within 48 hours. To cut a long story short I have emailed,and phoned on many occassions and had contact with at least 13 different people,each time they lie and say I have been escalated to technical and will get a call within 48 hours. I dont know what to do now because if I have to phone again and get told another pack of lies I will explode. If I finally get my phone line working again I will cancel my contract as fast as possible. TALK TALK thats all they do, they should try to listen to their customers before they lose them all.
-1
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Richard Robson - 22-Feb-11 11:47
Hi,same problem ,same provider.Talk Talk are hopeles!!!Ive been with them for a few months now and my account is still classed as inactive on their billing system,i havent received any bills yet ...not a bad thing but I also havent received they router they promised and have ended up purchasing my own.They are hopeless beyond belief all I ever get told is we'll escalate it ,this has being escalated for months.I know how you feel regarding the advisers,we had one who told us to put a dsl cable into a bt test socket ..without a filter !!!After 11/2 hrs of trying to explain that I could not do that I was told to have a lovely night.ERGHHHHHHHHH I hate talk talk and will shortly be leaving them!!!!!
-8
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I have recently had no end of problems with talk Talk. My line went dead on 22nd December, so lost all phone and broadband connection. I reported this on December 24th, and they said the engineer I had previously called out would deal with it. As I was going away for Christmas, tyhe engineer was booked for New Year's Eve. so far, so good.
However, he said it was a problem with the outside line and would need to be escalated to BT. However, as their systems were down, he couldn't do this or even report the fact that I had a fault at all. He asked me to ring Talk Talk on their customer line and tell them he'd tested the line in the test socket and recommended the fault be escalated to BT.
When I rang Talk Talk, they had no record of me having a fault - I don't even think they knew they'd sent an engineer out. I gave them first my work number to call me on, but when that proved difficult I rang back and gave a mobile number. I was told that the fault had been escalated to their Stevenage office, but calls couldn't be put through to them. I would have to wait for them to ring me. I asked several times for my mobile number to be passed to them so they could ring me. This they failed to do. I couldn't have given them the wrong number three times.
Finally I gave up and told them I was moving to Virgin. They asked me why I was moving and they told me I had had absolutely no service for a month. Thy said they would send another engineer out free of charge. This they did. The engineer said it was a fault with the outside line and it would have to be escalated to BT, something they had known for a month.
I wrote a stinking letter to them,saying I wish to cancel my contract, that I owe them nothing, and they owe me a month's line rental for a non-existent line. I have had not a peep out of them since.
However, he said it was a problem with the outside line and would need to be escalated to BT. However, as their systems were down, he couldn't do this or even report the fact that I had a fault at all. He asked me to ring Talk Talk on their customer line and tell them he'd tested the line in the test socket and recommended the fault be escalated to BT.
When I rang Talk Talk, they had no record of me having a fault - I don't even think they knew they'd sent an engineer out. I gave them first my work number to call me on, but when that proved difficult I rang back and gave a mobile number. I was told that the fault had been escalated to their Stevenage office, but calls couldn't be put through to them. I would have to wait for them to ring me. I asked several times for my mobile number to be passed to them so they could ring me. This they failed to do. I couldn't have given them the wrong number three times.
Finally I gave up and told them I was moving to Virgin. They asked me why I was moving and they told me I had had absolutely no service for a month. Thy said they would send another engineer out free of charge. This they did. The engineer said it was a fault with the outside line and it would have to be escalated to BT, something they had known for a month.
I wrote a stinking letter to them,saying I wish to cancel my contract, that I owe them nothing, and they owe me a month's line rental for a non-existent line. I have had not a peep out of them since.
-3
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We 'went live' with Talk Talk on December 31st. I have already switched back to BT! The problems I am having with Talk Talk are shocking. I've had no incoming calls since December 12th and the broadband averages 1 to 1.5 meg - much slower than I was told for my area. Having had a few annoyed customers complaining to me about me 'hanging up on them without speaking' which was of course a Talk Talk fault, I have switched to BT - I cant afford to lose the business.
Today I found out that Talk Talk are sending me a bill for £226.00 for 'breaching the contract see setion 10 where I must allow them 28 days to deal with a technical fault'
I wrote back stating that I have switched because they breached the contract by not providing any customer services (the line cut 5 times over a 6 hour period whilst complaining / trying to investigate the fault) and preventing me from accepting incoming calls.
Whilst spending 6 hours on the phone last Saturday, one 'technical adviser' tried the most bizarre trick Ive ever heard of. After getting nowhere during a 40 minute call with the 'technician', I heard a strange whistling / digital distortion on the line and the guy seemed to have gone. Because I was recording the call I thought I'd let the fault it play out. Anyway, after a minute I heard the fella getting his breath back and start to blow into the headset microphone. The noise I was hearing was him blowing in it!!!!!! Cheeky so and so!!! He thought I would hang up of course but I didnt. I waited for him to stop and asked 'have you finished blowing now?' he replied by hanging up.
I'll pay until the end of January when I switch back to BT but thats it. They can 'whistle' for the £226.00. I'll take it to court if I have to and claim damages against them. I'm certainly not losing business for 28 days while they do sod all.
Today I found out that Talk Talk are sending me a bill for £226.00 for 'breaching the contract see setion 10 where I must allow them 28 days to deal with a technical fault'
I wrote back stating that I have switched because they breached the contract by not providing any customer services (the line cut 5 times over a 6 hour period whilst complaining / trying to investigate the fault) and preventing me from accepting incoming calls.
Whilst spending 6 hours on the phone last Saturday, one 'technical adviser' tried the most bizarre trick Ive ever heard of. After getting nowhere during a 40 minute call with the 'technician', I heard a strange whistling / digital distortion on the line and the guy seemed to have gone. Because I was recording the call I thought I'd let the fault it play out. Anyway, after a minute I heard the fella getting his breath back and start to blow into the headset microphone. The noise I was hearing was him blowing in it!!!!!! Cheeky so and so!!! He thought I would hang up of course but I didnt. I waited for him to stop and asked 'have you finished blowing now?' he replied by hanging up.
I'll pay until the end of January when I switch back to BT but thats it. They can 'whistle' for the £226.00. I'll take it to court if I have to and claim damages against them. I'm certainly not losing business for 28 days while they do sod all.
+8
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I dont know you know ive had a couple of problems, theyve all been sorted out quite quickly and efficiently people are nice... it seems to me a case of if it works its great if it doesnt its bad
-2
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I was with Tiscali for years with no problems, but since Talk Talk has taken over I have had nothing but trouble. My phone keeps ringing intermittently, and I cannot use it to make phone calls and no one can contact me either. My broadband can be very slow and sometimes does not even work at all. Trying to contact anyone at Talk Talk, is impossible, they don't even have phone numbers on their letters, just e-mail addresses which is useless without broadband. They charge high rates for technical support and keep you waiting for ages so your run up high mobile phone bills. Trying to change provider is a nightmare as they pass you from pillar to post, to obtain a MAC code. And trying to obtain a new password as I have forgotten my old one has caused me nothing but grief. Quite the worse company I have ever had to deal with. I have now contacted Ofcom, and hopefully they will investigate.
-3
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I am having exactly the same trouble, some of the Talk talk advisors are fine, others are arrogant, ignorant and downright rude. I can speak to three different people in the course of a phone call and have to give the same details to each one. I have logged a complaint with Ofcom.
As far as I am aware if Talk talk can't provide the service within 28 days they are in breech of contract and have to let you out of it. I shall be speaking to cancellations tomorrow, plus a formal letter of complaint to their Head Office (recorded to sign for). Moving from Tiscali to Talk talk is the worst thing I ever did. I have lost count of the number of phone calls I have made (all at my expense), being passed from pillar to post, getting nowhere. If there is a place worse than hell Talk talk is it.
As far as I am aware if Talk talk can't provide the service within 28 days they are in breech of contract and have to let you out of it. I shall be speaking to cancellations tomorrow, plus a formal letter of complaint to their Head Office (recorded to sign for). Moving from Tiscali to Talk talk is the worst thing I ever did. I have lost count of the number of phone calls I have made (all at my expense), being passed from pillar to post, getting nowhere. If there is a place worse than hell Talk talk is it.
+7
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Contact Ofcom and raise complaint via them, as talk talk do not offer any resolution, they just play you like a fool for months on end. Tey deserve the fines they will get if enough people complain.
+2
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I've been with Tiscali since 08. After they were sold to TT in '10 my phone/bb costs went up.In September this year, I had a message from nowhere on my phone, saying "no voicemail is available on this line".Callers couldn't leave a message while we were talking. TT then sold me an enhanced contract guaranteeing voicemail. Three months later, same "no voicemai" and no 1571.I've written and phoned to no avail. Now they've set me up for "f-secure" web cover, free till March 09 then £2 a month. I can't see how to get out of it. I've lost the license key!
Breaking the contract will cost £125. It may be worth it! Ironically technically they're good and reasonable but if you've lost information or have little niggles they can't seem to help.
Breaking the contract will cost £125. It may be worth it! Ironically technically they're good and reasonable but if you've lost information or have little niggles they can't seem to help.
+13
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I 've had all the same problem's , join Tiscali ,then they sneakly sold to Talk Talk..yeah that company sure got us? (all talking) My advise is to get out while you can! or protest out side their HQ Londo Soho so they don't get any more Victims
+5
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