BT cutting off service without warning - plus if y...

Question

On 18th December 2014, I rang BT to cancel my broadband service since I had found a far better deal with Hyperoptic. I was told that I had to give a month’s notice and would have to pay £30 for an engineer to come out and cut it off. Since this was the only option available I agreed, and arranged that my new broadband supplier would connect me before I was cut off by BT on the 18th January 2015.
On 1st January 2015, a day when it was impossible to do anything about the situation because it was a public holiday, my BT Broadband service was cut off without any warning. At first, BT told me I had never had Broadband with BT. When I disputed this I was told that my BT Broadband had been scheduled for cancellation on 1st January 2015. I asked, repeatedly, to speak to the call operative’s manager, and I was told, several times, that she was too busy. It was only when I lost my temper (which I do not like to do) that she miraculously became available. I felt I was pushed to this point, not by the call operative himself, but by the protocols he was clearly following. I was then informed that I had been told, via email, that my BT Broadband service was scheduled for cancellation on 1st January and, when I insisted I had received no such email; I was told that it had been sent to an email address to which I have had no access to for two years.
I updated my contact details, long ago, via ‘My BT’. I can provide screengrabs demonstrating the contact details I provided, the email address to which my eBilling has long been sent, and the lack of any instruction that I was to be cut off on 1st January.
It shows that I had paid three months in advance on 17th November (£105.42) so there was no reason for my BT Broadband to be cut off on 1st January. I have had no refund of any monies whatsoever.
The manager promised to listen to the phone call I made on 18th December and to call me back. She later stated that she was unable to listen to the call and so arranged to call me again the next day.
Surely, however, call operatives are told what to tell customers who arrange cancellation? Why, for instance, would I make up a story about being told I had to pay £30 for an engineer to cut me off? On 2nd January, while waiting for BT to call back, I contacted Hyperoptic who were amazing and installed my new service on 5th January.
When the BT manager finally called to say she would transfer me to customer services so I could be reconnected, I was told this process would take two to three days to perform. As a freelance writer, my income depends on access to the internet, and I do not keep regular office hours – working to deadlines through nights and weekends. I asked explained this. It would have been helpful to have been given a code with BTWifi-withFON, for instance, to tide me over until the Monday. The call operative said, ‘I do understand where your frustrations lie’, put me on hold and then, after about 10 minutes, the line went dead.
I sent this complaint to the Customer Service Manager, at BT Customer Correspondence Centre
Providence Row, Durham, DH98 1BT, the letter was dated 5th January 2015. I have had no response, no refund and, to add insult to injury, was sent another bill – for £10, which after another angry phone call, was rescinded.
I find it incredible that BT treats its customers in this way. Cutting them off without warning, ignoring their complaints and offering no refund. I don't understand why - when I paid three months up front on the 17th November 2014 - I have had no monies returned to me subsequent to being cut off on 1st January 2015. 

Answer 1

Hi gumilev,
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Thanks
Neil
BTCare Community Mod
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