How to cancel my bt package help please

Question

after ringing sky and virgin media and being told i was unable to get a package with them i signed up with bt.
i signed up for bt-vision, 20 meg net and phone with free weekend calls.
i paid the £50 they asked for on the phone and was told i would receive all the equipment on the 15th april and it would all go live on the 15th aswell.
i received my parcel and set it all up on the 15th april and iv had nothing but problems.
im paying for 20 meg internet but im never able to receive more then 3 meg wich would be ok if i wasnt having to run a pc and 2 ps3's of it plus i was never told on the phone when making the order all i would get is 3 meg internet speed.
the wireless disconects every hour or so
the bt-vision is a waste of time as the image is rubbish as im unable to use a hdmi lead for it as it says my tv dose not suport it ( but it dose ), so im useing the freeview i got built into my tv at the mo
i have 2 laptops that are unable to conect wireless as they are running windows xp and the only way to conect them is by lowering the security on the router , wich i was never told about when making the order
the phone works fine apart from me getting at least 4 calls a day with no one speaking and this started the day the phone went in ( 15th april ) and befor i gave anyone the number i do 1471 and there is no number.
so iv had bt for 5 days now, i rung them yesterday and was told i am unable to cancel my contract without having to pay for the 18 month bill.
i was told i could only cancel it for free befor the 15th april wich is a joke because it wasnt even active then so how was i ment to know the service was going to be so bad.
am i signed into a contract with bt as iv not signed anything nore set up any direct debits for it yet ?
dose anyone know a way of ending this contract without paying a large bill please ?
thanks for your time
martin

Answer 1

taz1983 wrote:
after ringing sky and virgin media and being told i was unable to get a package with them i signed up with bt.
i signed up for bt-vision, 20 meg net and phone with free weekend calls.
i paid the £50 they asked for on the phone and was told i would receive all the equipment on the 15th april and it would all go live on the 15th aswell.
i received my parcel and set it all up on the 15th april and iv had nothing but problems.
im paying for 20 meg internet but im never able to receive more then 3 meg wich would be ok if i wasnt having to run a pc and 2 ps3's of it plus i was never told on the phone when making the order all i would get is 3 meg internet speed.
the wireless disconects every hour or so
the bt-vision is a waste of time as the image is rubbish as im unable to use a hdmi lead for it as it says my tv dose not suport it ( but it dose ), so im useing the freeview i got built into my tv at the mo
i have 2 laptops that are unable to conect wireless as they are running windows xp and the only way to conect them is by lowering the security on the router , wich i was never told about when making the order
the phone works fine apart from me getting at least 4 calls a day with no one speaking and this started the day the phone went in ( 15th april ) and befor i gave anyone the number i do 1471 and there is no number.
so iv had bt for 5 days now, i rung them yesterday and was told i am unable to cancel my contract without having to pay for the 18 month bill.
i was told i could only cancel it for free befor the 15th april wich is a joke because it wasnt even active then so how was i ment to know the service was going to be so bad.
am i signed into a contract with bt as iv not signed anything nore set up any direct debits for it yet ?
dose anyone know a way of ending this contract without paying a large bill please ?
thanks for your time
martin
BT should normally give you an estimate of the speed you will get when you inquire about broadband.  It can be anything between 512K and 20M, depending on your line and the local exchange.  Did you ever ask?  BT have previously said that they will release people from contracts if the speed is significantly lower than what they said customers would get.  Did they say "20M" or "up to 20M" - there is a big difference between the two.
You might be able to fix the HDMI problem by turning either or both of the TV and Vision box off and on again, or by getting a better quality of HDMI lead.  Unfortunately, HDMI can be a bit temperamental.  In any case, the Vision box makes a useful freeview video recorded.
If your WinXP laptops require a lower encryption, then it's either because their wireless adaptors are obsolete, or the drivers for them are obsolete.  I have a netbook running XP and it connects happily with WPA2 encryption.
Your contract doesn't have to be on paper.  Verbal contracts are legally valid, and BT will have recorded the phone call.  Since broadband and Vision are services, the rules under the Distance Selling Regulations are different.  The normal 14 day cooling off period after receiving goods only applies to products, not services.