No broadband since BT replaced cabling into a neig...

Question

Hi,
Just wondering if anyone can help or offer any advise for an ongoing broadband issue my parents are having. The BT call centre isn't really helping or acknowledging the issue.
My parents are using standard BT broadband and the BT homehub 4 but since Wednesday they have had no broadband connection and the homehub is just flashing orange and red. The homehub box has bee rebooted many times and the cable to wall socket checked but still no connection.
The issue started when a BT engineer attended a fault at a neighbours property, mice had chewed through the cabling outside the property leaving them with no broadband. During the engineers visit my parents broadband connection stopped working suddenly, my father asked the engineer if the work he was doing could have affected his own broadband. The engineer showed my father the damaged cabling and explianed that mice had chewed through it. He advised that they weren't sure who else may be affected and my father would to call BT to arrange for an engineer to visit.
It's disappointing that my parents have now been left without a broadband connection when theirs was working
correctly before these cables into a neighbours property had been replaced. They live in a rual area and have been left with no broadband, there is no BTOPenzone etc .. for them to use as an alternative while they continue calling BT in the hope someone will help them.
My father has called BT serverval times and he's not getting any assistance from them. The call centre staff are saying the issue is on the house and broadband is working and they can't see any issues etc ... they have left them with no options or anyway to get this fixed. They won't acknowlege the events of Wednesday or even accept this may be related to their issue.
I need to some help in getting through to someone who can help them resolve this, it's not fair the position they have been left in or the service they are currently recieving from BT.
Can anyone offer any advise or assistance ?
Many thanks in advance,
Sara
Solved!
Go to Solution.

Answer 1

Hi sanyon,
Did you father connect to the Test Socket? Which is found behind the removable faceplate of the BTNTE5 master socket or Openreach ADSL prefiltered master socket? See the image below on help on locating the Test socket:
If he did connect to the TEST Socket, then this will disconnect any extension/slave telephone sockets in the property. This is supposed to happen, as the Test socket is their for diagnosing phone line and broadband faults as it elimintes the internal wiring (ie disconnects the internal wiring and extension/slave telephone sockets if wired correctly)
You will not be charged the £99 to £130 Openreach engineer home visit charge if the fault is found on the external line upto the TEST socket. After the Test socket is your responsibilty including all internal wiring. 
You will only be charged the Openreach engineer home visit charge if the fault is found after the TEST socket (eg your internal wiring) or with your/an equipment within the property.
Edit: As Keith_Beddoe has said, whas there a dial tone on the phone when connected to the TEST socket, and was there a broadband connection also when the Homehub/Router was connected to the TEST socket? Your father can re-enable the extension/slave sockets by reconnecting the removable faceplate back onto the BTNTE5/Openreach master socket.
Hope that all makes sense
I'm no expert, so please correct me if I'm wrong