Virgin to charge 25ppm for broadband tech support from July

[Azzin]

Virgin Media will slap a 25 pence per minute charge on calls to its broadband technical support line from 1 July because it says it gets too many off-topic questions.

The firm angered its investors last month by posting a shaky-looking first set of financial results.

Customer care MD Steve Stewart said: "Over half the calls we receive are general enquiries about using the internet or another company's software, rather than the broadband connection we supply, so we can't sustain our award-winning service with the existing local rate charges.

"We remain committed to offering the option of phone support, but we also provide a free status line, free email support and extensive information on our website."

Which is perhaps not much use if your internet access is down.

The troubled cable monopoly said the charges would encourage calls seeking technical advice on broadband and allow it to continue to offer "best-in-class service".

Calls to bundle rival Sky's support line are charged at eight pence per minute.®

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/11/virgin_media_call_charges/

[dave_bass5]

Yeah
http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=535664

[warrej]

I've had broadband with Telewest for around 7 years and have never had a problem, so don't really see it as being a big issue :rolleyes:

[12 promises]

I've had broadband with Telewest for around 7 years and have never had a problem, so don't really see it as being a big issue :rolleyes:

i have had virgin.net for over 2 years and it was fine until telewest,ntl et al joined in to make it virgin media.
since then i have had all sorts of problems and the c/s is down the pan.
tommorow i switch over to BT thats how much virgin media have peed me off.:thumbsdow

[Azzin]

I've had broadband with Telewest for around 7 years and have never had a problem, so don't really see it as being a big issue :rolleyes:

That's ok then.

It will be interesting to find out if you feel the same way when you do have a problem and have to pay for the privelige of ringing them...:smashin:

[dave_bass5]

I read in the other thread that if it turns out that its a VM fault you get the cost of the call back (or something like that).
Of course, proving its their fault could take some doing i suppose.
I think it s a good idea to be honest.

[Throttle]

You think they'd want to get rid of there customers lately adding throttling and now 25ppm calls :thumbsdow ive already put my services up for cancelation and ive been with telewest since before broadband way back in the days of when getting 56k was :eek: at the time lol

Ive had loads problems lately it started when i got offered the Tv drive :rolleyes: but it werent just fact i never rated it much i wont go into detail but i got it offered alot cheaper initally at the time so i took it u and after the 14 days trial period along comes the bill with regular price and everyone i talk to has no knowledge of what i got offered and say that they couldnt have given that deal ...this was with telewest btw at the time.

Now the broadband is throttled so whats the point in the 20mb speed with like 3gb usage limts i play pc, ps3 and 360 aswell as subscribed for Hd sites so demos are many a time 1gb+ and then getting Hd trailers/reviews so on the odd day i could hit the limit and its not the cheapest internet service to start with...Then last sunday tv and internet was off until late wednesday night there once free tech support is now 0845 and when i phoned at night i was even onto india support :thumbsdow my connection seems have random disconnections since

Well im off after many previous good times with telewest its now time for a BT line and Bethere as im near the exchange and my friend picks up regular 14mb at least with sky and he lives further away so i should be ok i think :god:

[dave_bass5]

Throttle
What are you going to do for TV?

As for calls to India. Yes its a pain isnt it.
I read that if you ask for line 2 (or it might be level 2) support you get transferred back to a UK based help line. not given it a go yet though.

[Mr Jason B]

TBH I was sceptical initially but after finding out more information I think it will result in a better service.

You will only be charged for the call if it is an issue with your pc,needed advice,etc -if it is VM's fault,ie an area outage,faulty modem,etc then the cost of the call will be refunded.

This new proccess should lessen the amount of unnecesary calls to VM and so reduce wait times for people who have actual faults.I understand that the service status line is also going to be vastly improved which will remain a free phone number to check for problems in your area.

The only thing that may be a problem is getting through to the Indian call centre and having difficulty with the language barriers(trying to be polite here).

[dave_bass5]

TBH I was sceptical initially but after finding out more information I think it will result in a better service.

You will only be charged for the call if it is an issue with your pc,needed advice,etc -if it is VM's fault,ie an area outage,faulty modem,etc then the cost of the call will be refunded.

This new proccess should lessen the amount of unnecesary calls to VM and so reduce wait times for people who have actual faults.I understand that the service status line is also going to be vastly improved which will remain a free phone number to check for problems in your area.

The only thing that may be a problem is getting through to the Indian call centre and having difficulty with the language barriers(trying to be polite here).

Oh, i didn't know that.

[warrej]

That's ok then.

It will be interesting to find out if you feel the same way when you do have a problem and have to pay for the privelige of ringing them...:smashin:

Oh....you've got me worried now

[chris57]

Wonder who's fault they will say it is when rebooting the modem and PC miraculously clears the problem when you are on the line yet did bugger all when you tried it for the last hour. I don't trust them any longer.

Telewest were spot on Virginmedia is nothing but dropouts and a call centre that doesnt understand geordie.

[Throttle]

Throttle
What are you going to do for TV?

As for calls to India. Yes its a pain isnt it.
I read that if you ask for line 2 (or it might be level 2) support you get transferred back to a UK based help line. not given it a go yet though.

Ah right i never heard of the line 2 thing before anyhow on the Tv drive package atm id downgraded to basic channels (with lack of any new Hd channels ) on Tv drive so for time being id just live with my tv's freeview which seems to have more channels than the basic Tv drive anyhow id like go onto Sky Hd but i dont fancy paying out for a box and then extra for only a few Hd versions of channels that you already paid for once in standard :thumbsdow if anything if i wanted the channels id prob go for the Sky+ but atm im not too bothered really.

[t11rmh]

Wonder who's fault they will say it is when rebooting the modem and PC miraculously clears the problem when you are on the line yet did bugger all when you tried it for the last hour. I don't trust them any longer.

Telewest were spot on Virginmedia is nothing but dropouts and a call centre that doesnt understand geordie.

You should do that before you call. It normally works for me on the odd occasson my broadband is out of sorts. If you ring them up every time then it is a waste of your time and theirs....

[chris57]

You should do that before you call. It normally works for me on the odd occasson my broadband is out of sorts. If you ring them up every time then it is a waste of your time and theirs....

That would be why I say 'yet did bugger all when you tried it for the last hour' in my previous message:rotfl:

[Bluewolf]

Sorry, I can't really see how the utter sods law of you rebooting with them on the other end of the phone and having it finally work is a conspiracy, Telwest or Virgin Media. And on that note, the people you're speaking to were called Telewest until Feb, they're not new Virgin Media drones, or conspiracy led nutters.

Sods law and I feel for ya, but it's amazing how a change of name can make the consumer much less forgiving or patient (in general now, not personally directed at ya). When I have a prob, and it's still very rarely, but there has been one since the VM rebrand, I still tend to approach it with the attitude that Telewest saw me alright, and just because they've changed their brand to VM doesn't change that (old user, I was there in the days of dialup and the random wee 'click' of it disconnecting).

[dave_bass5]

Sorry, I can't really see how the utter sods law of you rebooting with them on the other end of the phone and having it finally work is a conspiracy, Telwest or Virgin Media. And on that note, the people you're speaking to were called Telewest until Feb, they're not new Virgin Media drones, or conspiracy led nutters.

Sods law and I feel for ya, but it's amazing how a change of name can make the consumer much less forgiving or patient (in general now, not personally directed at ya). When I have a prob, and it's still very rarely, but there has been one since the VM rebrand, I still tend to approach it with the attitude that Telewest saw me alright, and just because they've changed their brand to VM doesn't change that (old user, I was there in the days of dialup and the random wee 'click' of it disconnecting).

Agreed but i think its the new policies that stink, not the staff.

[Bluewolf]

Fair point :).

Though on the topic of the charges for non VM fault calls, I completely agree that yeah, I don't mind the charge being introduced because I know it's being done to cut down on the number of either invalid calls they're getting. You only have to search these forums to see how many people have been complaining about the length of queue time waiting to speak to an agent.

Now, to be completely honest, this isn't entirely their fault. You again, can run a search on the forums and see how many times you see people constantly being advised to 'just hang up and ring back to get someone else'. This is dramatically having an impact on their queue times, more than likely causing the longest queues on either cancellations/retentions or billing/150.

Being fair to VM, if even half the people seen commenting on such things and offering such suggestions follow through on it, you can hardly come back alter complaining of longer waits since you've just told several people to follow your lead and call umpteen times until you get what you feel you deserve (and again being fair about the unfortunate few, there are a good lot out there that feel in their book they're owed more than is really reasonable and so will bounce off several people in the same department to hopefully hear something different when they really won't get what they want).

That and VM staff more than likey see these sorts of attitudes spread all across forums on the web. It was only natural something would have to be done to curb Mr Smith et al's insatiable need to get what they want by calling 5 or 10 times in a sitting.

Longer post than I'd intended, but it niggles away when I see people moaning about queue times in one thread, then 5 more advising to hang up and call back repeatedly. Realisation must kinda kick in at some point and people can realise that they're hardly helping a busy phoneline by doing this.

My 2 pence that kinda got away from me, I'll go sit in the corner again :suicide: .

[alphaomega16]

If thats the case then I want a direct number to a ******* UK call centre because if they are charging me 25ppm then I want to speak to someone where things dont have to be constantly repeated.

[Bluewolf]

You do realise that many UK centres also have accents of an asian persuasion and they don't all have to be in India. Half the time you're hanging up on a UK centre. :oops: Bit of patience is all it takes on both sides, not to mention tolerance. If approaching it like this, you'll not only succeed in being the one to get yourself peed off even more, you'll make it harder to get through yourself, further peeing yourself off.

And the queues get bigger, which only pees other people off too. All in all, an unhealthy cycle of detriment that only makes the angry people more angry.

Aside from that, if you get a special number for a UK only accent, and everyone else crying out for the same thing gets what they're after, do you not think that special phoneline will be extremely busy too?

On the upside, I guess the ones like me who don't mind who they get through to will get through extra fast :).

[alphaomega16]

Not at 25ppm mate.;

25ppm = Patience goes out the window.

I am getting ripped off enough with 5MB Broadband for £37.

[Bluewolf]

*sigh* Point missed, but to each their own.

[alphaomega16]

No it wasnt but until I experience something different to what I have since TW became VM I am gonna go on past experience.

[steviebhoy26]

getting charged :thumbsdow can see it now....

hello sir, have you tried rebooting your pc?
ok sir, have you tried rebooting modem?
ok sir, have you tried dancing infront of modem?
ect
ect

45 min later....there is a fault and an engineer is booked, your call will be refunded

3 weeks later bill for fault call is on the ****ing bill :suicide:

[Mr Jason B]

45 min later....there is a fault and an engineer is booked, your call will be refunded


Due to ICSTIS regulations no "premium" call can go on for longer than 20 minutes,after that if the problem is not resolved you will have to be called back immediatley,so the absolute worst scenario is if your equipment/pc is at fault it will cost you a fiver to get it sorted which is a lot cheaper than calling out some joking IT "expert" or taking your pc to pc world.

I think most of the people on this forum are at least a little bit tech savvy anyway, so I imagine would only be phoning VM tech support when there is a fault with the modem which would obviously result in a refunded call.I also believe that the refund will be done immediatley by the person you are dealing with and not sent off to customer services or any other different dept so there should(being optimistic here) be no reason for the refund not to have been applied.

[neil2627]

I would just like to let you all know that if you have a virgin media land line phone you will know at the moment you can call the technical support line for free on 151 but from the 1st of July 2007 they will be deleting that number and you will then have to call a 0906 number what will be a 25p per minute and a 10p connection charge. If you all phone up customer service on 150 from a virgin land line and complain to the company they then might keep the 151 number thank you from Neil

[Bluewolf]

1) This is old news and in a zillion other threads (ok I exagerate, but more than 3 ;) !)

2) How does choking up the main 150 line and making people wait over half an hour, etc longer to get through for legitimate customer service issues help anyone?

As a point to note, they're not fully equipt to deal with your complaint properly, they're not a complaints line - they can hear you out, even say they understand and agree, but bottom line, when you hang up, wee Kelly in billing can't really do anything else about your issue. There's a specific address for complaints, and those done in writing generally have more sway. You want impact? Start a properly organised letter-writing campaign/petition and pick a date for posting that has everything arrive within a short space of time. Not only has your message been delivered, but your impact has been made and with a minimum disruption to other customers.

[neil2627]

well if you phone the company mate and tell them you are not happy about the changes then they will log your call and that is the same for everyone as it all gets loged onto your account

[Bluewolf]

Yeah, they enter text on a screen, that only other agents will have for reference if you have to call back at any point in future. It doesn't go to supervisors, it doesn't reach managers - in short the person you talk to on the phone is the only one to hear about it in that respect. The log is there to let agents on the line see any relevant calls previous that could be related to the current issue you're calling with to help them in their job. As they're not equipt to deal with full blown complaints, the next say, 5 agents you contact in the next few months being able to see that you registered your dissatisfaction on <insert date here> is all that gives them the power to do.

If you want effective action, it should be done in the right way, and on the right scale. Permeating the billing agent's day with a complaint about a call charge that they have no control over will let you vent, but if you truly want action in the long run to get what you want, take the organised route. It's the only way to go about something that large with a company as big as VM.

I don't agree with the charge, and always liked the fact that my ISP provided me with free support should I ever need it, but at the same time I can understand why such a step could be necessary in today's world.

[Stuart Wright]

...or 25p a minute if you are calling from a Virgin Media phone.
This is outrageous and for the first time in years I am seriously considering leaving Virgin Media.

[Bluewolf]

Erm, not to add to repetition or anything, but where's this £1 a min charge coming from? The only line of theirs to charge that is their out of scope PC Helpline. No info from VM has ever said it'll be £1 a min from a non-VM telephone line.

If it has, do show cos that'd be nuts! :suicide:

[Stuart Wright]

Erm, not to add to repetition or anything, but where's this £1 a min charge coming from? The only line of theirs to charge that is their out of scope PC Helpline. No info from VM has ever said it'll be £1 a min from a non-VM telephone line.

If it has, do show cos that'd be nuts! :suicide:

Just got an email:
From 1st July, our broadband helpline number is changing and from then on it’ll cost 25p per minute to call from a Virgin home phone, plus 10p to connect. Mobiles and other networks may vary. The new number is 0906 212 1111.

Over and above this, we want to make it quicker and easier for you to find the information you need. So when you need help, here’s what to do:

Step 1
If you’re having trouble with your broadband service, for example if it’s running slower than it should be, or you’re having trouble seeing certain pages, the first thing to do is switch off your computer and modem, then restart it again. This may repair any basic faults right away and get you back up and running quickly.

Step 2
If that didn’t work, the next thing to do is call our service status line on 0800 561 0061 to find out if there’s a problem in your area. It’s absolutely free. Or if you still have access to the internet, you can visit our help site. It’s at www.virginmedia.com/help

If you have questions about things like how to set up your email account or how to sort out your internet security, you’ll find the answers online too.

Step 3
If you can’t find what you’re looking for online, or you can’t look online, then you can call our new broadband helpline.

We have over 200 Virgin Broadband experts ready to help if you’re having issues with your Virgin Broadband modem or service. So they can help you faster, you’ll need to have your account details to hand and be at your computer.

If you have a question about equipment that hasn’t been supplied by Virgin Media, like your computer or your Blackberry, then you’ll need to get in touch with your manufacturer or you can call the PC helpline on 0906 991 0001. It costs £1 a minute plus 10p to connect. Mobiles and other networks may vary.

We hope that helps and that you continue to enjoy the same great service!

The Virgin Media team

It says quite specifically that it's 25p if calling from a Virgin phone. Otherwise I'm assuming it's £1 a minute. I'll delete this thread if I'm wrong.

[pixelpixel]

Oh dear, a 0906 number thats very silly move. :suicide:

[Bluewolf]

Ah, no the only thing referencing £1 a min is the existing PC Helpline which has always been £1 a min as a premium service.

The 0906 number for support could be charged at anything, hence them saying rates on mobiles and other suppliers may vary. Could mean 50p a min, or 75p ... even 30p. All 0906 numbers aren't automatically £1 a min.

Can anyone remember what the charge was way back? I'm recalling something at 50p a min, but can't really recall what it was for.

[Stuart Wright]

Doesn't matter what it is - anything more than standard charge for a helpline for a service which we pay for already is insulting and alienating.

[Bluewolf]

As someone's already stated, if the fault is in VM's side, they refund the full cost to you. If it's a call for something blatantly unsupported by them, you are. I can only imagine they get a boatload of invalid calls daily, which in turn pushes up queue time for people with genuine issues. Not only that, they provide a host of info on their website that's seldom used by people preferring to call in for the info instead.

I don't like the idea of the charge, I don't think it'll do VM any favours at all and it's a shame to see them follow other ISPs, but I only call VM when I have a problem with a part of the service they're responsible for (given that happens rarely for me personally). I've always gone to their site in the past first when I've had a problem in my less tech savvy days. I'd feel guilty for calling up to ask what the incoming mail server or something is when it's already on the site and there were people complaining of 20min waits for help.

[pixelpixel]

So how would you get your money back ?

Would they give you a reference number, then you would need to send in your bill. Oh and that would mean you would need an itemised bill.

So I phone, they say sorry we are at fault, I then say ok can I have my money for this call, they say send in proof, I do, they then refund it.

Just that alone could take over 28 days and you would still have to pay the charge in order to have it refunded. :(

[Bluewolf]

They refund it while on the call with you from what I've heard.

I reckon it's more to do with stemming the flow of people calling up for every little thing rather than with genuine broadband issues to a broadband technical department and urging them to use the other resources available, like the freephone outage status line and their website.

However they work it, if I have to call to have my modem sorted out, or a tech booked for their network issues at any point, 10mins wouldn't break my bank if I had to wait until the next bill to get it back. Premium numbers have call limits and legalities to stop the caller ending up with a nasty bill. Also lets the caller issue more control over the size of their bill.

[pixelpixel]

Some info regarding 09 numbers from icstis - the premium rate services regulator.


icstis - the premium rate services regulator (http://www.icstis.org.uk/consumers/number_ranges/09.asp).

0906
Open-ended at any cost per minute; or fixed cost per call at any rate


Also have a look at this (http://www.icstis.org.uk/pdfs1/premiumrate_callcosts.pdf) a nice chart to work out the costs per each network.

So no limit on how long you will be on. :(

[Bluewolf]

Same as VM's PC Helpline (it's call limit is at 20mins), the new number being brought in for broadband tech support will carry a similar call limit.

[wormvortex]

I've never needed to phone about my broadband once in 3years and can't see why most people would have needed to either

[neilios]

I cannot understand why people are trying to justify a blatant money making scam.
Personally i've probably rung customer helplines for my telewest service maybe once a year ,so in 6 yrs maybe around six times maybe less.
Anyway after the recent 20mb upgrade the connection was dropping frequently ,so after a day of puttting up with it i called the service line ,then the help line ,only to be told the norm ,its your router ,switch everything on and off blah ,blah,oh if an engineer calls and can find nothing wrong you wil be charged 95 quid call out charge as well as the cost of the call.

This kind of customer service isolates and angers customers ,and unfortunatly most customers are not tech savy.
Anyway i fixed the problem myself in the end .

[yipyipboo]

Hi, posted the bit below in the TV thread earlier today. I was reluctant to call the BB number but as my problem looks to be with VM equipment I guess I'll get the call charge refunded.....:confused:

Can anyone offer any further advice?


Since I think Friday the 'online' led has been flashing on my V+ box and I also have a flashing led on my other silver samsung box. Additionally my BB is not working with the sync led flashing most of the time on the little blue modem.

Having spoken to VM they have booked an engineer to come next Tuesday, over a week away as they seem unable to help. The interactive (such as VOD) has reported a 1063 and 1092 if thats any help?

Obviously there is a problem outside of the equipment I have and was wondering if a call to the BB help line is worth a go, but I don't want to call it, be on the line for ten minutes and still not be able to resolve this (and then get billed for the privilege).

Anybody know whats causing all this??

Ta

-A frustated VM customer!

[dobbin]

This kind of customer service isolates and angers customers ,and unfortunatly most customers are not tech savy.
Anyway i fixed the problem myself in the end .

WHat did you do to fix the problem?
I'm interested as it may be of help if I'm faced with a similar problem in the future.

[Mr Jason B]

Hi, posted the bit below in the TV thread earlier today. I was reluctant to call the BB number but as my problem looks to be with VM equipment I guess I'll get the call charge refunded.....:confused:

Can anyone offer any further advice?


Since I think Friday the 'online' led has been flashing on my V+ box and I also have a flashing led on my other silver samsung box. Additionally my BB is not working with the sync led flashing most of the time on the little blue modem.

Having spoken to VM they have booked an engineer to come next Tuesday, over a week away as they seem unable to help. The interactive (such as VOD) has reported a 1063 and 1092 if thats any help?

Obviously there is a problem outside of the equipment I have and was wondering if a call to the BB help line is worth a go, but I don't want to call it, be on the line for ten minutes and still not be able to resolve this (and then get billed for the privilege).

Anybody know whats causing all this??

Ta

-A frustated VM customer!

If your ready or sync lights are not on or flashing on the modem it is going to be a problem either with the modem or(escpecially in this case as your dtv is effected as well) more likely to be on the network,ie low power level ,snr,etc.

It is probably the same problem effecting your DTV and BB but it would be worth you speaking to their bb support dept just to make sure that the eng has enough time to ensure all your services are up and running as they should be,otherwise he may just fix the dtv and then say he doesnt have enough time to check the BB.Make sure they refund the cost of the call(25p/m);)

[yipyipboo]

As it happens everything seems to be back up and running now so i'll give it till Monday before cancelling the callout.

I can only assume me ringing up may have prompted someone to look into it and fix it their end?