Esat BT Problem. (little bit long)

Hobbes

Here's the issue. I've been trying to get broadband from Esat BT with a run around with various people on the phone promising to ring me back and never did.

Until the last couple of phone calls that is. The person on the phone tells me they won't install Broadband as there is an outstanding bill on the phone.

I tell them I am buying the service, not the phone owner and ask are they refusing me business based on someone elses debt?

She tells me the brother the has a large sum outstanding on the phone. I tell her I don't know anything about it and he is not the phone owner, also he is not me and ask again is she refusing me business based on someone elses bill.

She tells me to hold, and comes back and tells me thier policy is not to do business based on the phone. I tell her the phone service is Eircom not Esat BT and the service is just using the line, nothing else and would be to billed to me.

She tells me that is the policy of Esat BT. Somewhat annoyed now I say fine (not annoyed at her, I mean what can she do?) she slams the phone on me. Obviously sensing the annoyance and avoiding it escalating.

Here is the funny part... a little while later I get an email saying to print out the form for Broadband and I can have the service.

So I email them and ask for confirmation that I will take the service but under no circumstances will I pay the bill which isn't mine.

A woman rings me back, quite friendly (pretty much all the support are, if they are a bit lax at ringing back). She asks me what is going on and says she will ring me back.

She never rang back (over a week ago).

So naturally I'm p!ssed off at the brother over this thinking he's run up a bill. (our phone bill runs from 200-500, and is paid so that's why I was annoyed with him)

... I check into what happened.

The brother went into the offices and cancelled the Online service well over a year ago with them (could no longer afford it). They said it was cancelled.

A month later a bill comes. He rings them tells them he has already cancelled. They tell him to go in, he says he already has and they say that's fine and said it's cancelled.

Then he gets another bill. I should point out that each time he gets a bill they keep adding more to it. Rings him again, same issue.

Gets another. Told he should cancel it in writing. Letter sent in. Gets another, again told to cancel in writing and email will do. Sends an email.

Gets another bill. Rings them again. At this point speaks to a manager who is explained in depth what the story is. Asks her to check the logs from when he was cancelled to see if he used the service. She confirms that he hasn't and to put in writing that he had cancelled.

(Note: I should point out that, the number of calls was a lot more then above. They had serious problems with being put on hold, told they would ring back and didn't)

Letter sent saying they had cancelled, they were not paying for a service they didn't use and if they continued to recieve bills they would take it up with a solictior.

Gets another bill.

At this point, the mother somewhat irate gives out to them and to be honest she should of sought legal action (her describing what happened I could see she was seriously annoyed over it still).

From what I gather they also slapped on a cancellation fee or something (need to ask the brother more about that).


.... My point.

TBH, in light of what they told me I would be reluctant to take the broadband off them if they dropped the bill. However I am a bit annoyed that my family are annoyed and I am contemplating legal action to get the bill dropped. So my question is what exactly should I be asking for from them?

I know for starters I would want copies of all billings/service logs and other details which I'm sure has to be supplied under the data protection act. Is there anything else?

bizmark

well cant blame them if you (or your bro) has money outstanding to eircom or co

anyway .... i hope their not that bad when i cancell the netsmart account for the broadband : :mad: dont want to pay 45 euro + 30 euro a month

Hobbes

Originally posted by bizmark
well cant blame them if you (or your bro) has money outstanding to eircom or co

We don't have money outstanding to anyone. That's the point.

They (Esat BT, not eircom) continued to keep billing us after numerous times being told it was cancelled.

Mixie

Not exactly the same, but....

A friend having cancelled his NoLimits account continued to be
billed for their services. He complained, and explained that he had cancelled the account and gave details of the call which he made to cancel the account. They continued to bill him for months, and each time he would ring up they would acknowledge their mistake and promise to cease billing.

For a while it looked like they had stopped until he received a bill one day for months of service. When he rang up this time he was told that despite the fact that he had cancelled the account, because he was using an email address that was registered on that account, he would have to pay all service charges for the months where he sent/received (even unsolicited) email.

In the end he was forced to pay them the outstanding balance in return for an acknowledgement of complete account cancellation in writing. He has not been billed since.

flamegrill

This isn't the first time this has happened and your not the first person to complain about it on boards.

I know myself including dahamsta have great fun with esat after we got the boot from no-limits with bill's, In the end I think I owed around 300 euro or more, where they had billed me for over a year after I got kicked off. I never paid, no do I intend to pay.

I think adam only owed 50 quid or something and they threatened legal action , but got no where IIRC.

Basically esat are a billing shambles, are, were and are probably going to continue to be. I hear some peoples business broadband was billed incorrectly aswell, I won't post any details for their sake (in case anyone is watching)

Hobbes, speak to their credit control dept, bitch and moan. No point in talking to sales or support, you need someone on the front line. I used to have a name, but alas i either dumped it or lost it

HTH,

Paul

bk

Registerd letter to their legal representative person (Muck?) and also send a copy to ComReg and Dermot Aherns Office. That will get them off their ass.

BTW Mixie you got screwed, you should have brought them to the small claims court, you might still be able to, contact your local small claims legal advise office.

At worst you should have been billed for email hosting only, not NoLimits.

bkehoe

I too had problems getting nolimits cancelled. Rang them to cancel, and they said to send an email. Sent it, but no sign of any reply. A few weeks later another bill came, so we rang them again, and was told to explain it all in an email. Surprise, surprise no reply, and when we rang a few days later nobody had any knowledge of my emails. After getting repeated assurances from many people that our account was now switched off, it was a big surprise to get another bill the next month. We'd had enough at this stage, so rang Esat and once again explained everything and told them we'd inform the bank to stop the direct debit. The person on the phone agreed and said this is what many others have had to do! Several weeks later a letter arrives from esat saying we owe x amount and that our account will be terminated if it's not paid - excellent! Havent heard a thing from them since, and I dont plan to do any business with them again having experienced this.

spongebob

Originally posted by bk
Registerd letter to their legal representative person (Muck?) and also send a copy to ComReg and Dermot Aherns Office. That will get them off their ass.

BTW Mixie you got screwed, you should have brought them to the small claims court, you might still be able to, contact your local small claims legal advise office.

At worst you should have been billed for email hosting only, not NoLimits.

De Rebel wrote chapter and verse on this procedure once.

Bill Murphy is the man to whom you write by registered post. I don't know who the ESAT Group company secretary is, see http://www.cro.ie/ .

CC Comreg , Consumer Affairs Section.

Never mind Dermot Aherns office.

give names , dates and summaries of what was agreed and then show you carried out your side of the ESAT request...eg you sent the AGREED email to them .

ESAT, over time, have shown that their overall customer care system has 'Institutionally Failed' ....that is a serious matter.

Then take Bill Murphy to the Small Claims Court, remember that YOUR time is worth money, as is the distress these ridiculous demands cause to you and your family.

M

myhandle

Originally posted by bkehoe
I too had problems getting nolimits cancelled. Rang them to cancel, and they said to send an email. Sent it, but no sign of any reply. A few weeks later another bill came, so we rang them again, and was told to explain it all in an email. Surprise, surprise no reply, and when we rang a few days later nobody had any knowledge of my emails. After getting repeated assurances from many people that our account was now switched off, it was a big surprise to get another bill the next month. We'd had enough at this stage, so rang Esat and once again explained everything and told them we'd inform the bank to stop the direct debit. The person on the phone agreed and said this is what many others have had to do! Several weeks later a letter arrives from esat saying we owe x amount and that our account will be terminated if it's not paid - excellent! Havent heard a thing from them since, and I dont plan to do any business with them again having experienced this.

Yes, that is one way of ending a contract!
But they may report your "outstanding debts" and "failure to pay" to a credit reference agency, if you ticked some box allowing them to do so on the original application.