EIRCOM line installation issue.

jokeragain

All,

I know this has been done to death:-
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=301400

But I'm new to the Country so I'd love it if you guys could impart some knowledge my way. Also, it hasn't been done to death recently so why not rekindle out love for eircom..

I moved into a flat and my phoneline had a dial tone. I dial 199000 and it gives me my number. Great, I think!

I call Eircom and ask home much it is to connect the line. They say they don't have an address for that number (well they had the wrong address in their database).

They tell me it will take 10 days to send an engineer out and it will be, "FREE".. I said, "Free?", that sounds too good to be true...

Oh yeah, there is a line rental charge at 25Euro per month for 6 months!! ah... So free means 150 Euro's.

So, I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.

My issue is I want to port to another service provider (the company I work for) a.s.a.p So I will need a live line and my NAU number to do this.

If I take the free installation and try and cancel the contract it will be 18 euro per month for the 6 months I've canceled. 108 Euro's..


Guys and Girls, if you could help with the following that would be great:-

1) Are they right, does an engineer have to be sent out or can I not just pay the connection charge and the connect the line?

2) Should I have to pay the 6 months line rental? I don't wont to pay for the 6 months. I'm happy to pay a nominal installation charge but I don't want to be tied into them.. Is this legal that they tie me in to a 6 month contract?

3) Should my landlord pay part of this fee?

4) Is there anything you could advise to speed the process up or a better way of doing things?

5) How should I deal with their CSR's, are there any rules I should quote i.e. comreg/leagl precedences

Thanks so much.

wildefalcon

Why not ask the alternative provider to handle it?

WildeFalcon

jokeragain

wildefalcon,

Would the alternative provider just need the number to port me across?

Cheers,

MagicMarker

There is no contract for line rental. Once it's connected you can move to whoever you want.

jokeragain

MagicMarker,

Thanks for the reply.

That fully contradicts what I was told by their CSR 1 hour ago.

It is, "FREE" to connect the line. However there is a 6 month contract with Eircom. This contract costs 25 Euro's per month. So that is 150 Euro's in total.
If you cancel the contract it will cost 18 Euro's per month.

So, I could connect with them and it would be, "FREE". I then cancel the contract a.s.a.p and pay 18 Euro's per month for 6 months. I would have then paid, 108 Euro's.

I'm not saying your wrong, but that is what they told me and it contradicts what you've written above.

I get the feeling they are trying to hustle me...

MagicMarker

I'd ring comreg and ask them if I were you.

jokeragain

Thanks MagicMarker.

I have asked the service provider if they can port me and they've taken my details and will ring me tomorrow.

If they can't and I have to do a deal with Eircom I will call comreg first to confirm what they're saying.

It does seem a little strange that a private company has the rights to connecting all new customers in a country and can fundamentally charge whatever they like? Bad situation for consumers but I will keep this thread updated so you all know what the situation is.

Cheers.

jor el

MagicMarker was correct, but not any more. There is now a 6 month contract on new lines, and the cost of buying out is 18 euro per month. This has been given the okay by Comreg and the Competition Authority (I contacted them), so there's nothing you can do about it.

To port to an alternate provider, you need the phone number and the UAN. Only eircom will give you the UAN, and you need to activate the line to get that.

Magnet can activate a line for free, but if you want to go with your employer, that won't work (unless you work for Magnet).

To answer your questions;

1) Are they right, does an engineer have to be sent out or can I not just pay the connection charge and the connect the line?

That depends on the line. If it's got a dial tone then they shouldn't have to, but if eircom say they need to then maybe they do.

2) Should I have to pay the 6 months line rental? I don't wont to pay for the 6 months. I'm happy to pay a nominal installation charge but I don't want to be tied into them.. Is this legal that they tie me in to a 6 month contract?

It's legal, and you have to either pay it for 6 months, or pay the buy out.

3) Should my landlord pay part of this fee?

No, all fees are your responsibility.

4) Is there anything you could advise to speed the process up or a better way of doing things?

eircom do all the work and own all the lines, so going straight to them is normally the fastest router. I don't know what sort of time frame Magnet have on their line activation service, or whether they're dependent on eircom to do any of the work. There's not normally any way to make it go any faster.

5) How should I deal with their CSR's, are there any rules I should quote i.e. comreg/leagl precedences

Nothing you can do.

galah

just from experience, ring Eircom again and speak to someone else. You may get a different story...

Cabaal

MagicMarker wrote: »

There is no contract for line rental. Once it's connected you can move to whoever you want.

ah yes there is,
Back in November 2009 Eircom introduced a 6 month rental on all new PSTN lines installs or activations

You can ring comreg all you want but they have no power here in respect of trying to get eircom to not enforce this contract

BurnsCarpenter

Every other operator can arrange connection of an old line or installation of a new line for you. You do not need to go through eircom.

The processes are all set out in section 4 of the inter-operator process manual for single billing:

http://www.eircomwholesale.ie/dynamic/pdf/Interoperator%20Process%20Manual%20Issue%203%2065%20Feb%202009.pdf

The traditional thing was for other operators to tell potential customers to get connected with eircom, then switch to them. Eircom's new policy has put a stop to this.

Cabaal

BurnsCarpenter wrote: »

Every other operator can arrange connection of an old line or installation of a new line for you. You do not need to go through eircom.

While operators may have the ability to do so they likely do not have any such processes in place, until operators do that doesn't help the OP as he can't force them to activate his line if they do have the required paths setup to do so

BurnsCarpenter

Cabaal wrote: »

While operators may have the ability to do so they likely do not have any such processes in place, until operators do that doesn't help the OP as he can't force them to activate his line if they do have the required paths setup to do so

True, but it seems that some of the operators (i.e. customer service staff) just aren't aware of these processes.

So, it may help if people can point to these processes when the operators say that they "can't" help.

manster

ssh there's an eircom winback ad at the bottom of this page...they're listening :eek:

jokeragain

Firstly jor el, galah, Cabaal, BurnsCarpenter thanks you all so much for your comments.

I've spoken to the service provider I want to go with and they are checking if they can do the switch for me.

Obviously I don't have the UAN, but I do have the phone line number and a soft tone.

I think ultimately I will have to stump up the money because eircom have got that phone number being inactive but registered at a different address. It seems they have an issue with their database and I personally believe in the end i'll have to stump up the cash for them to correct it.

I personally think they'll be sending a technician round to check the number on the line i'm telling them is true. Then they'll update their details in the database and switch it on.

Dear oh dear.

jokeragain

Hi All,

Quick update.

I had to sign up with EIRCOM.

Some points that I hope will help other people:-

The original CSR informed me they had to send an engineer around (10 days lead time).
The second CSR told me they wouldn't, they would just need to flick a switch!

So CSR's are much like doctors, it pays to call back and get a second opinion.

They switched me on in 24 hours, no bother at all.

Now I needed to get my UAN from EIRCOM (EIRCOM call it their account number) to port across.

They would not give it out to me on the phone. They said it would be sent on my first bill. They refused on 2-3 occasions to give it out to me. I wonder if that is legal?

This number is required to PORT across to a new provided and without it I am stuck with EIRCOM. So even though the will charge me for the install later they are holding back information from me. I wonder if Comreg are aware this is happening?

I had to find an alternative route of getting my UAN. PM me for details.

I then called up my new service provider and they are beginning the process of porting me across with my phone number and UAN. Apparently this could take up to 21 days!

All in all it is likely I will have to pay EIRCOM.
1 X month @ 25 Euro
5 X month @ 18 Euro (reduced closing account rate as I would have ported across)

So in total it will roughly cost me 115 Euro to get a phone line.


Unless anyone wants to shed any more light this one is case closed. It seems that EIRCOM have ownership over the installation process and they can bump you for it, comreg can't help you on this.

In retrospect paying 115 odd euro for an engineer to come round my house and install or fix the line is fair enough. Considering wages, work done, transport to my place e.t.c I wouldn't complain about that.

But paying 115 for EIRCOM to flick a switch and connect me in 24 hours is a bit harsh. I think a nominal fee of 20 euro would have been more reasonable. As a consumer in this current climate that kind of business practice would make me consider never being an EIRCOM customer.

If anyone has any questions then feel free and I'll do my best to answer.

Cheers.

Cabaal

Eircom have been enforcing 6 month contracts on all PSTN lines (phone lines) install since November 2009, this is very clearly outlined on their website and also in the T&C's for the service.

Other providers like Magnet can do PSTN installs without eircom however as you went with eircom then your liable for their install fee's and contract buyout fees.

Porting services from Eircom to another provider has never been a straight forward process in Ireland so the timelines they are advising you are pretty much correct.

In relation to the install fee, eircoms charges are as follows

* If your home previously had an eircom home phoneline and all line work is in place and you want to reconnect, the connection will be free (worth €24.99)*
* If your home has never had an eircom phoneline but all line work is in place, the connection will be free (worth €49.99)**
* If your home has never had an eircom phoneline, or all line work is not in place, the connection will be free (worth €121.93)***


For your information these are the terms we use to describe the different kinds of eircom phoneline you may have and the cost to connect:

*In-situ: €24.99. Where all line work is completely in place and there has been previous service at the address.

**Pre-cabled: €49.99. Where all line work is completely in place but there has not been any previous service at the address.

***Standard: €121.93. Standard connection: where no line work is in place and there has been no previous service at the address.

Eircoms current offer as of today states on their website

Special Offer: FREE connection to eircom no matter what type of connection you need (worth €121.93).

This however may not have been available when you ordered.

In relation to the UAN, eircom often act the bollox in relation to giving it to customers sometimes they'll give it over the phone othertimes you'll have to wait....I myself have had long heated argumentsn with managers in eircom about this. Legally speaking its not illegal

jokeragain

Thanks for the message,

I'm not necessarily complaining.

Firstly:-

"Special Offer: FREE connection to eircom no matter what type of connection you need (worth €121.93)."

Let's not bull**** here. It is not FREE. You are tied into a 6 month contract.
If you don't want to be with EIRCOM you have to pay a cancellation fee.
If I want to get broadband with EIRCOM they will tie me in for god knows how long and charge me through the roof.

I suppose my circumstances are unusual in that I work for a service provider and I want to be ported to them a.s.a.p because in total I'll pay 25%-30% of a similar deal with EIRCOM.

I'm not saying that they didn't explain their terms of service.

I'm just saying that paying 115 odd euro for them to switch me on in 24 hours, no callout, no engineer, is a bit harsh.

But, by what you've written they seemed to have bumped me to the Standard Fee. It seems like I should have been Pre-Cabled.

So I'll have to call them back and ask them what the deal is.....

techno-allah

What provider are you going with? They should have been able to get you connected themselves. Eircom have a wholesale department that deal with all WLR companies and can provision lines for them. Would have saved you a lot of hassle to go this route.

Not giving you your account number is just really for security purposes, there's no legality with it really.