Issue with ISP, need advice

BeerWolf

The ISP in question is Ripplecom.

Basically, this past weekend my connection was dire. Sent in a report about it, and the CS just proceeded to terminate my subscription with their services WITHOUT my consent nor the courtesy of suggesting it. I told him that I did not agree with said action and did not wish to be void of broadband and he still went with it.

After that I sent in a complaint of the handling of it, and the Head of Sales responded saying it was the right course of action - even though I have stated numerous times that I have very little options for broadband, and they are effectively voiding me of an online connection... which I NEED, being in the IT area of work!

I have yet to receive a response to my last email, on Monday, nor a reply after calling them yesterday.

Would this be considered a justified treatment of a customer, for two years with them ?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I'll copy/paste the emails I've had with them for your own review:

Me wrote:

The connection for the last week was somewhat acceptable, not ideal, but this last weekend it was completely unusable. The connection was rife with drop outs with the connection stability, and I don't mean every so often - I'm talking about every 3-5 seconds, nonstop.

Doing a PingTest.net I was yielding the lowest grade of an F with a very high amount of jitter and packet loss.

I couldn't use Skype at all, Videos kept stopping, and I didn't even bother to play a game online knowing the connection was acting up like this.


Again, I am paying €45 a month for this kind of quality of service ? It is rare for me to use the PC with someone else on a laptop to browse or watch anything simultaneously, even at low 360p quality, without having such a big impact on the already limited quality of connection.

I could compare it to the days of dial up where someone couldn't use the phone [laptop] if I was online on the PC... at least then my connection was more stable.

Ripplecom CS wrote:

At this stage it is apparent that we are unable to supply you with a reliable and proper service that we strive to give to our customers. Unfortunately we cannot improve the connection due to the interference and the best course of action is to cancel your service with us with immediate effect and to credit you back the last 30 days in lieu of notice.

This is unfortunately the only direction we can take as it is an unacceptable service you are getting from the mast.

I will process the credits now, and will have an engineer out to remove all the Ripplecom equipment.
You service will cease at midnight tonight.

Me wrote:

I DID NOT request for a cancellation of service. My options in my current location are limited - it's either with you, or mobile 3G broadband... which is honestly not a viable option for me due to their very limited cap.

When I started out with your services 2 years ago, the connection was great - it only started degrading since last year AFTER the storms, and have numerous times queried if this could have damaged the device out on the roof yet had no answer to that and still don't.

Broadband is incredibly essential for me and it would not be an option for me to not have access to it - primarily due to my regular usage of it for work and conferencing on Skype.

Ripplecom CS wrote:

There is nothing at all wrong with the equipment, the signal is perfect. Unfortunately it's solely to do with interference in the air and we cannot fix this as you are on an Unlicensed Network , where anyone can broadcast.
Our senior network engineer has tested your connection and he confirms the equipment is working 100%.
The ONLY option in these cases , is the termination of service. This is the LAST resort on our side as we do not like to lose customers, but where we have no option , it is the right thing to do for both parties.

Me wrote:

Well then I would appreciate you to not cancel my subscription until such a time where I request myself to do so.

A connection is better than no connection at all...

Ripplecom CS wrote:

The company policy is that if we cannot provide an acceptable service and there is nothing we can do to rectify issues that a customer is having, then we cancel the service and offer the credit in Lieu of the 30 days notice.

I apologise once again , but we cannot stand over your connection and we are not in the business of supplying a poor service that we cannot fix to everyones satisfaction.

Please take this email as confirmation that your service will cease at midnight tonight.

=========================================================

Myself to Complaints wrote:

Dear RippleCom,

After my contact with Customer Support, namely a "Kevin Long", with regards to my connection issues this past weekend, he has taken it upon himself to cancel my subscription without my consent nor the courtesy to suggest it. Apparently his ideal solution is to leave me without broadband (in my area I'm severely limited to Ripple, or 3G Mobile)... and would effectively take effect come this midnight. I have asked him numerous times not to do so, and he still went ahead with it!

Broadband is absolutely necessary for my work, and I am incredibly annoyed for this to happen when I've got an upcoming event this Wednesday.

So with that being said, I would like to request for my connection to be reinstated.

Head of Sales wrote:

Thank you for your email,

I have reviewed your account and can see the multiple issues that you have flagged over many months.

Ripplecom has a business imperative to ensure that when we deliver a service, we deliver it well and to our customers satisfaction (which does not appear to be the case here).

We provide our services using wireless technology and sometimes we cannot provide services that meet our customers’ expectations, even though we attempt to do so using every means at our disposal. Obviously we cannot alter the topology of Ireland or the Laws of Physics.

In your particular case, it is obvious that we have not met the service levels that you demand on an ongoing basis.

This is unsatisfactory for both parties involved and there is no point in Ripplecom continuing to provide a service that you are unhappy with.

Kevin took the logical step of cancelling your service and giving you 30 days credit as this was the best possible course of action that he could take.

We cannot improve the current level of service despite our best efforts and the deployment of high-gain radio equipment on your roof. The service level that we can provide does not meet your needs and therefore the best course of action is to terminate the contract.

However, in light of your email and in order not to cause you any inconvenience this coming Wednesday, we will cease your service in 30 days time and this email serves as official notice of same.

As a gesture of goodwill, no further invoices will be issued on your account and you will not have to pay for the service from 22nd September onwards.

I regret that we did not meet the service levels that you desired and I wish you the very best

Me wrote:

Dear RippleCom,

While I appreciate the prompt reply, and good will gesture - I still do NOT want to be completely void of a broadband connection overall. In my current circumstance I do not have the luxury of acquiring broadband services elsewhere other than 3G mobile broadband via a dongle - and those would yield an even worst quality connection, nevermind their data caps are severely limiting... as occasionally I have reached the current 70GB cap numerous times.

While my connection has not been ideal, it is far better to be with a connection than without... and hereby request for you to reinstate my connection and continual service, as I do not want to be left without one.

Head of Sales wrote:

We have made every effort to supply a service which meets with your satisfaction to no avail, despite our best efforts

I am afraid that we cannot agree to supplying a service that you feel is substandard going forward, this would ultimately be detrimental to both parties.

Therefore we have issued a 30 day notice of our cancellation to you.

If we were able to amend the service so that it met with your satisfaction, we would do so.

As we cannot do so, we cannot continue to supply same.

Me wrote:

Dear Mr X,

Are you proposing that myself being left without broadband overall is the 'satisfactory' decision to go with ? I am left with little options other than RippleCom, or 3G Mobile - and I'd take yourself over 3G any day, since they got small data caps. I do not have the luxury to choose from a wide variety of options like DSL, Fiber, Cable, etc., if I could this wouldn't be that much of an issue.

But it is, since broadband is crucial for me. I need it for my work and studies. More so because I have an exam come mid October and I have a lot of study material online.

Granted, my connection is not the best - but, as I've said already, it is better than no connection at all. And it beats 3G. So with that in mind, I kindly request for your cancellation to not go ahead and have myself remain as a customer of your services.

No response to last email, above

Bepolite

Contracts are a two way street. In fact I wish more companies where as honest and upfront as these guys have been. I realise that it's poor CS to leave you without broadband, but if they can't fix it they can't fix it.

BeerWolf

Bepolite wrote: »

Contracts are a two way street. In fact I wish more companies where as honest and upfront as these guys have been. I realise that it's poor CS to leave you without broadband, but if they can't fix it they can't fix it.

So they can't fix it - their solution is to completely void me of an online connection, without my own consent to stop their service nor their suggestion to stop it ?

The issue is they went ahead with it regardless of myself asking to remain on.

Come end of the month I WILL NOT have a broadband connection...

They are a very exploitative company, knowing that they're the only source of broadband for a lot of people in rural areas... And don't you mention 3G - they're beyond rubbish, though I'm looking forward to 4G's rollout... but that'll be a long while.

Bepolite

BeerWolf wrote: »

So they can't fix it - their solution is to completely void me of an online connection, without my own consent to stop their service nor their suggestion to stop it ?

Yes of course it is! They can't provide the service so they stop charging you - the first guy was a bit rubbish in cancelling immediately but giving you a number of days for free while you get another supplier is reasonable.

If you've set up charges etc. depending on how long you're with them you may have a complaint but in all honesty I, personally, think you're being unreasonable here.

They are far from the only provider - Satellite is available to anyone living above ground.

BeerWolf

Bepolite wrote: »

Yes of course it is! They can't provide the service so they stop charging you - the first guy was a bit rubbish in cancelling immediately but giving you a number of days for free while you get another supplier is reasonable.

If you've set up charges etc. depending on how long you're with them you may have a complaint but in all honesty I, personally, think you're being unreasonable here.

They are far from the only provider - Satellite is available to anyone living above ground.

I think you missed the part where I said 3G was rubbish - why would I even CONSIDER satellite, never mind the fact they're expensive and the datacaps are obscenely low... ?

I don't have the luxury of browsing numerous ISPs for Cable, DSL, Fiber, etc. broadband - I'm stuck with either Ripplecom, or 3G or worst, satellite... both of which have REALLY low datacaps. Currently on a 70GB cap, and I've hit that a few times.

Bepolite

BeerWolf wrote: »

I think you missed the part where I said 3G was rubbish - why would I even CONSIDER satellite, never mind the fact they're expensive and the datacaps are obscenely low... ?

I don't really see how the two are related.

BeerWolf wrote: »

I don't have the luxury of browsing numerous ISPs for Cable, DSL, Fiber, etc. broadband - I'm stuck with either Ripplecom, or 3G or worst, satellite... both of which have REALLY low datacaps. Currently on a 70GB cap, and I've hit that a few times.

Yes you're going to have to pay more to get the same data cap you would with Ripple, however they can't supply you with service. It's not unreasonable for them to terminate the contract. Either way, I don't see the CS issue here other than the first guy. No one can be forced to do something they don't want to.

BeerWolf

Bepolite wrote: »

No one can be forced to do something they don't want to.

I'm being forced from one broadband to something more than incredibly less ideal... and I'd be worst off with them than with current Ripplecom... I've even said this numerous times...



Latency will be an issue - have you ever tried Satellite ? They often average the 1000ms mark ... I use Skype a lot, and the occasional online game when I'm free - that just wouldn't work...

Cabaal

OP, since they can't provide a stable usable service and it would be unreasonable for them to provide it for free to you,

Are you ok to pay the full price for the package in order to keep the service and not bother them with support calls if it gets any worse?

Its not unreasonable for a ISP yo cancel a service they can't properly provide, its not something any isp wants to do but it happens and its better they are upfront with you.

BeerWolf

Cabaal wrote: »

OP, since they can't provide a stable usable service and it would be unreasonable for them to provide it for free to you,

Are you ok to pay the full price for the package in order to keep the service and not bother them with support calls if it gets any worse?

Its not unreasonable for a ISP yo cancel a service they can't properly provide, its not something any isp wants to do but it happens and its better they are upfront with you.

The issue is just that - I've asked them for myself to remain as a [paying] customer of their services, until I cancel their services at my own discretion... and they still went ahead to cancel it regardless of me stating numerous times that I don't want to.

Nonoperational

I'd imagine the very reason they do this is to avoid people continuously phoning up tech support when there is nothing that can be done. It also risks bad publicity etc on forums such as this.

Tough, but not entirely unreasonable.

ScouseMouse

I think this is very reasonable. Week in, week out there are complaints on the consumer boards about poor service. Companies giving lip service....

Here is one that puts their hands up and says we admit its crap. We will let you out of contract and refund you.

You are in a difficult position, I see that, but they are not being unreasonable.

Maybe you could ask them to send an engineer to come out and see if he can trace the issues. Could be trees or anything.

jjbrien

What about the national broadband scheme with tree

http://www.three.ie/shop/broadband-plans/national-broadband-scheme/index.html

They have 40GB data cap for 20 euros which isnt bad.


It sucks that they would cancel your net like this. Maybe a complaint to comreg might be in order.

sandin

http://www.onwave.ie/packages/broadband

Satellite

20gb + unlim download 11pm to 7am (not taken out of 20gb allowance) 20mb download, 6mb upload, 54.95 a month + a one off 199 fee.

Sounds quite a reasonable option.

If you live in a very rural area, sometimes you have to accept that somethings won't be as perfect as you want - I very rural. Its 5km + to nearest shop, 7km+ to nearest public transport, but the peace and quiet is amazing and makes up for ANY small issues such as not connecting to mainstream broadband.