Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Alex Atkin UK]

It seems awfully common to bill that way, taking the full amount then refunding it back later.  Personally I think that should be illegal as it can cause major problems if someone isn't expecting it and another barrier to migration if you know that will happen and can't afford the double billing.

[broadstairs]

It seems awfully common to bill that way, taking the full amount then refunding it back later.  Personally I think that should be illegal as it can cause major problems if someone isn't expecting it and another barrier to migration if you know that will happen and can't afford the double billing.

In fairness to BT because of the timings of the migration I  was with BT for longer than planned so I  did have to pay the installment hence the refund for slightly less than the full amount. Delay caused by the Vodafone mess up with the first order.

Stuart

[tiffy]

I had a normal BT bill and then the next one refunded about 95% of what was paid and it showed as final settlement.

Thanks for the response, much appreciated.
So, really need to wait until the next bill, end of March which should hopefully produce a final settlement and a refund.
That will be 2 full months after migration completion date!
As Alex Atkin UK has commented, not really a very fair way of doing business especially in the current economic climate.

Will still get my daughter to clarify with BT accounts just in case
Don't really anticipate a lot of joy with that.

[broadstairs]

As I pointed out in my case my next BT bill was due around the same time as migration so completely reasonable in my view. Also remember if you have digital voice there may be call charges to pay which are not in advance!

Stuart

[tiffy]

My daughter and I spent close to an hour on the phone to BT last night with 3 different rep's, initially in Dublin then transferred to Liverpool.
We basically asked with reference to the "My BT" desktop why a normal, full monthly bill was scheduled for issue on 21st Feb. when service ceased on 1st Feb.
The 3 rep's either didn't know or had a different take on this hence the transfer to other departments during the call.

Bottom line would appear to be, final bill has not yet been issued, until that happens, the "My BT" desktop will just keep scheduling monthly bills, whether the scheduled Feb. bill will actually be actioned or not the rep's couldn't say.
Having just noticed that the December monthly bill was at the full non-discounted contract rate with the 2 year contract not ending until 20th Jan, would certainly expect credit to be due on the final bill when ever that happens.
With no conclusive information from the BT rep's will just have to wait and see.

Edit:
My daughter did not have digital voice with BT, BB only. 

[tiffy]

With Stuart's (broadstairs) tolerance the final chapter on my daughters BT/VF BB migration:

Feb. bill now published, assumed to be the final bill but does not directly state this, content somewhat surprising!
£17.48 due, designated "charge for ceasing within the notice period".
Note, 2 year contract period ended on 20th Jan, BB service terminated on 2nd Feb.
The period associated with this charge is listed as 21st Feb to 03rd March.
Can only assume that BT are charging a pro-rata monthly fee for this period in lieu of notice?

My understanding of the ISP migration procedure is to only inform the new provider who looks after the procedure including all contact with the existing provider.
At what stage would BT expect to be given 1 months notice of leaving, can they legally impose a lack of notice departure penalty where a fixed term contract no longer exists?
On the December bill BT have also charged the full non-discounted monthly rate where the 2 year discounted contract only ended on 20th Jan, no mention of any refund for this.

To be honest, after the last attempt at talking to BT by phone it's not worth the hassle any more, just cut our losses and move on.
Probably exactly the reaction the system is very much geared up to produce  

[broadstairs]

I must admit I find that strange. When I finally got a valid contract with Vodafone I was sent quite a few texts emails and letter by BT saying someone was planning to take over my broadband and phone so they knew about all this first email was dated 20/12/23 with a migration date of 17/01/24. My contracted had already ended well before this. BT did raise a normal bill on 15/01/24 as this was 2 days prior to migration and it was about 95% of this refunded.

Stuart

[j0hn]

My understanding of the ISP migration procedure is to only inform the new provider who looks after the procedure including all contact with the existing provider.
At what stage would BT expect to be given 1 months notice of leaving, can they legally impose a lack of notice departure penalty where a fixed term contract no longer exists?

You are correct. The 30 days notice is only required to cease the service, not for migrations.
I would query the bill.

My advice is to never contact your current ISP (the losing provider).
It's an entirely gaining provider led process and issues can arise if you notify the losing provider.

[tiffy]

You are correct. The 30 days notice is only required to cease the service, not for migrations.
I would query the bill.

My advice is to never contact your current ISP (the losing provider).
It's an entirely gaining provider led process and issues can arise if you notify the losing provider.

Thanks for the confirmation j0hn, I have always been aware of and adhered to this rule with any previous migrations, never had any issues.
Will query the bill when my daughter is available again, phone help line is hard work, have never seen their chat service actually being available and never have found a way to engage in an e-mail billing query.
It's not a fortune but why should I let BT away with it regardless of the time, effort and stress involved.

[j0hn]

There can actually be cease charges levied for some migrations. BT Wholesale can charge the provider if you migrate off their backhaul and some providers pass it on to the customer.

I was always of the opinion that BT didn't have any such charges. I've gone from BT to Talktalk without incurring anything other than the part monthly charge for days used since the previous bill.

[broadstairs]

I certainly have not had any such charges.

Stuart

[tiffy]

I certainly have not had any such charges.

Must just be my daughters bad luck then!

I eventually managed to get the option to enter the BT help chat line this afternoon after a very long wait, spent over an hour on that, zero results.
With first agent, after lengthy ID verification process, the connection suddenly dropped after a few unanswered questions.
Second attempt, full ID verification process again, as soon as I mentioned OFCOM guidelines the connection again dropped, complete waste of time.

Isn't it strange, signing up with ISP's is virtually always a very easy well oiled process, exiting without issues not so easy    

[Alex Atkin UK]

There can actually be cease charges levied for some migrations. BT Wholesale can charge the provider if you migrate off their backhaul and some providers pass it on to the customer.

I was always of the opinion that BT didn't have any such charges. I've gone from BT to Talktalk without incurring anything other than the part monthly charge for days used since the previous bill.

Yeah its sketchy, as isn't the whole point of a minimum contract duration supposed to be to cover that cost?

[tiffy]

Just a final note on my daughters BT/VF BB migration:
Having now given up through sheer frustration on BT's phone and chat line facilities in connection with the final billing issue, resorted to composing a letter listing the perceived grievances and posted off to "Customer Service Manager".
Letter receipt was acknowledged by e-mail & text within a week advising that BT were looking into the issue.

After a further week, text received requesting acceptance of a call from BT's complaints resolution department in Enniskillen, N.I. which duly followed within a short time.
A very nice lady there advised that the issues raised were totally accepted as valid and a full months refund of the non-discounted, higher charge rate was agreed, this was confirmed by e-mail and credited to account a few days later.
The "My BT" account desktop also now reflected this transaction on the revised final bill.

A good result in the end all be it with the time and effort required in resorting to old fashioned "snail mail" communication, disappointing & frustrating that this could not be easily achieved by the other more common methods that BT deploy for dispute resolution.

Again, apologies to Stuart, "broadstairs" for practically taking over his original post, it sort of just "grew arms and legs", should really have started another post

[broadstairs]

@tiffy no problem glad you got it sorted in the end.

Stuart