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Thread ID: 133045	2013-05-25 01:59:00	Telecom is the worst company I've ever had to deal with	Vicx (11114)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
1343097	2013-05-25 01:59:00	I was last a Telecom broadband customer in the Jetstream (128k) days back in the late 90s, I've switched to numerous ISPs since then as Telecommunism had always been the biggest ripoffs. I finally rejoined in April (very reluctantly) after being offered a deal I couldn't refuse from a door-to-door salesman (who also lied about speeds). I thought after 15 years they must have a pretty streamlined and user-friendly system by now especially as they're the biggest ISP in the country, but instead it's been the complete opposite. Please tell me they've recently been hacked and are setting up their systems from scratch because it's been the most inefficient and backwards company (not just ISP) I've ever had to deal with, they must be run by neanderthals! Firstly I asked how to set up my credit card online for auto bill payments but was told they're planning on adding that one day and I thought WTF you're only just thinking about setting that up NOW?! What the heck have these people been doing for the last 15 years?! All these years I thought it was just their bandwidth/data allowance they've been holding back on, but now that I'm a customer I see that this tight-arse attitude reflects on their entire business practice, it's as if they've been doing the bare minimum to run their company for the last 2 decades (would also explain the series of XT failures, no wonder they had to rebrand it "the smartphone network.") So I had to call their helpdesk in the Philippines to give my cc details over the phone (that's a first!), I was assured my bill would be paid automatically on the due date. 2 weeks later I check my bank statement to find no charge, check my bill and see it's still unpaid AND with a late fee on top. So I emailed this time to explain, had my fee retracted and this time paid by bank deposit instead as they clearly lost my cc details, balance cleared 2 days later, all good. Then I check again today to pay this month's bill and notice not only was my credit card magically charged this time but they also charged me my first month's bill AGAIN! Also just to allow my gmail accounts to send mail with their smtp servers I had to call the helpdesk to get them to authorize each email address one by one, I asked if I could do this online but she had it had to be done on the phone (another first).. WTF?! Also, Chorus moved a post outside my house without any notice or reason and now I have power and phone lines hanging literally 1m in front of my door (is that even legal?!) so got a Telecom technician to visit and he they told he'd get back to me in a few weeks. I called Telecom for an update and found out he actually closed the case on the day, WTF?! he had no intention of getting back to me, let alone doing anything to solve the problem! f f s.. All those years I was with Slingshot and other ISPs I never had a single problem, yet just TWO months with Telecom and they've proving to be the most incompetent company I've ever had to deal with. what have I got myself into.. :eek:	Vicx (11114)
1343098	2013-05-25 02:27:00	S, you don't consider you were in good company then?	R2x1 (4628)
1343099	2013-05-25 02:37:00	I was definitely in good company with Slingshot who I just left, but I was tempted by the plan offered which was the same price I was paying but with higher speeds (which turned out to be a lie) and an extra 50gb on top. The speed is already good enough so I got over that, so all I really got out of this was the extra 50gb. As long as there are no more hiccups then I'll be ok, but all this in just the first 2 months isn't very reassuring. I'm stuck in a 1 year contract so I'm just going to have to ride it out and where it takes me.	Vicx (11114)
1343100	2013-05-25 02:45:00	Many ISPs are in similar situation. They all have very capable, plausible salespeople, but unfortunately they just can't seem to attract suitable staff to other positions. Maybe the salespeople should be brought inside to deal with the complaints phone lines for a few weeks!	coldot (6847)
1343101	2013-05-25 03:12:00	Stay away from Compass, they are sh!te as well. Too many accounting mistakes, expensive and rip-off offers to n00bs, disgraceful. High cost, low cap 5gig, modem without wireless $75/month for example. The person I am referring to thought it was a good deal, good salesman cold-called to house. Heaps of problems with wiring, eventually repaired by Chorus technician newly arrived from South Africa after many failed tries by other techs billed for 3 months in a row $135 for 'no fault found' queried each time and supposedly solved only to be billed again each successive month, also has remote answering service, not asked for or billed since service started. Stay away from Compass.	zqwerty (97)
1343102	2013-05-25 03:23:00	Stay away from Compass. Now wanting $3.95 to send invoice by mail. If it had been direct credit they would have just charged $135 for 'no fault found' each month on top of usual $75 monthly bill. There was a genuine fault just that no-one could find it, each time techs would leave and about half hour later internet broadband would resume again, telephone always worked, apparently according to South African tech 'telephone only needs one arm of lines to work, broadband needs two' so what this means is that some of the time I guess the earth/lo side of the phone lines was discontinuous. Went on for 4 months. Stay away from Compass.	zqwerty (97)
1343103	2013-05-25 03:58:00	I was last a Telecom broadband customer in the Jetstream (128k) days back in the late 90s, I've switched to numerous ISPs since then as Telecommunism had always been the biggest ripoffs. I finally rejoined in April (very reluctantly) after being offered a deal I couldn't refuse from a door-to-door salesman (who also lied about speeds). I thought after 15 years they must have a pretty streamlined and user-friendly system by now especially as they're the biggest ISP in the country, but instead it's been the complete opposite. Please tell me they've recently been hacked and are setting up their systems from scratch because it's been the most inefficient and backwards company (not just ISP) I've ever had to deal with, they must be run by neanderthals! Firstly I asked how to set up my credit card online for auto bill payments but was told they're planning on adding that one day and I thought WTF you're only just thinking about setting that up NOW?! What the heck have these people been doing for the last 15 years?! All these years I thought it was just their bandwidth/data allowance they've been holding back on, but now that I'm a customer I see that this tight-arse attitude reflects on their entire business practice, it's as if they've been doing the bare minimum to run their company for the last 2 decades (would also explain the series of XT failures, no wonder they had to rebrand it "the smartphone network.") So I had to call their helpdesk in the Philippines to give my cc details over the phone (that's a first!), I was assured my bill would be paid automatically on the due date. 2 weeks later I check my bank statement to find no charge, check my bill and see it's still unpaid AND with a late fee on top. So I emailed this time to explain, had my fee retracted and this time paid by bank deposit instead as they clearly lost my cc details, balance cleared 2 days later, all good. Then I check again today to pay this month's bill and notice not only was my credit card magically charged this time but they also charged me my first month's bill AGAIN! Also just to allow my gmail accounts to send mail with their smtp servers I had to call the helpdesk to get them to authorize each email address one by one, I asked if I could do this online but she had it had to be done on the phone (another first).. WTF?! Also, Chorus moved a post outside my house without any notice or reason and now I have power and phone lines hanging literally 1m in front of my door (is that even legal?!) so got a Telecom technician to visit and he they told he'd get back to me in a few weeks. I called Telecom for an update and found out he actually closed the case on the day, WTF?! he had no intention of getting back to me, let alone doing anything to solve the problem! f f s.. All those years I was with Slingshot and other ISPs I never had a single problem, yet just TWO months with Telecom and they've proving to be the most incompetent company I've ever had to deal with. what have I got myself into.. :eek: So, if I read this rant correctly, I count 6 items that have "gone wrong": 1. You believed a salesman!! :eek: 2. No way to set up a credit card online to pay your account 3. Double charging the month following setting up the card "manually" 4. Gmail account synchronisation with Xtra email 5. Unfinished on-site work outside your home 6. Closed support call re: 5 when the job was not complete yet My view: 1. Why is that Telecom's fault? :) 2. Agreed - silly for a company the size of Telecom not to have this option available, especially when every other utility under the sun already has this service. 3. This sounds like a timing issue. However the rep setting up the payment option should have thought about this up front. 4. You do realise that Xtra email is outsourced to that wannabe-Gmail company, Yahoo? I understand this is a sore point with many Telecom staff too, who would rather have their email service under their own control... 5. This isn't Telecom's fault - Chorus is responsible for on-site work. Chorus <> Telecom 6. This was a stupid thing to do, but I'm sure Telecom aren't the only ones who close support calls on the assumption that the supplier will get the issue resolved I have been with Telecom for several years now and have had no problems. BB speeds are great on ADSL, and hoping to go VDSL in the next few weeks. Connection is stable as - last reconnect of my modem was in February. The only thing I have always disliked is the invoice - and they're finally about to change that to something that everyone should be able to understand!!	johcar (6283)
1343104	2013-05-25 05:00:00	Item 2 Credit Card?? I pay my Telecom bills via Visa auto payments. ..	paulw (1826)
1343105	2013-05-25 05:02:00	Item 2 Credit Card?? I pay my Telecom bills via Visa auto payments. .. I think the OP was complaining about the fact that he couldn't set it up online himself/herself .. .	johcar (6283)
1343106	2013-05-25 05:40:00	If anybody cannot agree with the heading of the OP they have dealt with some truly malicious sods, or they have wisely managed to avoid the tele conmen.	R2x1 (4628)
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