Compensation from Tiscali

I have had nothing but hastle from Tiscali since i signed up from them, bottom line is I spent over £60 on phonecalls to their tech team which were a waste of time and couldnt help me one bit, only to be told two months down the line that there is a fault on the line. I phoned the billing dept with regards to compensation to be told i had to ring the tech support guys again to ensure the fault was fixed and then I could proceed with the compensation.

i have phoned the billing dept tonight and tey are taking the case further and will reply within 10 to 15 days. Im down on over £60 alot of wasted time and loss/poor service, can anyone advise me what to do as its a waste of time talking to them again

thanks your help is appreciated

my complaints letter is below

'Hello,

I signed up with Tiscali July/August time on the broadband and phone offer as it was advertised as being cheap and fast. I phoned Tiscali to ensure I received a fast broadband connection and I was told I could get 6-8mb, and a' guaranteed' minimum of at least 5mb. I must express that this is what the customer service representative said, 'a guaranteed 5mb', so I signed up. The process for actually getting the broadband was very long, in total took over a month from my sign up date. I then received my wireless router and the problems started. It says on the information pack it is so easy to setup, which is totally the opposite of what I experienced. I was on the phone numerous times to Tiscali's 0871 'helpline' which cost me and my partner a small fortune in mobile phone bills and eventually after performing TWO A4 sides worth of instructions (wireless router settings) I was able to access the internet.

The problems continued….in my initial sign up to Tiscali I was told a speed of anywhere up to 8mb, and a guaranteed 5mb, this was not the case. I have conducted several broadband speed checks on various websites and most came back at 1.3mb. This then continued and the speed got even slower to 0.2mb, which is totally unacceptable from a line which is capable of 6-8mb!!! On three occasions I could not connect to the internet at all, and rang the tech support three times, twice which I was told I'd get called back, and still received nothing to date. On one occasion, I was onto a tech support person about my slow speed and he managed to change my settings, which in fact would not allow me to access the internet at all, another complete waste of my time and money.



I then phoned your billing department on 16th September to escalate that I was not prepared to pay my full bill as the service I was receiving was WELL below acceptable, only to be told to get onto the tech support team again to resolve the issue and then I would receive my compensation. I then phoned your tech support team 17th September and was told they would perform a line test, which I have numerous times and its very very slow (0.2mb). I was on the line (again being told the same stuff I already knew) so I had to put the phone down whilst they do this, but before I had requested to speak to a supervisor to ensure I received a call back within 20mins (he guaranteed me this). I waited and waited, and still no callback, it’s now the 18th September and I have received nothing. My problems are still there and my and my partner are at least £60 out of pocket through mobile phone bills ringing your unhelpful 0871 number.

This service is nothing short of a disgrace, and if I am not fully compensated for my troubles I will cancel my Tiscali account, and you will not receive another penny from me, as you have not abided by the contract and offered me the service that I signed up for. Your call centres are totally unhelpful and have wasted a lot of my time and money. If you want to keep my custom I strongly suggest you sort these matters out as soon as possible.

I look forward to your prompt response

A very unhappy customer '

anyone?

they still havent replied to my complaint yet

not sure what to do now?

raise the issue with the ISPA see https://the-scream.co.uk/forums/t27290.html

just state on the ISPA complaint form that you were promised compensation and that you have not heard anything but can't find anyone who is dealing with the case, include your tiscali line number / account number

let us know how it goes

UPDATE

Finally recieved a reply 11 days after my previous email saying

' Response (Alan O'Shea) 29/09/2008 04.47 PM
Dear Mr. Smith,

Thank you for your email, the contents of which have been noted.

I tried to call you today, but was unable to reach you.

If you require specific information about your account I would request that you send three of the following pieces of information:

•Full address and post code

•Customer account number

•Account holder's full name

•Account holder's date of birth

•Contact telephone number or email address

We need this information in order to access your account. This will help us in identifying you and will speed up the process in resolving your queries.

I apologise for any in convenience caused.

Kind Regards,

Alan O'Shea

Tiscali Customer Relations

Our Customer Services Department is available on 0871 222 3311. Calls cost 5p/minute for a Tiscali line and 10p/minute for a BT line. Calls from mobiles and other networks may vary. Lines are open 8am-9pm 7 days a week. '

TO WHICH I REPLIED

'Dear Mr O'Shea,



Surely you have all my details when I signed up for the broadband service? You have not answered any of my questions with regards to the service I have received and the compensation I am entitled to. I don’t understand how you cannot access my details with the phone number I gave you??? I do not require specific details on my account at all, and it has taken over 11 days to reply to an email in which you haven’t answered any of the questions I asked. I am available after 7pm monday-friday to discuss my case.



I sincerely hope this matter will be resolved as soon as possible or I will be sending my case to both Watchdog and the ISPA as the service I signed up for is most definitely NOT what I am getting, and I have had not constructive support at all in fixing the slow speed.'


GOT A REPLY WITHIN 2 HOURS LATER

'Response (Stephen Tyler) 30/09/2008 11.55 AM
Dear Mr Smith,

Thank you for contacting Tiscali Customer Support.

We are sorry to learn that you have experienced a service affecting issue with your Tiscali account.

A refund request was submitted to the Finance department, who have confirmed that a credit adjustment was applied on 18/09/09 for £25.53. They have also confirmed that no credit adjustment will be offered for the cost of telephone charges.

If you are unhappy with any of our services or you feel that you have not received a satisfactory response from our customer service teams. Please send your complaint in writing to:

Tiscali Customer Services
PO Box 14505
Birmingham
B46 9BF

You should expect to receive a response within seven working days of us receiving your correspondence. Please note, the number of letters received can affect this response time. Please include your customer code and any supporting documentation.

Please accept our apologies for the time taken to address this issue and I would like to apologise for any inconvenience this has caused.

Yours Sincerely,

Stephen Tyler

Customer relations for Pipex and Tiscali complaints

Tiscali UK Limited'

TO WHICH I REPLIED IMMEDIATELY

Dear Mr. Tyler,



Why will no compensation be offered for my telephone charges? I know the calls are recorded and on numerous occasions I have been told that my telephone charges will be compensated after the fault with the slow speed has been resolved. Why should I be over £60 out of pocket phoning your technical support lines to be told the same thing each time because they didn’t listen the first time? (Basically reading off a script) Its a disgrace to start with that the 'helpline' is a premium 0871 number and have been made to wait each time, sometimes for over 30mins being told useless information that has not fixed my problem to date, I assume I will not be charged for my Tiscali service until this very slow speed has been sorted as I am on your 'MAX' package.



My case has been escalated to management level of the finance department, and I have documented everything.



Like I have said before, if I am not fully compensated I will take the case to Watchdog and ISPA as I have complained enough to various departments and been offered a measly £25, which is an insult. If the speed continues to be slow, I will cancel my account with yourselves as I did not sign up for a 200kbps service (I am within my rights to do this as you have not abided by your side of the contract), and there are many other ISP's that provide better service and much faster speeds.



Regards Darren Smith



i am awaiting a reply, but im building my case up to send to Watchdog and ISPA

FURTHER UPDATE

REPLY FROM TISCALI

Dear Mr Smith,

Thank you for contacting Tiscali Customer Support.

Firstly, I do apologise for the inconvenience caused by this issue.

Tiscali do not refund for calls to any of the Tiscali Teams as part of the Terms and Conditions.

Calls to Tiscali are charged at 10p per minute and is not a premium rate number which are charged at a minimum of 50p per minute

I can see that you have been given a £30 refund already.

From our records I can see that you are able to use the service although it can be slow.

This has been raised with our Technical department on reference UKHD00002096417

Again, I do apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Yours Sincerely,

Lesley Ross

Customer Relations for Pipex and Tiscali Complaints
Tiscali UK Limited

MY REPLY

Dear Miss Ross,



I will therefore have no choice but to put my case forward to Watchdog and the ISPA.



'From our records I can see that you are able to use the service although it can be slow.'



It 'can' be slow?! is this a joke? it is always slow, and I have documented many speed tests and all are at around 0.2mbps, which I am stressing again is NOT what I signed up for. The internet is nearly unusable and it takes forever to download anything (considering I am on your MAX package).



'I can see that you have been given a £30 refund already.'



I have been given a £25 (I don?t know how that was worked out), but it has cost me alot more using your unhelpful technical support. Why should I be out of pocket asking for technical support help, when the technical support is not even there and be told the same thing every time I ring up, don't your technical support team document anything? I have to re-iterate my case every time I ring up (again costing me money on the phone). I have been calling from my mobile so the costs are much higher than you are stating (definitely not 10p a minute) so your technical support guys can perform line tests on my landline.



I can only assume I am not being charged anything until my line speed is to an acceptable level? can you answer me this question?



Regards Darren Smith

sounds and looks like that is a deadlock situation,contact cisas register your complaint with them,letting them know the total figure for your costs/refunds, i bet tiscrapi will have a change of heart,lol

Daz, Wish I'd known about this forum before even contemplating an upgrade. I found it easier to submit a diary to the customer care (and I use those words advisedly) centre as follows:



Wed. 2nd October 2008

Dear Tiscali,

I thought I’d explain my problem in diary fashion as it sets out much more clearly the dates and events which have taken place over the last week or so. The diary is entitled as follows:

Too many Indians, not enough Chiefs



My Tiscali Diary

Thursday 24th September
I receive a call from a Tiscali seller offering upgrade who also assures me I will receive a welcome pack explaining all relevant details WITHIN 2 WORKING DAYS. I agree only on that condition and make that very clear.

Monday 30th September
Three working days later I haven’t received my pack so I email the Tiscali Support Team (incident no. 080929-009275) expressing concern. The reply informs me I have contacted the wrong department and gives me the number 0871 222 3311.

Tuesday 1st October
As I still haven’t received promised welcome pack, I telephone above number and speak to a pleasant young lady who is unable to help because she doesn’t know why I haven’t received the pack. At least that’s what I think she said, it was hard to tell from her strong Indian accent.

Tues. cont.
I telephone my bank to stop any changes to my Direct Debit with Tiscali. They inform me I must contact Tiscali to work out the problem. They give the number of a certain Mr R. Hutton, 02070872235 who, they say, will be able to help.

Tues cont.
I telephone R. Hutton several times but only hear messages telling me he is out of office and giving telephone number 08712210015. There is no message facility. I telephone said number and speak to another nice young Indian lady. I tell her I don’t think she can help and ring off. (My God do you think I may have made a huge mistake and she could be THE ONE?)

Tues. cont.
I email the link I think may be the most helpful and set out all my complaints and queries. – It’s obviously the wrong link because I don’t receive a reply or even an acknowledgment. I fill survey form in the vain hope it may make a difference. Answer came there none.


Wednesday 2nd October
Still no welcome pack. I receive a letter from BT informing me I am to change to Tiscali for all my telephone needs. “Not bloody likely” I think but, Lo and Behold! there is a number for me to cancel the upgrade. Praise the Lord!

Wed. cont.
As I am, by now, hopeful that I will never hear the word Tiscali again and having long given up expecting to see a welcome pack, I decide enough is enough and I ‘phone BT and tell them I will not be changing anything. It was most pleasant to hear an English speaking person on the line as I thought there weren’t any left who were capable of manning a call centre. They tell me (Yes you’ve guessed it) I have to call Tiscali and cancel. No sooner said than done. Oh Yeah?

Wed. cont.
I telephone to cancel my order. Not as easy as you might think. I was given yet another number from the bank, 08001079000 which I ring, and speak to Rory a nice scottish gentleman who very apologetically tells me I have the wrong number and gives me the number 08450774488.

Wed. cont.
After ringing yet another expensive overpriced call centre, I speak to Ricky the Thicky, a lady of infinite charm and inarticulate manner who mumbles her way through my details and tells me that, contrary to BT’s letter, the upgrade does not take place on 6th October but on 13th November??????? She is unable to explain this anomaly and continues with her sotto voce murmerings. But I wrong her because finally ---- YES! the order is cancelled.

Ah but is it? Watch this space.

The End

I don’t think I need comment further. I will also be cancelling my all my Tiscali account as soon as I decide which provider:

a. Has a polite articulate English-speaking call centre for other purposes than to sell new products.
b. Makes it easy to contact the relevant department, and,
c. Fulfills promises made over the telephone.

An impossible task? You betcha, but I will enjoy the search.

Oh yes, one last thing, I still haven’t received my pack.

Yours faithfully

Carol Campbell

Up yours Tiscali is all I have left to say to them.

im getting the compensation at last!!!! finally i have had my compliant dealt with somebody who is in the uk at last
a guy phoned me today spoke to me about my compliant sounded really sorry that i had to complain to ispa and cisas anyways all i have to do is send a couple of letters showing what they have done which is taking dd without my authority and i got charged by my bank so thats £38 x2 plus £40+ worth of calls over the last 4 months so around £60 worth of call charges plus a £20 credit to the "account" and they have also fully cancelled the account and all harassment from the debt collector will stop im very happy i did not have to take it any further.

I never managed to get through to the 'High Level Complaints' dept. It was harder to get through to them as it was to call their 'helpline number' (that's a laugh to start with, how UNhelpful can a helpline number be??)

Finally, after contacting CISAS, I was fully compensated, and the account was terminated before the 12 month contract period was over, since Tiscali were in breach of contract.

Within 10 days of passing the correspondence to CISAS, my cheque arrived, together with a grovelling apology from Tiscali's high level complaints dept.

thats good old tiscrapi for ya,but it's a sad but true fact that in most cases tiscali will just keep evading paying out to its customers for the lack of service it more often than not provides, until the involvement of the likes of cisas or ofcom,i think that the time isp's are currently given 12weeks from 1st formal complaint to remedy the problem ect should be halved at least 6 weeks would be better,and also extra consumer rights so once you letter is received & acknowledged,your payments are suspended until they fix the issues, or except that the can't and waive the charges(from date of original complaint)and close your account or give you the mac then close it

UPDATE

im still waiting from Tiscali to get back to me after 2 weeks

they told me there was a problem at the exchange, and someone had to be sent out to sort it and said 'we hope you do not cancel your account.'

Spoke to someone today after 'I' wrang them and he said the case was closed!!! how that f==k can they close a case when the issue has not been resolved.???

he then went on to say 'ah we are still processing your fault, it may take up to three weeks' i was told two weeks on the phone and now its three, i'll phone them back in a week and if nothing is done ill forward all my correspondence to the CISA and cancel my Tiscali account.

well you give em more than a fair chance to sort it out,like i did too, but i really think that you should
1~ contact CISAS and register you complaint,and amount of compensation you are seeking.

2~ should switch isp as tiscali although is one of the cheapest is also one of the worst for providing a reasonable level of service,

well thats my advice to you,up to you to decide what to do,best of luck

Remember to cancel your payment to Tiscali once you have told them you want to cancel this account. I didn't even tell them I was cancelling until they'd noticed I wasn't paying them anymore, which was easy to do since they were in breach of contract, but I do know a few people who have cancelled the account only to have Tiscali continue to take the direct debit from their bank account.

OK final straw, phoned up a week after, still nothing, they actually hung up on me twice, and thats enough for me they are so friggin incompitent, i am forwarding my case to the CISA and will let you know how I get on

UPDATE

forwarded my case to the ISPA last night, Tiscali high level complaints phoned today (UK office I spoke to - so no Indian call centres)

this is what was said in summary

He said im well within my rights to cancel my contract and will sort out a compensation package for all my calls as I have not received the service I have signed up for

he also said he will forward the case to high level tech support in the UK, see if they can get the speed up, because we are on an old line, and not a new one like many other people, so basically more people using the net in our area, the slower the speed as all on one line

said he'll get back to me tommorrow or monday to let me know, if it cant be changed he's going to give me a mac code and a smooth migration to another ISP.

so a result so far, but we'll see

its the most helpful call ive had since i signed up

it takes 5 minutes to raise the issue with the ISPA and it does work,.

glad to hear you are making progress

it takes 5 minutes to raise the issue with the ISPA and it does work,.

glad to hear you are making progress

Originally Posted by silver

not in each case it does not,as im someone just as you who needed help to get the service that i was paying for from the shark of a isp TISCALI UK ISPA did not help me,As why i always recommend CISAS as 1,they are tiscali's arbitrators,not ispa,2,if as in my case you have have more than enough of this shoddy isp hogging your bt line,and wish to get some compensation for all those unnecessary telephone calls to a 0871,or 0845 prefix number and charged.(tiscali make £££ from)as well cisas is the way forward this is what is was told by a ISPSA employee on the phone ,we can only write/contact tiscali on your behalve,we have no power to enforce anything,because that is all they can do(tiscali) so should you end up getting anywhere as a result of contacting ispa,then tiscrapi has changed is stance,or you are just lucky,and one of the minority as i had a fight on my hands,and that is no bullsht,and i hope for your sakes this is proven wrong

Update

Getting my Mac code sent to me, account gettin cancelled and will be refunded all monies since i started my contract as they service they promised me couldnt possibly be acheieved as my exchange hasnt been updated so shouldnt pay for anything. theyre going to keep my Tiscali account open until I have swapped over aswell

result, so looking for another ISP now, any suggestions?!?!?

this forum has been invaluable, thank you

will post again though when i do receive my compo and mac code and have migrated successfully

Darren

I would personally recommend uk online,as i use them no probs at all really plus should there ever be they have a freephone number for tech/cust servs,but it would be Dependant on who's llu services are in your exchange, visit the web site samknows.com to find this out,if easynet/sky are in your exchange then you should not have any probs,the same goes for 02/be there bb as well,

not in each case it does not,as im someone just as you who needed help to get the service that i was paying for from the shark of a isp TISCALI UK ISPA did not help me,As why i always recommend CISAS as 1,they are tiscali's arbitrators,not ispa,2,if as in my case you have have more than enough of this shoddy isp hogging your bt line,and wish to get some compensation for all those unnecessary telephone calls to a 0871,or 0845 prefix number and charged.(tiscali make £££ from)as well cisas is the way forward this is what is was told by a ISPSA employee on the phone ,we can only write/contact tiscali on your behalve,we have no power to enforce anything,because that is all they can do(tiscali) so should you end up getting anywhere as a result of contacting ispa,then tiscrapi has changed is stance,or you are just lucky,and one of the minority as i had a fight on my hands,and that is no bullsht,and i hope for your sakes this is proven wrong

Originally Posted by tommy t

it's pretty clear spending 5 minutes raising the issue with ISPA is more effective (not to mention cheaper + easier) than calling tiscali call center over and over

CISAS is great but you have to wait for a long time and jump through all kinds of hoops before you can raise an issue with CISAS

I've seen enough positive reports from people using the ISPA procedure (and personally used it to good effect) to recommend it to anyone who is having an issue with tiscali

it sure doesn't replace CISAS and that is another avenue, especially if phoning tiscali and raising the issue with ISPA fail to get you any resolution

all these alternate routes would not be needed if tiscali cust care was on the ball

it's pretty clear spending 5 minutes raising the issue with ISPA is more effective (not to mention cheaper + easier) than calling tiscali call center over and over
which i agree with, but as in my case does not always get a relult,that maybe be down to who at tiscali,/ispa handles your complaint,yes CISAS does/can take longer,but there is no doubt that they do have more authority over tiscali,as for jumping though hoops, im not sure what you mean,as all i did was register my initial complaint,online,then a short time later rang cisas to confirm that my complaint was being looked into,after being told the basic guidelines that they have to work to,a few weeks later i got a letter explaining that tiscali had 2weeks from receiving notice from cisas to either submit their counter claims or except my side of things,which tiscali did,so jumping though hoops ??

doesn't sound too bad,, perhaps start a new thread outlining how to raise the issue with CISAS, last I heard you needed a deadlock letter from tiscali or something weird like that (and/or your complaint had to be unresolved for 3 months)

that is correct 12weeks and a deadlock situation, as for getting a deadlock letter from tiscali next to no chance,but they can still proceed all you have to do is request one

UPDATE

received my MAC code today as promised

so time to start looking for other ISP's, im thinking of Orange as I have a mobile contract with them and get it cheaper, and there doesnt seem to be many problems with them, and I can actually get 8mb!

Hi
I just found this site today better late than never.

Just want to share my experience with you people I hope it's ok

We were with Virgin and had really crap Internet service and they over charged and so much other problems. I might publish all the letters if this is permitted. Their customer service was nightmare.

Anyway regarding Tiscali (one thing at a time)

After getting rid of Virgin We had no landline or any service. We had seen Tiscali's advert for the 14.50 Line Rental & Internet pluss free weekend calls package. . .

We contacted Tiscali 3 times during a 2 week period each time Tiscali told us they cant offer us any of the services unless we had a BT line.
(which we now know not to be true)

So we contacted BT for the line which they set up
charged us 125 pounds Installation (Non Refundable)
Plus 12 months contract

went back to Tisculi. They said yes now we can do it. I asked the sales team person about the possibility of paying 2 line Rentals, he assured me that this will be taken care of internally and would not be paying for 2 lines. I asked and it was explained to me that I would not end up paying BT line Rental and Tisculli. All we pay 14.5 amount one charge. It was very clearly said & understood.

So I said great sign me up.

You can imagine what followed. . .

Tiscali went back on their word and we are now paying BT 11 each month & Tiscali 14 whatever each month.

When we phoned to complain about this we were asked to supply the names of the people in their Sales Team.

----------------------------------



At the moment we are trying get compensation & Refunds from Virgin Mobile & Virgin Media. I will publish all of the correspondence separate thread or here if any are interested. This for Virgin only. I Plan to deal with Tisculli later. (too many battle fronts)


They are all crooks all of them

I would love to tell about British GAS. They lost our payment records. lol 2 Bills payed in full showing no trace on their systems. Isnt that funny? (still not found since 27 last month)

Very interesting circumstance well worth knowing about because it might happen to you too one day. Again I am ready to post details if requested.



Ok Regarding 0870 lines (so called dam help lines)

Hey people!! you seem very intelligent im sure lot more than me anyway.

How could you fall for it again & again, Yes I suppose in the circumstance we miss our internet or service whatever and just not in control.

But understand this guys the 0870 Help line service is not really a proper help SERVICE
we are misled by the concept here. The main reason is to make money, The first reason if not the only reason.


It is an income generating SYSTEM well thought out by devious FIELD EXPERTS

Don't you see they deliberately design such scenarios. Give you an example;
some may think these companies have a poorly trained staff or teething... etc & so
yes they prob do but most of chaos is well planned and who profits from it?

Not YOU & NOT I THEY DO

Anyway. . . It is not my wish to annoy anybody on here. I'm just telling as it comes.

thanks for reading.

and no offence taken,but it ain't rocket science is it? 0870 0871 ect ect are all there to make the company profits at you the customers loss, More often than not,hence why my isp has a free-phone number and so does my telephone provider,it seems like it's a case of cheap don't give you a proper service,(99.9%of cases)so the only way you will get a a good service is to PAY for it,unfortunate but true i know and i do, but guess what i don't get problems any more,apart from paying the bills,lol

hi

If you dont mind please tell us who is your isp & phone company?

phone= bt and isp= uk online both have freephone cust servs /tec supp

UPDATE

ive been contacted by Tiscali again to sort out my compo and was told to work out a figure and provide them a figure and they will give me a check.

I find this hard to believe as they clearly have access to my accounts and could simply total up my monthly bills since i signed up and any extra compo i am entitled to i.e. mobile phone charges etc.

im not sure what figure to provide them with, ive been with them since july, and they have admitted selling me a package they could not offer me, which leads me to think i should be fully compensated for the entire time i have been with them

any thoughts?

If that is the case then add up the payment that they took for a crap service,and not forgetting the total cost of all the 0871 ect calls to their useless tech support ect,and also some for the inconvenience caused as well,also i would get them to confirm in writing that the account is canceled and you owe no monies to them,just they have previous for sending bailiffs ect to recover monies they are not entitled to as the ex customers don't owe them