O2 in Droitwich (WR9)

[Anonymous]

O2 network down in Droitwich for nearly a week now. Any phone working on the O2 network (O2, Tesco, GiffGaff) almost totally useless. No signal (well, intermittently one bar, but usually no network at all) for calls or Data. Contacted them via live chat - not at all interested. Contacted CEO - not very interested but have written again in the hope that they would accept that they must have someone within the company with some idea of when service is likely to be resumed!! When my contract is finished I'll be off to EE I think..........

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Of course I would still be liable for them. But with no DD thay will have to use some effort to get it......... They may well get it in the end, but at some cost to themselves. In my situation they wouldn't want the publicity of a legal action believe me........

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One would ask how important your Credit File is to you. 

[Anonymous]

My only comment is read your terms and conditions... in the end the only one the bad image will be you...your credit rating 😞 .

I'm sure you'll do the right thing

[MI5]

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@Anonymous wrote:

In my situation they wouldn't want the publicity of a legal action believe me........

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One can only assume you have some clout with Ofcom to make statements like that?

If so, good luck as it could help improve all mobile networks for their customers.

[Anonymous]

@Anonymous

Strongly recommend you DON'T cancel your direct debit. This is what will happen if you do (and not make payments):

O2 will initially restrict service.
O2 will contact you by a range of methods to advise you of non payment.
O2 will bar your phone.
O2 WILL UPDATE YOUR CREDIT FILE to let everyone who accesses know you don't pay your bills (on time).

You may feel this is not important but we have seen other members come on here to say that they have been refused mortgages over a debt to o2 of as little as £12. Once that default is on there o2 will not remove it.

You can threaten OFCOM, the Ombudsman, even Court Action (all of which are your choice) but the damage will have been done and it will cause you a lot more stress than not having a phone believe me.

Not trying to be awkward or difficult with this post. I have been fighting with o2 for over a year about the network so I certainly share your pain. I hear people come on here cos their 4g is slowing down or that 4g hasn't arrived. If I get a signal it is a weak 2g at best and in many places here there is no signal. So I do share your pain.

[Anonymous]

As for repairs to the mast, I will take some assumptions in this post (sorry if your knowledge is more detailed but I have one eye on others reading this from a search in future).

When a mast is installed (especially those that have been around a while) the contracts with landowners were very broad in their definitions. So to repair a mast o2 might need to:

Request permission of the landowner
There may be contractual time delays for access.
Most repairs are done without engineers going on site. Just because you can't see engineers climbing the mast doesn't mean nothing is happening.
O2 may need to order parts. Some of this equipment can costs £10's or even £100's of thousands so they won't keep them in stock. (Its not like going to Halfords for a spare bulb).
The issue might not be o2 related. There may be an issue with Openreach or Virgin fibre backhaul and that might be beyond o2's control.
There may be a utilities issue again outside of o2's control. In a recent case in Dorset it took several months before the water board finished works so o2 could turn the mast back on.
Are the works 4g related? I doubt it in this case but o2 do so 4g works can result in downtime.
Are o2 decommissioning the site as part of the Beacon project (mast sharing with Vodafone)

These are just a few examples of why a repair might not be instant. It doesn't solve your issues but it might help to explain.

[Anonymous]

it's unscheduled @Anonymous , it's not maintenance, you are correct in your assumption :):smileyhappy:

[Anonymous]

Thank you @rodadosc

I just wanted to share some examples of why a repair might not be quick. I do share the OP's pain on this of course and it doesn't make things any easier but it might help others in the future to understand.

In reality o2 won't want a mast to be out of service any longer than the absolute minimum, it is not in their interests. So they will get it fixed as soon as they can even if that delay is frustrating for us customers.

The OP also needs to understand this happens on all networks. If he wants to change that is his choice but he is not guaranteed this wouldn't happen with EE, Voda or Three.

[jonsie]

I only all that you think long and hats before going down that route. It's much better going through formal complaints. 

[Anonymous]

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@jonsie wrote:

I only all that you think long and hats before going down that route. It's much better going through formal complaints. 

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It's wasted time...it's not like High level complaints can fix masts...All they can do is offer you a refund for the loss of service, same as customer services.So a quick call to customer services will give you the same end result. The complaint review service should only be used when the other departments cant find a satisfactory outcome for the customer.

[jonsie]

But he is looking to leave the contract without penalty. To do so he would have to go through all aviable avenues. Compensation then yes I agree.