@Anonymous wrote:
I'm sorry to have to report but I've been suffering terrible support from O2 since November 2013.
The problem was;
At the end of October 2013, I started to notice that my signal would drop, from 4 bars to 1 bar whilst the phone was in the same position (on my desk).
This led to me either not receiving a call or at worse, dropping a call. There were occasions when I would drop a call 3 or 4 times in quick succession, not great when trying to talk to a client!
I installed the TuGo app which doesn't work. It just alerts me that I had a missed call, the phone doesn't ring (nor does it work on other devices I've tried it on)
I have superfast Virgin broadband and excellent signal all around the house so nothing wrong there.
I called O2 to explain about the problem and went through the usual steps, reset this, turn off that which obviously doesn't work (why do they still insist on treating us like morons??)
I then received a new sim card which we all hoped would make a difference. No, nothing at all.
I continued to call O2 throughout November and then December and each time was told that my area is receiving full signal so I should be experiencing great reception!!
Then we have the terrible winds and everything seemed to be effected so I just waited for things to be resolved.
Come the beginning of Feb, nothing had improved, in fact it had got worse. I could now see my signal dropping at around 8:30 - 9:30 every dayand calls were dropping more frequently.
Finally I was told by an O2 representative that one of the masts in my area had been showing signs of a fault since last October. That's right, last October, when my issues started. How no one else has ever mentioned this is beyond me.
So now, the network investigation team are on the case and have admitted that there is a problem with a mast that is likely to be causing me issues. It's all down to the air conditioning systems being faulty.
So, what does this mean? It means that for nearly 5 months I have been suffering with poor signal due to a known issue yet O2 have been covering it up. I can't believe they would be so blatant with their disregard for transparency.
Can anyone advise me as to what I should do in terms of seeking compensation? I actually want to cancel my contract and move to a new provider but they want me to settle the remainder of the contract but in light of them not supplying me with the service I've been paying for I don't see why the contract should be honoured.
Any tips?
Hi, let me try to answer your points one at a time.
Your point about going through the 'usual steps'. There is a reason why they are 'usual steps'. This is because in a large number of cases these steps fix issues that would otherwise go down as handset/sim/network faults. Granted, not every time, but most of them. Whenever you call about an issue these are the first things that O2 goes through with you. Always will be. Next step is a replacement sim. Again the reason for this is that it tends to fix some issues.
Your next point about calling and being told the signal is fine. When you call, the advisor puts your postcode into O2's coverage checker. If it shows fine, the advisor gives you that advice. The coverage checker is normally up to date, so the advisor would think that it's the up to date information and is correct, which is why they give you the advice.
The next point about the winds - during bad weather masts can be damaged and if so the coverage checker updates to reflect that there's a fault. Once that damage gets fixed the coverage checker updates to say all ok.
Your point about being told that there now is a fault with the mast that has been showing signs since October. Naturally I'm not aware of your case, but having gone through various fault diagnosis steps, advice from advisors and then the weather damage to the mast, I'd be genuinely amazed if the coverage checker had been showing signs of issues and no-one spotted it. You'd have to ask O2 why one person knew about an issue since October but no-one else did.
If you have already spoken to O2 about a complaint, and have been in touch with the complaints team using the link you were given earlier, they may look to compensate you for your inconvenience, but letting you out of your contract is a drastic step and they're unlikely to allow it.
