Jump to content

Moving house, phone number & broadband. Help.


DGear
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hallo allooo? Are there any BT engineers out there?

 

I'm looking for a bit of advice regarding moving to a new house (just up the road) which already has a phone line installed. I want to know if it's possible to move my current phone number up to the new house in order to avoid any costly ISP charges.

 

Plusnet are my current ISP. My contract with them has finished, but they still want to charge me a £25 cessation fee to stop providing me with a service! They can't see the phoneline of the new house on their system (even though there is one), so want to charge me a £50 connection fee for a line that's already installed. Then, because I'm moving house, I would have to enter into a new contract with plusnet, and if I move from the new house before 12 months are up, they'll charge me a £65 cancellation fee.

 

The service in the house we're moving into (I think its a Sky bundle), ends on the 19th of Nov. I'm wondering if I can get a BT engineer to just change something at the exchange so that my current phone number moves to the new house (which has the same postcode), then I can just plug my router into the new house, and away I go. I won't have to enter into a new contract, and wont have to pay any cancellation charges, because as far as plusnet are concerned, they are still providing the same number with the same service. Maybe I'm dreaming.

 

Does anybody know if this is even possible? Will I have to befriend a rogue BT engineer in order to make it happen?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No, they certainly don't. It's a shame really, because I'd been singing Plusnet's praises to a few people.

 

I wonder if I'd be within my rights to refuse to pay them the £25 cessation fee. My 12 month contract with them did finish several months ago after all.

 

It might be easier to just cancel plusnet, pay the £25, and talk to Sky (who I believe currently provide the new property with TV, phone and internet), to see if I can transfer the previous tennent's contract into my name. The problem with this would be that I'd have to enter into a new 12 month minimum contract with Sky, and so would then be liable for the same hefty cancelation charges should I leave the house before the 12 months are up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am not with BT for calls or broadband, that's all handled by plusnet.

 

I was really just wondering if it would be theoretically possible to go over plusnet's head, and just have a BT engineer move my phone number from my current house to our new house up the road, just to save me having to enter into an expensive new contract with plusnet, or have to pay plusnet any cancellation fees (which is ridiculous in itself), or have to pay plusnet to connect a phone line into the new house (even though there's already a phoneline connected there at the moment!). That way plusnet could just continue billing me for the service they are providing me with, and my phone number would remain the same.

 

The new house is on the same exchange as the one I'm in at the moment. They even have exactly the same postcode. It's literally just up the road! It seems ridiculous that they can't just organise it for me without totally shagging me. This must happen to loads of people.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I moved with Plusnet in March and it was no bother and no expense as long as I kept same contract, I gave 3 weeks notice and the line was on for move in date,very simple and hassle free.

I moved again in Sept same notice same terms no expense but BT messed up connection (Plusnet still have to order line from BT) before the move in date I got a strange call from a local BT engineer asking asking the telephone number of the house I was moving to and was I really wanting a line there, I told him I did not know the existing number but gave him the new number which plusnet was allocated for me from BT and that the order was correct.

So move in date came, phone and broadband switched on, everything ok for about a day and a half then nothing, phone was dead so I phoned Plusnet they checked the line and it was active but no connection so they Investigated and found BT had cancelled the order, no explination to plusnet so a new order was raised and it took about 2.5 weeks to get connected again .

As you can imagine I was not happy but Plusnet could not have been more helpful and also credited my account with 2 months line rental and broadband.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unofficially you can possibly do what you want, but I doubt its "allowed" if you go down proper channels..

 

If you're going to be stuck with the cancellation fee (remember to check if it is specified in the contract you signed with them. If its not, don't pay it.) then I would suggest talking to BT, explaining the situation and asking them what sort of deal they can offer.

 

BT are especially good at offering free or half price deals for a month or two in order to gain, or to keep, customers. Just dunna be blaet!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think that the problem is that the phone line which is currently connected in the new house isn't showing up on plusnet's system. The explanation I got was that information on some ISP and call providers is not available in their system. So, despite my assurances that there is definitely a line currently installed in the new house (I could even give them the phone number of it!), they are still having to send out an engineer to install a NEW line. The charge for this is £49.99.

 

Then, because we're having to have a new line installed, we are automatically entered into a brand new 12 month contract. This means that if we leave this house before the 12 months are up, we'll have to pay a further £65 fee to cancel our internet at that time.

 

Alternatively, we can pay £25 to get clear of plusnet (despite not currently being bound to any contract with them), but then we'll definitely have to enter into a new 12 month contract with another provider.

 

None of these problems would exist if plusnet could see that the house we're moving into actually does currently have a line installed!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When we moved house there was a phone line, with a number, but the connection was off. Nothing to do with Plusnet. Can't remember if we were charged for BT to turn it on.

 

If it's the same in your case, despite there being a physical line and number, Plusnet won't see an active connection... (I think).

 

Does the new house have broadband activated? If not an engineer will have to fix this up, and it does cost, whoever you go with.

 

As far as the Plusnet contract goes, you still have it if they are providing you with a service. I think you mean your minimum time has expired? After the minimum time you don't have to pay back the hardware costs (if you chose it) and the setup fee if you leave. You are required to give a months notice though or you will have to pay for that month, which is fair enough.

 

I'm sure you were asked to read the T&Cs when you joined Plusnet, and there are FAQs and the Terms and conditions on the site.

Home and Office moving guide

Terms and conditions

FAQ

 

I've always found Plusnet very transparent, maybe ask them again for the charges, maybe wires got crossed ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The house that we're going into has a physical phone line, with a phone number, but it also currently has a sky broadband, phone and tv package which is active and will be active until the 19th of November.

 

I have no problem paying the whole of this months bill, however I am reluctant to pay a further £25 cessation charge, just so that they can stop providing me with a service. When our 12 month contract was up, we were moved onto a rolling month by month contract. This was one of the main reasons I chose plusnet in the first instance (as well as having heard excellent reports about thier customer services), as I knew we might be moving house in a little over a year. When I signed up for the initial contract, I read all of the terms of service, but I don't recall ever reading about a cessation charge being applicable after the 12 month contract was up, that is until I spoke to a fellow on the phone this morning.

 

The problem now is that in order to continue using plusnet's service, we have to enter into another 12 month contract from the begining, and we will incur a hefty charge if we move house after 10 months, as well as having to pay £50 to set up a line unnecessarily.

 

My problem is not with the plusnet staff, who have always been most helpful, but rather with the stupid system whereby they can't see the active line which is being provided by another ISP. If the new house's connection wasn't being provided by Sky, we wouldn't be facing any of these problems as plusnet would be able to see the connection on thier system. You can imagine my frustration at having to incur these potentially hefty charges due to something that is completely outwith my control (ie. the previous tennent's choice of ISP!).

 

Thanks for all your responses so far by the way! :-)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hallo allooo? Are there any BT engineers out there?

 

I'm looking for a bit of advice regarding moving to a new house (just up the road) which already has a phone line installed. I want to know if it's possible to move my current phone number up to the new house in order to avoid any costly ISP charges.

 

Plusnet are my current ISP. My contract with them has finished, but they still want to charge me a £25 cessation fee to stop providing me with a service! They can't see the phoneline of the new house on their system (even though there is one), so want to charge me a £50 connection fee for a line that's already installed. Then, because I'm moving house, I would have to enter into a new contract with plusnet, and if I move from the new house before 12 months are up, they'll charge me a £65 cancellation fee.

 

The service in the house we're moving into (I think its a Sky bundle), ends on the 19th of Nov. I'm wondering if I can get a BT engineer to just change something at the exchange so that my current phone number moves to the new house (which has the same postcode), then I can just plug my router into the new house, and away I go. I won't have to enter into a new contract, and wont have to pay any cancellation charges, because as far as plusnet are concerned, they are still providing the same number with the same service. Maybe I'm dreaming.

 

Does anybody know if this is even possible? Will I have to befriend a rogue BT engineer in order to make it happen?

 

BT Wholesale WILL, without exception, charge the existing ISP a disconnection fee. And then a connection fee to whichever ISP you take the service from at the new address. Any deal / discount will down to what the ISP decides to do for 'free' .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...