Landline not working - again

[greenbike]

We have broadband and landline from Sky.

Broadband working fine.

Landline not working. I cannot dial out. Nobody can phone me.

This happened last November and took over a week to resolve. The engineer said that the problem was a switch in the exchange. They somehow remotely sent a signal down the line that freed up the switch.

I worry that this will keep recurring as this is the same fault and this is the second time it's happened in the space of about 6 months.. Is there a way to get Ofcom involved? Clearly a more permanent solution needs to be found.

Thanks for any help

[Daniel0210]

@greenbike 

You need to report this to Sky like you did in November. I can't see any reason for Ofcom to be notified. 

This link outlines auto compensation for when there is a total loss of Sky Broadband or Sky Talk. https://www.sky.com/help/articles/auto-compensation

If you have a total loss of service and it isn’t fixed after two full working days from when you first report the fault to Sky, you will become eligible for it, It’s applied 30 days after the fault has been repaired and will come in the form of a credit appearing on your account.

[greenbike]

Many thanks but I disagree. I think ofcom does need to be informed. The reason being that if the same problem recurs then clearly, if it is the same problem, either the exchange needs some new items fitting or the existing items need properly servicing. Ofcom need to be involved to put pressure on the those responsible to act. Or do I just have to accept the situation?

FYI we have broadband and landline down one wire from the local telegraph pole. And if I look at our broadband speeds they are good! 

[Mark39]

OFCOM is the telecoms regulator. It won't be of interest to them. I suspect you mean Openreach, who will be informed when you report the fault.

[TimmyBGood]

---

@greenbike wrote:

 Ofcom need to be involved to put pressure on the those responsible to act. 

---

Ofcom is a general industry regulator and tries very hard not to become involved with individual technical issues or disputes between a subscriber and their supplier: for one thing they simply aren't financed or staffed for that.

You'll almost certainly be referred back to the Sky complaints process and its escalation to an alternative dispute resolution service.

[greenbike]

Our Sky landline isn't working. I reported it twice. Last week I was assured that Openreach would look at the problem either on Friday or yesterday (Monday).

It's still not working.

But... I got a message from Sky today saying :

Created 22 Mar 2023 11:27 AM

Why that date? That's weeks before we had the problem.

Broadband / Talk - Log Unappointed

Case number 

Sky Expert's Notes

25 Apr 2023 09:49 AM

Hi, just to confirm your fault yyou reported is still progressing with Openreach.

Questions:

1. Why the date in March? We never had a problem then. Have they confused us and are they actually looking at the fault we have or something else?

2. Why don't Sky confirm all arrangements in writing. In my 'messages' inbox I do have messages regarding the problem last November when the landline stopped working. But I don't have any messages about this event as reported to them last week - apart from today's message above. Is it standard practice for Sky to confirm that you have reported an issue and to give progress reports or even to acknowledge that they have arranged an engineer? Or not? This lack of communication does seem to be a genuine reason for OFCOM to get involved. There needs to be an industry standard on communications with customers. 

Thanks again

[Mark39]

You're asking questions of customers that only Sky can answer, I'm afraid. However, I don't see much point in Sky messaging you to confirm an engineer has been booked when they tell you that already when you report a fault (if it's the case). 

Openreach aim to initially investigate faults in 2 to 5 working days. Progress reports from Sky are entirely dependent on the information that Openreach give them (and from previous posts here, they're not especially good at doing that).

OFCOM won't be interested unless you've raised a complaint with Sky and it's unresolved within a particular timescale (I can't remember accurately what the timescale is, but 6 weeks comes to mind).

[TimmyBGood]

---

@Mark39 wrote:

@greenbike 

OFCOM won't be interested unless you've raised a complaint with Sky and it's unresolved within a particular timescale (I can't remember accurately what the timescale is, but 6 weeks comes to mind).

---

Eight weeks (or earlier if 'deadlock' is reached), and then it goes to the appointed ADR service, not Ofcom.

https://www.sky.com/help/articles/alternative-dispute-resolution 

[greenbike]

UPDATE I just phoned Sky again and was given more information. Which was informative and helpful. It