topic Re: Making a complaint in Account & Billing

Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 14:49:37 GMT

Anyone know the best way to make a formal complaint at a senior level?

I'm trying to get Sky to remove an old account from years ago & they are just ignoring me.

Re: Making a complaint

Highlinder — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 14:50:29 GMT

@Sue_Doe Have you went through the formal complaint process with Sky?

Re: Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 16:21:24 GMT

I think so. I've been in email communication with the "complaints" department since the 27th but they have still not removed an account they should have removed years ago and they just seem to have ignored me for the last seven days.

Re: Making a complaint

Highlinder — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 16:51:19 GMT

@Sue_Doe If you are looking for updates then it would be best to contact the person dealing with the complaint on behalf of Sky.

Making something clear here is that this is mostly a customer to customer based community forum with a few Sky staff. The process of the complaint might take time and the gaps with no updates could be them looking into this for you.

Re: Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 17:08:41 GMT

Thanks for that.

Yes, I'm fully aware this is a customer led help forum but it is often the best way to get information.

They've had plenty of time to deal with it. I have emailed the last person to email me, twice over 48 hours, and appear to be being ignored. It's come to my attention that they've had nine years to remove two inactive accounts & associated email boxes on their system and failed to do so. The accounts are still accessible despite it being brought to their attention 12 days ago and my direct instruction to remove at least the most problematical one. I'd be curious to know what the ICO would make of it but I don't really want to go down that road unless I really have to.

So, anyone suggest an alternative?

Re: Making a complaint

caesarome — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 18:23:13 GMT

@Sue_Doe wrote:

I'm trying to get Sky to remove an old account from years ago & they are just ignoring me.

What issues is this old account causing you ?

Re: Making a complaint

Anonymous — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 18:40:01 GMT

@Sue_Doe wrote:
Thanks for that.

Yes, I'm fully aware this is a customer led help forum but it is often the best way to get information.

They've had plenty of time to deal with it. I have emailed the last person to email me, twice over 48 hours, and appear to be being ignored. It's come to my attention that they've had nine years to remove two inactive accounts & associated email boxes on their system and failed to do so. The accounts are still accessible despite it being brought to their attention 12 days ago and my direct instruction to remove at least the most problematical one. I'd be curious to know what the ICO would make of it but I don't really want to go down that road unless I really have to.

So, anyone suggest an alternative?

@Sue_Doe You need to give Sky eight weeks from the date you submitted the formal complaint to try and resolve it.

After eight weeks, if there is no resolution then you can go to CISAS who will adjudicate the matter. Make sure you keep screen grabs of your emails etc with Sky. CISAS won't accept a case unless it has been eight weeks or you have reached deadlock.

Re: Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 18:58:54 GMT

You mean beyond the obvious secuity implications of accounts that have stood idle for nine years after someone left Sky, only got an 8 character password, no MFA turned on, (as it didn't exist back then), and are clearly in breach of the clause in GDPR about not keeping data once it's become irrelevant?

Well, as you ask I'm an executor trying to close down the estate of a deceased relative.

Re: Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 19:00:06 GMT

That last was for @caesarome

Re: Making a complaint

caesarome — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 19:06:34 GMT

@Sue_Doe wrote:

Well, as you ask I'm an executor trying to close down the estate of a deceased relative.

Did you contact the specialist team that Sky has and reported this to them:

https://www.sky.com/help/articles/deceased-sky-account-holder

Re: Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Tue, 08 Jul 2025 19:19:26 GMT

@caesarome The deceased left Sky nine years ago, as did myself at the same time. The person in question subsquently died six years ago. The family has just discovered that the account and email are is still accessible. In law the role of executor is a 20 year responsibility, so it fallls to me to sort it out. The complaints department were sent a copy of the death certificate 5 days ago and have not responded to subsquent emails.

Re: Making a complaint

JimM1 — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 08:52:02 GMT

@Sue_Doe In general you are going about it in the correct way, Sky should be able to take care off the account side, the e-mail sky dropped many years ago and just handed it all back to yahoo mail, so not sure what is required to shut down the dormant account, surprised after such a long time you could even see of access it, but obviously you can!

Re: Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 09:55:57 GMT

Thanks for that. Interesting point about Sky no longer using Yahoo. No one has seen fit to mentioned that before. I shall chase Yahoo separately then.

Re: Making a complaint

Mark39 — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 10:38:09 GMT

@Sue_Doe wrote:

Thanks for that. Interesting point about Sky no longer using Yahoo. No one has seen fit to mentioned that before. I shall chase Yahoo separately then.

That's not entirely accurate. Sky Yahoo Mail is a legacy service which uses the Yahoo Mail platform, but customer support has always been, and still is via Sky.

Yahoo will generally refer Sky Yahoo Mail users back to Sky.

Re: Making a complaint

JimM1 — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 11:12:42 GMT

@Sue_Doe As it appears sky do it then link to the e-mail stuff! See what you make off it!

Sky Yahoo Mail | Sky Help | Sky.com | Sky Help | Sky.com

Re: Making a complaint

Sue_Doe — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 11:25:42 GMT

@Mark39 @JimM1

Yes, Yahoo bounced me back to the Sky login as soon as I put @sky.com. Interestingly, logging in with the Yahoo id informs me the account is deactivated. Funny how I can still access it through Sky then. It also still accepts incoming mail.

And as for Sky’s help page saying accounts that haven’t been used for 12 months are deleted….somebody seems to be living in a fantasy world. Oh, and the help page…“I don’t need my account anymore”…You don’t need to do anything. Your account will be closed if it remains inactive. Yeah, right!

Re: Making a complaint

JimM1 — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 11:29:19 GMT

@Sue_Doe Thought that would catch your eye straight off so never said a single thing! Something got oops somewhere along the way!