No broadband for more than a month

[Pamela232]

We ordered broadband on 29 Jan.
Sky told us: Your Sky Broadband will be activated on 06 March.
Today, the 4th of March, Sky has moved the installation date to the 9th of April.

This means we will be without internet/tv/phone for more than a month.
Is this legal? And how can we resolve this?

[Chrisee]

@Pamela232 it wont be Sky that has delayed the installation it will be Openreach whose network Sky uses. Running a new fibre line can be complicated and if they hit a snag delays are not unusual. 

It is not illegal but you should get compensation for late provision see Customer Auto-Compensation | Sky Help | Sky.com

[Pamela232]

Unfortunately I think you are not correct regarding the compensation.
The trick Sky seems  to have used is to tell us on 29 Jan that 06 Mar is the "provisional" activation date and 2 days before this date they then say the actual date in more than a month later .....
This means according to their compensation rules, there is NO compensation.

[Chrisee]

@Pamela232 cant comment on that point but most customers do get compensated if an activation date is missed. You can of course cancel the order but unless you have access to a service who dont use Openreach to deliver their service its pointless

[Pamela232]

Does anyone have experience with complaining to OFCOM?
The Sky rules talk about "initially confirmed activation date" (see below), which for me means 6 Mar.
Sky seems to bend this rule by calling this the provisional date, which then means there is no date initially confirmed ........

"Your Sky Broadband will be activated on 06 March.
This date is provisional, we will let you know once it's confirmed."

----------------------
OFCOM: Service issue 1: Automatic compensation for a delay in activation of a fixed line or broadband service
9. Subject to paragraph 40 (exclusions), a Communications Provider must pay automatic compensation to a customer if it does not activate a customer’s fixed line or broadband service by 11.59pm on the date initially confirmed in writing with that customer.

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/siteassets/resources/documents/consultations/uncategorised/98684---automati...

Sky compensation rules say:
"When you order Sky Broadband & Talk, we’ll send you a letter or email with your provisional activation date which might change at a later date. We’ll let you know your confirmed date as soon as we have it."

[Chrisee]

@Pamela232 Ofcom do not deal with consumer complaints themselves but you can of course report your concerns to them if you want see https://www.ofcom.org.uk/make-a-complaint/complain-about-mobile-phone-or-internet-services/the-way-a... 

.As pointed out you can cancel at no cost  at any time up up until 31 days after the service is activated. 

Delays to provisioning happen as the intial date is based on the information held in the database often an engineer will do an informal survey or will know of a snag that requires retification before a line can be installed so dates are changed. 

[Pamela232]

That sounds like really bad customer service when you wait for more than a month to tell us 2 days before the activation it is delayed by another month.
We called SKY and they now say we cancelled the order, although in my account it says the order is due to be activated in a month.
They then wanted to make a new order, without cashback and a 3.50/month price increase. We declined and want Sky to honor the initial order/agreement. The Sky representative now is talking to his team about this .....

So instead of getting 200 pounds compensation because ofa failure to install broadband, Sky now wants us to pay £200 pounds extra over the 2 year contract ....
I hope  they sort this, or there will be a good letter to OFCOM .....

[Pamela232]

We ordered SKy fibre on 29 Jan, install date 6 Mar.
On 4 Mar we received a notice that the installation got moved to 7 Apr .........

This means weare now more than a month without internet and no compensation is paid because they now say 6 Mar was provisional ...

When calling Sky, they say we have no contract as it was cancelled ........

When I log in to my account it says:

Your Sky Talk telephone number will be [removed] and an Outreach engineer will install the service from 8am on 7 Apr.

What should I do next?

Moderated to remove personal details

[Daniel0210]

@Pamela232 

Your post has been removed as it appears to contain your new landline number. It should return once edited. 

[Chrisee]

@Pamela232 formally complain to Sky as Inexplained in my last post. 

[caesarome]

You could try calling Sky @Pamela232 to see if there is an earlier data available.

Broadband compensation credit applies uf there is a delay to the activation as you can read about he

https://www.sky.com/help/articles/auto-compensation

Do you have any letter or email with the 6th March date on ?

[Pamela232]

Yes, the letter we received on 29 Jan says:
"Your Sky Broadband and Talk is due to be installed on 06 March between 08:00 and 13:00.
Just so you know, we've booked an Openreach engineer to install your line. This date is provisional, and we'll let you know once it’s confirmed".
And then today they send a txt saying they moved the date to 9 April ....
and when I called today, they said we cancelled the contract (which we did not!)

[Pamela232]

I just spoke with the complaints department, and they informed me that the order was not canceled (and the Sky phone line guys were incorrect). The installation is now expected to take place in about a month.

Unfortunately, they aren't offering any compensation, as they claimed they never confirmed the original date as final, and they changed it more than 24 hours in advance.

I’ve sent a letter to OFCOM because this seems to be a loophole in the rules that Sky is exploiting. While I'm not sure if it's even legal, it’s difficult to find the time to pursue that route. According to OFCOM's guidelines, automatic compensation should apply in situations like this, where you're left without broadband, TV, or phone for over a month through no fault of your own.

[Chrisee]

@Pamela232 I suspect Ofcom will advise you to seek a deadlock letter from Sky and take your complaint to CISAS their approved Alternative Dispute Resolution provider that handles Sky complaints. https://www.sky.com/help/articles/sky-customer-complaints-code-of-practice/

ADR is the formal way that the courts and regulators expect people to use to resolve complaints like yours. From what you have said you do seem to have a valid argument.

[Pamela232]

I requested a deadlock letter from Sky, but they informed me that doing so might complicate matters. They explained that, with the deadlock letter, they would no longer be able to discuss the issue with me. Additionally, they mentioned that the provisional date of April 9th would not longer be guaranteed. I translated that as an indirect treath to not go ahead with the deadlock letter. They are waiting for Openreach to give an update in the next few days .....