Without Home Phone and Home Internet for 45 Days, Thanks to Optus!

deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 15:39
Last edited 16/04/2018 - 13:59 by 4 other users

Hi guys, just wanted to know if anyone had similar experience with Optus.

An Optus cable between two poles on the street snapped as council bin truck was taking the bins in the morning. We lost our home cable internet connection and telephone from that day which happened on 1st March 2018. We contacted Optus to send someone to roll up the dangling wire from the pole and possibly fix the cable as that had become a potential hazard. They did roll up the cable but couldn't extend the cable so that line will be up and running. Since then we have been in touch with them every day.

For first 2 and half weeks they didn't know when the service will be fixed. One of the tech told us that they are speaking with local electricity provider to help fix the cable so I contacted Electricity company immediately. I was given time line of another 2.5 weeks when Electricity company will fix the cable which will be after 6th April 2018.

I even contacted local council here in NSW and spoke to the supervisor of the division which handles recycle bins. They informed us that they had informed Optus and local electricity company about a cable dangling dangerously low for months and all of them refused to take responsibility, and there was nothing they could do.

We informed Communications Ombudsman, which also said they can't do much with this as this is not consumer problem! This has to be resolved between local council and Optus. We are currently using mobile broadband which we informed Optus that they will need to reimburse the cost of that till the services are up again. I'm really gobsmacked as to how much time it takes for large companies to organise to fix a fault. We live in Metro area (Western Sydney).

Is this common elsewhere?

Yey!! Finally its working after 47 days.

Poll Options expired

  • 2
    Very Common in Metro area
  • 3
    Rare in Metro area
  • 13
    It does happen now and then
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Comments

  • spackbace on 02/04/2018 - 15:56
    -3

    K…

  • mysterytal on 02/04/2018 - 16:06
    +8

    As long as they agree to subsidize the mobile broadband costs by supplying a mobile broadband SIM and device with the same data allowance as you would normally use on the home broadband then it's not so bad.

    I would expect that if I were paying a big provider such as Optus or Telstra.

    That is one benefit with going with an ISP that also has a mobile broadband offering.

    • iseenya on 02/04/2018 - 16:43
      +1

      That was exactly what Optus did for me a year of so back, when something broke in the local exchange and my Optus ADSL2 connection was lost for about a week.

  • itsdougie on 02/04/2018 - 16:14
    +1

    I would be more upset at the Garbo for not paying attention.

    • deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 16:43

      They did inform to their supervisor when they noticed it and it's been like that for some time. It was bound to happen.

    • [Deactivated] on 02/04/2018 - 16:59

      They already previously reported it, the garbo guy hit it on purpose. I think it's about time to put your bin in difficult positions, make their life difficult.

  • whooah1979 on 02/04/2018 - 16:19
    +1

    a cable dangling dangerously low

    A coaxial cable isn’t dangerous unless someone start playing hangman with it.

    • deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 16:44

      Thanks for clarifying. Does that mean, it still needs to be done by guys who install / handle electricity cables?

      • altomic on 02/04/2018 - 17:06

        it won't be carrying high voltage. or significant voltage. it's like a phone cable.

        • deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 17:17

          Hmm. I Wonder then, why Optus would not fix this themselves.

        • pjcook on 03/04/2018 - 07:39
          +1

          @deepdag: Because OPTUS do not own the poles. As the poles also carry power lines there would have to be actions taken to make the area safe for the workers.

  • try2bhelpful on 02/04/2018 - 17:26
    +1

    All this sort of cabling should be done through conduit. One of the more obnoxious things Government did was to allow Optus cables to be strung that low. The amount of butchering they have done to trees to accomodate with form of delivery is awful.

  • original15 on 02/04/2018 - 20:53
    +1

    who are you most displeased with?:
    Local garbo
    Optus
    Local Council
    Electricity company
    Telecommunications Ombudsmen

    Is it just optus who you call every day?
    (FWIW i'm not an optus customer but i do think "thanks to optus" in the title as if the situation is their fault is a bit much..)

    • deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 21:39

      My services are with Optus so obviously I would expect Optus to fix the issue. So if they can’t fix the fault at least should update their customer when they expect to resolve this not just “There is no update on this issue & we can’t tell you anymore” for more than two weeks.
      I don’t need to call them anymore as Endevour energy which operates electricity in the area has informed us when they will fix the cable. Their response to my online query was super fast. I contacted them on Sunday night by filling their form & next day by 10am their representative informed me when their men will arrive to fix the cable. Optus didn’t know about this even though it was their cable until we informed them.

  • resisting the urge on 02/04/2018 - 21:38
    +1

    Not sure what it has to do w the electricity company, were their wires were damaged too?

    Optus cable is being turned off as part of NBN. Maintenance is probably de-prioritised already (ended, sunsetted, other corporate BS designed to tell you to go away). How long before NBN arrives? Maybe move to Telstra and get their new 4G modem, it fails over when there is no Telstra cable/NBN present, so may work for you well in the meantime.

    • deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 21:42

      Optus cable uses electricity poles to connect in the street. We are 6-12 months away with NBN. BTW, our neighbor’s Telstra connection is working fine 🙄

      • resisting the urge on 02/04/2018 - 21:43

        Yes but they have no obligation to fix the HFC wires, only the pole. The pole is undamaged, so what has it to do with the electricity co?

        • deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 21:46

          Agree with you and was wondering myself why Optus needs Electricity provider to fix the cable.

        • resisting the urge on 02/04/2018 - 21:48
          +1

          @deepdag: They do not. Suggest you go move a better ISP using ADSL, or Telstra cable.

  • p1 ama on 02/04/2018 - 21:43
    +3

    What you're saying is so illogical it makes no sense.

    I've read your post a few times now and I can't seem to see what exactly it is that Optus is doing wrong. Garbage truck comes along and (through no fault of Optus) hits one of their lines and breaks it. Obviously this is not the fault of Optus.

    Now from what you're saying, you called Optus and they sent out a technician to do what they can, but beyond that it's out of their control. That's fair enough. They are now reimbursing you with an alternative service (mobile broadband). What else do you want them to do?

    I'm not defending Optus by any means, I'm no fan of them either, but I'm not sure what you expect in this situation.

    • deepdag on 02/04/2018 - 21:48

      Thanks for taking time out to read the post. At the moment I’m just trying to find if it’s common to have such a long delay in fixing the cable. So the poll above.

    • ozbjunkie on 03/04/2018 - 08:51
      +1

      Isn't part of the problem that Optus were informed that their cable was too low, and did nothing? At least, that was my reading …

      • deepdag on 03/04/2018 - 12:29

        Thats right. I would expect one would care about their assets. It's not just me who has lost the Internet and Home phone. There are 3-4 homes in the street which have lost the internet and phone.

  • PlasticSpaceman on 03/04/2018 - 08:30
    +4

    Optus rent the space for the cable, and should be able to repair the cable themselves. I suspect it's more the case they need to hire/get a lift and it's cheaper for them to get the power company to do that so are simply waiting for the power company to get around to saying they have one available. Basically, they are trying to save some money, and you're suffering for it.

    Now for some extra stuff:

    1. "We are currently using mobile broadband which we informed Optus that they will need to reimburse the cost of that till the services are up again" - ok, that's a potential issue unless they have agreed to that. Broadband is not a right, so the best they would normally do would be to either provide you with a mobile modem as a temporary solution or provide a credit that can be applied later to your service.

    2. "Without Home Phone and Home Internet for 38 Days" - this is where it gets interesting because you are getting your home phone through it. Phone companies must meet minimum service requirements including repairs for faults. Check the CSG (https://www.acma.gov.au/theACMA/customer-service-guarantee-f…). The fault should have been fixed within one working day of the issue being reported. Optus can possibly claim exemption under the MSD (Mass Service Disruption) clause where damage has been caused by a third party, but I suspect that would be a little dodgy given that it's unlikely to have disrupted many customers.

    Assuming you can claim under the CSG, and Optus have not provided (or offered to provide) you with an alternative service, then you can claim $14.52 per day for the first five working days you have been without a phone service. So that's $72.60. Then it's $48.40 per day after that. So 38 days less 6 days = 32 days, so 32 * $48.40 = $1,548.80. So that's a total so far of $1,621.40

    Now, Optus may claim that things are out of their control because the damage was caused by a third party etc etc etc but I strongly suspect that they are trying to save some money by "speaking with local electricity provider to help fix the cable" most likely to arrange that lift equipment that would otherwise be expensive to hire. If they do claim a MSD exemption, then ask for proof that they have contacted customers as required.

    Write to Optus - email is fine - and state that you have been without services for 38 days. Quote dates - when the outage happened, when they were contacted by you. Ask for a firm date when services are to be restored, and state that you wish to claim compensation under the CSG. They may come back with a counter offer, stating MSD exemption etc, so that's where you can choose to accept that or argue the case to get a better offer. FWIW I had an extended outage with Optus, and they claimed that a lot of it was due to a MSD (that was quite clearly not the case) and provided an initial lowball offer, they ended up with a second offer providing credit back to me via the CSG as well as credit for when the service was not working that resulted in our not having to pay for internet/phone for about a year.

    • deepdag on 03/04/2018 - 12:35

      Thank you very much for the detailed information PlasticSpaceman. Wow, never knew anything like this existed.

  • blawler05 on 03/04/2018 - 08:56
    +4

    You say it includes phone line.

    It it billed to you as a fixed line rental? Not a Voip service

    If so then it falls under the ACMA Telecommunications service guarantee.

    https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2011C00791

    Section 11.2

    If the site is in an urban centre with a population equal to or greater than 10 000 people, the guaranteed maximum rectification period ends at the end of the first full working day after the carriage service provider receives the report of a fault or service difficulty made by the customer

    Check your bill, and then report it as your phone line is out, not your internet service, and you expect it to be rectified within 1 working day, as per ACMA guidelines.

    • deepdag on 03/04/2018 - 12:31

      Thanks for the tips blawler05.

  • TransportPosters on 03/04/2018 - 09:23

    Almost as bad as the 16 days I had to wait for home phone and internet when I moved into a new house, because Optus techs had to wait on Telstra techs to do something first and the Telstra techs were all booked out for two weeks.

  • Slippage on 03/04/2018 - 12:18
    +1

    It happens, it sucks, you will be reimbursed for the outage.

    Get a prepaid 4g sim and a modem/hotspot that accepts it, to hold you over.

  • scooba on 03/04/2018 - 13:11

    I wonder if this has anything to do with the investors/shareholders of these companies??

    • deepdag on 03/04/2018 - 13:21

      🤣

      • scooba on 03/04/2018 - 13:23

        Lol ok, it was a serious question though😬.

        • deepdag on 03/04/2018 - 14:33

          I guess, Cost cutting and savings will definately increase shareholder's profit but as all big companies now a days don't look at just financial returns. They are big on CSR.

          I think it will be more as quoted above by resisting the urge

          "Optus cable is being turned off as part of NBN. Maintenance is probably de-prioritised already (ended, sunsetted, other corporate BS designed to tell you to go away)|

        • scooba on 05/04/2018 - 13:14
          +1

          @deepdag: When I was getting NBN connected last year the ISP I was going with told me it would take 7 to 30 days to get it connected & it did take 30. I was talking to a friend who’s an electrician during that time & said that 30 days seemed ridiculous. He went on to tell me the reason the ISP’s say up to 30 days is they are looking for the cheapest technician to do the job & will expect them go the same day for as little money as they can get away with. So the techs will only accept the job if they are already in the area working as then it will be an extra couple of bucks for them.

          Thanks investor/shareholders…..thanks.

        • deepdag on 05/04/2018 - 22:12

          @scooba:

        • deepdag on 06/04/2018 - 09:59

          @scooba: Makes sense

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