DON'T SIGN UP WITH SKY.

I was on Virgin broadband and getting a regular 2.2mb connection speed.

I signed up to Sky all inclusive deal phone/tv/broadband and regretted every step.

The Dish was installed after 2 missed apointments without apology or explanation.

We were without a land phone for a week on the change over from BT to Skytalk, again without any real explanation or apology.

The icing was the broadband though.

The router arrived weeks after we were supposed to be 'live' on Sky broadband, I asked if the tech's could just provide the user name and password as I was more than willing and capable of configuring my 'old' adsl modem to sky's settings but was told it was 'illegal' to do this. Since when?

So we waited and payed for a service that we were unable to use.

When the router did arrive (a netgear) it all connected wonderfully and I thought the woes were at an end, no such luck.

first it would randomly drop the connection so I went through the, painfully, tedious customer service centre and jumped through their scripted hoops like a good dumb dog should but to no good effect or resolution but did get moved up to a T3 technician who was Irish and so we at least spoke the same language.

In addition when it did connect the speed was agonizingly slow (384k), eventually my computer, the wiring and BT were all diagnosed as being the culprits even after BT had come out to look at the exchange and my household wiring.

I stumbled across a forum that showed you how to 'crack' the netgear router and get it to divulge your user name and password (this info is hardwired into the router just so you can't find out the info and use your own router/modem).

I promptly zapped the info into my speedtouch adsl modem and guess what my connection speed went up to 7.2mb!!

When I contacted the T3 technician, by this time we are on first name terms, (we are talking HOURS to get to this stage), and explained what I had done, and asked what Sky were going to do now I had conclusively proved that it was their shoddy router that had caused all of my problems.

Do you know what his reply was? don't make waves, if Sky found out they would cancel my contract and sue me for the remainder of the contract term fees, to always connect my Sky router when contacting customer support as they can tell if it's not being used, and BTW he uses a BT Voyager at his home even though he's on Skybroadband.

Wonderful

It cost a fortune to use their 'support' lines to find out nothing, to be insulted by ignorant people in a call centre who don't care, to be hung up on by the same people when I point out the script has already been completed many times to no effect, but a few minutes on a friends computer with google found a solution that has worked consistently for the last 10 months.

That means my contract is up, and I'm looking for a new provider but if anyone wants the crack for their router I'll post it.

Meanwhile, anyone recommend a good broadband service :)

kammelryder.

Thank God for someone talking from the same hymn sheet as me! I know nowt about mgb and such like but just know it shouldn't take me 20-30 mins to access my sky e mail, never had these probs with Ntl, Virgin, or ever faithful bt, if they'd just bring their prices down and be more competitive I'd never have moved from them. Basically when you live out in the sticks (ie 11 miles north of Glasgow) you're stuffed. Cos you aint got a lot of choice. My friend has a lap top she's with yahoo, she just opens it up and lo and behold 2 or 3 clicks later she's on her e mails, and she can't work a computer!!!! Keeps asking me where did I pick up all my knowledge (LOL) did I go on a computer course etc., etc., no says I picked it up from hubby, son, daughter etc., don't want to know all the ins and outs, just read and reply to my e mail. Enough said, but sky.com won't let me at a speed I should be able to.

Interesting.....

I signed up to Sky TV/phone/broadband in April this year, and although I had to have a replacement tv box (the first one was faulty) I found Sky very helpful and quick to sort out my problem.

I find the broadband quick and efficient. My son loves it on X-box Live, I spendmost of my day logged into eBay....

The phone is fine, the tv good, we all have our favourite channels.

Need i say more??

All I can say Penny is "Congratulations", if I was the only person I knew who had had the problems I posted about I'd just expect it was bad karma or some such other superstitious nonsense, but every person I know who signed up to the all inclusive package (15) had problems from the small, having to move the router closer to the main socket which only took 4 hours of calls to fix, to the larger problems like mine, no-one is happy with the netgear box's, no-one is getting the 8mb promised even when like me you live next door to the exchange, no-one who's called the 'helpline' is happy with the way they treat you, slam the phone down on you, cut you off mid sentence, etc.

Any way this isn't news, google sky customer care service and you'll find a raft of bloggers with tales of woe.

*Vent mode off*

Kammelryder.

I'll have the crack for the router please (after 6 months of tearing my hair out over Sky Broadband too, with exactly the same problems as you have been having) ... you know what they say, if a deal seems to be to good to be true ... it normally is ... But a way around it would be much appreciated!

As I'm always busy I never have the time to get involved in forums such as this. However, on this occassion I felt compelled to write a few words having experienced the worst standard of customer service imaginable.

I've had the full Sky HD package for a year now including broadband/line rental. Things were OK (depite the fact that the Sky HD box crashed every once in a while) until I moved house and attempted to take Sky with me. I made the initial call to inform Sky approx one month ago & I'm still waiting for date confirmation re. set up at the new address. I have waisted literally hours of my time attempting to get any sense out of their so called Customer Services dept. The majority of the individuals seem to have no idea what they are doing & the lucky few who appeared to have an IQ higher than a pizza seem to be so overburdened that they are incapable of offering assistance of any real worth.

I eventually found out that it takes a minimum of one month from your initial notification to receive a call back to arrange set up - not acceptable. After 5 weeks they have just started to contact me. The first attempted took place over a week ago. They said that as they hadnt been able to get through (they only tried one of the three numbers given) & that I would be put back on the 'list for call back'. I expect that, if I'm lucky, it will be another month before any further contact is made but in all likelyhood it will probably take at least another year.

Having had my fill of rants, cut-offs & cretins I have now arranged to have broadband & line rental set up through Virgin so Sky have lost some business. Sadly, I won't be able to kick them completely into touch as there is no cable service available at the new address & as much as they have flabbergasted me with their incompetence I'm not going to cut my nose off to spite my face and go without a full sports package...

PS Virgin have been incredibly efficient (so far.....)

all i can say is i am glad its not just me who has suffered the awful service by SKY - the only benefit i can think of is that by now i could probably go through the scripted remedies off by heart and it MAY help in the future at some point.

Just cancelled with SKY and going with O2 instead

Sky going to O2 - You may have seen the current post where the poster details an appalling experience with O2 and I detail a brilliant one. As I keep saying the Government should insist that BB companies sort things out in days and pay hefty compensation AND are only allowed to impose one month contracts etc... The new financial rules as of Nov 1 put the accent on banks to prove fraud didn't happen etc so things can happen.. I wish we could all band together and form a unit that would have the power to hurt the bad companies in immediate financial terms and longer term in image terms. Oh well... dream on.