folks,
been obliged to re-sign up to pipex 8Mb max (phone disconnected while abroad, but old pipex account still active, and then told that BT had removed adsl from the line which turned out to be a pack of lies).

anyway, ordered 8Mb Max on the 22/11/06. couldn't connect until the 30/11/06.
connection now keeps dropping, and getting very poor speeds, not least the traffic shaping which is capping everything at 20kB/s.
now been told that have to wait for 10 days for 'line stablilsation', however, the speed and connection is so poor and intermittent that i wish to cancel the account - question is, what is the 'cooling off' period, and when does it run from? - having signed up for up to 8Mb and told that my line can handle 6.5Mb at 28 quid i am more than a bit pissed off that the speed is so poor.
are they in breach of contract in that they are not providing the service that i have signed up for? or will i have to stick with them for a year?

cheers in advance for any thoughts...

When you first connect to BT's Max service they do have a period where they test exactly what your line can handle. If you are getting speeds of 20kb/s then obviously that is really quite low although I would check if that is up or downstream as the upstream max speed is still only 256kb or 512kb which is between 30kb and 60kb when you are transfering up to the internet and not downloading.

6.5mb isnt bad really for BT's max package. You wont get a better speed from any other company that use's BT's network. An LLU provider or a cable provider might be able to get you a little higher speed but it wont be the full 8mb. I live less about 500 meters from my exchange and I get 7.5mb although I am on Bulldog's LLU network. It does greatly depend on the distance you are from your local telephone exchange.

They are not technically in breach of contract as the 8mb speed is sold as "up to 8mb" meaning most people wont actually get that speed. If you need clarification on that I suggest you read the terms and conditions of the account you signed up for.

Its also possible your home wiring is dodgy, have you tried unplugging everything except for your broadband connection and the filter? You may notice a good speed boost if you remove other devices from your line. Try plugging the filter straight into the main connection into the house and see if that helps. If you are feeling really annoyed you could try taking the faceplate off the telephone socket (only the bottom part) and plugging your filter straight into the connection coming into your house.

Also it might be worth checking your broadband's control panel is you are using a modem or your routers control panel if you have a router. You will see noise and attenuation figures for your connection on there. as a general rule you should have around these figures.

Upstream Noise (dB): ~11
Downstream Noise (dB): ~25


If you have really high numbers then its possible there is a problem with the line.

---

'Now, I have become Death, the destroyer of worlds.'

thanks for the prompt reply.

home wiring fine - changed microfilters etc.
took off faceplate at BT point

- alas, still no change.
upstream and downstream noise both 6dB on the netgear DG834G router, which was fine in the past.


i realise that the phrase UP TO 8Meg may well mean not to expect 8Meg, but i think getting speeds of 300k is a bit out of order.

any thoughts on this 'cooling off period'? - ordered 22/1106 - working on 30/11/06 - line being 'stablised' right now.
so could one argue that i still am not receiving the service that i am paying for?
am i now stuck for 11 1/2 months on an expensive tariff with a very poor connection speed?

wouldn't have minded so much, but the only reason i signed up for a new contract was because the previous internet account (with pipex) had been discontinued.

thanks again

dv

Is that 300k when you are downloading?

You have to remember that download and upload speeds are measured in kilobits per second. You connection speed of 8mb is measured in megabits.

There are 8 bits in a byte, 1024 bytes in a megabyte.

So...

300kb downloading speed is actually = 300 * 8 = 2.4mb

This is obviously much lower than the 8mb connection speed you have ordered although if the noise on your line is only 6dB then you have a very good phone line. I would imagine that the speed will increase when the cooling off period has passed.

It is likely that they will increase the speed slowly until you start receiving CRC errors or Loss Of Signal. You can check for both of those in your modem / routers control panel. You will get some errors no matter what, sadly it happens with ADSL a lot but in general is not noticable. You could try calling your ISP and asking them to increase the speed while you are on the phone, some ISP's can do this and you could keep doing it till you have problems.

I am with Bulldog and I did this with an engineer last week.


If I can help in any other way let me know.

---

'Now, I have become Death, the destroyer of worlds.'

interesting - the 300k is the downstream when doing the speed test on thinkbroadband.com

and that is the maxium it has been since i started.

usually it ranges between 15 and about 100.

have rung the isp, but i am still within the stabilisation period, so have to wait until that has passed.

of course by then, any 'cooling off period' will well and truly have gone.

and most annoyed that they are traffic shaping - something that was NOT mentioned upon ordering the service on the phone, but of course is in the T & C on their website.

thanks for the assistance - few other bits to try, but most annoying when the connection and speed are so unreliable.

need to get out of this contract quick quick - when asking for mac code they said they would charge over 300 quid ! what's that all about?

cheers

dwightvesuvius:

need to get out of this contract quick quick - when asking for mac code they said they would charge over 300 quid ! what's that all about?

cheers

You have signed a 12-month contract and if you cancel early you have to pay for the balance, unless you can make a case for the contract having been broken by Pipex.

You have signed a 12-month contract and if you cancel early you have to pay for the balance, unless you can make a case for the contract having been broken by Pipex.

Indeed, if you can make a case for you not receiving the service you have purchased or the fact that the connection is so bad its almost unusable then you could just cancel the contract and say they broke the terms.

You dont actually need a MAC code to switch, you can get BT to disconnect the line for you although you maybe without broadband for a longer period of time if you do that.

---

'Now, I have become Death, the destroyer of worlds.'

interesting.

i think i shall persue the avenue of them not providing the service that was stated.

shame, that i was with them for 4 years previously, with no problems, and the only reason i foolishly signed up to another 12 month contract was because BT apparantley 'ceased the line'
about to speak to BT to see what they have to say on the matter

cheers for the assistance.

i will not be impressed to be obliged to stay with these cretins for another 11 and a half months

You could try talking to Pipex tech support and ask them to try the line with you on the phone to get a decent speed.

If it is an 8mb connection you have and it really is that slow then its definatly not your fault. Do you use a lot of bandwidth or transfer a lot of files etc? Its possible they have stuck you on a different connection because you have exceeded the AUP bandwidth cap.

---

'Now, I have become Death, the destroyer of worlds.'

Not sure if they are in breach but had same problem like you agreed to continue service and upgrade to 8mb having been told by there
customer service guy I had 10 days to cancell if not happy. My account should hae gone live on the 8th sept 2006 it finally went live on the 10th running at 4mb then on the 12th was upped to the 8mb but still running slower than a dialup!!
I decided at that point i was not staying with them, I sent an email to there cancellation dept requesting urgent contact. I had no call back so the next day I then followed up with second email and finally still no reply by 3rd day i sent email and letter. wek later and no joy plus two attempts to contact by phone and had that put down!!
finally got through by the second week!! and was told by there customer sevrvice they had only recieved one email then dienied all knolledge and told eme I had to prove it!!

what can i say i cancelled my direct debt and waited for them to scream!!

icarusdragon:Not sure if they are in breach but had same problem like you agreed to continue service and upgrade to 8mb having been told by there
customer service guy I had 10 days to cancell if not happy. My account should hae gone live on the 8th sept 2006 it finally went live on the 10th running at 4mb then on the 12th was upped to the 8mb but still running slower than a dialup!!
I decided at that point i was not staying with them, I sent an email to there cancellation dept requesting urgent contact. I had no call back so the next day I then followed up with second email and finally still no reply by 3rd day i sent email and letter. wek later and no joy plus two attempts to contact by phone and had that put down!!
finally got through by the second week!! and was told by there customer sevrvice they had only recieved one email then dienied all knolledge and told eme I had to prove it!!

what can i say i cancelled my direct debt and waited for them to scream!!

quick question - when you cancelled the direct debit with them, did they not send round debt collectors etc. - are you in breach of contract by not paying?

thinking of doing the same, and switching to zen or nildram - but then i note that nildram is owned by them!
what a farce...

No

I got a call having recieveda number of staments froma young lady who assured me it would be sorted out and baring in mind by this point i no longer had a telephone number with them it had been transfered. But they were stil biling me!!
My account for the broadband was dead so work that one out!!

Since then i have spoken to a senior customer service member who could not belive the goings on and agin said it would be sorted and a final stament sent out as I refused to pay over the telephone on the grounds that they woul just keep billing me unless i had proof of a final statment. I refused to pay the added cost of £25 which was a late payment charge!!!
the latest is i have recieved a credit agency collection notice for £40 who i have contacted and explained the reasons of the action and agreed with them I will pay by cheque and want a reciept to prove it is a finall statment and that willl be the end of it not bad for nearly 5 months to cancell!!

Well in that time I have at least spoken to approx 20 people about howw bad pipex s so they have lost 10 x that in potential custom :)

Hi, I have just posted my problems elsewhere in this forum

http://forum.moneysupermarket.com/forums/10/3929/ShowThread.aspx#3929

It seems that there are a lot of disgruntled Pipex users out there, the last point in my post was that maybe it would be worth setting up a forum solely to batter pipex - something along the lines of pipexsuck.co.uk or whypipexareuseless.co.uk - your input on this thread would be gratefully received. If I get enough response, I will set up a site for this purpose.

Extreme measures, but the more I read about this company, the more they seem to deserve it.

just read your predicament - i too am in a similar situation.

however, spoke to someone on the phone on friday who said to run pipex's own speedtest (not the adslguide one)

and then let them know the results after '24 hours'

at the end of the day, paying for unlimited 8Mb and getting speeds as you say 4-5kbps.

pointless attempting to run streaming video, downloading anything or even browsing to be honest.

oh, and the tech support guy said that they DO NOT do any traffic shaping or block any ports.

hmmm

that sounds like a pack of lies.

anyway, have screenshots of various ping tests and their own speedtests showing that my connection speed is so bloody slow.

will send them email on monday with all the info, and i shall basically give them 24 hours to sort it out - failing that, they are not supplying the service that i am paying for, would like my MAC code and will not be paying any cancellation fee at all.

absolutely staggered that these cretins can get away with this.

wasn't there a site called pipexwoe.co.uk and then it was changed to pipexwow, cause they were quite good a couple of years ago?

good luck

dv

Hi there

If you are still within your 7 days, cancel now. Beyond that, you will have to fight tooth and nail to get out of contract. People that manage to get out are the exception and not the rule.

I have been reading up on these idiots all evening on various forums, and I simply cannot believe the amount crap that they are putting users through.

If this company was a backstreet garage, or a holiday travel company, trading standards would have closed them down by now!

I have made up my mind. I am going to set up a site to batter them, and I hope that it gets a high enough indexing in google for them to sit up and take note.

I will post back.