Giving Three/Vodafone a serve

[stephbg]

I have just sent the following letter of complaint to my ISP Three regarding the collapse of their mobile broadband service following a merger with Vodafone. I don't do this sort of thing often; I find it exhausting, and that's starting from a position of already exhausted. Let's see what happens.



Dear Support person (whom I appreciate is not personally at fault - I hope *you* have a nice day)

I wish to complain in the strongest possible terms about the terrible mobile broadband service I am now receiving following the switch to Vodafone. It is abundantly clear that the issue is congestion, as the system becomes effectively unusable at peak times from the close of school (2:30-3:00pm) until midnight. At all other times it is merely outrageously slow. How slow? I've tried to run 3G network speed tests AND THEY ALL REPORT UPLOAD AND DOWNLOAD SPEEDS OF 0! If I'm lucky a web page will load, but it will take many minutes to do so.

Worse than dialup; this is no service at all. I have been a customer for many many years, and this is appalling.

I assure you I have reviewed all the hardware and software elements of my home network (located in [X]). It is not me. It is YOU.

I have two businesses to run and can do neither. At this point I believe my only option is to join a different ISP (possibly Telstra Bigpond, if you're interested).

I am, however, still within a 12 month contract with Three. Under these circumstances I believe I should be allowed to exit without penalty. I know that there have been many other complaints from disgruntled customers.

Please advise:

(1) Are you confident that the congestion problem will be solved promptly and efficiently? I'll give you a chance to respond.
(2) Will I be able to terminate my Three contract without penalty or exit costs for your breech of promise to provide service?

Thank you for your attention. I understand that the people responsible for the corporate merger which caused this problem are unlikely to see this message, and I appreciate the efforts of true Customer Service personnel to assist me.

But boy am I pissed.

Regards
[Me]

Comments

[splanky.livejournal.com]

If it comes to that call the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. The person I talked to was reallyl nice and helpful and in the face of indifference/hostility from a provider it was really nice to be told I had a legitimate case.

[redbraids.livejournal.com]

Nicely worded.

[ducts.livejournal.com]

It's possible that they could fix your problem with new hardware - their old 900/2100MHz network has been rusting away as they build an 850MHz network. Of course even the new 850Mhz network may not be adequate to your needs in your location, but they can give you a chance to test it.

If your phone or modem doesn't support 850MHz, it's cheaper than a TIO complaint for Vodafone to replace it with one that does to see if it helps. You may also need a new SIM, getting a SIM swapped is easy, but I'd concentrate on the first part as it's a longer term solution.

If it's a post paid plan, the new hardware should not be locked to the Vodafone network, though that can be fixed at https://unlock.vodafone.com.au/ - I would try to insist on all new hardware being delivered unlocked or being immediately provided with an unlock code: and use it, to test Optus/Telstra with the same hardware in the same location. You can get an unlock code for most devices cheaply on ebay without Vodafone's co-operation if it comes to that, but it's unethical that telcos are sometimes not taking the expectation of unlocked hardware for granted.

Tell us how it goes.

[jennyblackford.livejournal.com]

Yes - TIO. But they do like you to have lodged a formal complaint first - so you're well on your way. Good luck!!!

[kremmen.livejournal.com]

I am amazed how bad Vodafone can be, even in Melbourne. A few months ago, I got a cheap Red Bull Mobile SIM and tried it out in my 3G/wifi device when in the CBD. Red Bull, unfortunately, uses Vodafone's sorry excuse for a network. It dropped out a lot (sometimes within seconds, sometimes minutes) most of the day. Signal strength was fantastic, so that was definitely not an issue. After 1am, it tended to be ok. An amaysim SIM (using the Optus network) worked fine for hours at a time, any time of day.

Whatever they say, they won't fix their network any time soon, so I hope they'll let you out of the contract. (While your circumstance is unusual, I reckon the best way to avoid the problem is never to enter a long-term contract for such services.)