BT > Reviews (233)

Please note that this review is written based on my own experience.

I am quite surprised to find out that some people actually have a pleasant experience with BT. It is to my knowledge that BT used to be quite affordable and efficient but nowadays, the quality of the services BT are offering have plummeted drastically. Unfortunately, in the UK, BT landline is an essential for anyone to be able to subscribe to the broadband serivces available.

For those who are not aware, it costs a whooping £125 to get your BT landline activated nowadays. I think it only used to be £50 so i am not sure why the sudden 250% rise in service charge. Basically, all the engineers need to do is just to come and activate the BT box in your house or along the corridor. It could be as simple as pushing the right button (no wiring or networking involved).This is a real problem for someone who moves around the country frequently e.g. myself. Even though you are given the option of keeping the number when you move, you still face the possibility of having to pay another activation charge at the new place. Anyway, this doesn't really bother me that much because i do understand that the engineers earn a living out of this (i still do think that the 250% increase is unjust).

What really drives me nuts is BT's customer service. I initially placed an order for activation of my BT landline online as it offers cheaper landline rental (only 50P cheaper). Also, it costs a fortune to ring them from a mobile as you are usually put on hold for `2 million years'. I heard nothing from them for 2 weeks so i decided to contact them to see what's going on. I called them numerous time but unfortunately, none of the operators know what;s going on and you will always be cut off `accidentally' at some point. Disgruntled, I gave up and decided to place the order through the phone which you'll find that they do pick up the phone a lot quicker. I supposed it is the only department which functions properly, picking up new order.

I was informed that i would hear from them in the next 48 hours but surprise, surprise, i did not hear from them for another 4 weeks. I obviously tried to chase it up again but to no avail. Out of the blue, i got an email from BT online team saying they have found my online application for a new BT line and whether i still want to proceed with the order. It took them 8 weeks to actually aknowledge my order! Given my phone order was already in process, i cancelled my online order.

I gave them several calls and finally, one of the operator managed to inform me that an engineer will come visiting in 1 week time. In fairness to the engineer, he did turn up on the day and activated my line. For anyone who doesn't know, you don't have to be present on the day if your BT box is in a communal area. Mine is outside my apartment so i have no idea when the BT engineer turned up. All i did was keep trying my home phone until it actually worked.

So far, I don't have any problem with the quality of my landline.

It is very good in fact. The range of services e.g. call waiting/recording is standard as you would expect. In term of landline rental, it is roughly the same among most companies. You can sign up for other landline which offers free broadband e.g talk talk which obviously would be much cheaper. however, if you are new customer to BT, you have a minimum 12 month contract with them which means you have to pay £70 cancellation fee if you decide to switch landline provider.

Sorry about the ranting but do learn one lesson - if you want to install/ activate your new BT landline, be prepared to wait at least 8-10 weeks (only used to be 1-2 weeks at most). Customer services are extremely poor and this just made me think why can't BT hire more personnels to tackle the problem. It is true that they do not have any equivalent rival at present and everyone are pretty much stuck with them. Apparently, talking to other consumers, customer services for broadband/vision are much better.

Thank you for reading and please share your experience in the comments if any.