View Full Version : Lazy Installer!!
Well, just got off the phone to mother in Peterborough and to be honest I'm not impressed. She was due a V+ and SACM install after moving onto the VIP package (after being told to by me since it was actually no more expensive than her current package costs) and the installer rolled up last week.
To start with the SACM has beeen installed on 2 ft of cable and left by the side of the telly due to the installer being to idle to install it by the PC on the other side of the room. Thankfully while I lived there I ran an ethernet cable round the skirting from the telly to the PC as we were plugged into the STB for BB up till now. Obviously this means that not only can the SACM not be moved but it is sat on the floor getting hot and covered in dog hair during the day (dog sheds like crazy and the poor old Dyson takes a daily beating lol). Not a good start.
Second problem, V+ box installed downstairs but installer refused to swap the Shiny Samsung downstairs with the old Pace box upstairs stating he HAD to take that box away as it was on his sheet. Surely one box is just the same as the other as long as they correct the account details????
3rd and most annoying of the problem..... some how, even though it was not touched during the install, the second box no longer has any channels other than the terrestrial channels 1-5. Now a phone call was made, the card number for that box was given (I do wonder if the wrong card number is now removed from the account) and the box was supposedly re-hit.
Guess what.... no package on the second box and no promised call back :(
Lazy installers like this will cause VM no end of trouble and they need sacking to be honest, taking shortcuts causes no end of problems when they mess up like this. Now we have to try and find out if the second box (which has been working perfectly for years now up till the VIP package take up) is actually registered against the account properly and we have to find out what has been messed up to stop the package channels being available on it. Then we need to get an engineer or installer back out to move the SACM to where it should be by the PC as it's currently in a very stupid position and will probably end up getting damaged where it is.
Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Anyone know when CS/ TS are open next or maybe someone kind can offer to pass the old dears details on ;)
That is really stupid of the installer to just leave the SACM on the floor plugged in the wrong place. Can't believe he took the Samsung box away instead of the Pace box.
:td:
Well, when I had V+ installed, the engineer came and installed a shiny new Virgin 255 cable modem as well, despite the fact that I have cancelled Broadband and told him so.
Very helpfully connnected it via a splitter and a foot and a half of cable. At least he managed to install it in the TV cabinet though (the cable he left isn't long enough for anything else), and he even had to plug the splitter directly into the back of the v+
You cancelled your broadband and they gave you a new modem?! :confused:
That is really stupid of the installer to just leave the SACM on the floor plugged in the wrong place. Can't believe he took the Samsung box away instead of the Pace box.
:td:
Erm that's nothing...... the brand new V+ box is also sat on the floor..... next to the SACM ;) Like I said.... lazy installer.
Yep..
LOLLL How stupid! :erm:
papa smurf
08-04-2007, 21:25
THESE INSTALLERS ARE ALL CONTRACTORS ,no one who actually works for vm would give them the time of day ,if you think they got it wrong in your mums house you should see what they do out in the field,and please never confuse an engineer ,with a cowboy
Nedkelly
08-04-2007, 22:25
Paul i take it your mum has rang up to complain :td:
NTLVictim
08-04-2007, 23:32
THESE INSTALLERS ARE ALL CONTRACTORS ,no one who actually works for vm would give them the time of day ,if you think they got it wrong in your mums house you should see what they do out in the field,and please never confuse an engineer ,with a cowboy
This all has a weary familiarity to it, from the punters' perspective..
If these contractors are no good, why are they being employed????
Paul i take it your mum has rang up to complain :td:
First time she rang up they said they would re-hit the box and call back...... guess what the outcome of that was. I've told her to keep calling and if she gets no joy I will do it as hopefully my name is still listed in the account notes. Oh and yes I am aware that they are contractors as that is exactly what I told her ;)
papa smurf
09-04-2007, 10:31
This all has a weary familiarity to it, from the punters' perspective..
If these contractors are no good, why are they being employed????
££Ã ¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚£Ãƒâ€šÃ‚£Ã‚£ ££Ã ¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚£Ãƒâ€šÃ‚£OR$$$$$$$....ITS ALL ABOUT SAVING MONEY
False economy though when 9 out of 10 times they then have to send someone out to sort it properly :(
Well mother got through to VM, they have re-hit the box and she has to wait and see if that works..... again. Oh and they will see what they can do about the install but they don't think there is anything wrong with it..... WTF?
Edit:
Well suprise suprise the 3rd re-hit on the box has failed to change anything and no call back about the install either. Dunno why I am suprised by any of this. Looks like another phone call tomorrow and if it carries on a complaint will be going in.
Another day, another update
Second box is now showing all channels but no-one seems to be making any effort to sort out the SACM that is currently residing on the floor due to 2ft of cable. Well I suppose it only took 2 days to sort the first issue out :(
regarding the box swap, when we had the v+ box installed, our installer phoned vm up and asked which box he was meant to take away (as both were silver samsungs). so i don't know if that means its not up to the installer and he cant change it or not
One stb will have been set to disconnect to change it out with the V+ box so they must take that box away or the one that they do leave will be the disconnected one, which will then be no more than a dust collector.
savvychels
16-04-2007, 14:53
My installer didn't have a pre-set box he was to take. When he set up the V+ he gave the details of the box he was removing along with the details of the V+ box that was replacing it. There were some pairing issues that ended up being dealt with a couple of days later, but as far as which box to take as long as the installer gives the correct details I don't see what it matters which one they take. Esp if it means leaving the customer with the most current version and therefore leaving them happier. I'd have had a FIT if they'd tried to take away the Samsung and leave me with the Pace.
just had V+ installed on Friday.. he connected it up to our widescreen TV, very hard to miss and when he showed me the picture on the EPG i said it wasn't very clear and it was still in 4:3 mode but he never changed that at all.. now I know how to go into the settings and put this on 16:9 and RGB but i think there are 1000s out there with shiny new HD TVs and the like all configured wrong because the installed can't be bothered to change the setting to widescreen
Paul, if this still isn't sorted, can you PM me your mum's details (name, address, account number) and a contact phone number. I'll see about passing this on.
Acropolis
20-04-2007, 10:25
THESE INSTALLERS ARE ALL CONTRACTORS ,no one who actually works for vm would give them the time of day ,if you think they got it wrong in your mums house you should see what they do out in the field,and please never confuse an engineer ,with a cowboy
Granted there are a lot of bad engineers out there, both contractors and in-house, but I cant agree with what you have said there. I have worked both contract and in-house installing for Telewest and NTL, and i was never like that when i was contract, the job was done properly and quickly and always worked properly (as far as it could on NTL's network anyway) Only once did i ever recieve a call back to a job i had done, and when i met the installs manager from NTL out there, he agreed with was nothing i had done wrong and that the customer had changed their mind since the install, and agreed to log it as another job so i would get paid for moving it. I was doing somewhere in the region of 14 jobs a day. Then i was made a supervisor, and i made sure that the same high standards applied to my crews, and anyone who didnt measure was got rid of, bloody quickly.
But i have come accross in-house techs with just the same attitude, who cant be bothered to do the job for what ever reason, and when they do it normally takes them an age to do, cause it dont really make any difference to their take home. With the contracting firm that i worked for, if an ELF (early life failure) was reported within 7 days of the job going in, then you didnt get paid for it, so it benefits to do the job properly in the first place really. We did go through a stage where a lot of jobs were coming back in, but this was put down to NTL network problems with the phone system.
So yes there are bad contractors out there, but there are also good ones, and i dont think it is fair to bad mouth all of them, just remember in-house techs aren't always perfect either.
on in an hour!
20-04-2007, 10:53
Granted there are a lot of bad engineers out there, both contractors and in-house, but I cant agree with what you have said there. I have worked both contract and in-house installing for Telewest and NTL, and i was never like that when i was contract, the job was done properly and quickly and always worked properly (as far as it could on NTL's network anyway) Only once did i ever recieve a call back to a job i had done, and when i met the installs manager from NTL out there, he agreed with was nothing i had done wrong and that the customer had changed their mind since the install, and agreed to log it as another job so i would get paid for moving it. I was doing somewhere in the region of 14 jobs a day. Then i was made a supervisor, and i made sure that the same high standards applied to my crews, and anyone who didnt measure was got rid of, bloody quickly.
But i have come accross in-house techs with just the same attitude, who cant be bothered to do the job for what ever reason, and when they do it normally takes them an age to do, cause it dont really make any difference to their take home. With the contracting firm that i worked for, if an ELF (early life failure) was reported within 7 days of the job going in, then you didnt get paid for it, so it benefits to do the job properly in the first place really. We did go through a stage where a lot of jobs were coming back in, but this was put down to NTL network problems with the phone system.
So yes there are bad contractors out there, but there are also good ones, and i dont think it is fair to bad mouth all of them, just remember in-house techs aren't always perfect either. well said acropolis,i too installed for four and a half years for the contractor,2 man,single man,business, and approached every install as if i was doing my own house, i too went on to supervise crews who i tried to coach in my way( 1 tech used to leave all his crap behind the t.v. i would collect it for a week then dump it on the drivers seat in the van on a monday,it soon stopped!) i have been in-house 8 years now and some of the guys i used to install with are still here and considered the cream.the biggest problem we have is the training is just not good enough or long enough,stories of 2 weeks in a classroom then a van and 12 jobs!!! ridiculous.when they do put them with a 2 man crew the crew arent specifically a training crew so have their full quota of jobs,as a result the trainee is used as a joey and only sees all the bad practices employed by certain crews,then hey presto when the trainee goes out he knows all the blags.put them on day rate i hear you say,great idea only the lead times will fly out as with the in-house installers it doesnt affect your take home.quality checks are the only way forward if chucking guys up to the front line unprepared is the order of the day.supers should be out there by 9am looking after these guys,russel holmes(excuse me while i bow) used to have us doing 100% q.c. on all our crews,no questions asked.as a super you are a coach,get out there and coach,instead of tossing it off in the office playing with V+ box and scoffing 'breakfast on a bin-lid'.these new guys need help and encouragement,not just constant slagging about situations theyve been forced into which are out of their control.(having said all that there are some real tosspots out there!!)
One thing that i did notice, was i wanst asked to sign off for the install.
Wouldn;t you get more success if the client had to sign off?
on in an hour!
20-04-2007, 12:12
the sub does sign to say that whas supposed to been installed has but theres no'is all to your satisfaction sir/madam,if so would you pls sign this to say you are happy,i dont know if it happens anymore but a post install q.c. used to be done by phone.
the sub does sign to say that whas supposed to been installed has but theres no'is all to your satisfaction sir/madam,if so would you pls sign this to say you are happy,i dont know if it happens anymore but a post install q.c. used to be done by phone.
You sure?
I never signed anything to say that it was installed, nor did i sign anything to say that the repair was done.
on in an hour!
20-04-2007, 14:17
could be different where you are awibble but i know they leave a signed paper with the sub up here as i see so many when i go to post install faults,the inks still wet on most of them:D
lol... wonder if thats just ex-ntl areas? Seems like a perfect idea to me, as i wont sign things like that unless im happy.
Paul, if this still isn't sorted, can you PM me your mum's details (name, address, account number) and a contact phone number. I'll see about passing this on.
Will do, she's been promised a call back twice now that never occured. I'll drop you a PM tonight or tomorrow with the information.
:tu:
on in an hour!
21-04-2007, 09:17
lol... wonder if thats just ex-ntl areas? Seems like a perfect idea to me, as i wont sign things like that unless im happy.
ex ntl,ex C & W,ex NYNEX,ex Cablevision!!! christ im all ex'ed out,but it would make sense,if you have a suite delivered for example,the guy wouldnt want to leave without you signing to say it was delivered in good nick cause it would be on his toes if you complained after it was damaged in transit,and therein lies the difference,some installers dont give a toss how many times you might have to call back for poor installation issues,theyre off, onto their next job,in their mission to blow the face off a brick at every house in britain:p:
Nedkelly
21-04-2007, 16:07
Paul has this been sorted yet ?:)
As for installers yes there are good ones out there .As some of you have said its about trainning they learn about it in the class room then go out with a tech for a couple of days and get told nah dont bother with that .In this area if inhouse did a bad install the supervisor would be on there backs all day checking there work .But in VM the techs know that there is not a lot of quality control being done so they know they will get away with it :mad: Some of the stuff they do now we would of, not got away with it when i was a insataller :disturbd: We used to get 1 to 2 jobs a day inspected by a supervisor
Nope :( Am now hoping Stu can escalate the issue as to be honest my parents are fed up with having to be careful when closing the front curtains since the box is sat right in the way.
Well, Stu is getting another PM I'm afraid, mother was contacted by the guy in charge of installations who asked what was wrong with the install, mother told him the modem was on 2ft of cable and was actually installed 20ft away from the PC where it couldn't be seen and he agreed it wasn't installed right.
Trouble is they then sent out the same installer who spent 20 minutes arguing with mother saying "But why do you want it moved? You don't have to see the box or touch at any time. Just leave it behind the television on the floor" over and over again until she gave up and told him to leave.
The guys atitude stank, he point blank refused to put more cable on so that it could be moved over to the PC and basically argued the toss as to why he had even been sent out again.
To say that I am not amused would be an understatement and we are thinking of making sure we are there if an installer is sent out again.
For an installer to treat a customer like this is not good enough and shows one of the main problems that VM will now face as a company, if your customers first experience of your "service" is through an installer that is rude, un-cooperative or just completely inept it will lead to very negative views of the company by the customers.
:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad: :mad::mad::mad:
Nedkelly
05-05-2007, 20:21
They should of sent out the supervisor or the installs manager to look at this .This is very poor customer service :mad:
Paul,
Sorry to hear of you problem. Makes me feel a little better that I am not alone in banging head against brick wall trying to get a simple job done properly with VM.
My saga started with an upgrade from my current serviice to VIP "hahaha" with V+ and a second box. Eventually got a date booked in with customer services which proved more diffficult than I expexted as we needed to get a Cable Modem installed to get the faster broadband. Three weeks ago engineer arrives installs V+ box but refuses to put cable modem in the study where I wanted it rather than the lounge because it was too difficult, this being no more than a 15 meter run around the outside of the house. My Wife, who was the only one in at the time, knew no better. He left the cable modem plugged into a socket doubler, plugged into a six may power block, not very safe. He then left with the old box having forgotten to install it in another room as should have been the case from the order.
On discovering the problems when I got home I phoned CS who said they would contact the installations team and someone would phone me back. Usual story but 24 hrs came went, made aother call with same promise for no one to contact me. contacted CS again who raised a formal complaint and promised 48 hr response, guess what that mde no difference. Eventually persuaded by another CS rep that best plan was to book another install visit to get Cable Modem moved and 2nd box installed. Wife waited in but no one turned up. Phoned CS again to be told that the installs team changed the date to the following day, I asked how that could happen without me being contacted, no explaination could be offered but another complaint raised and promise that installs would phone to rearrange for a convenient date and explain why there was a problem with the 1st one. Again 2 days later and still no call, phone CS who speak with supervisor and book two new appointments one for cable modem and one for 2nd box. Friday tech comes and installs STB but can not get it completed due to issue with getting hit to box (seems to be a major problem, looking at other threads). Tech leaves ladder in back garden. Saturday - on to CS yet again, this time they get hold of install manager who will come round and collect ladder and speak to me about the problem. When he arrives he can not understand why he has not heard about the problem until now, I tell him that I have no idea as CS have told me that they have left voice mails for installs manager on several occassions.
Just received a call from CS about getting signal to 2nd box and this is now fixed. Cable Modem move is booked for Wednesday, lets hope that is the end of my saga and wasted hours. It does annoy me that what is a simple install can be made so difficult and that no one listens to me as a customer and takes ownerhip of the problem. It should have been right first time, but even if you allow for human error I don't think I should have had to make more than 1 call to get it resolved. VM appear to be a very disfunctioanl organsisation with regards to customer service right now and t my mind it must impove to retain customers and stop wasting money having to deal with unnessesary problems of their own making.
Mark
Well mother had a totally different installer visit today (someone must have complained to someone with contacts ;) ) and the new installer was disgusted at how the SACM install was done. Took him 5 minutes to run the cable behind 2 units and 1 fish tank over to the PC and then another 15 minutes to chase the installer that had borrowed his tools lol.
Mother is now happy and so am I since I have a router to instal next time I'm up there and I can't be a**ed to keep walking to the other side of the room to reboot the modem when I set it up ;)
Cheers Stu :tu:
Glad you got it sorted Paul. :)
Nedkelly
09-05-2007, 21:29
Glad to hear its sorted :tu: It took long enough
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