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Virgin Media plumbs new depths in customer service

Sorry for the interruption to the aforementioned customer service – we’ve been off-air for part of the day. Broadband supplier Virgin Media, according to one of its multifarious call centres, decided to apply a “software upgrade” to our service today. Without telling anyone.

Even though it had already told us – by the rather more reliable letter – it was effecting the same magical transformation on April 12. We’ll see what happens then.

Three calls to the hateful VM provided three completely different responses including one to a lady who confidently reassured us that this wasn’t an area problem – which it was, it always is – but a problem with MAA’s kit. It wasn’t. But they’re sending an engineer out three weeks on Tuesday anyway. Neither would the laughingly-called customer services tell me the number of their press office. “We don’t give that out.” When we did find it and call it, no-one answered the phone.

All of which makes you wonder. Are they lying deliberately? Or do they just not know what’s going on?

I see that Virgin has also had to issue a public statement today apologising for not re-cabling the hundreds of thousands of homes they said they would. They’re blaming this on four employees it seems. A lady from America called Dana (Virgin Media is owned by American cable outfit Liberty although it operates in the UK) is being wheeled in as COO to fix matters.

Virgin Media likes to describe itself in its ads as “red hot.” Which is cold comfort to most of its customers.

The UK likes to boast it has an “online infrastructure.” No it doesn’t, it has a rickety structure based on a wing and a prayer, run by a bunch of chancers.

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