Plumber without wrench = Openreach engineer without key card

[#1]

Would you believe this about Openreach?

An OR engineer came today to repair my impossibly noisy phone line - unusable since installation 15 days ago. Except he wasn't directly from OR but from (presumably) a subcontractor called Kelly communications.  He diagnosed the fault as not in my flat but in the exchange.  So off he went to correct the fault at the exchange.  Sometime later he arrived back at my flat.  He couldn't get into the exchange, his keycard would not work there. Why? Well he was based in Watford and his key card would only work for exchanges in that area.  But he had been assigned to South London where I live! No one had thought to ensure he had the key card he needed.

So now the problem has gone back to OR and I still do not have a working phone

[#2]

So they had engineer shortage in your area, but managed to find one who could try.

Worth remembering the time of year, it is not the end of the world.

[#3]

You are too generous.  May I give you some background to my posting - I didn't include it before as it was too long.

After a house move in August there was a delay of one month after the promised installation date from Plunet before my broadaband was working. I was given all sorts of reasons for the delay.  It was clear that foul-ups in the communication between Plusnet and Openreach was part of the problem.  This incredibly frustrating delay seemed to be due to organisational rather than technical problems. I don't think there should have been any staffing problems in August and September.

Having taken out an 18 month contract, when moving house again in December I decided to stay with Plusnet, recognising after my previous experience that I would need to keep a close check on what was going on.  On the agreed date of 20 December the engineer arrived for the installation.  After giving me some wrong advice about connecting to broadband he left. The broadband worked, the phone line was unusable. I reported the problem on the 22nd and. because of no action, again on the 28th. A visit was scheduled on 3rd January.  It was then that the engineer made his keycardless visit to the exchange.  He left saying that BT would sort out the problem later in the day.  Of course they didn't.  I'm still trying to get Plusnet to contact Openreach to come.  Nothing so far except that 'a review' is scheduled.

You say 'it is not the end of the world'.  True, but having a working landline in a flat with a poor mobile signal is very important to me. Especially as now when I need to contact a doctor for a telephone appointment.

[#4]

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@Dducks wrote:

He couldn't get into the exchange, his keycard would not work there. Why? Well he was based in Watford and his key card would only work for exchanges in that area.  But he had been assigned to South London where I live!

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Maybe all of the issues you have encountered are at least substantially if not entirely due to a lack of BT Openreach resources where you live.  Watford a fair distance to drag an engineer, so one might reasonably infer that BTOR South London has a significant shortage of staff.

[#5]

Hey there @Dducks Happy New Year to you and your family! 🥂 The review date is today so I will keep an eye out for you from here I will let you know from there!