only in the uk ..............................

[#1]

...........................could swapping broadband providers be so blimming complicated.  Why does it need to be this way?  why is it made so awkward for everyone involved? its us the service users that always suffer in the end. us who actually pay for the whole stupid thing.  For some people the service provided ie internet and phone is the only contact they have with the outside world. My partner is one of these. To ill to leave the house, these two simple services are his life. Its a disgrace what he has had to go though just because of stupid regulations aimed at protecting large company's.

[#2]

Could you fill us in with a bit more detail on what's happened?

[#3]

This http://community.plus.net/forum/index.php/topic,115057.0.html and this http://community.plus.net/forum/index.php/topic,115115.0.html I would guess!.

[#4]

I agree with the OP..... never seems to be a problem with the electricity and gas suppliers.....
so what is special about broadband?    the service is provided via a landline... ( as with elec and gas ) .. and only the bill provider is changing....
If it is anything more technical than that.... surely it is time the system was overhauled so that it would be just as simple as redirecting your snail mail...
throw a couple of swithces, activate some software, and hey presto BB supplier changed over in a matter of minutes, and not  a problem at all...
The way the system works at the moment, it appears that it is a "fledgling business" and the way to do the job properly has yet to be sorted out....
" trial and error" seems to be the watchword.  it is a trial for the conumers and that is caused by errors on the suppliers side....

[#5]

The problem with telephone line transfers is that a line can be accidentally taken over.  I'll spare you with the details, but just accept that I have some idea of what I am talking about.  The restriction of a 2 week takeover gives the losing provder time to contact the customer to ensure that the transfer is intentional and for the losing supplier to issue a cancellation if it is not the case.
Your point about a fledgling system, I wouldn't go that far, but there are areas where errors can occur, either from a customer giving us an incorrect address, to us entering an incorrect address, or even the address being incorrectly matched at the wholesale end.
Ultimately the restrictions on timescales etc (ie: the reason why you can't transfer from supplier a to supplier b overnight) are entirely down to Ofcom regulations and specifically (I think) general condition 24.

[#6]

Quote from: shutter

so what is special about broadband?    the service is provided via a landline... ( as with elec and gas ) .. and only the bill provider is changing....

If only it were that simple.  The local line is generally provided by BTOR but in some locations they are provided by other providers.  For example, where I lived in Swansea, BT could not get a way leave to provide circuits into those properties, thus no one other than the incumbent supplier could provide phone, broadband or TV services.
Competition rules have required BT to provide space in their exchanges for other providers trunk network termination equipment for connection to the local loop circuits (LLU).  TT is one such provider.  To 'recover' such a local line needs physical work in the exchange, it s not simply changing the bill provider details.

[#7]

Quote from: shutter

.... never seems to be a problem with the electricity and gas suppliers.....

I have to disagree. I have on three occasions  had my electricity account subjected to an 'erroneous transfer'. The first indication was a 'thank you for joining us'  letter from the new provider, sent to my address but with my neighbours name on it. I thought, just a typing error, until I got a 'sorry you're leaving us' letter from my current provider, but with the correct name and address.
Still, it was nice of the neighbours to pay our electricity bill 

[#8]

Electricity and gas are rather simpler, you don't pay separate pipe or wire rental, nobody has to ensure that you only receive the specific gas or electricity your supplier put in for you at their end, similarly you can only get a single 'service' from a single supplier through your pipe or wire and nobody has to ever change jumpers at the power station (yet my last gas supplier change was a right [Censored]-up taking about 6 weeks to complete - resulting in missing the deadline for an impending price increase [conspiracy theories at the ready]).

[#9]

I've replied to your other thread.

[#10]

the trouble with internet suppliers is that they promise you the earth untill the get you on board on a contract, after that you are at there mercy, they give you excuses after excuses, give you  unaceptable waiting times untill they respond to your problem , and then say well you are under contract and it is written in our contract that is how we do it,
how many people look through the numerous pages of a contract and understand what it all means.
it is all gobblede gook and designed to confuse or bore the customers anyway.
as plusnet is part of Bt what do you expect anyway

[#11]

Hi slooowwwlllyyy,
Sorry to hear you feel that way, Matt has responded to your post in another thread.

[#12]

Locked in favour of http://community.plus.net/forum/index.php/topic,115115.msg992339.html#msg992339