Spark Business Support

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nunz

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#248171 13-Mar-2019 10:07

I've just been promised on the phone 24/7 help and support for spark business internet. Having been down this track before and knowing that means you can email them 24/7 but not get hold of them - I'm wondering how this will roll when they fail to live up to the promise and my internet goes down (like it has for 8 days straight - DSL signal drop outs).

Also spark tried selling me 4g internet after confirming the area has poor connectivity. That sounds like they want a ticked off client.

Has spark changed their support policy to be 24/7 for business and is the 0800 225598 crew now dealing with business clients as they are the only ones open 24/7.

ResponseMediaNZ

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#2197043 13-Mar-2019 10:14

As a number of us have stated a number of times.... Internet is BEST EFFORT Service... Unless you pay for an SLA expect outages and even when you have an SLA expect outages.

I dont know of many services that have a 100% uptime.. due to needing upgrades and new equipment now and then

Has your internet been out for 8 days straight?

hio77

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Lizard Networks

#2197064 13-Mar-2019 10:22

Nothing has changed.

Please refer back to your previous thread as these questions were answered.

https://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=39&topicid=239740

#include <std_disclaimer>

Any comments made are personal opinion and do not reflect directly on the position my current or past employers may have.

nunz

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#2197156 13-Mar-2019 11:12

ResponseMediaNZ:

As a number of us have stated a number of times.... Internet is BEST EFFORT Service... Unless you pay for an SLA expect outages and even when you have an SLA expect outages.

I dont know of many services that have a 100% uptime.. due to needing upgrades and new equipment now and then

Has your internet been out for 8 days straight?

I'm not expecting perfection. I am expecting some level of support. The sales person in the business call center, when asked today as a business wants to get a new connection , promised 24/7 business call support. That's not been available previously - thus my question - has this now changed?

When a business asks what level of support can be expected if a problem occurs and is told 24/7 support - that sets a legally binding expectation - that spark has not met previously.

My internet has been unusable for 8 days. Complete failure - someone killed a cable in the road works. Since fixed DSL drops out. Often lasting for 30 seconds to 2 minutes. We can get full connectivity in that short burst but then it drops out again. Modem replaced twice, settings checked, dedicated line from dmarc, all equipment in a locked cabinet.

After running another 24 hour test - was told we have no dsl connection. Despite me sending screen shots from uptime robot showing a rough audit of outage and up-age where intermittent connection occurs.

Finally they will send a chorus tech out - some time - in the future - at some point.

ResponseMediaNZ

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#2197165 13-Mar-2019 11:31

You mention Uptime Robot - That's not classed as a telco-grade network monitoring solution it requires layer 3 upwards so not reliable from a helpdesk side especially one that deals with cable and layer 2 connectivity so I can understand why they didnt want to use that as evidence

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There is a 24/7 Faults number it's 125 where you can get support - also remember that 99% of the teams that are dealing with the complex side of the business are not 24/7 most business unless its a 24/7 business don't require 24/7 support.

Lets look at the T&C of Business

https://www.spark.co.nz/help/other/terms/business-terms/business/ &

15. Fixing Faults

Fixing Faults in the network

We will take all steps that we reasonably can to arrange for all faults on the network to be repaired. There is no charge for this except where you or anyone you are responsible for cause the fault. We will begin fixing the fault as soon as we reasonably can, we will advise you of our current service levels when a fault is reported.

Continuous Service

Please report any fault by calling 125. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

https://www.spark.co.nz/help/other/terms/business-terms/broadband/

9. Service Reliability

Spark is unable to provide specific performance guarantees, however we are committed to providing a consistent and reliable service.

While we always strive to provide a consistent service, there are a number of factors that influence reliability. For this reason, we do not guarantee connection speed bandwidth, latency (delay) or bit rate through our broadband network at any one point in time.

As the Spark Business Broadband Service can occasionally go down, we do not recommend it is relied on solely for 'mission critical' purposes. We cannot guarantee how quickly we can resolve problems with the network.

Spark business broadband is not designed to support guaranteed service levels and may not be appropriate for applications which rely on guaranteed speed and latency characteristics, e.g.

Two-way voice applications
Two-way video applications

To find out about managed broadband connections, with guaranteed service levels, call 126 or your Spark account manager.

10. Support

The stability and performance of your Spark Business Broadband Service can be affected by a number of potential faults. A fault can commonly originate from our network, your modem/gateway or your computer. If the service is not meeting your expectations, our Customer Support team are trained to help you identify where the potential fault lies.

Occasionally network outages do occur. When they do, we record a message about the fault which you can hear when you call 0800 BUSINESS (28 74 63). There is no charge for fixing faults during our normal business hours except where you, or anyone you are responsible for, cause the fault or if the fault lies with your own equipment (e.g. your computer).

If a Spark-approved service technician does visit your premises and finds that there are no problems with the network, you will be required to pay the cost of the service technician being sent out. We will let you know in advance what the potential charges to you could be.

If you are still having problems with Spark business broadband, call us on 0800 BUSINESS (28 74 63)

For customers with other ISPs you should contact your ISP directly.

Can you expand on why you need 24/7 support or is it around the whole "its an expectation"

nunz

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#2197610 13-Mar-2019 23:26

ResponseMediaNZ:
You mention Uptime Robot - That's not classed as a telco-grade network monitoring solution it requires layer 3 upwards so not reliable from a helpdesk side especially one that deals with cable and layer 2 connectivity so I can understand why they didnt want to use that as evidence

Well stuff my socks. I must have plumb forgot that layer 3 ping / html monitoring can still work when layer 1/2 dsl has failed.

I'll contact wikipaedia and the internet to let them know ping works when dsl is down.

nunz

1421 posts

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#2197618 13-Mar-2019 23:35

ResponseMediaNZ:
-

Can you expand on why you need 24/7 support or is it around the whole "its an expectation"

If im sold a package based on a stated expectation then i expect what has been promised.

Previously telecom business promised 24/7 support for business email but failed to even deliver 9 to 5, five days per week. Whem email stops on saturday i expected their 24/7 support to not blow the client off untill monday and then Maybe contact sometime in 24 to 48 hours ensuring 4 to 5 days of no business email.

Similarly .. if internet affecting 80 workers drops on fri night or sat i dont expect to wait 48 hours to start a 24 hour line test at best. I expect support on the day as per 24/7 promised.

Its covered under fair trade and other similar acts.

Thus my question...has spark actually started delivering what they claim is 24/7 business support as previously home support has better coverage than business

hio77

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Lizard Networks

#2197621 13-Mar-2019 23:42

Based on the claim that the agents view and yours differs.

Please dm me your account details and the uptimedoopty thing..
I won't validate if its a correct tool or anything. But if systems are appearing incorrect I'd be interested.

Please do mind the spam though... Some of us do like to sleep.

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Any comments made are personal opinion and do not reflect directly on the position my current or past employers may have.

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michaelmurfy

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#2197622 13-Mar-2019 23:51

They do have 24hr faults: 0800 110 062 - I just phoned this myself to verify and it was happy to put me through to somebody.

Since you've already complained about this (https://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=39&topicid=239740) and I feel it was sufficiently answered there I'm going to lock this thread.

Good luck and remember, if you're this unhappy with a provider there are always other (business) providers with full SLA's willing to accept you at a cost.

Michael Murphy | https://murfy.nz
Referral Links: Quic Broadband (use R122101E7CV7Q for free setup)

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