Chorus turning up unannounced

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chevrolux

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#891355 7-Sep-2013 16:12

All I can say is you all need to actually spend a day with a Chorus tech to see how much sh1t has to be dealt with. It is actually ridiculous. Until you have done the work you have absolutely no understanding of how their job system works. Also, more often than not, ISPs cant get the correct contact details for customers so it is impossible to contact and organise a time. Also, it seems most think Chorus work 24/7. So many times people would expect me to come as late as 8pm and then got grumpy at me when I said no, 6pm at the very latest. My argument is you make time for a sparky, you can make time for your phone.
I am in Palmy so organising times wasnt too much of an issue because it's a 10 minute drive to anywhere but I could imagine it would be near impossible to arrange appointments in auckland. Just the nature of the work there is no telling how long it will take.
I am very very glad I don't do this work (much) any more. It is terrible work and people should be thankful there are still people doing it - especially at some of the abysmal rates that are offered.

matisyahu

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#892247 9-Sep-2013 16:59

eXDee: I enquired about a fault with snap, who passed it on to chorus to look at, and i heard nothing back since.
Chorus reportedly didn't tell snap anything further. But what they did do, was cut off my internet without notice at the exchange while inspecting the fault, and then turn up announced at my door nearly an hour later, saying they were here to inspect a fault. I actually had to go somewhere and missed part of what i had to go to because of this

I thought this was a one off. But then another friend's internet which kept dropping also had their net inspected, had a chorus tech turn up at their house when they weren't home, and called their mobile (which it seems they got from Snap?) asking if anyone was home.

I've seen at least one if not two posts on geekzone mentioning chorus not checking what times are available with the customer.

And today i hear about someones attempted VDSL install, where chorus turned up when they were at work.

So it seems this total lack of communication is standard. So whats happening here, is this the ISP not passing it on to the customer? Or the ISP not getting a window of available time from the customer and passing it on to chorus? Or what?

Your [insert tradesman here] doesn't turn up without notice so what's going on here?

That is really strange because all my experience so far with Chorus as well as the contractors for Vodafone has been great - rang up to confirm the day then rang up on the day to confirm that they'll be there in x number of minutes and whether I'm at home. What it appears to be is poor communication by both the isp and the contractor.

"When the people are being beaten with a stick, they are not much happier if it is called 'the People's Stick'"

PaulBags

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#892422 9-Sep-2013 22:55

Most recent experience was Chorus booking to repair a cable strike, reported by the road worker who cut through the cable, booking to repair it two and a half days later. If chorus knows for a fact that it's down, they should come and fix it at the time. Some people rely on landlines, especially older disabled people with multiple health problems that may require a quick phone call to 111. They were talked into coming out sooner, and had it fixed by late next morning. Lucky previously described person had a cellphone, that they could barely understand anyone on, and managed to make the argument. What if they'd had no cellphone? But late next morning, when some muppet cuts through the line before 4pm, isn't good enough either. Frankly they should work late. Lines companies would work late to fix power outages. Chorus workers should get 4x pay for working late, and that pay should come straight from the muppet who cuts through the cable. That'll teach 'em to watch what they're doing.

raytaylor

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#892450 9-Sep-2013 23:42

It really saddens me how people have these expectations of trades people.

When you have a list of jobs to get through, and have to rely on third or 4th party information, you really have no idea how long a job will take. Its that simple.

So if a customer is number 5 down the list, there are 4 jobs beforehand that could take 5 minutes or could take two hours each.

If you call customer number 5 and say you will be there in 5 hours, and then jobs 1-4 are only ten minutes each, you are too early. If you then find one of the jobs takes much longer than expected, then you are late. Either way you cannot win as a trademan.
If you promise anything, you can only underdeliver.

Its best not to give the customer any slither of hope. They will cling to it and hold you to it, and put you down when you try your best to meet it.

When we are out doing broadband installs, I always try to underpromise on scheduling.
In simple terms its AM, midday, PM - be home for most of the day.
Kids got soccer? Tell your husband to take them.

When we are crawling through someones attic and we have found a mouse has chewed on a cable and its set us back 15 mins, i am not going to call 5 people and tell them all i am going to be half an hour later than planned. In the case of the chorus tech, it could be a lot of time wasted traveling back and forth between the exchange, cabinet and house to sort out an issue.

Whenever we have a chorus tech booked for a client, I ensure the ISP gives the chorus tech my cellphone number so they call me when they are on their way, and I make myself avaliable for the day. Thats how simple it is. This means that my other jobs are booked so they are all in the area and i can leave to meet the chorus tech at a few minutes notice.
If you know what day they are coming, and the ISP passes on your cellphone number then I find most chorus techs are happy to call you when they are leaving their last job and give you 15 mins notice.

Ray Taylor

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PaulBags

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#892455 10-Sep-2013 00:11

Peoples lives are so busy, and so controlled down to the minute by work, social events, tv schedules, etc etc. I can see how some people just can't (or "can't") take a day off to wait around for chorus to show up.

That gives me an idea. If anyone wants to hire me to sit on their couch and watch tv, waiting to let chorus in when required.. well I can think of worse ways to get paid.

raytaylor

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#892460 10-Sep-2013 02:35

PaulBags: Peoples lives are so busy, and so controlled down to the minute by work, social events, tv schedules, etc etc. I can see how some people just can't (or "can't") take a day off to wait around for chorus to show up.

That gives me an idea. If anyone wants to hire me to sit on their couch and watch tv, waiting to let chorus in when required.. well I can think of worse ways to get paid.

You sir... are a genius.
Chorus could subcontract your company hire-A-demarc-nanny to turn up at 8am, so there is someone there to let the downer / transfield guy in when he turns up.

Genius I say.

Ray Taylor

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mrdrifter

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#892521 10-Sep-2013 09:17

We were lucky our local tech got the job done right on the time it was scheduled for, which was awesome, except for the fact the ISP gave them the incorrect address and now both the new neighbors and I have no phone or internet. Apparently its a 5 day wait to have it all fixed.

eXDee

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#892722 10-Sep-2013 13:44

I don't want this becoming a "lets bring up every bad experience with chorus" thread. It's already been highlighted that ISPs generally are given this information in general and pass it to the customer. From what ive seen described, what is given is sufficient.

I'm not sure why people are interpreting this as expecting them to be precisely on time and give exact scheduled to the minute appointments. Never did i say that. Someone even marked it as the answer to this thread, which i've unmarked as it is inaccurate.
What i think is ideal:
-Customer is questioned by ISP on approximate times when suits them, or doesnt, and this is added to the job information, this stops chorus turning up to houses when there's definitely going to be no one home to get inside the house, which is a waste of their time when they could be on other jobs
-ISP gives best customer contact number to chorus tech when booking
-Chorus responds to ISP saying that the job is expected to be completed in say, morning or afternoon on a certain day (or days) who then passes it onto the customer. If more precise times can be estimated, great, but even just a vague estimation like that is sufficient.

I don't think this is unreasonable? Its saves everyone time and frustration and isn't too much effort. If its already like this, great, just odd these cases i saw didn't see this happening.

As mentioned, not everyone can be home all the time for a day, or afford it, especially those who don't have flexible working conditions, some people need to apply to get leave many weeks in advance.

Jaxar

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#892838 10-Sep-2013 17:28

eXDee:
-Customer is questioned by ISP on approximate times when suits them, or doesnt, and this is added to the job information, this stops chorus turning up to houses when there's definitely going to be no one home to get inside the house, which is a waste of their time when they could be on other jobs

This is generally is done or atleast I used to do this when I took these calls. The success rate that this would be followed in my experience is hit and miss.

eXDee:
-ISP gives best customer contact number to chorus tech when booking

I used to think this would be a good idea until i became more educated on a Chorus techs job. A Chorus tech will often spend a significant portion of time in an exchange where they must have their phones turned off. I've seen really proactive good techs appear to give poor service because of this limitation.

eXDee:
-Chorus responds to ISP saying that the job is expected to be completed in say, morning or afternoon on a certain day (or days) who then passes it onto the customer. If more precise times can be estimated, great, but even just a vague estimation like that is sufficient.

I cannot comment for other ISP's but VF will attempt to text message you the commit time. As other posters have mentioned the tech won't always arrive at that time sometimes they are way off. Also as other posters have said there are some really basic reasons as to why this occurs.

From my perspective it is a real problem. Particularly in the sense that I don't think a customers expectations are unreasonable however I have a strong understanding of how they are impractical.

The only alternative solution I can think of is hugely over allocating times to a tech for a job and paying him for the time and not the job and passing the cost on to the customer. This I would imagine would mean hugely expesnive tech visits to fix really basic problems. Obviously a poor alternative but the only technically feasable one I can imagine.

Please note: I have a professional bias towards Vodafone.

richms

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#892860 10-Sep-2013 18:19

and if you were to give the expensive tech at a set time as an option to people at an additional charge, the want everything for free whingers would be up in arms about how they cant afford the $160 or whatever it costs to get a tech at a set time.

Richard rich.ms

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