Disputing Chorus Invoice

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Subway

12 posts

Geek

#271811 27-May-2020 17:25

During lockdown we discovered

a. our fibre cable was laying on top of our garden and not dug into the ground

b. our dog had discovered this and chewed through the cable

Not disputing that our dog is a menace, and to their credit they fixed it promptly, but we aren't happy with an invoice when the install clearly didn't even meet chorus's own guidelines.

Do we have a leg to stand on? Anyone at Chorus able to provide some insight?

SirHumphreyAppleby

1286 posts

Uber Geek

#2493009 27-May-2020 17:41

If they didn't do the job properly, they should fix it at their cost. I'd go back to them and tell them exactly what the situation is, unless someone here offers to help.

The damage was reasonably foreseeable. If it wasn't your dog, someone else's dog would have done it, or a spade.

Years ago, when we had our second phone line installed (dial-up days), Telecom contractors left the phone line across the garden and someone was meant to come back and finish the job. They never did and the line eventually got cut with gardening tools. They fixed it and buried the cable properly.

chevrolux

4542 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#2493113 27-May-2020 19:39

"But microduct is REALLY strong. It's been designed to be surface mount and we've tested it thoroughly"

.....Dog "hold my beer".

/sarcasm

My thought here goes Chorus do these garbage installs to their "spec". If they are OK with the install method, they also need to be OK with the repair costs WHEN (not if) their network is broken. I would fight like hell.

BMarquis

264 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

Chorus

Lifetime subscriber

#2493126 27-May-2020 20:12

@chorusnz will be able to investigate further

Chorusnz

388 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

Chorus NZ

#2493521 28-May-2020 11:20

Hey @Subway, depending on where the charge has come from, you will have a couple of options:

If this charge has been added to your monthly bill, it will need to be disputed via your broadband provider directly. They have the channels in place to query any site visit charges and can pass on further details you may have in regards to the cable depth. Our internal teams will investigate and get back to your provider with an outcome.

If you've reported the cable break via our damages team, you may have received an invoice directly from Chorus. In this case, you can call the disputes number at the top of the page to have this looked into.

Feel free to DM us with your address if you have any queries. ^Matt

nztim

545 posts

Ultimate Geek

Subscriber

#2493533 28-May-2020 11:33

chevrolux:

My thought here goes Chorus do these garbage installs to their "spec". If they are OK with the install method, they also need to be OK with the repair costs WHEN (not if) their network is broken. I would fight like hell.

I would really love to see the standard of the installs lifted considerably, and sadly I don't thing this is going to happen when our tax payers money is been loaned to the LFCs to get these installs done

The next thing that needs to happen is people start paying for the installs, then, the LFCs will actually have the funding to do a decent job rather than try stretch the tax payer dollar as far as it can go

in the mean time, expect Fence Jobs, Fibre just above the surface of the ground, crossing gardens, and smashed concrete replaced with sand which will wash away in the next storm to be the norm....

Subway

12 posts

Geek

#2493539 28-May-2020 11:42

Quick call to Chorus this morning and crisis averted - all seems to be resolved/bill has been waived after we confirmed the initial install wasn't up to scratch.

Still disappointing that installs like this are acceptable, not sure what QA or checks of work is done, but it was shody.