You won't believe this.

[Termite]

If it hadn't just happened to me I wouldn't either.

Due to the fact that people have been using dead peoples pension numbers for telephone discounts (up to 15 years in one case), Telstra has this week started a verification form that has to be filled in, and it has already hit snags. Why am I not suprised!

Our phone bill comes through in both my wifes and my name, but when the verification form arrived it was in my wifes name only, and I'm the one on the pension.

Dreading having to do so, I phoned Telstra and explained the situation, to 3 different people, sound familiar?

Finally getting on to someone who could actually do something about it, I found that they were using my pension number against my wifes name. Aparently a telephone account can only be owned by one person, even though the billing is in both names, and some bright spark at Telstra years ago decided that my wife should be the account owner.

Now here's the incredible bit......... the only way they can change the ownership of the account to me is to physically disconnect the phone line, close the account in my wifes name, open a new account in my name and then physically re-connect the phone.

The person I was speaking to said that this was the sixth case like this that he had handled today!

It would seem that Telstra is living up to it's reputation.

[Gumby]

I don't believe that

[ozwinner]

Now here's the incredible bit......... the only way they can change the ownership of the account to me is to physically disconnect the phone line, close the account in my wifes name, open a new account in my name and then physically re-connect the phone.

The person I was speaking to said that this was the sixth case like this that he had handled today!

It would seem that Telstra is living up to it's reputation.

It would be easier, quicker and cheaper for you to die, and just leave the phone bill in the wifes name.

Al

[silentC]

I could believe it. "The computer wont let me do it any other way".

It's like when the liney came out to connect my parent's phone at the new house. I asked him if he was going to connect ours up while he was there (I'd made the call a day or two after Mum called about hers). Course not! That would be too logical. They'd rather waste time and money sending two guys to the same property two days apart to connect two phone lines. I asked him why he didn't just ring and get a verbal over the phone - you know, installation is booked, customer verified, do it while you are there. You know why he wouldn't do it? Because one of the other lineys might have the paperwork already!

Bureaucracy at it's finest. You'll be lucky if they connect it again.

Footnote: The same guy was back 3 days later to connect ours...

[johnc]

Termite,

We had a transfer similar to that some time back, with no end of trouble changing the name over but it did happen without cutting off the phone. The worst bit was the saga dragged on for a good two years off and on until it finally happened.

John.

[Gra]

Footnote: The same guy was back 3 days later to connect ours...

Probably get a callout fee for each site visit, or am I just getting cynical in my old age

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

Ahhh... red-tape. Don't you just love it?

It reminds of the old yarn about the power company that sent a bill for $0:00 to one of it's customers. Of course, he didn't pay it. A few weeks later, the power co's computer sent out an "Urgent: please pay now" slip, so he got in touch with the power co and was told "don't worry about it, we had a glitch in our accounting system." Of course, a few more weeks down the line, he came home to find the power disconnected and a letter in his mailbox explaining he'd been disconnected 'cos of an overdue bill and that until he paid up he'd stay disconnected.

So he personally stormed into the head office and had a ranting fit. "Sorry sir, it's our computers. We can't do anything about it." On the spot, he wrote a cheque for the full amount of $0:00 and handed it to their cashier... which promptly crashed the computer as it couldn't handle $0- amounts.

After a wait of several hours while they coaxed it back on-line, with the cashier manually repairing his account!! they added insult to injury by telling him he also had to pay the bloody reconnection fee!

Only Urban Myth AFAIK, but it certainly rings all the right bells.

[Sturdee]

Now here's the incredible bit......... the only way they can change the ownership of the account to me is to physically disconnect the phone line, close the account in my wifes name, open a new account in my name and then physically re-connect the phone.

Not incredible at all. They have been like that for decades. And they will probably charge you a disconnection/connection fee as well.


When my mother died I wanted to change the phone and telephone book entry to my name. No problem changing the phone and billing to my name but to change the phone book entry I would have had to pay the disconnection/reconnection fee, else it couldn't be done.


For 10 years the book entry was wrong and we were unlisted, then Optus came around and changing to them on a cheaper plan got the phone book entry fixed up as well.


Peter.

[Howdya do that]

You just gotta love Telstra

I lived on a farm for a while and when we tried to get the phone connected.
Telstra -whats the address fo the new connection.
Me - "happy valley" 15km from St George on the Moonie Highway.
Telstra - What's the street number
Me - It doesnt have a street number its a farm
Telstra - It cant have a phone without a street number
Me - Why
Telstra - The technician will never find it
Me - Theres a phone in house
Telstra - It must be stolen
Me - So who put the line in
Telstra - A technician
Me - So how did he find it


Blah. Blah, Blah

[ACT Mal]

In the defence of the lineys....

My parents (who live on a farm incidentally - although they have a street number so they didn't have to steal their phone!!!) had been waiting for 5 days for Telstra to come out and fix a line fault at their place.

Every time they called to check when a techie would be out they got the run around. On day 6 my dad was driving past the phone exchange box at the end of their street and there was a liney working on it.

He stopped to chat and to see if that was the guy who was sent to fix their problem. Turns out he was doing something completely unrelated but in a flash of brilliance, he asked the problem, traced the problem there and then, and reconnected the line (job took about 10 mins).

Can't believe it - someone from Telstra used their common sense.

Mal.

[Groggy]

Can't believe it - someone from Telstra used their common sense.

Mal.

I am almost willing to bet that another liney will come out to fix the original call and stuff it up again. They do it on purpose you know, it's a mind game of theirs .

[Toolin Around]

Not quite a phone encounter but it did involve telstra, their copper and internet service. We were moving so we needed the internet disconnected and reconnected at the new house. Telstra in there infinite wisdom decided email would be the best way to communicate with me as to when they would re activate my internet. Of course they sent the email to me telling me this after they had disconnected my account. I gave them a mobile number but for some reason that wasn't considered the best way to communicate. In some ways working for such an organization where everyone is a complete idiot wouldn't be so bad... No one expects anything from you - could be very relaxing.

[Grunt]

I agree with Al, death is the simplest fix.

[journeyman Mick]

I agree with Al, death is the simplest fix.

Of everyone in Telstra from middle management up to the board of directors?

Mick

[Daddles]

Ahh, the tellingbone bods.

This wee yarn goes back to the seventies - they were still the PMG then.

Mum was home one day, when this bod knocks at the door. "Excuse me madam, but we've noticed that your telephone line comes onto the property from that pole by your neighbour's driveway. To get to your house, it crosses the corner of his properly and we can't allow this. To fix the problem, we will give you an underground connection and I just wanted to warn you that we'll be here tomorrow laying the cable." This was accompanied by many protestations about how urgent and important this was.

Sure enough, the next day, a trench was dug from the pole to the house, the cable was laid along the trench then up a pipe screwed to the outside wall. The wires were left hanging out of the top of the pipe. "We'll come back in the next few days to complete the connection."

Well, the wires hung out the top of that pipe for about five years before they finally got around to finishing the 'super urgent' job.

Guess the good things in life never change

Richard