The numerous issues one can encounter when activating fibre in a new home

Daniel Puchert

Daniel Puchert

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Major fibre hassle in South Africa

South Africans moving into new homes can encounter numerous issues with activating their fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) line that are outside their control.

A MyBroadband reader recently moved into a new house where the previous resident had used an ISP they were unfamiliar with.
 
I had exactly the same issue, moving in to this place.
Previous tenants didn't cancel, and took the ONT.
Thank GOODNESS I'm with Cool Ideas, who bent over backwards to get me up and running with almost no delay.
 
Don't forget accidental strangulation by fibre cords.

Happens to pets, kids and spouses all the time all over the world.

Say what you want about the era of dialup and ADSL but it was a much safer time for all.
 
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  • Haha
Reactions: Swa
This promises to be a reasonably insightful article but Daniel's kak reporting and headline history isn't convincing me to read this.
 
So many people have these issues, myself included.

If you an average Joe, you stuck and could be without connectivity for a long time. I even used this forum and ISP rep to sort my challenges out, logged my request more then a month in advance and still had so many delays.

Really needs to be more done to make this faster and smoother.
 
PaulMurkin said:
Most of it is attributable to poor service and form by the ISPs themselves.
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Agreed!

I am again reminded why I left Afrihost - non-existent customer service!

My brother is currently dealing with Afrihost, practically BEGGING them to take his money, but to no avail! :rolleyes:

@AfriGuy @Afrigirl :
The geniuses at your "Customer Call Centre" will still cost you your jobs one day.
 
"Mweb and Webafrica communications head Greg Wright said that some FNOs made it a challenge to light up customers at new addresses, without giving any names."

..how the heck did they get through the awful webafrica whatsapp bot to an actual person :p
 
Having worked for an FNO in the past I can say that this issue is a real catch-22.

FNO's are desperate for activations and really need the sales, but in the case where a previous tenant has not cancelled with their ISP or given sufficient notice, the FNO is contractually obligated with the ISP to hold the line. Otherwise people who have a habit of not paying their ISP just hop from one ISP to the next when their services get suspended. The old ISP then also has to carry the burden of the installation and activation costs or try claim it from the FNO because the FNO has to force a hard cancellation.

FNO's ultimately end up absorbing these costs in order to get the new customer connected, and this is what keeps driving prices up.
 
dgcarter said:
Having worked for an FNO in the past I can say that this issue is a real catch-22.

FNO's are desperate for activations and really need the sales, but in the case where a previous tenant has not cancelled with their ISP or given sufficient notice, the FNO is contractually obligated with the ISP to hold the line. Otherwise people who have a habit of not paying their ISP just hop from one ISP to the next when their services get suspended. The old ISP then also has to carry the burden of the installation and activation costs or try claim it from the FNO because the FNO has to force a hard cancellation.

FNO's ultimately end up absorbing these costs in order to get the new customer connected, and this is what keeps driving prices up.
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And what happens, as in my brother's case, when the person who signed the original contract passes away? Surely that is sufficient cause to transfer service/line to a spouse?

Or is Afrihost, like the ANC, waiting for Jesus to return?
 
I just simply dont understand this thing where people take the ONT with them. For gods sakes, how greedy are you? Besides, different FNO's use different ONT's I think, so the chance of it working at where you are moving to is debatable anyway. Our Vumatel ONT at home is actually attached to the wall. I would not even know how to get it off.
 
Supervan II said:
And what happens, as in my brother's case, when the person who signed the original contract passes away? Surely that is sufficient cause to transfer service/line to a spouse?

Or is Afrihost, like the ANC, waiting for Jesus to return?
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The issue is that it's an exception to normal business rules. The ISP uses a portal provided by the FNO to manage the service and it won't allow the ISP to take or transfer a line that is allocated to another ISP. So the ISP would need to log a support request with the FNO and they FNO would then first have to liaise with the old ISP before they can release the line.

I guess some ISP's are better at managing this kind of liaison with FNOs than others.
 
Ockie said:
I just simply dont understand this thing where people take the ONT with them. For gods sakes, how greedy are you? Besides, different FNO's use different ONT's I think, so the chance of it working at where you are moving to is debatable anyway. Our Vumatel ONT at home is actually attached to the wall. I would not even know how to get it off.
Click to expand...
Best to educate the customer in this regard. People often don't understand the difference between the Router and the ONT. But FNO's should be doing more in this instance, like properly mounting the ONT to the wall and place a sticker on the ONT explaining that the device is fixed to the property and should not be removed.

I've seen countless adverts on Facebook marketplace of people trying to flog their ONTs.
 
dgcarter said:
The issue is that it's an exception to normal business rules. The ISP uses a portal provided by the FNO to manage the service and it won't allow the ISP to take or transfer a line that is allocated to another ISP. So the ISP would need to log a support request with the FNO and they FNO would then first have to liaise with the old ISP before they can release the line.

I guess some ISP's are better at managing this kind of liaison with FNOs than others.
Click to expand...
1. An exception? Really???? People die, it's part of life! ISPs should know AND provide for this scenario - it's never going to go away, so they better deal with it!
2. Very few people stay in the same abode throughout their adult life, incorporate it into your procedure, simple!
3. All good and well, BUT, I was referring to ONE ISP - Afrihost! No other FNO/ISP involved.

@Afrigirl : Liking my post ... :ROFL: :ROFL: :ROFL: Surely your PE branch should be more responsive and keen in finding a solution?
 
dgcarter said:
Having worked for an FNO in the past I can say that this issue is a real catch-22.

FNO's are desperate for activations and really need the sales, but in the case where a previous tenant has not cancelled with their ISP or given sufficient notice, the FNO is contractually obligated with the ISP to hold the line. Otherwise people who have a habit of not paying their ISP just hop from one ISP to the next when their services get suspended. The old ISP then also has to carry the burden of the installation and activation costs or try claim it from the FNO because the FNO has to force a hard cancellation.

FNO's ultimately end up absorbing these costs in order to get the new customer connected, and this is what keeps driving prices up.
Click to expand...
The issue is the FNOs with their archaic procedures/trying to milk customers and ISPs. Fibre is supposed to be a prepaid service so customer doesn't pay it's easy to suspend/cancel a line. Also this is an issue in trying to appear open access while still providing an IP service. ISPs should either have full physical access to a line or it should be as simple as logging in with your credentials to activate a line.
 
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