Afternoon peeps
I am looking for some advice from those of you with more telecoms experience.
I would like to qualify that I only just got back into SA from the UK, so my understanding of the "challenges" facing adsl in SA was limited at the time.
Before I started the whole process I did a little bit of research to find a ISP that was seen to focus on great customer services. The name that kept o cropping up was Webafrica.
In the first week of Nov I phoned them up and asked about their ADSL complete packages and what was required for them. I was advised that all I needed was a active landline, and they would handle everything else once I placed the order. The timeline I was given (and is still given everytime I ask their sales team) was "Most of our customers are activated within 2 weeks, however due to delays on Telkoms side we do ask for 4-6 weeks"
On the 9 nov I placed my order for a landline with telkom. This is were everything started to go Pete Tong. Telkom initially advised me it would take 2 weeks (Y does everyone use this?). 6 Freaking weeks later I finally had a landline installed! This involved fighting with telkom 3 times a week for the last 3 weeks before final installation.
So... On the 14 dec I finally had an activated landline, and called webafrica and ordered their complete Bronce package. Again I was advised activation should take 2 weeks, but they ask for 4-6 weeks due to telkom delays.
I am now finishing off my 11'th week.
Since the 6'th week I have been chasing them about the line. They keep on telling me that there are no ports available.
Their front line customer services tell me:
1) There is nothing they can do to escalate the problem,
2) There is nothing they can do to find out when ports might be available,
3) There is nothing they can do about finding out how many ports are needed for that exchange
4) getting someone to actually phone you back when they promised they would has been a nightmare. Of the 3 officers who promised to come back to me, only 1 did. And that was just to re-iterate the above 3 points!
4) etc etc etc ad nauseum
At no stage did their sales people ever tell me that installations could drag on this long, and that I would be left helpless during the whole process.
Based on their initial 2 week estimate I had already spent R1700 on a router, plus my telkom bill is at R650+ for installation and monthly line rentals on a phone that I dont even use, as it was jsut for ADSL.
The last customer services officer I spoke to there, advised me that telkom prioritise their own customers first, and I should order my line via telkom then get back to them once the line had been activated.
The reason I wanted a Webfrica complete package in the first place was for first-rate customer services , and an ISP that would deal with telkom on my behalf to save me from their customer diss-services!!
What should I do? I cant hang on in limbo for eternity hoping that some port might eventually be assigned to me. Should I cancel with Webafrica and sign up with telkom direct?
I am loathe to cancel the whole line and go wireless as it would waste the R2300++, and 11 weeks, I have already spent. Is this my only solution for q reasonable signup period? I am a regular online gamer so a landline was my first choice.
Any help/info would be appreciated..
I am looking for some advice from those of you with more telecoms experience.
I would like to qualify that I only just got back into SA from the UK, so my understanding of the "challenges" facing adsl in SA was limited at the time.
Before I started the whole process I did a little bit of research to find a ISP that was seen to focus on great customer services. The name that kept o cropping up was Webafrica.
In the first week of Nov I phoned them up and asked about their ADSL complete packages and what was required for them. I was advised that all I needed was a active landline, and they would handle everything else once I placed the order. The timeline I was given (and is still given everytime I ask their sales team) was "Most of our customers are activated within 2 weeks, however due to delays on Telkoms side we do ask for 4-6 weeks"
On the 9 nov I placed my order for a landline with telkom. This is were everything started to go Pete Tong. Telkom initially advised me it would take 2 weeks (Y does everyone use this?). 6 Freaking weeks later I finally had a landline installed! This involved fighting with telkom 3 times a week for the last 3 weeks before final installation.
So... On the 14 dec I finally had an activated landline, and called webafrica and ordered their complete Bronce package. Again I was advised activation should take 2 weeks, but they ask for 4-6 weeks due to telkom delays.
I am now finishing off my 11'th week.
Since the 6'th week I have been chasing them about the line. They keep on telling me that there are no ports available.
Their front line customer services tell me:
1) There is nothing they can do to escalate the problem,
2) There is nothing they can do to find out when ports might be available,
3) There is nothing they can do about finding out how many ports are needed for that exchange
4) getting someone to actually phone you back when they promised they would has been a nightmare. Of the 3 officers who promised to come back to me, only 1 did. And that was just to re-iterate the above 3 points!
4) etc etc etc ad nauseum
At no stage did their sales people ever tell me that installations could drag on this long, and that I would be left helpless during the whole process.
Based on their initial 2 week estimate I had already spent R1700 on a router, plus my telkom bill is at R650+ for installation and monthly line rentals on a phone that I dont even use, as it was jsut for ADSL.
The last customer services officer I spoke to there, advised me that telkom prioritise their own customers first, and I should order my line via telkom then get back to them once the line had been activated.
The reason I wanted a Webfrica complete package in the first place was for first-rate customer services , and an ISP that would deal with telkom on my behalf to save me from their customer diss-services!!
What should I do? I cant hang on in limbo for eternity hoping that some port might eventually be assigned to me. Should I cancel with Webafrica and sign up with telkom direct?
I am loathe to cancel the whole line and go wireless as it would waste the R2300++, and 11 weeks, I have already spent. Is this my only solution for q reasonable signup period? I am a regular online gamer so a landline was my first choice.
Any help/info would be appreciated..
