Telstra Internet - Major Problems - Advice Please!

Hi Everyone,
Telstra have been giving me some serious grief.
I've been a Telstra ADSL2 Customer for the past 4 or so years and they have given me nothing but grief. My internet connection drops out on average about 4 times a day. My download speed peaks at 5MBs. I've run speed tests where my speed is around 0.2MBs with a PING of over 1000. I've spent over 40 hours on the phone with them as of last year alone.
They have sent countless amounts of technicians to site and they cant fix the issue.

Last December I received a letter as well as a phone call from Telstra advising that NBN has become available in my area. When they called me, they said we can upgrade to wireless NBN for the same amount we are currently paying etc. (we aren't on any locked in contract).
All in all it was just meant to be a straight switch from ADSL to NBN for the same price per month and data etc.
Upon agreeing to switching to NBN it took NBN 5 weeks to come out to my house which they did on Friday 17/2.

Upon there arrival they did speed tests which said that we aren't reaching the speeds for wireless NBN and we will have to go with Satellite NBN.
On Friday Telstra also cancelled my ADSL2 Service because they thought the NBN was going to go through. (Without any permission from myself)

On Friday I called up Telstra asking why my internet isn’t working (Not knowing it was cancelled). I explained NBN came out to site and couldn't run wireless internet and how we require satellite.

They turned around and told me that our internet isn’t working because they cancelled our ADSL service. I told them to re-instate it as it was cancelled without me giving the go ahead and that the NBN isn't operational in my area.

The lady I spoke to said "I can't re instate your internet because we no longer have that contract available. It has been cancelled. If you want to go ahead with it I will have to make up your contract again and put it through as a new order.
I was also told that my internet would be back up and working in 24 Hours.
The lady also said she will call me back on Saturday to confirm this. Upon her calling back on Saturday 24 hours later she told me that unfortunately the people to approve my account and re activate my internet aren't working until Monday and that she will call me back at the agreed time of 8am.

After receiving no phone call on Monday I decided to call Telstra back at 3PM. The new person I spoke to said that they can't see any new order through, they can only see an order for NBN (The original order from 17/2).
Again they said they have to re-instate my ADSL Service. I told them that I've already been through this whole process. Telstra then proceeded to say that it's not Telstra's fault and in order to re-instate my ADSL Service it will take a further 5 days to put through a new order.

I'm so over Telstra's Bullshit. I have phone records from Friday 17/2 to Monday 20/2 that show's I've been on the phone with them for over 6 and a half hours trying to get this fixed.
The last person that I spoke to also advised me that wireless NBN was never going to work in my area. So they caused me all this for no reason. I run a small business from home. I’m now 5 days behind on my bookwork because I need the internet. Not including the amount of money I've lost from not getting back to emails and paying workers etc.

Can anyone give me advice on what I can do??
I've spoken to Managers from Telstra, Complaints Team, Sales Team and various other people.
Sorry for the long post.

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Comments

  • TPG ADSL?

    Cheaper, and better service imo.

  • +2

    You've had 4 years of issues with telstra, yet you still stuck with them for their nbn…

    Move on to another company. I think there's been plenty of chances to retain you.

  • 5MB/s (40Mb/s) or 5Mb/s (0.625MB/s)?

    Judging by your issues though id say 5Mb/s.

    Easiest option would be to get a month to month mobile broadband plan while you wait for adsl to be connected again, that way your business isnt affected. And i agree with above. No point paying telstra bucket loads of cash for a service as simple as adsl.

    ISP's are generally slow to connect services and i am having similar issues with optus at the present time. They are all as bad as each other.

    • Yeah it's 5MB/s I just dont understand how they have the rights to cancel my service without informing me? I'll be changing provider but I dont think its fair for me to pay extra for a month to month mobile plan.

      • Wish i got 5MB/s when i was on ADSL.

        It sounds like the person who was meant to activate your NBN didnt inform telstra it was not installed causing this issue. Definately not fair but i dont think youll get much from telstra compensation wise.

      • I think you missed the distinction in universe's post, i.e. lower case b = bits, upper case B = bytes. It's not possible to get 5 megabytes per second on ADSL2+; theoretical maximum is about 24 megabits per second (i.e. about 3 megabytes per second).

        • Yep sorry mate it's my bad it's 5 megabits

  • +1

    Yeah, Telstra is $h*t when you have problems with them.

    You need to speak with the same person every time, so you don't get conflicting information as above^.

    I've noticed they have different call centres around the world and depending on when you call, that's where you get transferred to.

    The worst part about this is, their databases across the world don't sync properly and they have different information depending on who you speak with.

    So when you try to get a follow up, make sure you phone them at the same time everyday.

    Otherwise, the live chat at 1am is generally very helpful… haha

    • Thanks, I might need to stay up until 1am haha!
      I just can't believe they sh*t they are putting me through because of there stuff up

  • +1

    Sounds like a normal call to Telstra!

  • +9

    telecommunications ombudsman

    • I rang the telecommunications ombudsman just then, They told me they will put through the complaint. Telstra however have 10 days to rectify te issue

      • You should be able to get hold of a 4G wifi dongle at no charge from your local Telstra shop for the duration of your outage, as long as you get some recognition from Telstra that there's an issue. Give them a call and try to have them agree to that. Take comprehensive notes.

        When dealing with the TIO you should have a very clear idea of the outcomes you want. eg. I want an interim data service until an ongoing and reliable service can be established.

        Saying that you're running a business from home probably won't help you, as you're no doubt paying for a residential service rather than a business service that'd have a higher service level.

      • 3 month delay not unusual for complaints

  • +1

    TIO for sure, but also buy a prepaid mobile broadband dongle to get you back online for now, there are always deals posted for them on here.

  • -1

    First of all if you agree to go on a different system that overrides your current service, then they will automatically cancel your existing service.

    You should of stated you wanted to keep your adsl for a backup internet service, signed up to the nbn, then cancelled your adsl after the nbn was working. More than likely you were on an old legacy service they no longer provided, and wanted to get you off that, as it was costing them more money than its worth.

    Telstra tech support really isnt great, as they treat their employees as customer service, so they really have no technical know how, they just read scripts, and parrot your problem back to you.

    However if you are having line problems, and its not actually the internet side of things thats the problem, then staying with them to get that fixed is alot better than going with a different provider, then finding you have line problems, and are no longer a telstra customer.

    Complain to the telecommunications ombudsman, fix the problem first, then move on to a different provider.

  • +2

    OP I work for Telstra, if you want
    Send me a PM with your details (name, contact number and order details). I'll get it checked out for you and get someone to contact you back

    • +1

      One day you're associated the next day you're not. Pretty obvious you may well work for since telstra do exactly the same every time.

  • Satellite NBN is going to cost maybe 2 x adsl for less data and it has its own issues. 4G is going to be faster if you have a good signal

  • I've heard this story a few times over the last couple of months. Welcome to the wonderful world of NBN cutover! I see the new Telstra Nighthawk M1 got released last week. Still pricey at this stage, but if the quoted performance is to be believed, it will kill the NBN dead as it is rolled out and access prices fall to normal levels.

    • Hey mate what is Telstra Nighthawk M1?

      • Hi Sacco … just do a quick google search, but basically it's the latest mobile broadband device. Not sure of the ins and outs of the technology, but it supposed to waaaaaay faster than current 4G speeds.

        Limited coverage at the moment (the old within 5km of capital cities thing), but should roll out over coming months. The Telstra "lab results" reckon download speeds of 900+ megabits/sec, but I read an independent review that reckons "real world" speeds of about 150 megabits/sec.

        The device is probably a bit niche right at the moment, but as costs come down and coverage goes up it's going to be a game changer … and then full 5G will follow in a few years. The value proposition for the NBN just seems to keep falling away.

        • You do realise this technology is useless if the data plans are small which in most cases will be the case with Telstra

          I personally have vivid wireless for my backup link and it works well even if it's called at 10/1 I get unlimited 4G data for 90 a month

          Even Telstra can't compete with that , although if they're offering generous plans and value for money I may just consider giving it a go

        • No dispute on the issue of data allowances, etc., but was just putting this out there as an example of technology that is already coming on line that will kill the NBN. I believe Optus have got/are about to have something very similar. As with all new technology it will be relatively expensive to begin with. I made enquiries with Telstra about using it with pre-paid mobile broadband and apparently that's OK which makes the access a bit cheaper than the post-paid plans. I reckon it won't be that long before similar arrangements are available with the provider you mentioned.

  • As suggested already the TIO is the place to go. You may well be eligible for compensation, do even if you switch providers it may pay you to follow through with them.

    • in your dreams

  • +1

    Problem not associated with nbn this is new telstra. Been with them for 20 years. Currently they are the biggest load of crooks since optus 8/9 years ago.

    Support is garbage - complaints team are out of control and rarely respond. Tio covers their crooked activities up as a political favour for the nbn rollout. The best thing you can do is leave because they ain't gonna change until their get out of jail card is used up with the libs and labor.

    Oz will have nbn but at too high a cost. No point trying to run a business when you're at the mercy of these crooks.Better off setting up in another country with some proper regulation.

  • +1

    The mob you are talking about was fined more than 23 million [yes 23 million] dollars for anti competitive behaviour a few years ago [maybe 4 or 5?]

    They are not interested in you or me and our problems with their lines or systems.

    Pathetic…

    • So were others but this is about now. Advertised plans are not accessible, casual no contract options are removed at point of purchase etc etc etc. Liberals will lose the election over this but the telstra crooks will go on.

  • Try ringing Internode & see what they can offer. Unlike the rest of the ISP's, when you ring them, you speak to someone in AU! I've been with them since 2009 & they're the best, imho. They were bought out, long ago (now TPG own them), but so far (knock-on-wood) they've been left to do business in their usual great way.

    :)

    • Thanks! I might give them a call.
      Cheers

      • Seriously— Internode, FTW!

        If the queue is long, THEY call YOU back (& they do!).

        Otherwise, call early & you get right to an Aussie, ready to help.

        I'd say they are a "dying breed", unless a CEO has the brains to promote their great service?

        At this point, I think it's the same ISP train-wreck-waiting-to-happen as the others. CEO milks the cash, investors milk the cash, ISP service turns to sh*t as they outsource from AU. Customers pay more for less.

        Time to grill the companies involved—- except LNP LOVES them & turns OUR LOSS into THEIR profit.

        • Internode is tpg now just as a fyi

  • Might be a little late to the party but sounds like you might need to change your internet provider! I stumbled across this site for broadband/mobile internet reviews while looking into a new contract - here's what they have on Telstra: https://broadbandreviews.com.au/telstra/reviews

  • We have issues with Telstra in the central CBD of Melbourne. The loss of reception and the signal back to "Searching…" isn't very comforting for us running a business. I've thought about moving and cancelling my contract as well.

    • Never had any issues with Telstra myself
      Have you reported the issue with the local tower
      If they don't know there is an issue they can't help you

      A tower in Brisbane had the wrong time on it for weeks until someone reported it

      • I've had the same issue, constant drop outs I get them at least twice a day. Sometimes it results in me calling up Telstra because it's an issue in there end.
        I've just had my internet re instated after 12 days without internet only for them to drop my data speed from 5megabits to 2 megabits

        Needless to say I've already started getting quotes from different providers. Telstra are literally the worst company I've ever dealt with. How they get away with treating there customers so bad is a joke

  • My question is
    The NBN techs that come out did they seem to have any actual idea about making wireless work and possibly installing a mast / raising the antenna
    Surely you can beam a signal to most locations without issues, seems to be more of a too hard don't care type scenario with the NBN installers lately
    Don't go near the horrible satellite version, sure you'll get 25/5 but your ping will be 900ms and you're limited to 150gb a month MAX

    I think you need to have a better site survey done, I've setup some pretty impossible wireless links on paper

    If you've got a neighbour nearby you could even setup a point to point wireless link between you and them if they can get a better NBN wireless signal as I am sure you can certainly work around this issue

    The win win is you'd both get internet and be able to split the bill, technically you can't resell the service to someone else but if you're both sharing it I see no issues

    I've deployed many of these solutions in the bush and ensured that people who were either on dialup for years or on horribly slow old ipstar satellites can enjoy blistering fast wireless speeds

    I am sure it's mostly 2300/4500mhz for NBN wireless these days which shouldn't be too hard to get to your place, clearly the installers didn't want to make an effort but I feel if you can get onboard with a neighbour and ditch Telstra you'd be better off

    • NbN has only recently became available in the area. I tend to live next to primarily older couples who I don't think even use the internet so unfortunately the point to point wireless link wouldn't work.
      In all honestly I don't think the NbN installers tried very hard. I think they just came to site, ran a test and basically said we are done?
      They didn't give me any other option?
      How would I go about getting them to try and install a mast or raising the antenna?

      After 12 days I've just got internet back on Friday. And they've dropped the speeds further from 5 megabits to 2 megabits.
      When I confronted them about it they turned around and told me anything over 216kbs is considered broadband and is acceptable

      • Anything over 1500/256 is indeed correct
        Sucks but might be worth while getting another site survey done

        You may have to pay for a mast but I feel the cost would be worth it

        • Who would have to organize the mast? Would it be the provider or NbN?
          Id be happy to pay for it?

        • @Sacco07:

          You can usually do the mast or arrange a profssional NBN installation

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