Previous tenant left huge phonebill.. now BT wont let us have a service with them?

Hi all,
Just came to rant about this ridiculous turn of events.
Basically, I've started renting a house, finally found out (after calling a bajillion ISPs) that my phone line was with BT. To save time, I decided I'd just get my phoneline and broadband with BT, instead of switching provider.

I submitted my application form for an account name change. Two weeks later, I call up asking why I still have no service, "Just a few more days." I'm told.
Another week later, I call up again. I'm then informed that there is a £400 bill left on the line by the previous tenants, and that the line has been barred.
I'm then told that I have to wait up to TWO WEEKS for the call barring people to merely RESPOND to the sales peoples query about the barring, and how it can be lifted.
Two weeks on, and I am still waiting for a response. The sales people have told me they have had no word from them.

Can someone smarter than me PLEASE explain to me how this process makes any sense? As far as I can see it, BT have lost money from the previous customer on this line. Their response to this is to not let any more customers on that line give them money for a service?! So basically, BT are choosing to lose MORE money.
What the HELL are they playing at?

I want to switch to NTL, but I keep thinking that BT might at any moment say "ok we'll re-activate the line now", and it might turn out that there is a huge NTL bill too!

Does anyone have any advice?

Thanks.

Reply 1

AT82

Stuff 'em and go with Virgin Media instead.

Reply 2

spark911

AT82

Stuff 'em and go with Virgin Media instead.

Yeah, ha. It's not a big issue.

Or, don't have a phoneline, use mobiles.

Reply 3

Ghost

OP

20

Using mobiles is extremely expensive when the country I've moved to is out of the UK. BT is brilliant because they do free unlimited anytime calls to the UK, which I'll use a lot as my girlfriend is still in the UK.

Reply 4

randomgirl

14

It's lame though because in order to get the internet in my house, we had to pay line rental for BT. Grrrr BT, what a shower of ****e.

Reply 5

Phil.

1

Cancel that line saying the person doesn't live there any more and put in a new, seperate order for a phone line to the house.

Reply 6

Clubber Lang

15

randomgirl

It's lame though because in order to get the internet in my house, we had to pay line rental for BT. Grrrr BT, what a shower of ****e.

what? you want a free phoneline then or something?

Reply 7

Juice05

My sister had this, you can normally get it put through as a second line in your parents name because they have already proven in the past 20 years that they pay their bills.

Don't diss BT if someone didn't pay me I'd do the same thing.

Reply 8

Cromulent

12

randomgirl

It's lame though because in order to get the internet in my house, we had to pay line rental for BT. Grrrr BT, what a shower of ****e.

Yeah, what a pain in the arse. You actually have to pay for things...

Reply 9

Ghost

OP

20

Juice05

My sister had this, you can normally get it put through as a second line in your parents name because they have already proven in the past 20 years that they pay their bills.

Don't diss BT if someone didn't pay me I'd do the same thing.

I'm 'diss'ing the fact that they're stopping a completely different customer from having a service with them, just because a previous customer who just happened to use the same line, didn't pay their bill.
Why did they choose to wait half a year until a new customer arrived to sort this out? We're completely different people, it shouldn't affect us at all.

Previous tenant left huge phonebill.. now BT wont let us have a service with them?

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