Off Topic The Review Thread

  • Please bear with us on the new site integration and fixing any known bugs over the coming days. If you can not log in please try resetting your password and check your spam box. If you have tried these steps and are still struggling email [email protected] with your username/registered email address
  • Log in now to remove adverts - no adverts at all to registered members!
sb_73 said:
Virgin Media Contract renewal negotiations review.

Been very happy with the £39 a month for 18 months Virgin 200 plus landline deal. Consistent download speeds of 210mbps plus, pretty reliable, when enhanced with mesh system strong signal all over the house. Infinitely superior to its predecessor, BT., but not renegotiating would have put the price up to £57 a month.

But the angst of renewal time has arrived. First tried discussions via chat box, 2 hours to get a person on the other end, then ‘she’ (I’m sure they use female names to soften the caller) tried to transfer me to a WhatsApp version, gave up after 3 hours (noticed that they had responded 6 hours late, the next morning). The best offer received was £46 for Virgin350 plus landline. I was actually happy with this but my demon negotiator wife was not.

Today we went the phone route. Long waits, first numpty had no clue, best offer £43 for current package, then cut off. Two more attempts, cut off. Finally got through to an operator called Molly, who was sitting in a real office somewhere in Devon. She gave us Virgin350 plus landline at …….£34 a month for 18 months. Deal. The upgrade has already happened, now getting download speeds of 370mbps, uploads (not that we upload much) of 32mbps. Very happy. This stuff is important when you have 3 people in the house working on laptops, and a lot of streaming going on when we aren’t working.

Couple of learnings - Molly told us she could only have made this offer because she was in the office, the coding was too complex for her to have done it working from home, but a lot of the operators are at home……plus they clearly have an algorithm linked to accounts/phone numbers. Once they have severely pissed you off you get through to someone who will delight you. Risky strategy though.
Click to expand...

I always use the same with Sky when my contract is up. First they always say no way to a better deal, even though I say I’m gonna leave…..when I start to make good with my threat and start to put out the feelers to actually leave then suddenly I get discounts galore.
 
sb_73 said:
Virgin Media Contract renewal negotiations review.

Been very happy with the £39 a month for 18 months Virgin 200 plus landline deal. Consistent download speeds of 210mbps plus, pretty reliable, when enhanced with mesh system strong signal all over the house. Infinitely superior to its predecessor, BT., but not renegotiating would have put the price up to £57 a month.

But the angst of renewal time has arrived. First tried discussions via chat box, 2 hours to get a person on the other end, then ‘she’ (I’m sure they use female names to soften the caller) tried to transfer me to a WhatsApp version, gave up after 3 hours (noticed that they had responded 6 hours late, the next morning). The best offer received was £46 for Virgin350 plus landline. I was actually happy with this but my demon negotiator wife was not.

Today we went the phone route. Long waits, first numpty had no clue, best offer £43 for current package, then cut off. Two more attempts, cut off. Finally got through to an operator called Molly, who was sitting in a real office somewhere in Devon. She gave us Virgin350 plus landline at …….£34 a month for 18 months. Deal. The upgrade has already happened, now getting download speeds of 370mbps, uploads (not that we upload much) of 32mbps. Very happy. This stuff is important when you have 3 people in the house working on laptops, and a lot of streaming going on when we aren’t working.

Couple of learnings - Molly told us she could only have made this offer because she was in the office, the coding was too complex for her to have done it working from home, but a lot of the operators are at home……plus they clearly have an algorithm linked to accounts/phone numbers. Once they have severely pissed you off you get through to someone who will delight you. Risky strategy though.
Click to expand...

I'm on the hunt for new gas/electric contract - the prices quoted everywhere at the moment are ****ing astronomical though - WTF! Some are over £4K a year <yikes>
 
Steelmonkey said:
I'm on the hunt for new gas/electric contract - the prices quoted everywhere at the moment are ****ing astronomical though - WTF! Some are over £4K a year <yikes>
Click to expand...
I’m afraid you don’t have a hope. My wife is coming to the end of a contract with Ovo, working on some internal project they have moving the SSE customers they ‘bought’ a couple of years ago onto Ovo systems. She tells me that there will be no new deals to entice customers to switch, because they can’t afford them - the deals you see are actually higher than the variable rate. No joy switching, our fixed rate contract is up soon and she reckons (she’s the guru on domestic expenses) it’s best to go into the variable rate until wholesale gas prices get back down, otherwise you are locked into a very high rate.

Plus good luck getting through. 50% of call to Ovo are abandoned.

Just checked my facts with the in house expert. Standard variable tariff will be eye watering but it’s the best to go for in current circumstances. It will be ‘fixed’ for 6 months in April, then adjusted again in September, total rise of 50% anticipated. All longer term deals will be on even higher rates because the domestic suppliers have no idea how much wholesale gas will sell for. So much for competition driving prices down.

Fuel poverty is a real and serious thing.
 
Last edited:
kiwiqpr said:
Dear oh dear oh dear
The repair shop is still on tv
Some dopey mares turned up with her granny's butter churn
She wants to show her kids how good the good old days were
Apparently it will remind them of granny
Who by the time they were born would have been buying it from Tesco's
Click to expand...
I think its the skill of the repairer's that you should be looking at.
 
sb_73 said:
I’m afraid you don’t have a hope. My wife is coming to the end of a contract with Ovo, working on some internal project they have moving the SSE customers they ‘bought’ a couple of years ago onto Ovo systems. She tells me that there will be no new deals to entice customers to switch, because they can’t afford them - the deals you see are actually higher than the variable rate. No joy switching, our fixed rate contract is up soon and she reckons (she’s the guru on domestic expenses) it’s best to go into the variable rate until wholesale gas prices get back down, otherwise you are locked into a very high rate.

Plus good luck getting through. 50% of call to Ovo are abandoned.

Just checked my facts with the in house expert. Standard variable tariff will be eye watering but it’s the best to go for in current circumstances. It will be ‘fixed’ for 6 months in April, then adjusted again in September, total rise of 50% anticipated. All longer term deals will be on even higher rates because the domestic suppliers have no idea how much wholesale gas will sell for. So much for competition driving prices down.

Fuel poverty is a real and serious thing.
Click to expand...

At least now Brexit is done we can rely on our fab government to remove the 5% VAT that the wicked EU forced on us :emoticon-0136-giggl
 
  • Like
Reactions: sb_73
Stroller said:
Watching Westworld (the film) for the first time in a very long time. Almost unbelievable to think that this is almost 50 years old. Brilliant.
Click to expand...
Fabulous film, Michael Chrichton wrote the screenplay and directed . Put him firmly on the map, I'm sure Arnie modelled himself in The Terminator on Bryner's performance !
 
Staines R's said:
Started watching “All of us are Dead” on Netflix.
If you liked Train to Basan and #Alive then this will be right up your street.
Zombies, gore, zombies, blood, zombies, Koreans, zombies, death……oh and it’s got zombies
Click to expand...

I was thinking of starting that last night as just finished Season 3 of Narcos Mexico. Something else to add to the list!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Staines R's
Staines R's said:
Started watching “All of us are Dead” on Netflix.
If you liked Train to Basan and #Alive then this will be right up your street.
Zombies, gore, zombies, blood, zombies, Koreans, zombies, death……oh and it’s got zombies
Click to expand...
Steelmonkey said:
I was thinking of starting that last night as just finished Season 3 of Narcos Mexico. Something else to add to the list!
Click to expand...
Do you blokes ever sleep?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Steelmonkey and Staines R's
Say what you like about Wayne Rooney and the bad decisions he’s made over the course of his life, but I’m watching the Amazon documentary on him and at least he’s been smart enough to choose a wife with an on/off button.
 
  • Like
Reactions: UTRs, Steelmonkey and kiwiqpr
James Taylor in concert from 1971 on BBC2.

I just love this man's voice. One of a few voices that can make my soul soar, along with Van Morrison, Bryan Ferry, Tim Booth, Morrissey and Michael Stipe.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back