Lettre recommandé avec acuse REFUSED

[Martin963]

My tussle with Club Internet just gets better and better.

Having asked them for a resiliation now that my year's engagement is finished,  I thought that I'd better confirm it in writing.   I also thought that - as Club Internet are in the process of merging with Neuf - that I'd check the correct address for resiliation.

Unwilling to phone their numero surtaxé I rang the "office" number and asked for the address.   A grumpy woman said I'd have to ring the numero surtaxé.   I told her in no uncertain terms that I was damned if I was going to waste more money on them for such a simple request,   and she rather ungraciously gave me the address.

So I prepare my lettre de resiliation (thanks to Clair's template), take it to the Post Office,  pay my €4.40 and ....

This morning,   Ladies and Gentlemen,   it is delivered back in person by our factrice,   motif  "refusé".

Quite quite magnificent.   €4.40 wasted.

Luckily - and to be fair to CI - I had by this time also received an email confirming the date of resiliation following the original phone call so I'm "in the clear", but I can honestly see why anglo-saxons get so absolutely desperate with the so-called service offered by companies such as CI.   It is quite beyond me how French consumers allow themselves to be treated so shabbily by companies.

But as I say,  only my anglo saxon view of the matter!

[Danny]

Was there a reason for the refusal marked on the letter?

Danny

[BJSLIV]

Perhaps your reluctant woman deliberately gave you a wrong address......

The database of resiliation addresses at ariase (http://www.ariase.com/fr/guides/resiliation.html ) gives their address as

Club Internet
Service Client
11, rue de Cambrai
75927 Paris Cedex 19

Is that the one she gave you?

 

 

[Martin963]

No,  she said the 11 rue de Cambrai was no longer used.

The motif was just "refusé".

As I say,  there's no real harm done as I have the email confirming the resiliation,   it's just "rage over a lost penny" syndrome and the sheer incompetence of CI/Neuf!!

I have more or less calmed down now,   I've now transferred my energies to fighting for an English friend who has been without a phone service for six weeks.

Honestly,  I reckon I could earn a living doing this sort of thing,  FT's 1013 SAV line promised an eight minute wait,  actually 26 minutes in the end.

Laters - sorry,  should have said thanks to you both!

[Chancer]

[quote user="Martinwatkins"]My tussle with Club Internet just gets better and better.



 I had by this time also received an email confirming the date of resiliation following the original phone call so I'm "in the clear",
[/quote]

Or so you think!

I hope that you will not regret that precipitous comment if in six months time they are still taking your money[6]

Ne laissez pas les bâtards écrasent-vous!

[Martin963]

Wise words.   Unfortunately.

Again,  the Direct Debit Guarantee Scheme in the UK looks like inspired legislation compared to "faire opposition".

I may waste another €4.40 and write to the 11 rue de Cambrai address.

What was the latin for that phrase.   I know irrumator came into it.

[Chancer]

Illigitamus non tatum carborundum or something like that?

Actually I am pretty uncertain of my conjugation of my French version

[BJSLIV]

No,  she said the 11 rue de Cambrai was no longer used.

Sounds a bit funny to me. I know this is French customer service we are talking about, but you would expect any half decent company to set up mail redirection for a decent period after a major change?

 

[Martin963]

Absolutely agreed.   If I'm charitable I could put it down to the fact that the organisation is perhaps in complete turmoil during the merger.

I never found a postal address on their website,   but then I'd lost the will to live quite early on in my search.

I'll just be glad to be shot of them,   I'll leave others to draw their own conclusions about Neuf.

[AnOther]

I'm not too sure that on the whole French ISP's are any better or worse than their counterparts in the UK.

I have to say that when I read these tales of woe they only serve to reinforce the wisdom of choosing Teleconnect for my ISP [8-|]

 

[Danny]

Don't speak too soon Ernie - its good that you have had no problems but they are not immune to giving the occasional crap customer service too.

Martin, I await the next chapter... possibly about the non return of the modem you don't have...Sorry - putting ideas into their heads?

Danny

[Martin963]

 Blimey I hadn't thought of that.

Mind you in the draft paperwork Alice have already tried to up the price from €34.95 to €39.95.    At least I can - and have - rung them for nothing to check,  AND their site is a damned site easier to negotiate,  with clear prices displayed for the telephone illimité special numbers (for example).

And I do think Vanessa Hessler is gorgeous,  she turned up on TF1 on a Saturday night show a few months ago,  I only caught the end but I was in raptures.   She's trilingual as well as beautiful.

[Jay]

I have been with Tiscali, now Alice, for years and a few month ago went for their 34.95, free telephone calls, no line rental option. Not had any problems at all and what a pleasure not to have those bi-monthly bills from FT.

[Martin963]

Not an option (at least for us) here in our village where all ADSL is subject to significant periods of "outage",  regardless of provider.   Friends who did had to go out and buy a mobile phone pronto.

But great if you can of course.    But I would always advise that people go for degroupage partiel to start with and only dump FT if and when they're CERTAIN that the ADSL is totally reliable.

[tracteurtom]

Martin, May I ask what your problems were with CI  ?

I use them, and have no complaints so far.  I used AOL for a while but got fed up with the crap service and moved to CI after a battle with wanadoo.  Since CI merger with Neuf and AOL they must be one of the biggest ISPs in France ?  Maybe thats my complaint with  CI, they now own dog poo AOL !!!

[Martin963]

Well,  my main problem is the cost of the customer service line;   in our case last year we had long and frequent outages,  I reported these twice (at a personal cost of €18 for two phone calls) and then gave up and lived with the problem.   It seems to me totally unsatisfactory that there is no way of reporting defficiencies except via a phone call that costs €0.34 per minute and entails calls that last over 25 minutes while they faff around getting one to perform tests on the box that have no effect whatsoever.

They then (as a result of the merger)  announced that - even though I was past the one year engagement -  I was to be put on a new contract (which meant I would be tied to them for a minimum of another year) AND gave me the wrong (too high) price for this contract.    When I queried this (on the premium rate number) they said they couldn't possibly personalise the announcement (which came via email) to all their customers.    This just strikes me as lazy - they could have put an asterisk by the price and said that those who own their own boxes (as I do) would pay the current rather than the increased price.

In other words they now want to tie me back in to an identical contract to that which I already have,   with no new incentives,   and still with the premium rate customer service number,  for another whole year.

I'm going to Alice where although I will pay more (because of the fact I won't have purchased my box) I will at least be able to pester them if the ADSL doesn't work, without pushing my phone bill up.   I suppose it's dread of having to ring CI and the fact they want to take me prisoner again for no advantage to me that makes me determined to escape their clutches.

And of course a company that doensn't even know what its own resiliation address is must be a bit dodgy!

 

[BJSLIV]

I'm going to Alice where although I will pay more.....

I think you will probably claw back get some of the additional cost back insofar as Alice's free phone calls include the UK, whereas Neuf only include the UK if you go 100% Neuf , ie VOIP only.

[Chassaing]

[quote user="Martinwatkins"]Well,  my main problem is the cost of the customer service line;   in our case last year we had long and frequent outages,  I reported these twice (at a personal cost of €18 for two phone calls) and then gave up and lived with the problem.   It seems to me totally unsatisfactory that there is no way of reporting defficiencies except via a phone call that costs €0.34 per minute and entails calls that last over 25 minutes while they faff around getting one to perform tests on the box that have no effect whatsoever.

They then (as a result of the merger)  announced that - even though I was past the one year engagement -  I was to be put on a new contract (which meant I would be tied to them for a minimum of another year) AND gave me the wrong (too high) price for this contract.    When I queried this (on the premium rate number) they said they couldn't possibly personalise the announcement (which came via email) to all their customers.    This just strikes me as lazy - they could have put an asterisk by the price and said that those who own their own boxes (as I do) would pay the current rather than the increased price.

In other words they now want to tie me back in to an identical contract to that which I already have,   with no new incentives,   and still with the premium rate customer service number,  for another whole year.

I'm going to Alice where although I will pay more (because of the fact I won't have purchased my box) I will at least be able to pester them if the ADSL doesn't work, without pushing my phone bill up.   I suppose it's dread of having to ring CI and the fact they want to take me prisoner again for no advantage to me that makes me determined to escape their clutches.

And of course a company that doensn't even know what its own resiliation address is must be a bit dodgy!

[/quote]

Hi Martin,

Almost the same story as yours here, we also put up with the poor service but now have decided to jumped ship.

After we called the service line for a new ADSL modem as ours was not working. CI told us they couldn't help us because our computer 'windows' was set up in English.  After being instructed to got to a local factor and having it changed in to French, the service helper refused to send out a new modem without going through a check list at our expence.... We decided it was time to change. The new company ADSL modem works perfectly (same IP adress so our PC was fine).  

Our contract was extended without our agreement aswell, so we are on the same trail as this thread, how to get out.....

Regards

[Martin963]

re the VOIP only degroupage totale with Neuf - yes this was also at the back of my mind;   however Club Internet do NOT insist on degroupage totale so we have been getting free calls to the UK via their VOIP,  whilst retaining the use of our FT line when the ADSL goes down;   I was a bit concerned however that once it becomes all NEUF they might try to force me to go totale,  which would be particularly difficult if one had just found oneself bounced into another year's contract.

re resiliation - well OK I'm not out yet but it was a quick phone call to CI to ask for resiliation,  they told me I didn't have to write,   they sent an email within 48 hours confirming the resiliation and the date so I'm hoping that will be it.

I will of course keep you posted.

[tracteurtom]

Ha yes, the 0.34 c / min Customer Service line.  Thats one of the reasons I ditched AOL, along with the intermittant service and of course that browser that AOL insist on you using..  I didn't know Alice was free (so to speak !).   Thanks for the info.