Back on the 27th October I told you about the trouble that I’d been having with [Pipex][]. Here’s a short update.
[pipex]: http://www.pipex.net
> **Sent:** 30 October 2006 16:31
> **From:** billing@dial.[pipex][].com
>
> Dear Mr P [redacted],
>
> Thank you for your reply.
>
> I can confirm that the credit of £35.19 for the security suite invoiced in error (on your new account) has been refunded back to your card today on 30.10.06. Please allow 3-5 working days for this to clear with your card issuer.
>
> I have arranged a pro-rata credit on your cancelled account for the period of paid subscription after your cancellation date. The total credit of £9.38 shall be refunded back to you within the next 28 days.
>
> Please accept our apologies for any confusion / inconveniences which may have been caused by this matter and if you have any further queries please do not hesitate to contact us.
>
> Kind Regards,
> JR
> Finance Team
I replied, of course.
> **Sent:** 30 October 2006 16:55
> **To:** billing@dial.[pipex][].com
>
> *Dear Mr P [redacted],*
> *Thank you for your reply.*
> *I can confirm that the credit of £35.19 for the security suite invoiced in error (on your new account) has been refunded back to your card today on 30.10.06. Please allow 3-5 working days for this to clear with your card issuer.*
>
> Thank you
>
> *I have arranged a pro-rata credit on your cancelled account for the period of paid subscription after your cancellation date. The total credit of £9.38 shall be refunded back to you within the next 28 days.*
>
> As I wrote in an email on Friday, I requested a cancellation date of 15th September, but for some reason it seems that the cancellation actually occurred a few weeks later, on 3rd October. I believe this to be an error on the part of someone at Pipex, and I feel that I am entitled to a refund from my requested cancellation date of 15th September.
>
> Regards,
> Pete
Remember my email to GD back on the 24th October? We briefly rejoin that conversation.
> **Sent:** 31 October 2006 10:41
> **From:** customerservices@[pipex][].net
>
> Dear Sir,
>
> Thank you for your email and sorry for the slow response.
>
> We are experiencing higher demand than anticipated for our services at the moment and as a result a backlog has occurred and this needs to be cleared.
>
> We do reply to all the emails we receive and are employing more staff all the time to deal with this.
>
> Sorry for any inconvenience.
>
> Kind Regards,
> Customer Services Team
I thought that was a sly little move they pulled there – “No, we’re not rubbish! We’re just too popular!”
But let’s get back to the main thread here. Their reply to my last email arrived startlingly quickly – just two days later!
> **Sent:** 1 November 2006 15:06
> **From:** customerservices@[pipex][].net
>
> Dear Sir/Madam
>
> Thank you for your email and sorry for the delay in reply
>
> I can confirm that I have forwarded your email onto my Finance Department who will endeavour to respond to you as soon as possible.
>
> At the moment they do have a response time of 7-10 working days so I thank you in advance for your patience
>
> If you have any further enquiries please do not hesitate to contact us on 0845 077 2455
This one also came from “Customer Service Team”. They’ve clearly figured out that there’s no point in putting the author’s name at the bottom of each email, when there is no opportunity whatsoever to build up a relationship with them. I also seem to have turned back into “Sir/Madam”.
At about the same time, I received a response to one of my other emails that was floating around in the pot – in fact, the one that I left you with at the end of the last post on this topic. The big one.
> **Sent:** 1 November 2006 17:10
> **From:** “JB” customerservices @[pipex][].net
>
> Dear Customer
>
> Thank you for your email
>
> I can confirm your email has been sent to the correct department and they will be with you very shortly
>
> RB
> Customer Services Team
Two things to note here. Firstly, someone seems to have hijacked JB’s email address (yes, the same JB who sent me an email last time. Some continuity at least!). Secondly, and you can’t see it here because of my polite anonymosification, but RB is either in possession of (a) a really uncommon spelling of her not-uncommon christian name, or (b) the spelling ability of a kipper.
Oh, and a third thing. I’m “Customer” now. Whatever next?
Unsurprisingly, the “correct department” WEREN’T with me shortly. So I followed up, following RB’s lead when it came to how to spell her christian name. I have no idea why I am even continuing to use their names at this stage – perhaps to highlight how comical their operation is. You may notice a change in my tone here.
> **Sent:** 16 November 2006 17:28
> **To:** “JB” customerservices @[pipex][].net
>
> R,
>
> It is four weeks since I sent this email and I have not had a response yet.
>
> This transaction was applied without my consent. If [Pipex][] are not willing to give me a refund voluntarily, I will be taking this matter to Small Claims Court.
>
> Regards,
> Pete
I have not heard anything from [Pipex][] in the two weeks since I wrote this email.
So I know what you are thinking now – is Pete really going to go to Small Claims Court over the princely sum of £25? Well, I haven’t yet decided, but probably not. I’m not that poor, and even if I did win, it would be one of those pathetic little victories that aren’t worth the investment.
Meanwhile, there’s a much more significant victory brewing elsewhere. The volume of anti-Pipex sentiment on the Internet is becoming deafening. Surely they have to clean up their act soon? If they continue at this rate, the damage will be irreparable!
5 replies on “Pipex Don’t Care Anymore”
Pah they are all the same Pedro. Pipex are probably the worst. I’m moving all my domains away from 123-reg as they are pipex 🙂
The thing about Pipex is that I’d still recommend them on a technical level. Their broadband service seems quite reliable, and though they throttle peer-to-peer traffic, I appreciate that it is necessary for all ISPs to do that if they want to keep their monthly fees competitive. It’s just a shame that their customer service is so excruciating, mainly as a result of over-eager expansion.
but I find that the level of customer service is just as important as any technical skill. I have just started to sell broadband and completely whipped out a supplier (although a good one for product) because they didn’t get back to me in over 3-4 weeks.. and this wasn’t for support this was a sales enquiry!! And the same with Easynet..awful customer service so they are off the list too!
They don’t just throttle peer to peer. We never run peer to peer, but (a) have many websites and iTunes throttled, and (b) get put on their naughty pipe if we download over 1GB per week!
Stephen: which package are you using? Is it an unlimited service, or does it have a monthly bandwidth cap? Do they inform you when they have put you on the naughty pipe, or do you just notice a drop in performance?