BT have killed my oldie off.

[BeaTwix]

Lots of hassle. Switched to digital voice. Oldie didn't notice/ understand the communications.

No phone. No falls alarm. Discovered by me weeks later.

Contact BT. Get it sorted. Get some compensation which we donate to charity.

More issues - BT won't talk to me as I'm not the account holder and Oldie can't deal with three way call tech to authorise them to do so.

So I follow the Power of Attorney (PoA) registration process.

Next thing... email from BT "We're sorry to hear about your bereavement".

Oh yes. Then person dealing with the PoA@bt email has processed my email requesting that the PoA be registered which had a copy of the document attached as notification that the oldie had died.

I've now spoken to BT more times this week than anyone else. As they have promised to end the phone contract within 28 days of the death notification.

You have to laugh or you would cry.

Anyone else got any stellar customer service stories to cheer me up?

I'm going round in circles right now between plumbers and boiler which are covered by 2 arms of one contract. Everyone saying someone else is the problem, I don't understand it, Dad does but is forgetful and can't entirely be trusted, and I am 2hrs away...

Mail order company have sent 2 sets of pjs, separately. Probably due to a mistake on my part and them trying to help correct. Hoping they won't want one set returned.

BT are shockingly bad.

They told my MIL she’d have to “just get FIL to give them a quick call” multiple times when she rang to have things changed into her name when FIL died.

BT: the pits.

Beyond appalling.

Spent : Hours and weeks trying to resolve a simple problem. Uncontactable - unless you were a spy for James Bond Spectre. I could probably head MI5 after that experience.

I was trying to cancel numerous DDs and standing orders on things like Sky and RHS..
My Mum had Alzheimer's and had just gone into a home..
I eventually gave up and just 'pretended' to be her..
I didn't actually lie.. I just didn't tell them I wasn't her..
(Apart from once when they asked if I was the account holder.. then I lied.. but I was at the end of my tether with everything)
3 years later and there's never been any repercussions..

I can heartily recommend Zen if you're thinking of changing. We have regular issues with our line due to being a bit isolated and the ageing infrastructure. We lose our internet on average 4/5 times a year, usually because OpenReach have been working on adjacent lines. Zen answer the phone quickly, have knowledgable agents and keep in touch until the problem is fixed. They also monitor the line afterwards to make sure the fix is stable. I certainly won't be changing my provider!

Get on Twitter/X and ask @ ofcom how they can look into a phone provider dereliction their duties to a vulnerable client? Ask what further info they need to formally investigate. Include @ bt. You’ll have a message from their enhanced customer service team in an hour. Good luck.

Informed my dad's pension provider he had died and uploaded death cert. Bank account frozen so no payments in or out.

A few months later get a strongly worded letter from the pension provider accusing my dad of fraudulently claiming pension and that they knew about his 'change of circumstances' due to govt departments talking to each other.

Water company in my Dads name - before I had court of deputy for him whilst he and my mum were riddled with dementia in a home ……
He owed water bill for an empty house.

Fair enough.

I rang and said both parents in a home. I’m waiting for authority to act but I need to pay the bill in the meantime.

“We need to speak to the account holder”
Erm. “As I said. He’s in a home with zero capacity I just want to pay the bill if that’s ok”

“We are going to refer to our legal department for you fraudulently opening someone’s mail “

Right you are.

All very amazing. I eventually managed to pay said bill. And two months later they sent a refund. To. My. Bank. Account.

Somewhere in Southern Water’s account system - is still my dead parents’ outstanding unpaid water bill of almost 8 years.

You are all making me feel better.

No doubt there will be more.

I will write to the BT complaints team. But for now it looks like the oldie has been resurrected.

Your driving licence card is due for renewal, please log on to gov.uk and enter your details
Name, d.o.b, address, licence number, passport number, name on passport ...
'Sorry we are unable to verify your identity'
I beg your pardon? I am a civil servant!
Online chat tells me it's because my middle name is not on my driving licence. Off to post office to pay an extra £7 to do the whole thing manually

I have some shares, which were a freebie with a then building society I had an account with. Pays a v minimal sum out annually (pence), husband also has same. Mine was in my maiden name, as we'd not long married when they asked is we could go paperless so they paid our bank rather than send a cheque, I sent them our marriage certificate along with a form each and a covering letter to explain they were changing mine to my married name and paying in to the bank direct, and also paying DH's in to his bank direct. They lost the marriage certificate and only paid DH's in. I haven't been able to bank the cheques since as my bank won't accept them now despite there being written confirmation they can accept in maiden name it was ongoing for many years, numerous phone calls, letters enclosing copies of the original letter, further marriage certificate and form - no response due to covid at the time, so I gave up and assigned my shares to charity, it's cheaper than the cost of posting the letter and my time faffing, as phone calls don't work

Agree with ZEN

Your heading plus “Discovered by me weeks later” gave me quite the wrong impression.

I hear you OP, I had this fairly recently when my Dad then Mum passed away. My Dad had accidentally set up an additional phone account (he was 90 and dealt with his own affairs but made a mistake). When I visited him in hospital he asked me to sort it out for him (had POA, all the details of the problem). I called the company to start to unravel it, but then he passed away in hospital so a couple of weeks later I called back to chase it up and tell them he had passed away and I was the exec of the will. I explained I had started to deal with this but the situation was now changed as my Dad had passed away. They actually told me to "stop changing my story". I had already asked where to send the death certificate and all paperwork. Because it was so close to my Dad passing and I felt fragile I burst into tears and hung up. I tried once more but got no where. We resolved it by my husband calling them and pretending to be my Dad and asking to cancel - we had all the details so could answer all the questions and that sorted it out.

Plusnet are really helpful. Moved DF to them 18 months ago and they suggested I go on as a "trusted person" or whatever the terminology is. Their call centres are in England and the staff I have spoken to have all been patient, kind and understanding.

I posted on a thread on Chat about Social Services in E Yorkshire asking for MiL a couple of days after she died. I took DH's name on marriage and was in her flat clearing things up when they called. The conversation went something like:

SS: Is that Mrs Malbec?
Me: Yes
SS: Oh good, we need to talk to you about your son X Malbec [my disabled BiL]
Me: I don't have a son. I think you want to speak to my MiL, Mrs H Malbec.
SS: Yes. That's who we asked for.
Me: No you didn't, you asked for Mrs Malbec and I am indeed Mrs Malbec, just not the Mrs Malbec you require.
SS: Well can you put her on then?
Me: I'm afraid not....
SS; [interrupting]. Could you stop wasting our time, this is important.
Me:.... because she died 2 days go.
SS: Well we need to speak to her about X Malbec [note, no sympathy or condolences]
Me: Well you're going to need an ouija board or medium. Anyway, my husband is X's legal guardian now, so I have no idea why you are phoning a dead 88 year old.

And on the conversation went. They were SO insensitive.