Seller of the property wants to keep broadband account on the property even after sale- please help!

[TKH77]

After lot of hiccups, we exchanged contract two weeks ago and moving to our home in 2 weeks time. We have the trio of worst seller+ worst solicitor+ worst estate agent. Anyway, we applied to BT to move our telephone/broadband to the new address from the moving date. However, this got cancelled as the current BT line in the new address is used by talk talk to provide tel/broadband service for the current owner. Apparently the current owner has put a 'bar' on the talk talk service from her moving date until her new home is completed which will be few months.

Main problem now is BT cannot connect to the existing line as the seller hasn't cancelled her account from the moving date, instead keeping the account and paying line rental. This will mean we have to get a second line at the property which will cost us somewhere around £200 (cost is not a major issue, though totally unnecessary). Our main concern is that seller will still have an account attached to the property and we are worried that she could use her account to prove her address which could potentially result in fraud. Also if she doesn't pay line rental, our credit history may be affected as we are living in that address from mid august (I am not sure about this though)

My main questions are:

1. Is it legally allowed to hold a broadband account on some else property without their consent when you don't own or reside in that property
2. any advice on how to proceed further.

We requested help from solicitor and also estate agent but they do not think its something which they can sort out.
I understand that seller can take their phone number and account with them but never heard of someone holding on to their account after selling the property.

Thanks in advance for your advice.

Why do they want to? It's not like they can use it if they don't live there

Have you spoken to Talk Talk? It's not her house anymore, she can't keep her broadband account! Maybe she's tied into a contract with them and thinks she has to do this.

Presumably though they can only have an account at their own address and when you take ownership you cam call Talk Talk and say you're the new owner and give forwarding address of vendor. They don't have to have changed it from their end. Our vendors hadn't.

Probably because there is an early cancellation fee. I would expect your solicitor to sort it out.

No, that's just bizarre. She should port the number and contract to her new address.

Get your solicitor to get tough. Say you'll take the money for the second line and then some off the final settlement.

Just to make it clear, she is moving into a new home which is currently is being built. We don't know where she is moving to- we guess to her friends/family/caravan.

I do not think cancellation fee is the reason as she is paying the line rental until the line is transferred into her new home which will be more than cancellation fee.

I haven't spoken to Talk Talk yet. I might try this option but not very hopeful.

Talk talk is your best bet. They won't supply an account to someone who doesn't live at the address and has no authority to have services attached to the address.

When you complete ring them and they'll cancel her account. You can then switch BT over. They won't keep an account open for someone who is not the homeowner.

Spoke to talk talk, they told me that the account holder can hold the account as long as they want. I have now made an official complaint saying that talk talk is providing account to someone without our consent from our moving date. They will give me a response within 8 hours.
I spoke to talk talk few hours before making complaint pretending that I am going to take out a new talk talk account. They told me that there won't be any other account attached to that property and we can have talk talk account in the property without a new line!
I think if they allow her to continue account on that property, I may have to take make a complaint to ombudsman.

Cant you just plug a talk talk router in and use it for free? You can get one from eBay. Does she also have a phone service on the same line? you can run up a big big bill I imagine.

Maybe point that out and she will be prompted to end the service.

How bizarre. However i can sort of see what she is doing. If she is moving in with family/friends she wont be able to change her address to theirs as i assume they already have phone access but she doesnt want to pay the cancellation fee.

I would point it out to her that you could use the service and she would have to pay for it. I dont think she would like that.

She is going to put a 'bar' on her account from the day of sale, so no one can use it!
Still no response from talk talk....

Your solicitor is being pathetic, IMO.

How is it 'vacant possession ' if she has a utility service in situ?

She shouldn't be able to maintain a barred service on a property she doesn't own!

Hang on....what exactly is your completion date?

I've dealt with this before in a job many moons ago. Once you have completed, if the issue is still ongoing I would use the words fraud and frauldent as much as possible in relation to the seller - this should get you through to the right person to help (ex-telecoms worker here).

Is there some way to get access to the broadband account?
She's being a dick, im confused

I would refuse to complete until this issue is resolved. Your solicitor can and should deal with it.

Her credit doesn't effect your address. It's individual not linked to the property.
BT are quoting an extortionate amount to install a new line. Sky or TalkTalk will put one in for £25. I would just install a new line and forget about hers. She's probably confused about moving address with Talk Talk and possibly been poorly advised that this is the best way to proceed. I highly doubt she is intending to commit fraud.

I don't get why she would do that?? She'd have no access to internet or phone unless she leaves everything (router etc) plugged in. In which case just unplug everything when you move in. Unless I'm missing something??

She can't have utilities/bills at a property she doesn't own. I don't think there's much you can do until you move in though. When you're in just phone whatever providers you will be using, let them know you live there now and they should do the rest.

My DH works in telecoms and deals with this occasionally. He agrees with the BT position - you have to order a new connection with associated costs and they will then normally disconnect her. Most houses already have a couple of lines attached to the property so they will activate an unused one for you and hers will become inactive in the house. He's not heard of people getting their costs back for this though

I assume she's in a contract that she could normally port to a new address but because she's not moving into her new house she can't do it.
However that's her problem not yours and your solicitor needs to sort it out.
TalkTalk are also incompetent so that's a complication.

The only reason i can think for her doing this is that she wants to keep her number but has nowhere to move it to until her house is built.

Still not your problem though.

If she wants to do that she should, at the very least, pay for your second line to be installed. That's assuming that is acceptable to you!

she's going to move into the shed and wants to use her broadband

You need to get solicitor to sort this.
You wont gwt v far with talk talk. They shit beyond shit.
Im sure your solicitor can do something under the term Vacant Possession. I wouldnt even try abd resolve this myself. Really the vendor should have informed her solicitor she wanted to do this nefore exchanging contracts so your solicitor could say yes or no or add stipulations, hold back x amount of money until utilities removed for whatever.

Your vendor is being cheeky and taking the piss. Just get your solicitor to sort it.

This is another house move thread where people sont get they need to move out.

No different to them moving out and leaving furniture and saying its ok cos we wont use it just need to leave it there until our house is built.

Not acceptable.

In most of those threads firm words from buyers solicitor to vendors got the ditustion sorted.