Porting landline from TalkTalk

[ukmark]

It appears that there are several reported issues of not being able to keep your existing landline number when joining Vodafone broadband. I currently have an order to be joining VF on 16 Sept 2022. When filling in the form I could not choose "keep existing landline". I have lived at same address over 40 years and had same landline over 40 years. I can't understand why porting is such a hassle.

I spoke to an adviser and he said to request a new landline number (in order for me to complete the online form to request 24 months broadband contract). He said, that they would try to keep the landline when switching. TalkTalk have acknowledged my request to leave. They want me to stay (obviously) and although landline numbers are not as important as they once were, it would still be a big inconvenience to go through all your online accounts and phone book etc to change/notify the new landline.

Could somebody from Vodafone please explain why it seems so difficult to preserve your existing number? Who can I contact from VF before the switch to request that my existing landline number is preserved. I do have an order # from VF and that is [Removed].

Hopefully someone will respond. Thanks to all.

[MOD EDIT: This post has been edited to remove personal information please see Community Guidelines]

[Shooby]

From what I understand, I think you can rule BT (Openreach) out of this equation - I chased that red herring, to discover it has now't to do with them.

I'd keep focussing on Vodafone - even try another chat, and hopefully you'll find a more savvy rep on there. Annoyingly, the name of the rep does not appear, so I had no idea who I was talking to each time - every single one could have been different.

Escalate to Cisas - get that going asap; write out as brief an account of what has gone on as you can. Then you can keep hassling Voda whilst Cisas looks at this. Try a 'chat' per day! Tell each rep, "This is what Vodafone NEEDS to do - Vodafone NEED to contact TT and make this request for the number. This is not an Openreach issue, and it is not a TT issue. The request from Voda was not carried out properly, or ELSE the number WOULD have transferred. Do that NOW, please, and let me know when you have. I am one of many in this situation, and in all the cases I know of, Voda were responsible for the failure to transfer the number." (I paraphrase!)

Good luck.

[sanpat]

Thanks for your response.

Just before I saw your response I was on the phone with BT. They are telling me I can 100% get the number back if I sign up with them. I'm a bit dubious of it, but that's what they are telling me.

[Shooby]

One person on the MSE forum (where I also asked about this) had that experience too - their number was 'lost' during a transfer (I don't know which LL/ISPs were involved), but subsequently went with BT who were able to 'retrieve' it.

If that is true, what does it suggest? That BT do have more control/ownership over numbers than other LL/ISP providers (due to their connection with Openreach, I wonder?). Or simply that BT are more competent in carrying out the required request? Or, BT has a better relationship with TT than Voda does? Or, TT wouldn't dare not roll over due to BT's connection with Openreach?

But, what it absolutely DOES say to me (if it's true) is that your number IS still out there, and is clearly still available. Yes?

Another contributor on that forum used to work for Vodafone, and that - in their time - such transfers were completely routine and painless, and it seemed as tho' Voda and TT had a 'good working relationship' at that time. They wondered if that is no longer the case?

How did you contact BT? In a recordable way?

Keep on at Voda. During these 'chats', I was fobbed off with a number of conflicting and implausible excuses, once even having been passed up the chain to a 'manager'. Let's call these 'fobs' for what they were, 'lies'. Finally one Chat rep did what was needed - I wish I knew who they were.

Keep on at them - after having escalated the issue to Cisas, and mention in your Voda chat that you have escalated this to Cisas - it might help to focus their minds. Be adamant (but polite, of course) to the rep that you know this is Voda's responsibility, and no-one else's. Any fob-off - "BT say 'no'", "It's gone - can't be recovered", "TT won't hand it over", etc - you counter "I am absolutely as certain as I can be, and that is very, that what you are saying is simply not correct. This is entirely Voda's mistake in the first place, and is Voda's responsibility to resolve. And I KNOW you can do this is you WANT to, as there are many others who have also been put through this deeply unpleasant process due to Voda. This is already a formal complaint withj Voda, and I have also escalated it to Cisas. ALL it'll take is for a competent and willing Voda employee to RAISE THIS REQUEST WITH TT, right now, and to come back to me and confirm that it has been done." You could even ask, "Are you this person, or do I need to add you to my expanding complaint?" (Judge that one... 🙂 )

Oh, and you can even add that you now know that BT can recover this number - so it CAN be done.

Obviously, I could just have been lucky. But what I think I can say with some certainty, is:

(a) I was repeatedly fobbed off by Voda, with simple untruths,

(b) Provided that TT can confirm they received the transfer request, and it was for both LL and number, it is unlikely that TT is to 'blame'. (They might not be helping, I don't know, but they also cannot prevent it, if Voda do the 'right thing'.)

(c) BT aren't involved in this, and shouldn't be influencing it in any way. I remain, tho', suspicious of their 'power', based on what you and another person have said; ie they seemingly were able to get the number from TT when Voda couldn't. BUT, is that because BT have no 'issue' with TT, or they have more 'power' over TT, or that Voda just has a lousy relationship with TT? I don't know.

(d) This is Voda's problem to resolve. Aim all (most of, at least...) your fire on them. Either they are to blame, (most likely), in which case they'll hopefully resolve it, or else they'll finally present the truth as to who else is truly at fault, and what to do about it. Ie, an absolutely concise answer!*

(e) Voda floundering about and not coming up with the ACTUAL undeniable cause is obviously unacceptable. Someone there KNOWS what's going on. 🙂

*On that point, if you nail down the rep to tell you where the actual issue is - according to them (ie, unlikely to be correct) - then you could call their bluff; "Ok, so you are saying BT have ownership of that number, so they are the one holding on to it? Thanks for that - I have a copy of this transcript, so will be making a formal complaint to BT based on what you've told me..." (For 'BT', substitute TT or whatevs.) I wish I'd done that with the fibs I'd been told, but didn't realise at the time I was being fobbed off.)

[Andy]

Hi @sanpat 👋 Sorry to hear of your ongoing porting issue. I am glad that your complaints handler has reached out to you, as they will work with you to do their best to find a resolution to this issue. If there is anything else we can help with, or if you require any updates on your complaint please reach out to us by following the instructions in this link.

[Shooby]

Based on my similar experience, a frank explanation of the cause of this transfer error is all that's needed, along with someone who gives enough of a damn to resolve it.

My 'complaints handler' 'reached out to me' too, after a competent Rep on Chat did the actual work, and actually fixed Vodafone's error.  They made an official request to TT for the number, as I waited on Chat, and came back to me after a few minutes to confirm they had done so. 2 days later, I had my number back.

I wish I knew their name so I could thank them.

(Ok, there's a chance that other stuff happened and this wasn't resolved in the way it appeared to me - I guess i'll never know - but I am as certain as I can be (that's very) that this is entirely Voda's issue to resolve, and that's regardless of whether TT is dragging their feet or anything else. Voda JUST NEEDS TO DO THIS! It's their responsibility to do so! )

[ukmark]

I nearly switched from TT to Voda. SOOOOO glad I did not.  I've mentioned to quite a few friends that if they want to keep their number, do NOT go to Voda. Unless they can 100% guarantee (in writing) that you can keep your number, don't bother. 

This really has to be one of the most ridiculous threads I've seen. The ability to keep your own number when switching should be an absolute 100% certainty.  I still don't understand why it is such a big fuss. It's just a number but for many the inconvenience of losing your old number can be very time-consuming. I just don't get it. Voda really need to sort this procedure out ASAP and make it VERY clear to anybody wishing to change BB suppliers whether they will or won't keep their existing number, and not be fobbed off with, you might keep your number, but we don't know until you actually switch 😏

[Shooby]

Yes, it's just daft! I have - I think - 23 A4 pages of 'Chat' with Voda over this. And a few phone calls. And an official complaint.

And I did ask for guarantees before I made the transfer. Here's one; "I cannot continue with the transfer with the risk that I'd lose my old number - I'd need a guarantee that this wouldn't happen.”

These are some of the 'guarantees' I was given in reply:

"...if in case porting the line was unsuccessful while placing the order, we will contact the Openreach team manually from our end to port in the number after the account activation”.

“please rest assured we will port in the old number once the broadband got activated.”,

“Yes it will surely work. Once the broadband gets activated, we will manually port in the number from our end”,

“Please don’t worry about that at all, we will raise request for you, it will be changed:)“

“Its sorted for you :), do not worry at all.”

Head-shakingly poor.

(AND they still haven't activated caller ID, depite 4 'chats' now. Lawdie.)

[ukmark]

I feel very sorry for your situation - truly. It's embarrassingly bad......  shameful. All this mess over keeping your original number that you have had for many years. It just makes so much MORE sense to keep an existing number rather than having to find an old unused number (or whatever they do). Either way, you've had a number for years and it's so glaringly obvious that keeping it is the most preferable option. Of course, some might want a new number and that's fine, but the default should be to keep your old number. 

These kinds of issues have me shaking my head in disbelief.......... 

[sanpat]

Hi Shooby,

I just wanted to provide a further update on my situation with Vodafone.

Vodafone are unable to help me any further.

I have made a formal complaint, the complaints handler said they cannot recover the number.

(I have separately tried several chats with other Vodafone representatives as you suggested but they all have been unable to help, some have said they can't get the number back, whilst another provided a bulls**t answers saying I would get the number back after several days - of course this did not happen).

Vodafone have offered me £150 in compensation which I have declined. I have all the official communications and phone recordings from Vodafone (which I had to request formally).  I have now filed a complaint with CISAS.

This was a complete failure of Vodafone and my complaints handler has admitted that. But despite that, they cannot get my number back.

My understanding is that the number porting by Vodafone was not done in the correct manner. As my number is in a number range owned by Sky this means Vodafone have no way of retrieving it (they can only obtain numbers via a system they have with BT Openreach) and BT Openreach can't retrieve the number because it's not in BT's number range.

Sky said that despite the number being in their number range, they don't actually have any control of the numbers, i.e. they cannot assign a specific number from one of their number ranges to a specific customer, so that's a dead end.

TalkTalk have said that as the number is now disconnected they have no means to retrieve it and it just goes back to the original provider (which is Sky in my case).

So it seems like my number is gone for good. The only recourse I have is the CISAS complaint I have filed.

I have literally spent several full working days worth of time trying to resolve this to no avail.

I hope others read this before signing up with Vodafone!

[Shooby]

Hi Sanpat.

Sorry to hear this unfortunate update.

Whereas it 'might' well be a problem transferring non-Openreach numbers, the galling issue is that Voda - and everyone else - should be FULLY clued-up on what can, and can not, be done - and MAKE THIS CLEAR FROM THE OUTSET.

Most Voda reps - including a supposedly-escalated manager - repeatedly gave me the same BS as they have given you, and yet ultimately one rep was able to enact the correct request to TT to retrieve the number. So, no consistency there; you simply cannot take what they say at face value! They may be telling you the truth, or they may not! You have no way of telling, and you certainly can not have any trust in what they claim. Isn't that utterly shocking?!

So, well done for escalating this to CISAS. Breath not being held, but surely they do have some teeth, and will slap the required wrists.

Please keep us updated 🙂