Avoid Home-Connect at all costs - the worst ISP experience ever!

Can someone please respond to my week old ticket - Ticket Received [#673405] [3SP6124]. I've called... emailed, sent whatsapp messages, logged tickets through your app and through your website, nothing! Your systems and customer service are USELESS!!

Dear Home-Connect - you may have seen on Facebook comments, whatsapp messages, emails, facebook chat messages, calls and tickets that I've been suffering exceptionally poor service and customer support from your company since requesting to move my line five weeks ago. The line has now been moved, but since being moved I've again struggled with customer support, and as a result I have requested that the service be cancelled effective end of June and I will find an alternative ISP who actually offers customer service, unlike yourselves.

Following a conversation with one of your consultants this morning, I was threatened with penalties for cancelling the service, to which I vehemently object. As far as I see it, and what I have read and understood from your terms and conditions, you are in many cases in contravention of these, and as such the entire agreement is legally null and void.

You have successfully billed me for the month of June which I accept, but I wish this to serve as my written and publicly published request to cancel my service effective end of June with ZERO penalties or objections. Failing which I shall not only reserve my rights to take legal action against your company, including with the ombud. Fortunately the law in South Africa, specifically the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 protects me as a consumer in instances such as this where a company / service provider who has not provided the service promised forces a consumer to continue with the service.

It is my suggestion that someone from your company contact me today, the 13th June 2024 so that this matter can be resolved in an amicable manner without any further hassle for either party.__
Andre van Aarde

@Home-Connect - please can you respond to this?

Please stop wasting my time with phone calls. It is far too late to retain me as a customer. Your support team who is calling is ill equipped and ill informed as to the situation which speaks further to the incompetence of your ticket and fault logging and any customer service representative should be well informed as to the problems a customer has faced and is facing BEFORE calling. This matter cannot be resolved, I have no confidence in your company, your systems, your infrastructure or your customer support and contact portals.

1.) I have requested in writing countless times that I wish for the service to be suspended effective the end of June 2024, I do not need to log this on your app or web portal. Past experience has proven BOTH of these systems do not function.
2.) I have requested in four separate phone calls that I wish for the service to be suspended effective the end of June 2024, I do not need to log this on your app or web portal. Past experience has proven BOTH of these systems do not function.
3.) I have requested on numerous support tickets through your website that I wish for the service to be suspended effective the end of June 2024, I do not need to log this on your app or web portal. Past experience has proven BOTH of these systems do not function.
4.) I have requested on Facebook, Instagram, Hello Peter, Whatsapp and Facebook messenger that I wish for the service to be suspended at the end of June 2024, I do not need to log this on your app or web portal. Past experience has proven BOTH of these systems do not function.

Please acknowledge receipt of this email and my request and confirm once this has been completed.

Thank you.

@Home-Connect - thank you for finally replying to my emails, phone calls, whatsapp messages, online tickets and Facebook messages after a week. Unfortunately I do not accept your charge or R2500.00 for "Installation Recovery Fee" as I would not be terminating the contract if you in fact had any form of customer service or support. You are by my interpretation of your own contract in breach and as such as a consumer who is protected by the Consumer Protection Act in South Africa I dispute this charge and outright refuse it.

Kindly adjust your billing and send through confirmation in writing that no charges or penalties will be levied so that we can consider the matter closed and that I may find an alternative ISP?

@Home-Connect please can you respond to the email / ticket / whatsapp / phone call?

WARNING - DO NOT USE Home-Connect, THEY ARE THE WORST ISP IN SOUTH AFRICA!!

Home-Connect do you ever reply to emails / whatsapp messages / support tickets / phone calls? It seems as though you just ignore these and continue to bill customers for terrible service and non existing customer support.

Home-Connect - instead of deleting and hiding my comments, why don't you just reply to my emails, whatsapp messages and support tickets? #CustomerComplaint #Useless

Home-Connect another day has passed, another dozen emails, tickets, whatsapp messages, facebook posts, facebook messages, calls etc. You can continue to ignore and hide these but I will not go away until you acknowledge my emails and see to my request.

Another week... more emails, whatsapp messages, tickets... still not a word.

Still no reply or resolution from Home-Connect

Still no reply from Home Connect... it's been three months.

On Tue, 10 Sept 2024 at 18:46, Andre van Aarde wrote:

Hi Jonathan

I would like to bring your brief attention to my case: I experienced shockingly unreliable connectivity from Home Connect after relocating to a house in Morningside, despite countless attempts to contact your customer support via the app, website, whatsapp, email, Facebook messenger and directly via telephone without any luck, I requested that the service be cancelled. I have now been charged a "Recovery Fee" which I know is mentioned in your T&C document, however on review I also know that there are numerous areas in the Consumer Protection Act where you will in fact be found liable for the failure in service and should it even reach a Small Claims Court I will be fully within my rights to receive a refund in full for this fee along with the period in which I did not have service.

I've patiently tried contacting your support office for over three months without any luck. Before I take further legal action I would like to urge you to please step in and have this refund passed. It's a nominal cash sum, but it is now a matter of principle for me - I will not be bul**** or rolled over by a company hiding behind poor customer service and a patchy legal document.

Please investigate my case and see to it that the refund is passed so that we can both move on from this?

Regards,

__
Andre van Aarde

On Wed, 11 Sept 2024 at 12:25, Andre van Aarde wrote:

Subject: Customer Complaint - VANA096
Cc: Support <***>, Escalations-Priority Queires <***>, Accounts <***>

Hi All

@Morategi - thank you for the phone call. It's a pity that you will not respond in writing, and even more concerning that you refuse to budge on your position to refund me for the amounts which are clearly due. Seeing as you will not respond in writing I shall summarise the points of our most recent conversation:

1. You acknowledge receipt of all of the tickets which I have logged with Home-Connect in regards to the faults, connectivity issues, lack of customer service etc, and acknowledge that these were received.
2. You are aware of my request to terminate my contract with Home-Connect based on the lack of service, connectivity issues and response from customer service in regards to the tickets logged.
3. You are aware of my rights as per the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008, and more specifically where they legally overrule your Terms and Conditions agreement.
4. You are unwavering in my request for a refund for the "Recovery Fee", and despite my request to resolve the matter by refunding me of this nominal fee, you insist that I take legal action through ISPA, ICASA and the Small Claims Court of South Africa.
5. You are aware that I will continue to publish the progress of this dispute in the public domain and on websites and public / social media forums such as Hellopeter, Instagram, Facebook and Google and other platforms accessible to internet consumers where Home-Connect and has a presence.

Please note that I will take a lack of response to the above as your and Home-Connect's agreement to the above points.
Failing a resolution and full refund by close of business tomorrow I will then proceed with all and every available channel to lodge my dispute formally, legally as well as in the public domain:

• ISPA - https://ispa.org.za/code-of-conduct/lodge-a-mediation-request/
• ICASA - https://www.icasa.org.za/pages/consumer-complaints#:~:text=Complaints%20must%20be%20in%20writing,faxed%20to%20012%20568%203444.
• Small Claims Court - https://www.justice.gov.za/scc/scc.htm
• Facebook - www.facebook.com
• Instagram - www.instagram.com
• Hello Peter - www.hellopeter.com
• Google - www.google.com
• MyBroadband - www.mybroadband.co.za

Please see attached for your convenience:

• AG***-DebitForm.pdf (80K)
• AG***-TermsAndConditions-***.426_1.pdf (261K)
• Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008.pdf (613K)

Regards,
__
Andre van Aarde