BT Openworld robot won't speak

THE USER WHO WILL be exterminated by BT Openworld for daring to remain online for more than 12 hours will not be allowed to plead his case personally with Emperor Dalek Davros at Broadband Britain Central.

He is being "persuaded" to shift to ADSL rather than dial up but as he points out to the INQwell this is all well and good but BT can't offer that service in his region, so it's tough love talk.

Here's what Davros said to the unlucky customer in his latest emissive...

Dear Mr XXX

Thank you for your email regarding the unattended use of your BT Openworld account. The problem that has been identified on your account is persistent unattended use.

Unfortunately, we are unable to proceed with your request for a call back in order to resolve your technical problem/complaint, as we are purely an offline department within BT Openworld.

However, we do also provide a technical helpdesk for our customers who wish to seek advice from one of our highly trained technical advisors. I have provided you with the technical helpdesk number below for your convenience.

BT Openworld Narrowband Support: 0906 302 3456 Opening hours: 24 hours, 7 days a week.

BT Openworld regularly monitors the impact of unattended usage to ensure that network performance continues to improve as part off our network management programme.

Like most ISPs we do such monitoring in order to preserve the quality of service for the benefit of all customers. This is accepted practice in the industry. BT Openworld strives to provide all our customers with a high level of service and as part of our service commitment to customers we monitor and continue to improve our customer service.

What we have done sends out a very positive message to customers that we have measures in place to protect the level of service that we provide.

As a company we strive to offer our all our customers the best possible service, and therefore must act when customers breech [sic] the terms and conditions.

We would like to clarify that the reason why your account has been highlighted in this manner is due to remaining connected to the Internet for extended periods e.g. periods exceeding 16 hours in any 24-hour period as stated in our Terms and Conditions until the 4th June 2002.

From the 5th June 2002 this was reduced to 12 hours. However, we have given advanced warnings via email and on our homepage. If you wish to view your Terms and Conditions then they are freely available to view on the BT Openworld homepage. A link to this section is included below for your convenience:

http://www.btopenworld.com/helpnb/terms For further clarification of this matter please refer to section 10.3 of your BTopenworld Terms and Conditions.

It is our legal right to suspend customers from the service if they breach our terms and conditions.

Unfortunately, once your account has been set to cease here at Offline Customer Services are unable to prevent this from happening. Your email account will also be suspended and your emails lost. We provided advance warning that your account would be ceased to allow sufficient time for you to arrange alternate services.

If you wish to appeal against this decision you can email abuse@btopenworld.com or write to:

Davros - King of all the Daleks
BT Openworld Customer Services
P.O. BOX 163
Exeter
Devon
EX1 1BX

In order for us to address your enquiry more efficiently, please provide us with the following account details in your letter:

-Your primary email address for your BT Openworld account
-Your helpdesk phrase (usually a mothers maiden name)
-Any relevant reference numbers relating to this issue
-Any modem logs or evidence to support your appeal.

Regrettably, Offline Customer Services do not have access to the details regarding the unattended use of your BT Openworld account. Should you wish to view any records or call logs regarding your BT Openworld account please contact the Data Subject Access Manager via the postal address below:

Emperor Dalek
Data Subject Access Manager
Phoenix House
100 Great Northern Road
Derby
DE1 1NJ

Please be aware that you will be required to provide the following before any account information can be released:

-A cheque for £10 made payable to "BT plc" (please note that cheques will not be receipted) -Your primary email address for your BT Openworld account -Your helpdesk phrase (usually a mothers maiden name) -Any relevant reference numbers relating to this issue -A cover letter outlining the exact information you require

We hope this information has helped clarify the situation further.

Alternately, if you require any further assistance you may wish to try our new online help located at the below URL:

http://www.btopenworld.com/helpnb/

I hope the above information is of use.

Yours sincerely,

Davros
BT Openworld Narrowband Support

BT Openworld Narrowband Billing: internet.billing@btinternet.com BT Openworld Narrowband Support: helpdesk-support@btinternet.com

Should you prefer to speak to the BT Openworld team directly you can contact us on: BT Openworld Narrowband Billing: 0870 241 4567 BT Openworld Narrowband Support: 0906 302 3456*

*Calls to the Technical Support Helpdesk are charged at 50 pence per minute from a BT line.

This electronic message contains information from BT Openworld, which may be privileged or confidential. The information is intended for use only by the individual(s) or entity named above. If you are not the intended recipient, be aware that any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the contents of this information is strictly prohibited. If you have received this electronic message in error, please notify me by telephone or email (to the number or email address above) immediately.

BT Openworld is the mass market internet access division of British Telecommunications plc (Registered office: 81 Newgate Street London EC1A 7AJ / Registered in England no: 1800000)