A lot of hot air as faulty dryer puts Hotpoint in a real spin

Internet giants fail customers APPLIANCE REPLACED – BUT ONLY AFTER FIGHT

THE biggest broadband providers are failing on basic customer service, speed and reliability, with TalkTalk and BT achieving the worst scores, a survey has found.

TalkTalk, BT, Sky and EE – who collectively have a 72% share of the market – all scored poorly in the Which? broadband customer satisfaction survey.

Price hikes, connection drop outs, unreliable speeds and “woeful” customer service all contributed to the low scores, Which? said.

TalkTalk and BT scored lowest, with 38% and 45% respectively, and just one in 10 customers described their service as excellent.

Zen topped the table with a customer score of 86%, followed by Utility Warehouse on 81%.

Which? managing director of home services, Alex Neill, said: “Our latest results show that the big players still have a long way to go to satisfy their customers, so if you’re unhappy with your broadband, complain and look to switch if your service doesn’t improve.” GOT one of those Hotpoint appliances that might burst into flames?

Here’s how one woman tumbled what was happening and got a brand-new tumble-dryer.

Stephanie Wraith decided she wasn’t going to wait for the manufacturer to get its act together.

So she became pro-active and took the fight to them.

She also told us what had happened – and the result was a new machine without the worry.

Our picture, however, shows what could have happened.

This was the damage caused when a tumble dryer in Wales caught fire.

Stephanie said: “I found out I had one of the tumbler dryers that could burst into flames so I registered it with Hotpoint for the free modification.

“I have heard of people waiting longer than a year so I decided to ring them.

“I was offered a new replacement tumble dryer at a discount cost, but why should I pay when they have admitted their machines were sold with a fault.

“In March I spoke to someone at Hotpoint and I was told to unplug it and not use it.”

Having an appliance that can’t be used is like having a chocolate fireguard – totally useless.

Stephanie, of Choppington, Northumberland, was worried that her contents insurance would be invalid due to having a potentially dangerous machine in the property.

But attempts to fix a date when the repairs would be carried out led to frustration when Hotpoint got themselves in a tangle.

The first date was cancelled when the fitter was allegedly sent home sick.

The second date passed when no one turned up at the appointed time.

Stephanie called Hotpoint and spoke with no less than three members of staff on live chat.