A Melbourne pensioner was left disconnected and facing a hefty bill after a failed NBN installation more than two weeks ago.
The fibre box was placed in the wrong part of Joan Little’s Narre Warren South home, nowhere near power points or relevant cabling.
The pensioner was unable to use the internet or the landline and was forced to rely on her mobile phone, which had patchy reception at best.
Her son Andrew Little complained but was told by NBN customer service representatives his mother would need to pay a private contractor to fix the problem – a considerable expense that could have cost up to $6000.
After being disconnected for the past two weeks, NBN Co has since apologised and rectified the issue at no charge.
Little and her husband recently switched to Telstra, and a technician installed the NBN fibre technology.
”He was done in no time and I asked him, ‘Where does the modem go?'” Little told 9News.
“All I want to do is use the phone and use the emails.
“It’s not good enough.”
Andrew said he was told by NBN’s customer service team there was nothing they could do since his mother had “signed off” on the contractor’s work.
”My mother’s in her 80s, she wouldn’t know NBN fibre from anything,” he said.
“The NBN contractor has taken the lazy way out and basically put the fibre technology box straight behind where it comes in from the street.”
Instead of a daily wage, NBN sub-contractors are paid hundreds of dollars per install, giving them an incentive to do things quickly.
A spokesperson from NBN Co told 9News: “While we pride ourselves on a seamless experience for customers choosing a full fibre upgrade, the communication and service did not meet our normal high standard.
“We apologise to the customer and their family for the inconvenience.”
