Denshaw residents left without a signal for months
Denshaw residents are desperate for a resolution to their mobile phone frustration, after technical problems have left them without a signal for over two months.
The problems appear to be related to as many as three masts in the area, with part of the problem being the lack of information that local residents are getting about a resolution. Instead they are getting a series of “updates” which simply give them a future date for another update.
Local councillors Sam Al-Hamdani and Garth Harkness have been working with local residents to help them raise complaints about the failure to resolve the issue.
Local Lib Dem councillor Garth Harkness said: “Unfortunately, regulator Ofcom doesn’t give a fixed time for the suppliers to resolve the issue. They do give residents a formal route for complaints after two months, which suggests that this really should have been fixed by now.
“There are two schemes for complaints, and residents should check which one their supplier is signed up to, and definitely raise a complaint.”
One of the affected residents is Alan Hulme, who has been left without a mobile signal in his house for nearly three months. He said: “We’ve had no mobile phone signal since late December. We're with Asda Mobile, which piggybacks on Vodafone. Neither has been in the least bit helpful with updates, just two stock replies in all this time.
“Like many who have fast broadband we no longer have an old fashioned landline, and now no mobile signal either.
“We have been struggling along by using mobile wifi calling, which links our mobiles with the internet. But if we get a power cut – we’ve had two during this period – we lose everything.
“If we had an emergency of some kind when this happened, we'd have no phone and no wifi and no idea when power might be restored. It is very worrying and the phone companies seem in no hurry to sort it out.”
One resident has reported that they have been told the issue is due to a part that is coming from China, which has caused the delays.
Councillor Al-Hamdani, who has also written to some of the mobile phone suppliers on behalf of residents, said: “This is simply not good enough. Denshaw is an isolated village, and people cannot be left without a signal for this length of time. It’s not just poor service, it’s potentially a safety risk.
“Affected residents need to complain about this to their mobile phone supplier – or the resolution scheme. They should also be checking their contracts to see what compensation they are eligible for.”
Affected people can find out which resolution scheme their supplier is signed up with at: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/service-quality/adr-schemes
