New Fibe TV Account in limbo

[Thosh]

Fibe TV, Internet and Home Phone installed yesterday. Cannot change Channel lineup. The MyBell app is stuck on a pending order for the installation scheduled for Tuesday. Browser on MyBell.ca shows the installed status correctly but says cannot review or modify channels. For much of yesterday, merely spun its wheels. Chat yesterday said system maintenance had taken down the ordering system and they couldn't even use it. It was scheduled to be back by 11pm Saturday. By that time, the website had a notice stating that "scheduled" maintenance would have the system restored "hopefully" by 10am Sunday. Nope! I don't think there's any schedule. Luckily, I still have Cogeco to see the special channels I want to get on A La Carte but that's costing me delay in canceling.

Edit Oct 29, 12:05pm ...

The story gets worse. On the browser view of MyBell, when I hover over Modify Channels, I see a message:
"We cannot make the changes you requested online. Please call 1-888-SKY-DISH (759-3474) to get help from a customer service representative."

That was a waste of time, too. All the agent could see was the order for installation this Tuesday (same as what I see on the MyBell app) and said that she needed the 9-digit Bell Account number beginning with 1 or 2. All I have is the 16-digit Fibe TV Account number beginning 8455 and she could not use that. So she could not see my channel lineup either! According to her, I will receive the Bell Account number within 7 days of the installation. I don't know whether that's going to be from yesterday's date Oct 28 or Tuesday's Oct 31. Maybe I'll end up with 2! 

Talk about silos!

[AlexS]

Try “resolve a concern” or live online chat on the website and see if you will be passed to someone senior.

[Thosh]

I asked the agent who could not help to escalate but she insisted I would have to wait for the OneBill account number. Later, I got a call from an agent to confirm that Home Phone was working properly after transfer from Cogeco. To her "can I help with anything else?" query I related my FibeTV issue whereupon she transferred me to another TS line. The agent who responded could modify my channel lineup using the 16-digit Fibe TV account number so that reassignment is now resolved. She also confirmed that I would need the OneBill account number to be able to make changes online. Meanwhile, the MyBell app is still stuck on the pending but erroneous installation. I wouldn't be surprised if another installer shows up on Tuesday with another modem and three set-top boxes!

[AlexS]

How did you get two installations in the first place??

[Thosh]

I don't know if there will be an attempted 2nd installation. What I see on the MyBell Android app is the order details with Oct 31 as the installation date while the MyBell.ca website shows my services activated on Oct 28. Up to a couple of hours after the installation, the website also showed the order which then was replaced. Likewise, there are agents in Bell who see only the order while others see the activated services. That's why I say there are silos within Bell and that is confounding and frustrating for me, the user.

The confusion arose because of revisions to the order. The order displayed still on the app bears the same number and order date as the original but the later installation date. The original showed my non-Cogeco, non-Bell cell number as the one to be ported from Cogeco. That error was discovered in a phone call from Bell last week confirming the installation scheduled for Oct 28. There was a further change on Oct 27 to apply a  discount on the Internet service as a result of a follow-up with the door-door sales agent. One of these triggered an automatic change to the installation date which I chased down and got restored to the 28th but I've not seen an order that reflected it, just the one stuck in the app showing the 31st.

[BellPatricia]

Hi there @Thosh,

Welcome to the Bell Community, and thank you for reaching out.

We'd like to take a closer look for you, and have sent you a private message to gather more information.

Please check your Messages within your profile avatar in the top right corner.

Unsure how to check or send a private message? See How to send a private message

- Patricia

[Thosh]

Tuesday's possible 2nd installation came and went but the MyBell app on my phone still shows the (completed the previous Saturday) order is in progress. MyBell.ca website does not yet show a OneBill Account number and we're now 5 calendar days and 3 business days since activation... Modify TV channels still does not work.

[Thosh]

OK, now I have a OneBill account number but none of the links to viewing, printing or modifying my channel lineup works.

On top of that, I can no longer log into this Community without setting my browser to incognito or "in private" mode.

It seems that things are somewhat screwed up - is it just me? 

[Thosh]

Update Nov 8, 11 days since installation. Still unable to review my channel lineup and modify it and can only log into this Community using the browser in private mode. Two days ago, I received a letter saying:

Action required: Please return your Bell rental equipment, specifically a modem else I'd be charged $75!

Followed up with an agent in a very confusing conversation asking me to state what the amount of my last bill was - I've not been billed yet and, if it was in any way related to my previous contract terminated in May, I had already returned the equipment that month and could not readily find a bill. Finally, he advised me to just ignore the letter. Let's hope that I don't receive a series of subsequent dunning letters and an ultimate charge!

[AlexS]

Did you canceled bell service in May but registered again as a new customer in Oct.?

[Thosh]

Yes. I'm a "winback".

[Thosh · Accepted solution]

I've not received a notification from Support but I noticed when trying MyBell on a very old phone the other day on which the cache had been cleared I was now able to review and modify channels. I then tested and found the same success on the laptop and newish cellphone without having cleared any cache. Coincidentally (or likely because), my first OneBill was posted. So,  all along, the UX has been screwed up on the server side and Bell Agents are all over the map as to when I would have that feature working. To the best of my recollection, only one of the ~dozen I contacted said it would not work until the first bill was issued. A couple said it would when the OneBill account number is assigned (it didn't). 

I do not know if this was a very rare case because I had an account that had been terminated relatively recently or if all users, new or winbacks, go through the same experience. If you are a new or winback user not yet having a Bill, check if Modify Channels works for you and reply here. 

While the Review/Modify channels issue was resolved, it took me another step for my laptop browser to log into this Community Support Forum without having to go into incognito/in private mode - I had to clear all the cookies related to Bell, MyBell.