Irate BT customer in YouTube clip
Updated on 25 November 2007
A BT customer became so frustrated after listening to the company's automated message system that he posted a video complaint on the internet.
Patrick Askins, 60, spent six months trying to contact BT's customer services to query a bill but time and again was faced with a recorded voice at the other end of the line.
After scores of letters and hours spent on hold or speaking to staff at the BT call centre in India, Mr Askins decided to grab the attention of the company - and its customers - by venting his rage on video website YouTube.
In the clip he brands BT "bullies" and tells other customers that he is sick of playing "press the buttons".
Retired Mr Askins, from Warwick, first called BT after he received a letter informing him that a "systems error" had led to him being undercharged for calls made between August and November 2006.
A fee of £90.70 was requested and Mr Askins, who is a BT shareholder, called the company to ask for a breakdown of the charges before he paid. He also wrote to the company's head office and customer services department asking for a written explanation.
But despite spending more than £200 on phone calls and postage, Mr Askins said BT failed to respond.
He was disconnected three times between April and November and demands for the outstanding amount, plus late payment fees, continued to land on his doormat.
Two weeks ago Mr Askins finally gave in and paid up, but decided to share his dissatisfaction with other BT customers by posting the two-minute clip on YouTube.
Within days he had received a response from the office of BT chairman Sir Christopher Bland and a full refund.
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