It could be an interference issue. There are a range of household items which can affect the reliability and speed of Wifi:
It is also possible that due to the limited number of channels on 2.4GHz, some of your neighbours may also be using the same channel (or the adjacent channel) as your own. If they are, then everyone is fighting for the same bandwidth and if their 2.4GHz signal is stronger than yours where you want to use Wifi, it can potentially almost block your own 2.4GHz signal.
To get a true indication of download and upload speeds, one should have a device connected by ethernet cable directly to the router. The connected device then can run speed tests without potential air signal interferences which can slow down the speeds.
Sadly emails won’t get you service in regards to troubleshooting, and may potentially block your attempts to get any compensation. They only have to say (and show) that they tried to contact you to undertake further analysis of your issue but you declined to answer. They then have an out. If the problem is hardware then whomever you move to will still have the same issues and you will have poor service as a result. Nor do you know if they would have moved you to a higher tier of Tech Service who may have been Australian based. Telstra offshores at level 1 (I have also dealt with level 2 in an OS locale) and so do Optus among others, the only Australian based seems to be Aussie Broadband.
I hope you have success in your endeavours as no one wants an ineffective service that they pay good money for.
A problem all the RSPs have is that when a problem is with, or may be with, the NBN between your NTD (eg NBN provided modem) and their backend servers, not your personal router or their backend servers, all any of them can do is schedule a booking with a ‘friendly NBN technician’ to attend. They will require you to accept paying a service fee if no problem is found with the NBN ‘owned and operated’ kit. One’s risk as a customer is the cable between the NTD and the NBN connection to the outside wall of one’s property, or to the common termination-distribution box for a unit/flat building, both being ‘building owners’ responsibilities after their initial installation.
The support can run certain tests to determine faults. AussieBB has a facility for us customers to run them receiving a pass/fail on each test, linked to a fault report submission. Depending on the failure they book the ‘friendly NBN tech’ or talk you through the standard Q&A do this and that trouble shooting…that is what and all they all can do.
Communication with the person who is talking to you can vary. Even on shore centres may have ‘new Australians’ with heavy accents, but I have to acknowledge AussieBB support has been pretty good and with the NBN being what it is, I have needed to engage them a few times - never a problem with ‘me’, rarely with AussieBB, and often with NBNCo.
Thanks again for the feedback. The only possible appliance affecting my wifi could be the cordless telephone. But according to online manual, the phone’s frequency range is between 1.88 GHz and 1.90 GHz.
And the Fridge, a fan, a compact light, an electric clock or alarm, a radio, a TV, the list of devices that can interfere with 2.4GHz is pretty broad. Fluorescent tube ballasts have been known to be noisy in that region.
5GHz suffers from a larger inability to successfully deal with walls than 2.4 does, so often 2.4 is used because even while slower the service is stronger in more distant rooms. Clear line of sight with 5GHz or very few obstructions (less wiring, wood and metal is great) will generally mean higher speeds.
It may we worthwhile if you have a reliable friendly neighbour or family member with a laptop with an ethernet port. If you are confident they could assist by plugging directly into your router using a cable and running SpeedTest without relying on WiFi.
Alternately there are ethernet adaptors available that plug into Macs of all types, EG USB-C, Thunderbolt etc if the cost is acceptable. Online from around $20, Officeworks $45, JB HiFi etc. Be sure to check what type you have and use the Mac model details to be sure. I’ve a higher end PC based laptop (Ultrabook) with no ethernet. I used a USB-2 to ethernet adaptor when travelling for work, because it’s faster and more reliable. Also very useful when I’ve needed to sort out home internet issues.
Here’s what I don’t get: I established that I rcvd at times 3 Mbps, 13 Mbps or 20 Mbps. But have been paying for 50 Mbps since the get go.
When Totally Useless Group (TPG) had an “engineer” call me, after some time he asked me to speed test again and magically I was rcvg 50 Mbps. Less than an hour after I hung up with him, I was down to 20 Mbps again.
I wonder if my speed is wholly manipulated by TPG at their whim and that the infrastructure in my bldg is not the problem at all.
Not our experience. We’ve had HFC through iiNet in a townhouse (TPG is their owner) in Brisbane for 12 months. There is never any evidence of speed drops.
We’ve had various specs of ADSL at 4 different properties since 2003. Everytime we had speed issues (Telstra or Westnet) the problem related to problems with the lines delivering the service. We’ve had techs out to 3 of the 4 properties in the more difficult instances. Sometimes that is what it takes to get a resolution.
Note:
It is possible for a remote tech to reset the connection in good faith and see an improvement for a short period of time. Where there is an intermittent or varying service fault the service will continually adjust over hours or days to slower speeds until all is stable. The reverse does not happen automatically when the fault goes away.
Out of interest have you been able to run SpeedTest while sitting next to the router early in the morning (5:30 am) and what did you measure?
P.S.
Hopefully there is sufficient advice here from all the community that it helps with your next decision.
Importantly as others have said several times, the service to your place is delivered using the NBN network. TPG has no control over the NBN Co. We’ve had speed issues with our more rural home outside of Brisbane typically once or twice a year. The infrastructure (copper) for our ADSL is still Telstra’s problem. Our provider (Westnet-iiNet) are in a similar situation where they need to pay Telstra if they ask for a repair where there is no fault found. I’ve twice had the regional iiNet tech to the house to do Telstra’s fault finding. Because there was ultimately a Telstra fault found in each instance I was not billed, however I needed to agree to pay if it was my cause. The tech was also able to check the iiNet supplied modem-router and confirm it was not at fault.
The bottom line is that speculation is speculation. You will need to go through a methodical process trying one thing at a time, all with your device hard wired to your router to be sure your measurements are not affected by WiFi issues.
Since there is some suspicion it could be the cable from the main box to your flat I suggest you a) see if a friendly neighbour will allow you to connect your kit to their connection; and/or b) ask them to connect their kit to yours.
If it works fine in theirs but not yours, it is the distribution cable to your flat and the responsibility lies with your landlord/body corporate/building manager. Convincing them of that could be another exciting, irritating, and frustrating issue.
An ambit thought is it could be the NBN supplied cable modem. If you take your kit to another flat and it still provides the same bad experience, that is the first thing I would focus on. I am not sure how difficult it might be to get a swap out from NBNCo or the rigour of remote diagnostics that can be executed on it.
The one liner
Internet speed is inconsistent or is consistently slower than it used to be.
Hi, sorry for the late reply. You asked if I performed a speedtest early in the morning. I did and note 44 Mbps. While most evenings I achieve between 3 Mbps and 20 Mbps, when TPG were on the phone with me, after they “refreshed the line” I managed 50 Mbps. The speed fell quickly after the telephone call ended.
I alerted TPG last week to the ACCC view on misleading advertising by retailers (which was kindly provided to me by members of this forum) with respect to claims of speed achievable and asked for a refund, as my speed is often a fraction, 6% of the claimed speed…So far TPG has refused to address this issue. They also refuse to email me with their comments but insist on having folk call me so many times that it’s beginning to look like harassment. Especially so as I cannot understand them given their strong accents.
Question: What is the venue to seek a refund in NSW? NCAT or an ombudsman?
Assuming you have exhausted the formal complaints process at TPG (a technical requisite for going further, as if you have not they will suggest it) is
Note it is a .com, not a .gov or even .org. It is essentially a company funded by the telecos to try to make problems go away and that government can use as its window dressing.
You may get a refund but I don’t think you will get a better speed as it appears to be a hardware issue either outside or inside your home. You may also fail to get a refund if it can be shown that the problem is not of TPG’s making (and it is likely isn’t of their making unless they have not paid for enough CVC to cover their client numbers). As HFC is a shared bandwidth with all RSPs this is probably a congestion issue or a noisy line, it may also be that your WiFi band that your router is using is congested at the times when you get poor speeds. All this has been addressed previously in posts here so is repeated solely to summarise the issues.
You need to take your request for a refund to either NCAT, or TIO. TIO as @PhilT notes is the Industry Complaint Manager and the following link explains their process:
You can also lodge a complaint with the ACCC over the issue but they will not usually take action on your behalf.
NCAT can hear your request, there will be a charge for this and if you are successful this charge may be refunded. You do not normally need to have gone through TIO before making a case for a refund from TPG for their service, with NCAT, however if you are using the TIO you should await that outcome first. Getting Legal advice is highly desirable and recommended before taking the NCAT step, not doing so could risk any success.
You could try emailing your issues to TPG via this email address (customer_relations@tpg.com.au) and include that you would like to speak to an Australian support person as you have difficultly in understanding the foreign support team’s accents.
Thanks for the reply. Your comment "it is essentially a company funded by the telecos to try to make problems go away and that government can use as its window dressing " fills me with dread as it reminds me of the problems I had a couple of years ago complaining about a US travel website that engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct. I complained to the Better Business Bureau in San Francisco and given their inactivity as well as the lies from the vendor, I soon discovered that like the TIO, the BBB is industry funded and industry regulated.
No not industry regulated, they are regulated by a Constitution, Terms of Reference & Legislation. Funding by the Telcos is also regulated by the Constitution, Terms of Reference & Legislation and is not a choice on how much they wish to pay.
"
Our structure
The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman Ltd was established in 1993 under legislation and is independent of industry, the government and consumer organisations. We are governed by a Board of Directors, and managed by an independent Ombudsman in accordance with the Company Constitution and Terms of Reference."
Thanks for the feedback.
As to NCAT, while you mention seeking legal advice, I would think that
(a) Even if I win at NCAT I would not recoup what I pay a solicitor (hard enough to recoup the NCAT application fee, which I did recoup years ago with another service provider); and
(b) My claim would be only for the 16 months I have been paying for NBN 50 while receiving a fraction of that, and a solicitor’s fee may well be sizeable in comparison if not greater than what I am claiming.
But your points are great and I will look them.
I made clear to TPG that I am interested in ventilating this scandal on A Current Affair (Channel 9). That is easier, cheaper and quicker for me than any tribunal or ombudsman.
As to your point on customer relations, in most of my recent emails to the “help desk”, “customer relations” and “customer service” I made clear that I consider their multiple daily phone calls - whose staff member I mostly don’t understand and whose staff members when I do understand them, do not offer a single resolution - to verge on “harassment” and that my simple refund request should be answered by TPG via email, as my request was emailed.
Now TPG is sending me SMSs advising they tried to call me.
Getting Legal advice does not require the hiring of a Solicitor. There are free Legal Advice centres in every State and Territory that provide free consumer advice. Getting advice from licenced Legal professionals before stepping into NCAT legal action is what I am recommending, whether you use a free service or not is a personal choice.
TPG attempting to contact you could be held in their favour in any dispute.
As to the ACCC actions in regards to speeds this was about FTTN and FTTB not HFC and in regards to maximum speeds that were obtainable on them eg a plan that was a 100/40 but due to FTTN and distance from the Node the highest speed obtainable was 25/5 or similar, the ACCC ruled that TPG, Telstra and others sold speed plans that could not meet that maximum of 100/40.
You have obtained near maximal speeds for your plan and so your request on the grounds of those undertakings would probably not succeed. What you would be arguing is that you often do not get the speeds and TPG could counter argue that due to conditions outside their control that you do not always get the speeds you pay for and these could include faulty hardware that you own or settings not conducive to getting those speeds eg congested WiFi channel you are using. Further they can close your internal complaint with them “Should we be unable to contact you via known methods we will write to you and advise you that you have 10 working days to respond before we close the complaint.”
If the resolution you are seeking is just a refund then that may not be something they will entertain until all troubleshooting avenues have been followed and they confirm/admit they may have a responsibility to address your costs. Note this will also generally lead to a speed plan decrease, if this same speed outcome happens with a new provider your chances of success will diminish if you ask for a similar outcome with them.
Revisiting the same issues is not going to add value to any advice we can provide.
It comes down to troubleshooting to confirm your speed tests (eg a direct connection to the TPG supplied router (or yours) plugged into the NBN supplied cable modem; whether you can and did connect via another flat to rule in or rule out your flat’s cabling (or get another resident to bring their kit to yours); and lastly using TPG’s process noting at more companies than one wants to believe, tech support never talks to customer service never talks to customer relations, … , … so one needs to follow their ‘yellow brick road’ from beginning to end.
As previously written, if it is a hardware problem no matter who you move to it will still be a problem. If you send a formal ACCC ‘letter of demand’ citing chapter and verse it may beget a more formal response, but your best outcome seems to be a refund for substandard service while what you possibly want is a good internet service. Keep focus on what you want because adding anything else dilutes how those who are trying to work with you see the problem you want to solve.
I’ll step back now, and hope you can let us know you went through the process of trouble shooting to ID where the problem lies, and that you achieved a favourable outcome.
I can’t speak for other states but in the First State (NSW) the so-called “free” advice centre that I was sent to last year is called “Law Access” and their advice was poor. I was, if I recall, “advised” by a first year student.
As to your claim that TPG trying to call me stands them in good stead, I wonder. If every call that I answer dodges my complaint: to fix my slow speed (anything from 3 Mbps to 20 Mbps) and to seek a refund for not getting anywhere near the speed I am paying for, surely the calls are a substitute for a remedy.
I mean, if they wanted to do the right thing, in an email they could confirm a refund is forthcoming for all or most of what I have been paying and point out the bleeding obvious: that if I must stay with TPG I should move to a cheaper plan
Sorry the post immediately before this one is a copy of an earlier one and was uploaded in error.
I wanted to reply to your post of 28 days ago asking if I followed TPG’s complaint procedure.
In short,“no I have not”.
In the last few weeks the following transpired:
a. Speed tests show that I am getting nowhere near the speed I am paying for;
b. Speed tests via TPG show a faster speed than when done through other providers (no surprise);
c. TPG will not refund me for slow speed (as slow as 3 Mbps and I am on a 50 Mbps plan);
d. When I was getting a speed of 18 Mbps, I spoke to a TPG engineer who said he’ll refresh the line and increase the speed. He brought it up to 50 Mbps. How about that? An hour later the speed fell to 20 Mbps. I am not an engineer, but this smells like “throttling” or manipulation of the speed by TPG;
e. TPG wants to send an engineer to check the speed. But if they can manipulate it, as I believe one engineer already did, see (d) above, how honest will be any future technician’s actions?
f. TPG insist on testing while in my place using a wired connection;
g. They will come at a time of their choosing;
h. They claim that wireless connections are slower than wired and that issue is covered in their terms and conditions. I wonder? Using wireless and getting 50% of the alleged maximum speed is “acceptable” under the T&Cs? What about 10% of the alleged maximum speed?
i. TPG twice emailed me that my speed was boosted to 200 Mbps. What a joke!
j. What do I have to lose by going to NCAT and seeking orders for (i) refund for not receiving anything close to what I am paying for; (ii) for lying to me claiming I am now on 200 Mbps and (iii) to have an independent party check my speed “in real life” ie wireless connection and checked at night when the alleged 50 Mbps are provided? And of course inviting whoever in the media to the hearing.
