NBN Co cancelled 58,000 technician visits in April & May: Does this impact you?

NBN Co cancelled 58,000 technician appointments over the months of April and May of this year, the company has released. The numbers come in response to a number of questions posed in the Senate.

The operator of Australia’s broadband network, NBN Co, responded in a written statement to questions posed by Senators. The response indicated that NBN Co cancelled 15.4% of technician appointments throughout April, and 13.9% in May.

The cancellations coincide with a number of issues NBN Co has attributed to their new field workforce maintenance process and technician scheduling system Unify. Unify’s issues led to industrial action and an in-process audit by KPMG.

This doesn’t mean that 15% of all NBN users experiencing issues had their appointments cancelled for no reason, however. NBN Co’s statement lists a number of reasons that may be behind the cancellations of technician appointments, although it strangely didn’t list Unify among those.

Issues that NBN Co deal with are a step beyond your internet service provider as well, as NBN Co are the wholesaler and network operator. Basic issues with your service may be fixed by your provider directly, but if not they may refer you to an NBN Co technician.

I have an appointment booked, is it at risk of being cancelled?

Thankfully NBN Co isn’t just cancelling 15% of all technician appointments out of the blue. The written statement delivered by NBN Co lists a number of reasons for the reasonably large number of technician appointments being cancelled.

One of the reasons NBN Co lists for the cancellations is customers reporting the issues they were having are no longer occurring, rendering the appointment unnecessary. This could happen in an instance where a customer may be experiencing issues with speed, which could be resolved in a number of ways before the technician arrives.

Another factor in cancellations were issues on a network level, where customers report a problem that is causing a mass-outage rather than just an error with their individual service. Once the network issue is resolved, individual appointments would then be cancelled.

Those with appointments booked in shouldn’t needlessly worry about a technician not showing up. Technicians get in touch with customers before their appointment to ensure the customer knows what is happening. At this point the customer can confirm they’re still experiencing issues and the technician will complete the appointment.

Most issues can be solved by your provider

Common issues such as slow internet or connectivity issues should usually be dealt with by your internet service provider rather than NBN Co. If an issue needs to be escalated to NBN Co due to issues with the network or infrastructure, your provider will generally handle that side of the issue directly, and NBN Co will only need to deal with you if arranging a technician appointment.

Poor Wi-Fi coverage is another issue for your internet service provider, and in some instances you might want to consider a Wi-Fi booster or extender to handle an issue like this.

Issues that will be handled directly by NBN Co surround errors on their network or problems with the wiring/cabling or other components of your NBN connection.

Looking for an NBN provider that offers exceptional help? Check out the 2021 Mozo People’s Choice Award winners for categories such as ‘Exceptional Service & Support’ and ‘Outstanding Customer Satisfaction’. To find and compare broadband providers in your area head over to our broadband hub, or make use of our handy table below.