@davidc4430 wrote:
if you are in an area that has become 'NBN ready' and you have not taken it up, you will eventually be contacted to advise you if you require a landline phone line you must get a connection via a 3rd party ie telstra or the like.
even though i have the NBN i still got calls about them switching off the old system.
i'm sure there are those who have absolutly no knowledge of the NBN and how you need to get a contract thing to get your phone once the old system is cut off. if all you want is a working land line phone you still have to actually set something up with a company, its not just an automatis switch over.
you most likey know this but as i said, i would bet there are plenty who dont.
When I left getting my landline switched to the NBN until almost the last minute (being in hospital for an extended time didn't help) I was finally sent a registered letter warning me of the cut off date...in about a week. Mind you, I'd finally chosen a new provider and had made the switch two days before the letter arrived. 🙂 I was previously with Telstra and I still get the occasional phone call from them trying to convince me to go back to them. I've had no hassles with the new mob and they are cheaper than Telstra so I wont be changing back.
However, where my mother lives the NBN is just being rolled out and at first she thought just having the box meant she was on the NBN. We explained she wasn't yet but eventually she would have to choose a provider etc. She dismissed it with a wave of her hand saying she wouldn't need it as she never used computers. We told her if she wanted to keep her landline phone she could not ignore it. Hopefully a family member close by will help her out with it when the letter arrives or hopefully if she decides to make the switch sooner.
However, this week it was brought home to me how frustrating it is to put all your eggs in one basket (ie electricity) when a big storm caused a power cut. No lighting, no TV, no fans (it was a hot night), no computer, no adjusting the electric bed (so no sleeping until after the power came back on) and of course no phone. The power returned late that night. The next morning I had an early pannicking phone call from my mother because she couldn't contact me the night before. I was fine, but I sure hope if something like a power cut means no phone for her (and she is over 90) we'd better start working out a back up plan in advance. Getting the NBN in her area can't be far away.
