Openreach says the number of missed appointments has fallen 30 per cent since the rollout of its self-service platform which lets full-fibre broadband users manage their installation appointments directly.
Previously end-users needing to amend the date or time of their appointment could only do so via a text service which only offered limited options.
Research showed this led to frustration, with customers feeling reluctant to change their appointment or even, in some cases, prompted others to cancel their orders entirely.
Launched in April, the Change My Appointment service lets customers connect with Openreach to book or change engineer appointments through a live interactive calendar offering dates of up to three months in advance and cancellation up to a day before.
Other features include a text linking to a fibre installation ‘checklist’ – sent to customers seven days before their confirmed appointment.
In addition to the 30 fall in missed appointments, Openreach says the new platform has helped reduce cancelled journeys – where an engineer arrives at a property but is unable to gain access – by 45 per cent, helping to reduce costs and the business’ carbon footprint.
Chris Herbert, Director of Customer Service at Openreach, said: “Increasing customer success on the day is far from easy and a challenge that Openreach has wrestled with for years, so it’s fantastic to see the difference our new customer service innovation now making.
“It’s the first time Openreach has designed a system like this for end customers and, initially, there was some scepticism from our CP partners about a network wholesaler having this level of interaction with their own customers – but we’ve worked hard to win their trust and the success of this platform is testament to that.”