Category: Modem returns

During lockdown, we are couriering replacement modems from our Wellington base together with a courier bag for the return of the faulty unit.

The process works like this: the Jump customer contacts the Skinny Care Team on 0800 475 4669 if they have a suspected problem with their modem. The Care Team may be able resolve this remotely, but if they can’t they will refer the customer to our (DIAA) 0800 number (0800 463 422) for Shelley to arrange a replacement.

Shelley takes on the role that Jump partners would normally provide, getting details of the modem (IMEI Number), customer’s name and physical address. She then completes the online Modem Return form to ensure the old modem is delinked from the customer’s account and arranges for a new modem to be sent.

By the time the modem arrives (typically within 2-3 working days), the Skinny Support Team will have actioned the de-linking request and the customer can proceed to set up a new account.

If the customer has a credit balance on their old account, they must contact the Skinny Care team again, after they have their new modem and new Skinny account set up, to arrange for the credit balance to be transferred.

If a customer contacts you, as a Jump partner, directly rather than contacting the Skinny Care Team you are welcome to follow the same steps as
Shelley, i.e. capture the contact details for the customer and the IMEI number of the faulty modem, email these to jump@diaa.nz, and complete a Modem Return Form.

It is clear from an analysis of the ‘faulty modem’ and ‘returned modem’ forms that there are different interpretations of these terms, so here’s my attempt to explain this more clearly.

REUSE: When a modem is returned by a customer, our first objective is to get the modem reset remotely so that it can be reused. So provided the modem:

(1) has not been reported as faulty; or

(2) is not physically defaced or damaged; and

(3) has all its bits (modem, power supply and ethernet cable)

this should be treated as a Modem Return. By completing the Modem Return form, the modem will be reset remotely and become available for re-issue (reuse). You will receive an email confirmation when the modem is reasdy for re-issue, or with other instructions from the Skinny Support Team. This normally happens the same day.

REPAIR: This is what we want to happen when a modem is faulty, and the Skinny Care Team has advised the customer to return the modem to a Jump partner and get a replacement. In this case, Partners should complete a Faulty Jump Modem Returns Form. Our objective is to send the faulty modem for repair; completing the form will result in a courier bag or label being sent to Jump partners for the return of the modem (as an aside, we know some of you have been waiting for some time for the courier bag/label to arrive; we aim to clear the backlog within the next week).

RECYCLE: This is perhaps where most of the misunderstandings are occurring. We are using the term ‘recycle’ to mean that the modems will be disassembled and the various materials separated and then sent for the manufacture of new products. ‘Recycle’ should not be confused with ‘Reuse’. Very old modems or ones that have been physically damaged or defaced, or ones that have parts missing are most likely to be assigned to your recycle box. When you have 5 or 6 modems ready for recycling, get in touch with Shelley (shelley@diaa.nz or phone 0800 463 422) and she will send you a courier label for the Jump recycler.

Now that is hopefully a bit clearer, a huge thank you to the partners who are following the new modem return processes. Since 5 January 2021, 250 modem return forms have been completed – that’s over $30,000 worth of modems that are able to stay in use. We have also received just under 100 Faulty Modem forms; we have assessed 68% of these as ‘faulty’. The other 32% are either suitable for reuse (and the Return Modem form should have been used) or should be assigned to the recycling box.

Thank you to Jo Cocker from Te Manawa Library in Massey Auckland, who was the first to discover a glitch with the new faulty modem process that took effect yesterday. The tiny URL for the Faulty Modem form was linking to an old version of the form; needless to say, this has been fixed. But we do appreciate this sort of feedback. As one of our famous Wellington retailers (LV Martin) used to say “It’s the putting right that counts!”.

So, to summarise the new process:

1. Customers must contact the Skinny Helpdesk Care Team (0800 475 4669) if they suspect their modem is faulty; the Care Team will attempt to resolve the fault remotely, but if they can’t, they will advise the customer to return their faulty modem to a nearby Jump partner and pick up a replacement. The Care team will also initiate an internal Skinny process to de-link the faulty modem from the customer’s account (this means that by the time the customer arrives at a Jump partner to get a replacement modem, the modem will already be de-linked and the customer can use their same email to set up a new Skinny account with the new modem).
2. For customers who for any reason are unable to visit a Jump partner, e.g. rural location, disability or otherwise house-bound, the Skinny Care Team will log the fault report with DIAA and we will send a return courier bag and replacement modem to them.
3. When customers turn up with their faulty modem, Jump partners must complete the Faulty Jump Modem Returns form. There is also a link to this form on the Stepping UP website in the drop down Jump menu.
4. Customers must use the same email address to set up a new Skinny account and they will then be able to transfer any unused credit balance on their old account to their new account. Note that customers can only use the same email address after the faulty modem has been de-linked, which is why this process is now automatically initiated by the Skinny Care Team when the fault is first reported.
5. There should be no need for partners to email the Skinny Support Team (support-team@skinny.co.nz) to make a request for modem de-linking.
6. All faulty Jump modems (B315s and B618s) are now to be returned to Telegistics, where efforts will be made to repair them; those that cannot be repaired will be sent to Sims for recycling.
7. When DIAA receives a completed Faulty Jump Modem Returns form, we will send a pre-addressed courier label to the Jump Partner for sending the modem to Telegistics. Our goal is to send Telegistics courier labels at least weekly, so if you have more than one faulty return in any week, you can box them and send them together (the courier costs of sending 5 or 6 in a box is less than sending a single modem in a satchel).
8. If partners are holding any B315s for recycling, that you received before 5 January 2021, these can still be sent to Sims for recycling. Please contact us on jump@diaa.nz and we will send you a Sims label.

Any questions or clarifications about the new process, please contact us at jump@diaa.nz