When Wanadoo was in operation I had major problems with my broadband connection, they kept blaming my telephone line in the house, I knew it was outside the house. After six months I migrated to BT and within 6 days of migration they resolved my problem, it was a line fault in the street box. Migration was simple.

BT's service has been great ever since.

I may be paying slightly more than Wanadoo/Orange, Talk Talk, Tiscali etc but at the end of the day I have a secure service with the company that is responsible for all telephone lines into the domestic homes (cable companies excluded).

The likes of Talk Talk, Tiscali etc only piggy back BT telephone lines, so why not use the company that is 100%responsible for the broadband line.

You get what you pay for - presumably, like so many others, Johanna chose Tiscali because it was the cheapest deal. Common sense and a little thinking will enable most people to recognise that the standard laws of economics apply to all of business - if Tiscali sell their product more cheaply than their competitor, then some part of the deal must suffer; sure enough, Tiscali cut corners on customer service.

When I make purchases or choose a supplier I consider what level of service I am likely to receive - so, for utilities I consider not only the price/bill I will get, but also the level of complaints reported by that utilities regulator; I want a supplier that is easy and fair to deal with, easy to contact, one that applies common sense towards a good customer relationship of trust.
For Internet I want a supplier whose technical support hours match those that affect my use of the product, who I can contact by telephone and speak to someone who can directly affect a positive fault resolution. No menus and being pushed from one department to another. I like 24hr support on a freephone number, or, better, with alternative landline number so that I can call from my mobile on inclusive minutes as necessary or convenient.
Such providers do exist.
Tiscali have now been taken over by Carphonewarehouse under their TalkTalk brand. A recent news story indicated that some ex-Tiscali customers were unhappy at a rise in their bill at switching to TalkTalk, whilst TalkTalk claim that these ex-Tiscali customers are variously having slightly increased bills and others slightly reduced bills, a sort of price neutral situation overall.

If you start off with the cheapest supplier the price can only increase. The laws of economics are that anyone can supplier a product or service for less, but with reduced margins they may not be so available to support their customers nor to service warranty or problem resolution issues. Suppliers need healthy profit margins in order to provide good service in the long term - choose wisely how little you pay for a service you want and need to rely upon.
It should be possible to report slow MAC code delivery (where ISPs provide a code for migration of broadband from them to another supplier) to OFCOM for resolution. Best to understand your suppliers terms and conditions from the word go, and know that they have a worthy complaints department - sometimes a fax is better than a telephoned complaint, and also better than an email.

I was with Tiscali for some years - I had decided to switch from BT because of their prices and service and I went to PlusNet for all my services for landline and broadband, as they were offering such a good deal, far cheaper than BT and cheaper than Tiscali. I contacted Tiscali for a MAC code and had no problems with getting this - in fact Tiscali were so helpful I wrote to thank them for their help and to explain I was not leaving because of their service - I had a personal call from Tiscali thanking me for my letter and a letter followed in the post.

I would just add that Tiscali have been taken over by Talk Talk who are now operating the MAC codes and this may be why the service has deterioted so dramatcially.

I had the same problem with PIPEX who sent me around the world but still would not give me the MAC code. First I switched my phone line to BT, and when that was completed (it took about 10 days during which time I was without Broadband) I then asked alternative ISP for a Broadband service. This was provided without any problem. No MAC number was asked. Once I had my Broadband, I calculated the amount of overcharges and refunds which were due to me from PIPEX. I added some £150 pounds approx to that amount to cover losses for time and effort of writing many many letters and e-mails to PIPEX. I issued a Small Claims action against PIPEX for this amount adding the court fee.
Within about 20 days I received a cheque for full amount from PIPEX , plus apology. All threats by their debt collectors were cancelled - and here I am with Phone and Broadband from two different providers. Perhaps this route may help others.