Special Faults Investigation (SFI2) Frequently Asked Questions
Q1 - Is there any difference between the Openreach SFI2 product & BT Wholesales?
Related question – Would any Openreach price changes be passed on to us from BT Wholesale?
A - BT Wholesale supplies the Openreach SFI2 product on an ‘pass through’ basis as it’s Openreach who own the core SFI2 product & it’s Openreach Engineers that conduct the SFI2 visit.
BT Wholesale bears the potential cost of the Frames & Network modules which are & pre-authorised for use on every SFI2 visit.
The BT Wholesale SFI2 price reflects the Openreach price plus additional costs associated with providing the SFI2 service to its customers.
Q2 – We’ve always worked on the principle that if an SFI2 Engineer is dispatched and finds an issue on the customers’ side, the customer will be charged & If they trace the fault onto the BT network then BT Wholesale absorbed the charge. This principle now seems to be in doubt.
A - The charging principle has not changed; however SFI2 shouldn’t be booked on the basis that there will only be a charge if a fault exists on the customers’ side. A fault is determined as being present if the line is not working to the specification of SIN 349, therefore:
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If the fault is in the access, Openreach will absorb the base module charge*
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If fault is in the network, BT Wholesale will absorb the base module charge*
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If the fault is in the End User Customers side or ‘no fault is found’ or the line is ‘Right When
Tested’ the CP will be charged the base module charge*
Q3 – Knowledge Based Diagnostic (KBD) results are presented as authoritative & CP’s are not given the option to progress faults via other methods, which suggests that SFI2 is recommended. This is especially true in situations where we have PPP or performance issues, and also for every FTTC line.
Is there any intent to rectify this within the diagnostic processes on BT side, so we’re not forced to use SFI2 incorrectly?
Related question - What is BT Wholesales policy on support if no fault is identified but a CP believes one exists?
Related question – SFI2 working to SIN 349 doesn’t seem to be the correct product to correct broadband performance issues, what are the alternatives?
A - KBD diagnoses broadband faults in alignment with the contracted specification of the
broadband service provided, it does so to a high degree of accuracy.
CP’s have the option to book an SFI2 visit if they disagree with the KBD output, this option always remains the CP’s choice however other options as described within the best practice guides may be more appropriate.
CP’s are advised to consider carefully whether an SFI2 visit is appropriate on lines deemed to be working within specification but with an apparent ‘performance issue’ as it’s likely that in this scenario a SFI2 visit will charge will be incurred by the CP.
However, should the SFI2 visit conclude that the line is not working to specification (SIN 349) & therefore the KBD output was in this scenario wrong, the SFI2 base module will not be charged*

BT Wholesale is working with Openreach to develop improvements that recognise the importance of broadband performance as well as maintaining line integrity. BT Wholesale will endeavour to pass through these improvements when they are available.
Q4 - If KBD tests and a fault is detected but when an SFI2 Engineer arrives it tests okay, is the charge waived?
Related question - Will eChat agents stop recommending sending a fault to SFI2 or will BTW accept charges should they be raised?
A – No, KBD produces a number of output codes in a fault scenario, not all of which require an SFI2 visit e.g. REIN issues. Best practice guides are available on BT Wholesale.com (url below) which, in certain instances, offer a more appropriate resolution than booking an SFI2 visit.
Booking of an SFI2 visit always remains the CP’s choice & an option to cancel the visit up until the point of no return (PONR) exists. This allows CP’s the opportunity to check whether the fault still exists by using KBD again or to allow for CP or End User Customers intervention to resolve the problem.
Should CP’s choose to continue with the SFI2 visit they do so accepting that charges will be applicable should a fault not be found, the line proves to be Right When Tested or if the fault lies in the End User Customers domain. https://www.btwholesale.com/pages/static/Library/Technical_Documents_and_Procedures/Broadb and/index.htm
Q5 - SFI2 is a broadband support product that tests to voice standards. Does that mean that any fault that passes SIN349 becomes chargeable, whether or not the problem is ultimately on the BT network?
Related question - Can a PSTN line pass the SFI2 tests but still cause a broadband fault that requires the Engineers’ intervention?
A - Most SFI2’s are booked despite KBD stating that the line is working to specification & it’s therefore likely that the perceived fault is a performance issue rather than a fault to the contracted broadband specification. If an SFI2 visit determines that a fault lies within the Openreach or BT
Wholesale domain a base module charge will not be raised to the CP*
A fault could exist where the PSTN aligns to SIN 349 but the broadband service is not in synch, in this instance the SFI2 Engineer would isolate the issue & resolve. The visit charge would be determined by the location & nature of the fault (as per the answer to Q2.)
Q6 - Currently we can use the threat of Engineer charges to encourage the End User Customer to carry out full diagnostics at their premises. If there is a chance that the customer is going to be charged anyway then where is their incentive to do diagnostics?
A – CP’s are strongly advised to conduct detailed diagnostics, make use of the best practice guides & exhaust all other repair tools with their End User Customer before booking an SFI2 visit, as failure to do so will only increase the volume of chargeable SFI2 visits. CP’s are also advised to make their End
User Customers aware of the scope of the SFI2 visit & under what conditions a charge should be expected.
Q7 - On many occasions the SFI2 checklist states “Right When Tested” but the Engineering notes show that they’ve carried out significant work in the network to get the customer a working service.

If a lot of work has to be carried out on your side, it implies that there was a more fundamental problem. Again it is also difficult to justify to the customer when they see a lot of work being done by the Engineer but they still get charged as the checklist says all is OK?
Related question - An E-side/D-side network problem seems to exist (i.e. no sync/intermittency faults) and an SFI2 visit seems to have resolved them but the SFI2 checklist confirms that the line on initial test was working to SIN 349 & therefore we’ll receive a charge, are we able to dispute these charges?
Related question - BT Wholesales s approach to SFI2 charging seems to have changed?
A - Openreach Engineers will conduct a full check to determine whether the line is working to specification (SIN 349). Even if the line is working to specification the Openreach Engineer can choose to replace components with newer versions & note doing so in the ‘Engineering notes field’.
This component replacement could in some cases improve the broadband performance on this line.
In these instances the SFI2 visit charge will still be valid as the line will have been proved as working to specification despite the resulting performance improvement.
During the course of completing his checks or replacing components, the Openreach Engineer may be observed by End User Customers who may assume that remedial work is being carried out, in those instances the CP is advised to use the explanation described above to help explain why a charge is valid.
The charging principle hasn’t changed; the product description has been clarified to make CP’s more aware of when they should expect a charge. CP’s can still dispute charges that they feel are inappropriate however the dispute process will observe & uphold the charging methodology described in this document.
Q8 - I don’t think it’s right to charge customers for repeat visits particularly where the final visit rectifies a problem?
A - The SFI2 product is provided on a per-visit pass or fail basis, this arrangement is documented within the product handbooks & is unchanged from the product offered by Openreach.
On each visit the Openreach Engineer will check whether the line is performing to SIN 349 specification, if the line wasn’t working to specification the line would be repaired on that visit.
Should the SFI2 visit conclude that the line was ‘Right When Tested’ or ‘No Fault was Found’ that visit will be chargeable regardless of what subsequent visits found.
Q9 - We are frustrated when we tell BT what we think the problem is but either the notes don’t get to the Engineer or they are disregarded or they turn up at the wrong time (in the case of
REIN/intermittency)
A - These are improvement areas that we’ve highlighted to Openreach but unfortunately are outside of BT Wholesales control. It should be noted that resolving REIN issues are not a BT responsibility. An
SFI2 visit that concludes that there is a REIN issue will be chargeable* however Openreach do undertake to resolve these issues as a goodwill gesture under a separate, follow-up process.
Q10 - Is it mandatory for the SFI2 Engineer to call the CP when a CO-OP call has been requested?

A - No, the CO-OP call option will only be exercised by the SFI2 Engineer if he feels that further guidance from the CP is required to isolate a fault, if the SFI2 Engineer cannot find a fault he’s unlikely to use the CO-OP call facility
Q11 - I am aware that some other companies absorb the SFI2 charge or offer a lower charge to the customer.
A - Whether to onward charge SFI2’s and how much is a decision that must be taken by the CP.
Q12 - SFI2 charges often appear on a bill 3 months after the visit date i.e. SFI2 visit completed in
August, appears on the SFI2 bill in November, what is the legal time limit for raising SFI2 charges after the visit date. I understand that this delay is partly due to charges not being progressed until the fault is closed. Are there any plans to change this?
A - BT can legally bill SFI2 charges up to 6 years after the visit date but this is not a timescale that in practice we work to. It is true that faults need to be closed before charges are progressed, however this process should not introduce any significant delay to timely billing & as such there are no plans to change this practice. A delay of 30-60 days between an SFI2 visit and its appearance on the bill should be expected especially for those visits that occur at the end of a month which will miss that months billing run.
Q13 - What is the BT Wholesale SFI2 dispute process?
Related question - Would BT Wholesale consider changing the 28 dispute process to a 56 day process?
Related question - First time disputes have a 28 day period for dispute submission, is this the same for second time disputes also or is this extended when it is a second time
A - BT Wholesale provide a disputes process to allow the customers to highlight any discrepancies that may exist on the SFI2 bill. The disputes process mandates that the customer must provide sufficient evidence to support a disputed charge. As part of the disputes process BT Wholesale will correlate the available documentation and can approach Openreach & often the Engineer in question to clarify the nature of work conducted. This will determine whether the noted outcome of the visit was correct and allow BT Wholesale to make adjudication as to whether the charge is valid.
Clearly as time passes the opportunity to question the Openreach Engineer with any degree of accurate recall lessens. Likewise the anecdotal Engineering notes, whilst having no contractual effect, are helpful in adjudication, are only retained by Openreach for a very limited period of time, which is fundamentally why we document a 28 days dispute window.
The second level dispute must be submitted within 28 days of the original (1st level) adjudication date. The second level dispute will either re-examine the original adjudication IF sufficient additional evidence is presented by the CP OR determine whether the original dispute has been adjudicated correctly. It should be noted that after the second level dispute has been adjudicated, the disputes process will have been deemed to have been exhausted & the charges will be valid.
Q14 - Could we use ‘Broadband Boost’ instead?
A -Broadband boost is not a product that BT Wholesale currently consumes so it’s not available to our customers

Q - How does an SP know if the NTE is the demarcation point and not the DP ?
A - The demarcation point must be an NTE to have a filter connected; we do not supply broadband to a DP.
Q - Will we be able to permanently disable DLM in March ‘15 ?
A - This functionality is part of a delivery roadmap with an expected delivery date of March ’15 however this is not yet a committed date.
*Please refer to the product handbook for charging scenarios
Q - What is the process to request changes to BT Wholesale dispute processes
A - Please communicate any change requests to either your Account Manager, Service manager or billing/disputes team.