Account advice straight from the Westnet Team
Who better to give advice about the ins and outs of your Westnet account than the experts on our very own Westnet team? Our friendly contact centre team have firsthand experience helping customers with their accounts and services, so we asked them for their top tips to help you save time on managing your account. Have a read through this inside advice from various departments and you may learn a trick or two!
Handle payments in a snap with MyAccount
You may be surprised to learn that one of the most common problems that has people ringing up isn’t related to internet service issues at all! Making payments and updating expired payment details are two of the most common customer queries handled by our Billing Team, but did you know that you can take care of both without even having to pick up the phone? That’s right – thanks to MyAccount, our online account management portal, you can make a payment or update your credit card/bank account details with ease.
Follow these handy guides and you can take care of it in just a few minutes:
Internet down? Here’s what to check first
Our Faults Team do most of their work behind the scenes to make sure service issues get fixed as quickly as possible, but they still have one key piece of advice for our customers: if the internet goes down, the first thing you should do is check if it’s an outage. While you may prefer to start with the old “turn the modem off and then on again” trick, it’s not worth spending any more time troubleshooting until you know that it’s a problem affecting just you, as opposed to a more widespread outage.
Our Network Status page can help you look up any outages or planned maintenance that may be affecting services in your area.
- Simply click your state/territory on the map on our Network Status page to see a list of events and planned upgrades that may be affecting your service.
- If you spot a list item that’s close to your suburb, click “More info” to get the full details.
- Any outages should list an estimated resolution time, so your internet issue may simply be a matter of waiting for the outage to be fixed.
- If your service still isn’t working after the outage is showing as fixed, give your modem a restart and try to connect. If it’s still not working, that’s when it’s time to give us a call to troubleshoot as another underlying issue may be affecting just you.
Moving house? Here’s our top tip for a smooth move
Moving house is already a hassle with all the packing, lifting and shifting you need to get all your belongings from A to B. The last thing you need is get stuck without internet at your new place! If you contact our dedicated Movers Team ahead of the big move, we can take care of getting your Westnet services connected at your new address. You can do this online or by calling us on 1300 899 368.
However, there’s something else to keep in mind when you’re moving to a new place. If a previous occupant has left their own phone or internet services connected, it can cause delays. It’s illegal to disconnect existing services without some paperwork proving that you’re the new occupant at the premises.
Use this strategy to make sure things go smoothly:
- When you’re organising the move, try to get in touch with the previous occupants to make sure they’re getting their phone and broadband services relocated or disconnected in a timely fashion once they’ve vacated the property. Depending on if you’re renting or buying, this may need to be through a landlord or real estate agent.
- If you can’t get in touch with the previous occupants or they’re giving you the run-around, the next best thing is to get your Proof of Occupancy documents ready to go so you can supply them as soon as they’re requested. You can find a list of acceptable documents
Get some extra help with your modem/router setup
The average Australian doesn’t have to pay much attention to their modem/router – once it’s plugged in, it’s left alone to do its thing (perhaps with the occasional restart here and there). If you have set up a modem in the past, it’s likely that it was for an ADSL broadband connection – just plug it into the phone socket. Today, things are a little more complicated. The range of different technologies making up the NBN™ mean there’s different ways you need to set up a modem/router, and some of them include additional NBN™ equipment.
In addition to our regular setup guides, we’ve gone the extra mile with setup videos to give our customers an easier way to visualise how your Westnet modem/router needs to be plugged in for each type of NBN™ connection. If you’re not sure which type of NBN™ you have, you’ll find this listed on emails from us regarding your NBN™ order, or you can always check your address on our website to find out.
Westnet modem NBN™ setup videos
- NBN™ Fibre to the Building/Node (FTTB/N)
- NBN™ Fibre to the Curb (FTTC)
- NBN™ Fibre to the Premises (FTTP)
- NBN™ HFC
- NBN™ Wireless
- NBN™ Satellite
Do you have a question about managing your Westnet account? Ask us in the comments and we’ll point you in the right direction, but for urgent matters please contact us directly.
39 comments
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Hi Anthony,
Thanks for your comment. Though there are some plans exclusive under our Westnet banner in our Seniors card plan: https://www.westnet.com.au/internet-products/broadband/nbn/cust/seniorscard/
Under both banners, with the exception of the above plan, we offer the same class-leading customer service and award-winning experience and we’re more than happy to transition to a Westnet account for new services if that’s your preference.
– Joshy
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Where is the list of ‘acceptable documents’? It is ironic that I am facing all kinds of obstacles working through Westnet trying to get connection at a new address. See refnce: 335887563. This evening I was transferred to the provisioning dept. before hanging up after 30 minutes. Then! I get an email telling me I’d used up to 50% of my email allowance. Does anybody at Westnet care enough to do something’ about it? We have been Westnet customers for near 11 years. Reward for loyalty?
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Hi Rodney,
Sorry to hear about the obstacles in getting your services up and running. We have a handy list of documents accepted for proof of occupancy that can be found here: http://myhelp.westnet.com.au/node/1955
Once any of the documents have been received, this will allow us to request a transfer of the connected service. Thank you for the past 11 years with us and we’re looking forward to getting you up and running as soon as possible.
– Joshy
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Should I change my plan to a Seniors plan?
If the internet is down how can I check the Network Status? I would need the internet to do that.
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Hi John,
Both great questions! Moving over to the senior plan is completely up to yourself. If you don’t find yourself going through too much data over the month and more want to make sure the home phone’s connected, I’d say it’s perfect for you.
Our Network status page is also viewable on any smart phone https://www.westnet.com.au/status/ to check if you ever find your service offline.
– Joshy
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Excuse me, but if the internet is down, how can I check a website to see if there are any outages. If the internet is down, there goes my internet dependant phones.
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Hi Lyn,
Great question! Mobile services operate over very different technology to fixed line services. As a result, if your home internet is down and and you’re wanting to check the status page. You can disconnect from the wifi and use 4g instead to check the page. https://www.westnet.com.au/status/
– Joshy
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I regard to checking if there is an outage & advising that we check the Outage map, that’s a bit hard if the internet is down ?
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Hi Christopher,
Thanks for asking. Mobile services such as that of a smart phone while on the move, operate over very different technology to the fixed line services delivered to the home. Meaning that if the home internet goes out, you should be able to disconnect from the home internet service and use the data of your mobile service to check the site https://www.westnet.com.au/status/
– Joshy
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Good advice- internet down, phone ( also internet) down and the advice is…..check Network Status page.
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Hi Lucy,
In most circumstances, as the mobile network operates over very different technology it will be unaffected by most issues that would impact the fixed line service and vise versa. This is smart phones will work when you aren’t at home connected to your wifi. Meaning if you’re home and find that the internet’s not working over wifi, you can disconnect from the wifi and quickly check the page before calling: https://www.westnet.com.au/status/
– Joshy
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How does one check Westnet status to see outage problems if the internet is down?
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Hi Mary,
It should be as simple as disconnecting a mobile device from the wifi and using the mobile network to check. This will revert to your mobile plans data, however it’ll work a treat if you’re just quickly checking the status page before calling. https://www.westnet.com.au/status/
– Joshy
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If our internet is down how can we possibly check your online network status page to see if there’s an outage?!!!
PS I love Westnet!-
And we love you Tina!
If you find that your home internet service is down the mobile network in most cases should still be up and running as they operate over different infrastructure. Meaning that if you have a smart phone you should still be able to access the internet after disconnecting from the wifi network: https://www.westnet.com.au/status/
– Joshy
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Thank you for the recent information above.
I will make sure that I save a copy of this email for future reference.Robyn Sheehan – So far to date, I have had satisfactory service.
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No worries, Robyn we’re glad we can give you a bit of inside knowledge. Thanks for reading!
– Joshy
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Hello Westnet Staff,
I have been a Westnet customer for many years and usually received excellent service. Thank you.
I do wonder whether you have a lower monthly price structure for seniors/pensioners/long-time supporters.
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Hi Marjo,
Great question! We absolutly have a plan for seniors card holders that will help save some money through the month. https://www.westnet.com.au/internet-products/broadband/nbn/cust/seniorscard/
If you’re interested, we’d love to arrange a call from the team to lend a hand. Please feel more than welcome to shoot us an email to iiOnline@iinet.net.au with time that will usually be good to catch you and we’ll have our friendly sales team give you a call.
– Joshy
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How can you firstly look up network status on the net when your net is actually down WT?
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Hi Mich,
Great question, much the same as mobile phones will work while away from yourhome connection. If you ever find that your home internet goes down, simply disconencting a mobile device from the wifi will take you back to your 4G network reverting to your mobile plans data. Websites don’t use very much data, meaning it’s perfect for checking the status page quickly before calling. https://www.westnet.com.au/status/
– Joshy
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Hi Joshy I think you miss the point these people do not have mobile phones
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I signed up for and paid for the nbn on Westnet on June 3 and was promised delivery of a modem within 2 – 5 working days. Today is July 4 and still no sign of it. What is going on!
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Hi David,
Apologies, as it looks like you may have been given incorrect information.
Depending on the product that you’ve signed up for, pre-payment is taken first to start the provisioning and connection process. When we have notification of the expected connection appointment time, we’ll then send your hardware out to you, so it can arrive around the time that the service should be ready.
– Leo
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Hi. I have been reading your comments in answer to customers queries. So far all I can gather is that we have to have a smart phone to get connected to internet is the system is down. At 80 years young I do not have one of those type of phone and honestly don’t want one as they are too complicated for my old brain. The other point that grabs me is about the difference between Westnet & iinet. As a loyal long standing customer of iinet, it is very con fusing when we receive so much information from Westnet as if we are solely their customer. Who do I contact if I have a problem with the modem (which arrived today) or internet please? And what is the situiation? Am I still a customer of iinet or because I have applied for this new modem thru Westnet, have you taken over my account? Confusion reigns.
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Hi Marj!
You have raised some great points here; thank you!
Instead of a smartphone, if you have a tablet that uses the mobile network, this is another option to try. Otherwise, if you don’t have access to a mobile service or alternative form of internet connection, you won’t be able to check the Network Status page for updates.
Even though you’re a long time iiNet customer, as you’ve taken a Westnet plan, you in effect, become a Westnet customer. However, nothing really changes for you – your invoicing will be Westnet branded, but Westnet is part of the iiNet group of companies, so you haven’t left iiNet completely.
– Leo
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HOWcan i check details of my data usage and phone usage
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Hi Janice!
You can check your data usage, phone usage, update your details and much more, via the MyWestnet page, found here:
https://mywestnet3.iinet.net.au/
Cheers!
– Leo
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Frusrated. I agreed to Westnet service with the change to NBN. The contractor wanted to put the modem in the living room. I dont want it there. Phoned NBN twice no human on the line and each time a disconnect after some advertising. I want to know cost to run cable elsewhere. Mission impossible.
You talk about disconnecting the modem if service goes down what do you mean-
Hi Jill,
Installation issues are always not fun and the contractor will want to place the connection as close to the street as possible. We do understand that this is not a viable option and will require a new technician appointment. If you like, please get in touch with us directly, with your details and mentioning your post here, to iiOnline@iinet.net.au. We can try to raise an installation dispute/complaint on your behalf. Be aware that installers will not do things like go into roof cavities, for safety reasons and that if they’re unable to assist, a private contractor may be needed.
– Leo
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Hi. Is it possible to get a yearly statement at the end of the financial year?
Thanks Sam-
Hi Sam,
This isn’t possible, but you can have your monthly invoices resent to you.
– Leo
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My biggest regret is signing with westnet for the NBN. We were promised the world and got nothing but trouble. Signed on for 50mbs and get 14 if we are lucky. Promised Fetch TV box for signing on…still waiting. I have contacted on numerous occasions and been put through the call centre run around over and over. What is the point of paying for extra speed that isn’t being delivered.
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Hi Daniel,
Thanks for bringing this to us and we do sincerely apologise, as this is not what we want to see.
We believe that we’ve been able to locate an account matching your details, so we’ve asked for the team to give you a call to troubleshoot the connection speed issues as well as to organise a Fetch unit for you.
– Leo
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Hi, I’m on a Seniors account, having moved to NBN etc from Transact. I’m trying to work out if I have access to Freezone, Thanks,
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Hi Russ,
Freezone is not available on Seniors plans.
– Leo
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Please help someone from iinet!
I had organised online a relocating transfer paid my $144.95 to have a new modem to go with it (BIGGEST MISTAKE) as already had an old one, so shouldve just stuck with it.. This was 15/4/20… transfer date was for the 28th April… so on the 28th of April finally communication from westnet, your application has been applied in 1-2 working days youll recieve an email with a tracking order for your modem!! Mother of god you took my money on the 15/4 nearly 2 weeks later and the date we moved into then new home (which already has nbn connected) you decide to send out modem?? yes.. NOOOO today is the 11/5 and still no modem, no nothing, particularly NO WIFI!!! tried calling tried live chat, tried EVERYTHING, told we will ‘expediate’ your enquiry… NO not enquiry ORDER!!.. Between, very bad phone lines, roosters crowing in the background, children screaming, I get advised someone will call you back.. yep they dont.. So next avenue cancel my order, no can’t do that there is a ‘withdrawal fee’ of $60, so iinet/westnet stuff up and I have to pay $60, ok so today at least lady on the phone, has no roosters crowing and promises me she is going to call me back with an update of situation.. I have suggested, PLEASE don’t bother about the modem, just do whatever iinet has to do to
hook me up to my new house, because then nbn have to then do their bit..I have been with westnet for over 12 years now, this is the worst customer no care service I have EVER experienced. I have year 12 student who needs wifi for school at home. She had to sit in a car outside old property while wifi still on there, but we had to hand keys back Friday so that is no longer an option. Please if ANYONE from IInet or Westnet reads this, I need to speak to someone in Australia to sort this mess out. You have my money but are not providing a service. Oh sorry thats right you wont cancel my old account in a property that we are not longer living in until this one is connected, but I am still paying for it and will need to put in a complaint to get a credit back!! Yes rant over, I can only pray (and I’m not religious that someone can help me. Thank you.-
Hi Trudy,
Thanks for taking a few moments to leave your comments!
We’ve located your details and we’ve asked for our team to jump in and lend a hand with this one, as we are keen to see online and connected, as soon as possible. Our thanks for your patience so far!
– Leo
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Is Westnet the same as iiNet? If so, why choose one over the other (I think their prices are the same). Can one swap over between them and keep the same account details like email addresses? Thanks