Tim Donohoe, manager of Spic’N’Span, said in the first weekend of January the car wash was one of a number of businesses whose NBN lines were cut by thieves before attempted break-ins. 

“They weren’t able to break in, but the damage to the line was done,” he said.

“We reported it to our provider, they reported it to the NBN and then the three-day turnaround began.

“The damage left us without phones, internet and, most importantly in today’s cashless society, no credit card facilities.” 

Mr Donohoe said after three weeks of back and forth calls, the repair was expedited to be completed by January 30. 

“They did the repair, but my joy was short-lived as they told me the new cable is yet to actually be connected and it will be another week before my service is restored,” he said. 

“Seventy per cent of our revenue is through credit cards and we are seeing car after car drive straight through and now we might not see them come back.” 

Mr Donohoe said NBN was touted to be a measure to make the lives of small businesses easier and it has done the opposite. 

“We’ve lost thousands,” he said. 

“It seems to me, the biggest problem is the miles and miles of red tape you have to cut through to get anything done.” 

Within hours of the The Daily Advertiser making inquiries, a technician showed up at the business to solve the problem.

An NBN Co spokesperson said a technician attended on January 10 to assess the damage which needed the full replacement of cabling to restore services, both from the street as well as into the business.

“Street works were completed on January 17, however, an appointment to complete the cabling into the business on January 21 could not be met due to weather conditions,” the spokesperson said. 

“This appointment was rescheduled with a civil crew returning on 30 January.

“Regrettably, the complexity of the works, in addition to weather conditions, delayed the restoration of services and we apologise for the inconvenience this has caused.” 

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