PTI

LONDON, Aug 19: A customer trying to call British telecoms operator BT Group was left hanging on the telephone for a total of 20 hours, 'The Times' newspaper reported on Saturday.

In a statement, BT blamed long response times on a new calling system which has left a large number of customers in the lurch

Hannah King, 51, called a company helpline after a BT engineer  failed to turn up to install a telephone line at her new flat in Milford Haven, south Wales, according to 'The Times'.

For eight hours in a row, she endured the sound of piped music. She gave up and tried again the next day, and waited another eight hours before putting the phone down.

The following day, she spent a further four hours on hold before hanging up, which took the total time wasted to almost one day.

"I was so frustrated and angry I broke down in tears," she told 'The Times'.

"It is a helpline for goodness' sake, surely a company as big as BT can answer their phones."

BT said on Saturday that customers were having trouble getting in touch because of a 'new customer management system.'

"Whilst this new system beds down, a small proportion of BT Retail customers have experienced difficulties getting through to our customer services," the group said in an official statement.

"We sincerely apologise for any temporary problems customers may have experienced, and are working around the clock to improve the situation."