Armsoft Vs Setanta

[Armsoft]

Setanta.....

I brought a box from Tesco`s on the 9th September 2008 which came with 3 months Free Setanta Sports!!
I brought the box so I could watch the England game on the 10th, but due to the incompetence of Setanta the sports package was not activated till 17th September!!

I contacted Setanta by Email to register my total disatisfaction, and true to form, I received no reply (apart from the Electronic Auto Reply to confirm receipt of mail).
Then on the 12th September I received the following Email -

"
On Sep 12, 2008, customerservices@setanta. com wrote:

Dear Mr Armsoft,

Thank you for your e-mail.

Due to exceptional demand for the Setanta Sports package, we have received a high volume of customer enquiries by e-mail and are therefore unable to reply within our usual timescales. We are working hard to ensure that we respond to you as soon as we can.

The message of 3-5 days is an automated message. This is for customers that order Setanta Sport Freeview cards direct from us. There will be no delay in your viewing.

Yours sincerely

Patrick Fox
Customer Services
P Please think of the environment before you print this email

I replied to this on the 12th with

"Patrick,
Please speak to your activation team, I have in the past 72 hours had several attempts to get them to activate the card, without success!!

So while`st I see your opinion that `There will be no delay in the viewing` this is not actually the case, as having started this process on Tuesday we are at Friday and I am still unable to view the channel.

Very dissapointing."


On the 18th of September, having returned the box to Tesco`s I wrote to Setanta to cancel my contract and clearly instructing them NOT to attempt to take money from my account.

On the 18th September when I arrived home the postman had delivered a letter from Setanta -
"Welcome to Setanta" Your account number is ****** and we will be deducting your first monthly subscription on the 9th November."

Now, based on the fact that
A) The box came with 3 months free Setanta the earliest any monthly payment would have been due was the 9th December.
B) I had cancelled the contract so no monthly payments were ever due

I was a little suprised, so Emailed Rosemarie Conlon from Setanta Customer Services and wrote as follows -

"This situation goes from Bad to Worse!!

Apart from the fact that the activation only took place yesterday (17th September) I have today received my welcome pack with my account number:***** and the first billing date is stated as the 9th November 2008.
My card which came with a Freeview box from Tesco`s Direct had an on box offer of 3 (THREE) Months Free Viewing, so even if the card had been activated on the day it was supposed too the earliest that any payment would be due is the 9th December 2008.

I am both suprised and dissapointed that your company operates in such a disorganised way.

Please accept this Email as my written cancelation of the account number ******.
Please discontinue the service on this account at the end of the Free Viewing Period (8th December 200
Please ensure that any direct debit arrangement is cancelled and that no payment requests are made to my bank
Please confirm to me in writing that this has been actioned as requested.
Thankyou

Mr Armsoft"

I received a reply from Setanta as follows -

On Sep 19, 2008, customerservices@setanta. com wrote:

Dear Mr Armsoft

Thank you for your e-mail.

Due to exceptional demand for the Setanta Sports package, we have received a high volume of customer enquiries by e-mail and are therefore unable to reply within our usual timescales. We are working hard to ensure that we respond to you as soon as we can.

I am sorry to hear that you no longer wish to subscribe to Setanta Sports. Your cancellation request will now be processed and will take effect thirty days from your next payment.

At Setanta Sports we strive to provide a wide variety of content for all our customers and we hope that you will be subscribing again in the future. If for any reason you would like to withdraw your cancellation request please contact us on 08712 00 33 22 where we will be happy to take your call from 9am until 9pm Monday to Sunday.

Yours sincerely

Sarah Magee
Customer Services
P Please think of the environment before you print this email

So, on the 19th September they acknowledge that I want to cancel my contract (hooray!!), except that upon checking my Bank Account this month I find that they have deducted money (Direct Debit) in October/Novmber & December !!

I phoned (Big mistake!!) the young lady I spoke to had obviously had a very stressfull day and could not handle the situation (I really felt sorry for her), it got so bad for her that she ended up putting the phone down on me

I emailed Setanta pointing out there mistakes, and to date have had no reply.
I Emailed including the following -

"To avoid any further confusion, I would point out that the Financial Ombudsmans guidlines in relation to compensation for distress, inconvenience or other non-financial loss quite clearly states ""We sometimes make allowances for the time the consumer needed to spend to put things right. This will normally be at a modest rate - around £50 to £100 a day, and not more than £10 per hour"

Be rest assured, if my complaint is not dealt with within the timscale stated in my original email to you, I will seek compensation for distress and inconvenience at the highest rate allowable."

But received no reply.
I have though now received 2 letters from Setanta telling me that they had applied to my bank for a further payment and it had been declined (yes I have cancelled the Direct Debit) and they were asking me for details to charge my monthly subscription!
I have also had a few missed calls from their accounts chasers "2touch on behalf of Setanta - 08004082680" I have spoken to one of their representatives who did not seem to understand the issue.

I think I`ve done enough chasing round, I`ve given enough chances for them to sort the situation out, so will do an LBA tonight, and then file with both the Financial Ombudsman and the courts in the New Year.

Any advice welcome.

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	The Financial Ombudsman Service For the most part, don't bother. The Ombudsman is an industry arranged service which is under-resourced, takes too long, lacks clear transparency. You have no idea what evidence the FOS has received from the bank or how your complain has really been handled. The FOS is the preferred complaints route for the banking industry. The county court is to be preferred by consumers for its speed, openness, the quality of its awards and also because it will award 8% interest on top of any damages won by you. The Ombudsman should normally be used to solving little technical difficulties or customer service problems which you have expereinced with your bank.

	The Direct Debit Guarantee • The Guarantee is offered by all Banks and Building Societies that take part in the Direct Debit Scheme. The efficiency and security of the Scheme is monitored and protected by your own Bank or Building Society. • If the amounts to be paid or the payment dates change, we will notify you three working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed. • If an error is made by us or by your Bank or Building Society, you are guaranteed a full and immediate refund from your branch of the amount paid. • You can cancel a Direct Debit at any time by writing your Bank or Building Society. Please also send a copy of your letter to us. This is a term of your banking contract and you can sue on it.