Capengando, You're doing the right thing and I am sure thousands of other CPW/TalkTalk customers will be behind you. The Indian call centres are worse than useless and merely read out, parrot fashion,from manuals given out to them; they are used by companies who have a profound disdain for their customers. Note also that CPW deny receiving ordinary mail (unless it's a cheque, of course!); according to them post office lose 100% of ordinary mail! But once you start legal proceedings, they try to wriggle out and make you derisory offers of goodwill(?) money! (which is only a small overhead for them; they embezzle so much money by hidden and stealth charges that they are able to offer 'free' broadband to a few and for a while (maybe) (which other honest businesses have to charge for!). I wish you every success in getting redress for all the gratuitous stress and anxiety they've caused you.

Did you watch BBC One Watchdog programme yesterday; if not take a look at BBC NEWS | Business | Carphone misleading over iPhone and be informed.

I also found out recently that the Direct Debit Guarantee is not what it is made to sound like. Instead it also seems to have as much devious small print as the infamous Carphone Warehouse literature! Therefore take care! As foe ebilling, it should be made illegal.

Latest news. Carphone Warehouse were featured on Watchdog and there's a BBC News Video which is well worth watching. They have the most hidden charges for their phone customers that they are effectively paying Broadband charges for everybody so that CPW can advertise that they can give BB free (which other more honest ISPs have to charge for) although the Advertising Standards Agency have reprimanded them.

Any chance burying the dead threads? Suffering has continued beyond 11 months!

Yes. It's even more interesting why they asked me twice to get the MAC code! I also saw on BBC4 - Visions of the Future programme that there are parallel worlds and just about now I am finishing reading an article how leopards get their spots and zebras get their stripes; maybe some times they change them too!

Best of luck to you forever. I was with AOL and TalkTalk couldn't make it free as and couldn't migrate me to TalkTaalk even after I gave them the MAC code twice! Looks like TalkTalk have selected preferred customers, So good luck to you! They probably also give you modified, extra-charged prefix dialled international call plan also, together with the welcome penalty of £29.99 which is an additional bargain.

A simple strategy in these cases is to deny them much more future business; this strategy has worked fine for me over the last 50 years. If any business cheats me for £10 I deny them £100 or £1000 worth of future business.

Dear Joa, just a few hundred pounds is just another little overhead for them (I saw Storyville programme by the prestigious BBC 4 that some hawkers on the Bombay Railway were fined regularly by the RPF and some of them had several scores of convictions and regarded it as just another overhead!

Cattolica, you're so right! They were so complacent and still wanted to wait with a voluntary code even though literally thousands upon thousands were being intimidated and fleeced by these companies who have contributed not one iota to the telecoms infrastructure of this country. They should not have been given the right to impose any longterm contracts at all or charge spurious admin and line rental/service charges. For getting the extraordinary privilege of poaching BT customers by false assurances they should have been required in law to reward and not punish their customers. Most people are more vulnerable than I and merely pay up due to intimidation. Initially I also felt intimidated and not being a litigeous person would not have sued them if they had gracefully closed my account as was agreed on the phone. Anyway thanks for everybody for the moral support I'm getting;m it makes it quite a bit less stressful.

Thank you Cattolica for your support. The BBC Money Programme on 26-10-2007 was all about 'The Great Phone Swindle' i have recorded it on DVD and will be happy to send a copy to anyone wishing to get one.

TalkTalk rely on the fact that they can incessantly use delaying tactics and make you believe that you have a longterm contract with them even though they themselves are in breach of it from the very start and most people are wary of going to courts. But courts are the only way to get any remedies at all from TalkTalk.

TalkTalk get their contracts [Edit] and then breach them with impunity and the only way to tackle this menace is through the courts. These sharks should not have been given the authority to trap customers with any longterm contract. I think the whole nation should campaign against this but I don't think I will be around to see the changes!

Dear Luddite, TalkTalk were never able to give me BB even though I gave them the MAC code twice and agreed to close the account and revert me back to BT if they failed to give me BB after I gave the MAC second time. If they had gracefully closed the account I was prepared to condone all the trouble they gave me. When I rang BT they wanted to take revenge and required a hefty reconnection charge. Therefore, i went to Cable and changed my Telephone number after nearly 30 years; just think of the hassle and inconvenience! I am an old man almost on borrowed time and have no time to get political reform by appealing to Ofcom and Otello. That's why I started the court action. This is the first time this sort of thing has happened to me, I am only slightly infirm and slightly breathless, so I am going to fight till the end. So far it hasn't cost me much money (initially £30 or so). Cheers

TalkTalk were never able to give me Broadband even though I twice gave them MAC numbers (from AOL) and agreed on the phone that if still can't give BB then they should close the whole account and revert me back to BT. When I rang BT they wanted to take revenge and wanted a hefty reconnection charge. So I gave up the whole thing and went to cable, changing my phone number after 30 years! Think of the hassle and inconvenience. When they continued billing me and threatening me I started the court action. See http://www.moneyclaimonline.gov.uk which the Government has set up with the laudable intention of bringing law closer to ordinary citizens. By the way Kamadhenu is the name of a mythical cow which you can milk to get all your desires fulfilled and achieve immortality, just like TalkTalk's billing computer!