Hi there,

I hope that someone can help me clarify a matter and advise on if there is anything I can do.

I have been in a contract with Orange (now EE) for a good few years. In June 2011, I was midway into a contract when I registered a new phone via customer services. It was the Iphone 4 that had been purchased directly from the Apple store and I advised this to the agent I was speaking to. At the time, I was advised that the £6 a month Orange Care would increase to £12 a month as the new handset was a smart phone. Later I found out that the agent I spoke to also put a note on the account to say that the handset is a generic handset. There was no reason for me to question the £12 a month as I was led to believe that my handset was covered.

About 2 weeks ago, I called up EE upgrades to negotiate a new deal for my contract. I told the advisor that I was thinking of buying another handset directly from Apple and was wanting to know the best sim only tariff that they could offer. During the conversation that advisor told me that if I purchased a handset from a third party, in this case Apple, then the EE care would not be valid on it and as it would be classed as a generic handset. I paused and then told her that my current handet is a generic handset and I have been paying the monthly £12. She was not sure why this was and told me that I would need to speak to customer service with regards to it. She also told me that there were notes on the account to state that they were aware that the handset was generic.

I've tried speaking to customer services and feel like I'm being passed from pillar to post. When I eventually spoke to a team leader, he advised that it was wrongly applied and in the event that I needed to make a claim, they would have honoured it.

My gripe is that at the time, the agent knew that the handset was generic and continued to apply the new insurance to my account. Had I been informed of the full facts, that the insurance does not apply to generic handsets, there would be no reason for me to continue paying for Orange insurance? Is this a case of 'misrepresentation'?

Am I right in thinking that the insurance was missold to me? They have admitted that it should not have been added to my account but also that they would not refund me.

What can I do now? Am I entitled to a refund?

Any help would be much appreciated.

TIA

Spot on, its been missold. Orange cover only covers handsets supplied by them.

Complaint to Customer Relations and if no luck then then the MD.

You are going on the case that if you had a situation where you had to claim, then you wouldnt have been able to as the Handset wont have been supplied by orange / EE

Hi there,

 

I hope that someone can help me clarify a matter and advise on if there is anything I can do.

 

I have been in a contract with Orange (now EE) for a good few years. In June 2011, I was midway into a contract when I registered a new phone via customer services. It was the Iphone 4 that had been purchased directly from the Apple store and I advised this to the agent I was speaking to. At the time, I was advised that the £6 a month Orange Care would increase to £12 a month as the new handset was a smart phone. Later I found out that the agent I spoke to also put a note on the account to say that the handset is a generic handset. There was no reason for me to question the £12 a month as I was led to believe that my handset was covered.

 

About 2 weeks ago, I called up EE upgrades to negotiate a new deal for my contract. I told the advisor that I was thinking of buying another handset directly from Apple and was wanting to know the best sim only tariff that they could offer. During the conversation that advisor told me that if I purchased a handset from a third party, in this case Apple, then the EE care would not be valid on it and as it would be classed as a generic handset. I paused and then told her that my current handet is a generic handset and I have been paying the monthly £12. She was not sure why this was and told me that I would need to speak to customer service with regards to it. She also told me that there were notes on the account to state that they were aware that the handset was generic.

 

I've tried speaking to customer services and feel like I'm being passed from pillar to post. When I eventually spoke to a team leader, he advised that it was wrongly applied and in the event that I needed to make a claim, they would have honoured it.

 

My gripe is that at the time, the agent knew that the handset was generic and continued to apply the new insurance to my account. Had I been informed of the full facts, that the insurance does not apply to generic handsets, there would be no reason for me to continue paying for Orange insurance? Is this a case of 'misrepresentation'?

 

Am I right in thinking that the insurance was missold to me? They have admitted that it should not have been added to my account but also that they would not refund me.

 

What can I do now? Am I entitled to a refund?

 

Any help would be much appreciated.

 

TIA

"he advised that it was wrongly applied and in the event that I needed to make a claim, they would have honoured it"

You just have to love this line from EE. There is no way on Earth they would have honoured the claim if you had to make one. No way.

Issue them with a 'Letter Before Action' immediately stating that you want all the insurance payments refund along with interest (at 8%) - do the calculations, present them with the total amount you are requesting. Remind them that if they choose not to respond, in writing, within 14 days then you'll be taking them to court.

I can't see you getting far with this with the mis-sold arguement, but it's worth a try to ask for your insurance premiums to be refunded.

The problem you face is your claim it was mis-sold. If it has been mis-sold, it has been to their detriment, not yours. I.e. if you had to make a claim they would have had to honour it.

In regards to "there is no way on earth they would have honoured the claim if you had to make one". That is incorrect. In these situations where you had to make a claim, they would initially explain that it shouldn't have been applied and then offer you a refund of all premiums. Or if this is declined, then they would process the claim and then replace the device as per the insurance. They simply would not be able to say "sorry, we shouldn't have applied it so we won't replace". The fact that they applied it in error is to their detriment.

Mind you, i guess the option now is to call and start to make an insurance claim under faulty goods. See if they say you shouldn't have insurance for it, in which case you can suggest they refund all your premiums for it?

I would write to the following email addresses & ask that they investigate & sort this out for you.

[email protected]

[email protected]

I recently had an issue with a different problem & I bypassed Customer Service as you get told varying things from them. So I contacted EE using the above email address.

I had a phone call from the Executive Office & my issue was resolved on the phone to my satisfaction!!

Do contact the Executive Office if you haven't had a reply within a week as sometimes they take their time!

Good luck!