Hi,

I'm hoping for some advice. My wife has a cell phone contract with Vodafone and in March she visited our local vodafone store and added 2 additional lines into her account. These were data only sim cards for use in portable devices that Vodafone offer on a 1 month minimum term contract (ie cancelled with 1 month notice.)

These were used for a short term requirement, and in May she contacted Vodafone to give notice to cancel and remove these two sims cards via the online webchat. The customer service representative accepted the request and confirmed that the cancellation had been accepted and the cards would cease in 30 days. We have a copy of the transcript here.

A couple of months later, my wife looked at her bill and saw that she was still being charge for the 2 data sims card. She called vodafone this time, and spoke to the customer care team. They acknowledged that the cancellation had been received and had not been cancelled in due to a systems error. They apologies, confirmed that the cancelation was now actioned, and promised to refund the months that were charged in error.

In September, I turned on a device with one of these sim cards installled and found that it connected to mobile broadband service. I notified my wife, who checked her bill - and saw she was still being charged for the sims cards. They are still active and no refund received.

This time she visited the store to express frustration. The store staff told here they cannot help and she must phone customer services. She phoned customers services. Was told that the cancellation has not happened in error and that it has now been actioned. Refund is forthcoming.

In October the sim cards are still active. My wife is in tears with frustration, but I tell her to call again. this time she is told that because the card was used in September (when I switched on the device) she will not get a refund for September, but otherwise, it's an error, really, truly the cancellation has been processed and she will get a refund minus September.

Last week, no refund, cards still being billed, we went back into the store and spent two hours making a nuisance to the poor staff there to try to resolve it. They say they can't do anything but make a note on the system for a supervisor to look.

I'm looking for advise what to do next? Vodafone owe several hundred pounds in payments they've taken. While acknowledging that they should not be, they seem unable to stop billing for the service. We've both spend hours and hours trying to resolve it over 7 month period.

My wife doesn't want to cancel the direct debit, because she still needs her phone, which remains active on the account under her contract.

Can anyone suggest next steps?

Thanks!

Speak to the bank and demand an immediate refund under the direct debit guarantee, and if there is a CPA on a bank card, then get this cancelled too.

As for not wanting to cancel the DD, customer service this atrocious would certainly make me cancel the DD and move to another mobile phone operator.

There is a very good Vodafone Rep on here who will no doubt find your thread and will be able to assist.

The only other thing I would say is that for a telecomms company, Voda are shocking at communicating with their customers, and I would certainly NOT condone calling them, I would keep everything in writing and seeing as they have failed to rectify your complaint take it to the CEO and inform them that if it isn't rectified within 7 days you will lodge a formal complaint with the ombudsman and seek compensation for their error.

Automated reply from the vodafone webcontact thing : [#12053220]

Thanks, she's worried about canceling the DD and getting adverse credit, but also that her phone contract will be affected and she need this for work.

Is there an address for writing to them? They don't seem to make this option available anywhere.

CEO's email [email protected]

http://www.ceoemail.com/s.php?id=b-9635&k=565da10f&c=Vodafone%20UK%20Chief%20Executive

Hi and welcome to CAG.

Hopefully the VF rep will pick this thread up now that you have an automated reply number.

In the meantime, I would contact them on at the address linked in the CEO mail posted by BB

Whilst waiting for any response, try webchat again and spell out that this account is in dispute and as such ANY negative entry on her credit file will be responded with a Letter Before Action and court action should they not resolve this issue immediately.

Spell out exactly (in words of no more than two syllables -you don't want to hurt the CS staff in the brains) what you want and that you/she will be cancelling the direct debit for the extra SIMS however if the main contract phone is on the same DD then arrange another one at the same time.

VF are blaming errors on their new system and the migrating of old accounts onto the new system. No excuse. Problems should have been foreseen before the switch over.

Thank you. Great forum, I hope I can contribute something.

I did email the address above yesterday, and have had a reply this morning acknowledging it will be looked into, so that is something.. I will update the thread.

Hi,

I just wanted to update here, since posting Lee from Vodafone has been in touch with my wife directly, and confirmed that he has resolved everything.

Although we were told this many times before It looks from her account that the sim cards are finally removed, and she seems pretty confident that Lee has sorted it.

Assuming the refund comes through as promised, then it's a great result - I will post when that is confirmed.

Thanks very much for the help!

Excellent fingers crossed!

Excellent news. Once the refund is in place, I will mark the thread resolved.

Although Lee has had some brilliant results for us, it should never have got this far in the first place. I wonder if the CEO would like to make a statement about his company's appalling customer service.

Hi,

Just to update, my wife now has received the refund for these two cards, so It seems all is finally resolved. Thank you so much for your help - I don't know how we could have sorted it through the regular channels available, and the guidance on this forum has been amazing.

Have a great Xmas!

Paul

Well done. Thank you for the praise. I will mark this thread resolved

Just as a note for future reference regarding terminating rolling 30 day contract sims, or any other contract sim, we all know how bad mobile companies are at actually terminating them.

When giving yr 30 day notice, also ask for a PAC code (Port Authorisation Code) and port the numbers away from the supplier, onto PAYG sims if necessary.

Its a bit of faffing, i know, but it ends any future issues like this.

Final point, they are all as bad as each other for this so this is good practice for anyone wanting to end a contract.