Carphone warehouse/Talk Talk;Have you been a victim ?

[wrangler1]

yep I suppose so ....but I just don't like to think that is why !

[linzi1uk]

hello,
can anyone give any advice, it is a long story but I will try to keep it brief.

I am writing on behalf of my boyfriend

I got an 18mth contract with carphone warehouse last year on 02 and I recieved a xbox 360 for free, anyway my boyfriend dropped the phone on a roof and it slid down and went down a gully (hes a roofer) so he gets on the phone to cpw to claim on the insurance he had, only for them to tell him he wasnt insured, he really thought he was insured, but they was adamant he wasnt, so he went and took another contract out with them as he needs his phone for his job, when I return home he tells me about this, and I told him the phone is definatly insured so I checked the online banking and Yes the phone was insured.
So he rang them back and told how he was insured, The cpw were having none of it so my o/h rings the insurance and they said the cpw arranged the insurance. So he rings cpw again and tells them this but they were still having none of it, So he tells them to cancel the new contract which he had agreed to on the phone and they said when the new phone gets deliverd to just refuse it, which we did thinking that was the end of it.
The next day a parcel came which my daughter accepted as she didnt know what it was, it was the same mobile phone we refused.
So cpw told us to write a letter to cancel the contract, guess what they didnt recieve it, about a month later we get a bill for this contract by this time my o/h is really frustrated so he rings again and one of the cpw team seemed to really be helpfull told us to take the phone back to a cpw shop and that will be it, so my o/h does this and the shop wouldnt take the phone it is constant probs all the time, no body can sort it out, the phone is unopened in the box. Next thing we get a bill for the whole amount 680 pounds for cancelling the contract early, that was from the second letter I sent telling them to cancel the contract, Then another xbox 360 arrives.
Now we are getting debt letters and my o/h is really losing his patience with the cpw because he has to explain the situation over and over again to different people over the phone. One of the customer service team gave us his email address, (he was the one who said take it back to a shop) and he replied to it once but I have sent him numerous emails telling him to ring us but hasnt.
I have been with my o/h each time he has rang the cpw and it is totally unbelievable what each person says, he has spent hours on the phone trying to sort this and now he has give up so we have a mobile phone and an xbox unopened in my wardrobe and debt letters coming, Another thing too when we got the first mobile (the one they said wasnt insured) we paid a 100 pound deposit he asked them about this and they said it had been paid back which it hasnt.
Im sorry if parts of this dont make sense but im not a good letter writer.
and it hard to speak about never mind write lol.
So if anyone has any ideas as what we can do I would be really gratefull

[linzi1uk]

hello,
can anyone give any advice, it is a long story but I will try to keep it brief.

I am writing on behalf of my boyfriend

I got an 18mth contract with carphone warehouse last year on 02 and I recieved a xbox 360 for free, anyway a year later my boyfriend dropped the phone on a roof and it slid down and went down a gully (hes a roofer) so he gets on the phone to cpw to claim on the insurance he had, only for them to tell him he wasnt insured, he really thought he was insured, but they was adamant he wasnt, so he went and took another contract out with them as he needs his phone for his job, when I return home he tells me about this, and I told him the phone is definatly insured so I checked the online banking and Yes the phone was insured.
So he rang them back and told how he was insured, The cpw were having none of it so my o/h rings the insurance and they said the cpw arranged the insurance. So he rings cpw again and tells them this but they were still having none of it, So he tells them to cancel the new contract which he had agreed to on the phone and they said when the new phone gets deliverd to just refuse it, which we did thinking that was the end of it.
The next day a parcel came which my daughter accepted as she didnt know what it was, it was the same mobile phone we refused.
So cpw told us to write a letter to cancel the contract, guess what they didnt recieve it, about a month later we get a bill for this contract by this time my o/h is really frustrated so he rings again and one of the cpw team seemed to really be helpfull told us to take the phone back to a cpw shop and that will be it, so my o/h does this and the shop wouldnt take the phone it is constant probs all the time, no body can sort it out, the phone is unopened in the box. Next thing we get a bill for the whole amount 680 pounds for cancelling the contract early, that was from the second letter I sent telling them to cancel the contract, Then another xbox 360 arrives.
Now we are getting debt letters and my o/h is really losing his patience with the cpw because he has to explain the situation over and over again to different people over the phone. One of the customer service team gave us his email address, (he was the one who said take it back to a shop) and he replied to it once but I have sent him numerous emails telling him to ring us but hasnt.
I have been with my o/h each time he has rang the cpw and it is totally unbelievable what each person says, he has spent hours on the phone trying to sort this and now he has give up so we have a mobile phone and an xbox unopened in my wardrobe and debt letters coming, Another thing too when we got the first mobile (the one they said wasnt insured) we paid a 100 pound deposit he asked them about this and they said it had been paid back which it hasnt.
Im sorry if parts of this dont make sense but im not a good letter writer.
and it hard to speak about never mind write lol.
So if anyone has any ideas as what we can do I would be really gratefull

[buzby]

Although CW were wrong in denying the insurance existed, the problems were compounded with your BF entering into a new contract. Why did he not simply buy a replacement handset and swap the SIM over?

He will have to act quickly, he's barely got 14 days to reject the contract (for their misrepresentation) and pursue his insurance claim.

[weegirl]

Record every conversation with them from now on, I know from experience that this is the only way to catch them out otherwise they will tell you what you want to hear to get rid of you and then deny it. You can get various equipment for this, I just put my home phone on loudspeaker and recorded it with the voice recorder on the mobile. If you want to show them you mean business, track down the calls that you have made already via your phone bills, and request (in writing, recorded delivery) a copy of these recordings, giving them the dates and times that you phoned. Don't inform them that you are recording the conversation, this is not illegal as you are entitled to record your own telephone conversations if you wish.

I know with me I only got a result this way as I was initially passed from pillar to post, original recordings that mis-sold me a contract were 'lost' and then I caught out a manager lying to me, giving me the ammo I needed as it was recorded and he had no comeback. I then put in a written complaint about this, and got results. I would not have gotten anywhere without these recordings, this is a company with absolutely no scruples and it will be interesting to see if they can, or will trace these recordings for you, as it will prove that you did ring about this matter, and how confusing and inaccurate the advice was.

The only way to get anywhere with companies like this is to keep constantly on their back, they seem to work on the premise that if they constantly lie and avoid the issue, the person will get fed up and go away. Unfortunatly it seems to work for them.

[linzi1uk]

I cancelled the contract in writing within the 7 days and they say they didnt recieve the letter, they obviously know we arent using the phone because they cancelled the sim from day 1.
My second letter they say was recieved to late to late to cancel, yet I had another cw person saying that I could cancel it over the phone and to just take the phone back to the shop which we did and they wouldnt take it.
It is unbelievable what has gone on but my o/h is waiting for them to take him to court now

[buzby]

Taking him to court is the least of his problems. He will be defaulted on his credit file which has far greater consequences that a piddling court dispute! As you've done nothing wrong, to let things slide will come back to haunt you, especially if you plan to get a mortgage or credit cards. After-the-event, nobody will accept it wasn't his fault, so you'd better convince him otherwise.

[sharont]

I would really appreciate your help. I am in dispute with E2 save a subsidiary of carphone warehouse and am at the moment trying to find out who their ADR is. any help would be greatly apprectiated.
sharont

[sharont]

have just read Linsis thread and my story is very similar am being cahrged for a phone which i have returned and have tonight had a cried company on the phone for an unpaid bill with 02. E2save have promised to pay the cessation fee with o2 but this isn't happening. At the moment i feel i have to pay it off just to keep me credit file clean!!!

[Douglas52]

My wife was cold called and persuaded to taking an account. 18 months later when she tried to cancel because we were moving her shop she was told that what she was doing was illegal and she would go to jail!!! It seems they sold her a domestic account when the address was a shop!!

Not our fault. Anyway they said they were recording the call so I have sent them a subject access request for the recording by recorded delivery- we're still waiting a response.

In the meantime my wife spoke to a local bank employee who had a text saved on his mobile from a TT representative which contained several four letter words!!! This company are outrageous!!

[buzby]

Since she would have signed up as a representative of her business, the only restrictions on the way she operated her account were those imposed by the supplier, therefore there was nothing 'illegal' and as for going to jail... these brain-dead droids just open their mouths and...

As for recording the call, this probably was another lie. You don;t have any right to an audio recording, a transcript is deemed acceptable, but they've already buried themselves, so it is unlikely anything more will transpire. None of this alters the fact she's giving notice of termination - ensure this is done in writing and sent by recorded delivery.

[wreka]

Hello everyone!My tale of woe is similar, if different, and i'll try to keep it short.I was with BT [line rental], but on free evening/weekend calls with TalkTalk/carphone warehouse. My ISP was with Orange, who suddenly cancelled my broadband account, without notification on 17th May 2007.Whilst whirling around for several months trying different ISPs, one of these was TalkTalk/Carphone warehouse, who offered their package. On 21 June, i agreed to this package but cancelled it on the same day, by phone, quoting the order number.After trying 2 more ISPs, who could not set up broadband for some unexplained 'technical' reason, i finally agreed to a full telephony and broadband service package with another provider, which began on 17th August 2007. I had also cancelled the all remaining service provision with TalkTalk, prior to this date, which left me in a panic to get a service provider, including line rental, as somehow during the confusion, TalkTalk/carphone warehouse had taken this over from BT.Unfortunately, and to my surprise, i received a bill from TalkTalk dated 6th August 2007. This included line rental and extras for the period 8th August - 7th September 2007. I contacted TalkTalk immediately and it was agreed that i would only pay half the bill, for line rental and telephone calls made up to 17th August.On 10th October 2007, I received another bill for telephone services/calls made, from TalkTalk, for the period 1st September - 30 September 2007.Needless to say I am annoyed and confused as to how I can possibly be paying for a service twice: to TalkTalk/Carphone warehouse and to my existing, confirmed ISP/telephony/line rental provider.Any suggestions as to what I can do to sort this mess out?

[legalpickle]

I took court action against TalkTalk Telecom Limited on 30th May 2007 and their dragging feet has resulted in it just now reaching settlements.

I am also assisting somebody else to take Court action against them.

(MARTIN3030; I think you mean Otelo, not FOS as FOS is for financial services only.)

I have registered the domain "TalkTalkSucks.com" and together with a friend am launching a service to assist people to sue TalkTalk Telecom Limited. I want them to have hundreds of cases on their desks every day! I will be starting a forum at www.TalkTalkSucks.com to discuss their terrible service. Also, am intending to launch a few other sites against other major crappy service providers. People who have ideas please PM me.

I will not lie, I intend to make some money off this, BUT, most of it is moral as I really now have a personal vendetta against TalkTalk. I am also looking for people to volunteer to design a logo for the site "TalkTalkSucks".

Any ideas, please PM me and may the rot in hell!!!

[The Phantom]

Similar problem with Talk Talk
Always paid them by DD on a set date at the end of the month (29th) to coincide with payday
When we changed to a different call plan they changed our direct debit date without informing us and started to take money suddenly on the 23rd of every month before payday causing us financial problems
When we first phoned them they said they would put the date back but never did, so we eventually cancelled the DD as they were sending us round in circles on their so-called help lines.
Today we got a letter informing us we will incur additional charges of £3.50/month if not paying by DD and to put a DD back in place
The letter states if we were not happy with the DD date we could just file a direct debit mandate and then pay by card over the phone instead every month and no charge would be incurred.
How on earth do they work that one out ? Just for placing a mandate on their system they won't charge me the £3.50 ? Why can't I simply pay by phone every month WITHOUT having a mandate on the system ? But in that case I would get charged £3.50 extra
If they are claiming these charges are for processing the payment, then they have just shot themselves in the foot. Because the processing would be the same for them in either of the above scenarios (payment by card over the phone), the only difference being their system having a DD mandate.
I can only pay the bill at the end of the month as I have been done for ages.
I wonder whether they will now whop on late payment charges etc as well.
This is the first month without the DD in place and I will phone them tomorrow to make payment, but I am outraged at this

[HeatherMc]

Originally Posted by MARTIN3030

I am extremely fed up of hearing daily these stories of overbilling,disconnection s/long waiting periods for re-connections after bill payment has been made/Costly charges being made for speaking to their overseas call centres/lack of response to reported problems/Their excuses of teething problems with the Vista programme and countless other complaints.
If you have been a victim of any of these then please give brief details here and I will contact you.
I hope to gather enough info to submit a mass complaint to both the F.O.S and Offcom.

I believe I have been a victim. here are the details.

I don't know even where to begin. I renewed my contract with O2 on the 20th of September 2006 and was told I would get a cheque for £90 within 28 days.

Here we are, over a year later and still no cheque.

I finally got sick of calling up and wrote a letter at the beginning of October. They replied apologising and saying they have reissued the cheque and also £10 for 'goodwill' and I would recieve it within 28 days. Needless to say, I haven't.

I called up again and the guy I spoke to told me that it was meant to be 2 £45 cheques not one £90 and that because of my account conduct I was not entitled to the first one and wouldn't get the second until the end of my contract.

With regards to my account conduct, he is right, my bill hasn't been paid on time since the offer but believe me, that is not my fault. I changed my account and therefore my direct debit details changed. I called them up every single month until this month to get them to change it and every time they told me they had. I only found out when my phone would get cut off the following month that they hadn't done it. I finally went in to the shop and done it this month and it has now been set up.

But to make matters worse, they don't even have any record or notes of me calling up EVERY month for a year to change my direct debit details. I am livid. He is getting someone to call me back but this isn't good enough.

I have already complained but since this hasn't helped what should I do next? I want to take it to the next level, I am so angry.

[ma1nman]

Originally Posted by stolenfrombytalktalk

I'm one of the people who have been stupid enough to get robbed by TT, they've been charging me for broadband at £10.00 + Vat per month since Jan 2007, after telling me that my exchange was not free. Of course I found out that they were lying! I'm just strating the uphill battle to put them in their place, any advice?

Its not actually TalkTalk that get that money, its BT because they charge more for broadband in exchanges that do not have upgraded equipment. Wouldnt it just be easier fo TalkTalk just to give you the free Broadband if they could, i think they would.