Orange Student Mobile - Clause in Contract Not Honoured

[michty6]

Hi everyone,

Long story so bare with me. I'm very interested in hearing what people on this site think about this.

On the Orange website (it is still up at Orange - mobile help and support - mobile service plans - pay monthly - Student - overview) Orange offers a student contract with "a payment holiday, allowing you to pause your monthly payments for up to 12 months if you decide to work or study abroad".

I signed up for this contract because I knew I'd be going abroad - I've always been with O2 but they did not offer this. So this was the SOLE reason I joined Orange. I checked the terms and conditions, there was nothing to put me off this, to indicate that there were only special circumstance they’d give this offer – nothing indicating any issues with this offer whatsover.

10 months into my (12 month) contract I decided to take up this offer, as I was heading off to work abroad. I phoned Orange several times (3 or 4 times at least) and none of their operators had heard of this or were willing to help me out with this. I sent Orange a letter and there was no reply. It started to get closer to my departure date, so I sent them a letter stating that I was taking up this offer, was going to be cancelling my Direct Debit and was leaving to go away and work abroad.

Upon my return to Scotland 10 months later I find that Orange have sent me a £35 bill which has increased to £96 because it has not been paid (with several reminders and debt collection agencies asking for the ever increasing figure). Furthermore they've placed a default against my credit file.

I wrote to them, as well as the 4 (I think) different debt collectors explaining that I would not pay this as I was obliged to, explaining all of the above.

At this point Orange finally write back to me and flat out deny this payment holiday (I don't have the exact wording as I'm not at work and don't have a letter) trying to say that there was something in the terms and conditions not allowing it (there wasn’t). I haven't replied yet. They still have debt collectors pursuing me.

Furthermore, I wrote to both Credit Reference agencies asking to have this default removed from my file - both would not do this (all of this was before I found the CAG – I didn’t realise how hard it was to get something removed from your credit file and how much power these agencies have!) . This meant it was extremely difficult for me to get a loan (I needed one upon coming back from my travels).

Also, I thought about it and realised that, since mobile contracts are paid one month in advance (your first payment is usually the equivalent of two months payments) then actually Orange owe me one months line rental of £35. Given the fact they were perfectly willing to have this increase to £96 for my ‘non-payment’ surely I should be claiming this amount off them?!

Anyway, I write here to ask my next best course of action as this has been dragging on for some time. I have last week sent off for a Subject Access Request to Orange – I would expect this to confirm my several efforts to get this payment holiday actioned (as well as Orange’s non-reply) and all the above information.

The questions and thought processes I have are as follows:

• What is my best way of resolving this issue – to get the debt collectors stopped and get Orange to listen to me?

• Should I start a claim against Orange (through the small claims court) for one months line rental (or even £96)?
• Or should I make this claim for more money due to the hassle this has caused (debt collection agencies hassling my (disabled) mum who told Orange several times that I was out the country – again the Subject Access Request should confirm this – which I was not happy one bit about), as well as factoring in my inability to get credit upon my return, due to the default they placed on my credit file?
• Also, how do I go about getting this default removed from my credit file?

Apologies that this message is so long! I look forward to hearing your replies, if you would like any further information then just let me know.

Mich

[old_andrew2007]

Bump

[buzby]

As with all offers, everything hinges on the tariff you were connected to. What was the name of this tariff? If it turns out you had erroneously been put on a non-student tariff, that is a different argument that needs to be addressed. If you were placed on a standard (non-student) tariff for 12 months, then the fact you could take a payment holiday would not be available to you, and trying to assert this whilst the 'computer says no' doesn't help you. You may have been morally correct, but they have contract law showing you ceased making payments short of the earliest possible closure date - and the mess you now find yourself in.

There are hundreds of tariffs out there (most defunct) and simply existing until the last person connected to them drops off. Hopefully you still have some written evidence of the 'Student Package' (on an earlier bill) that can allow you to argue this more forcefully?

[michty6]

Hi

Thanks for the reply. I looked at one of my statements and it states that I am on the 'Student Package' which is the exact name of the package described on the aforementioned web page where it quotes the payment holiday option.

I am still waiting on my S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) info from Orange.

Also to add to the previous description I have just realised that they did reply to one of my letters requesting the payment holiday but it wasnt to address this it was a standard 'we're sorry you're leaving is there anything we can do to make you stay' letter. (I'd also already left the country by the time they got around to sending it!)

Any other thoughts on my next steps in this matter?

Your input is much appreciated,

Cheers

Mich

[buzby]

Good - you're on the correct tariff, and they're totally at fault due to their incompetence. Under these circumstances, a Subject Access Request would be immaterial as it won't provide information you don't know (or can't substantiate) already.

I'd send a letter to Orange's Executive Office, stating what has gone wrong, what is currently happening and what you want them to do to rectify the matter. Send it by Recorded Delivery, and give them 28 days to resolve the issue, and to remove all adverse credit data they have placed on your credit file.

[michty6]

Thanks, I'll get right on it.

Should I ask for the line rental they owe me or any other compensation?

Mich

[buzby]

Absolutely - keep your claim reasonable and you should find they'll comply.

[michty6]

Hi

Just a quick updated. Orange settled this. I thought I'd post my compensation request, since compiling this and deciding what amounts to ask for compensation was the part of this complaint that I found most difficult and turned to the Consumer Action Group to help. Thanks for your help on this.

So if anyone is having trouble wording a compensation claim here's what I wrote:

APPENDIX IX – COMPENSATION CLAIM

Please note that I believe the following amounts to be reasonable, fair and justifiable. I can fully justify any of the amounts and descriptions noted here and would be willing to do so in court.

Details
Amount (£)
Description
Orange Contract
95.60
This is the amount that Orange has been chasing me for the remainder of the contract (per appendix X). Since it is Orange who failed to honour the contract fully, thus depriving me of the contract, then it is reasonable to assume that this amount is therefore owed to me in settlement of this contract.
Orange Subject Access Request
10.00
Subject Access Request fee in order to obtain all the information that Orange was storing about me and evidence of the false, damaging information supplied to Credit Reference Agencies.
Data protection violation
50.00
Extra costs of credit – see below the table.
Letters sent to Orange
22.00
4 letters sent to Orange regarding this matter, including this one – includes postage, letters and envelopes as well as a charge for time taken to compose these (total of £5.50 per letter)
Letters sent to Debt Collection Agencies
27.50
5 letters sent to various Debt Collection Agencies on this matter (£5.50 per letter, as above). This was to inform them that I did not owe money because Orange had not honoured their contract.
Letters to Credit Reference Agencies
24.49
Letters and charges from Credit Reference Agencies to access credit file. Includes the standard statutory charges, as well as a fee paid of £14.99 to Experian regarding further information on the data stored in my credit file as a result of all the issues I was having because of Orange.
Phone calls to Orange
4.75
Cost of all the calls I made to Orange trying to get them to honour their contract. This is a rough estimate, based on the cost of 4 calls at £1.25 each (reasonable estimate given the costs of calling 0845 numbers).
Research
64.75
Time spent researching codes of practise, industry standards and current legislation before making this claim. (Charged at £9.25 per hour)
TOTAL
£ 299.09



I consider this compensation a light reprise for the damage done to my personal reputation - case law has shown that compensation for this can amount to £1000:

Kpohraror v Woolwich Building Society [1996] 4 All ER 119 - failure of a Default Notice to be accurate is an unlawful rescission of contract which would not only prevent the Court enforcing any alleged debt, but give aa claim for damages in the sum of the amount of the Default, plus £1,000 in substantial damages caused to credit reputation

Furthermore, it should be noted that the following items are not even included in this compensation claim, as it was difficult to place a monetary value on them:

·Stress and threats. (I enclose a letter from one of the DCA Orange passed my information on to in order to pursue money that I did not owe them - see DCA letter at appendix XI) This is just one letter from three DCAs that have been in touch with me regarding this matter (NCO, NDR, Scotcall). This was despite the fact that I had informed Orange I was out the country (in my letter stating I was going away and wished to take the payment holiday).
Furthermore, Orange and the DCAs continually phoned my disabled mother demanding payment of this amount. Despite her informing Orange on several occasions that I was not in the country, they continued to call. On this matter I wish to draw the attention of Orange to the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.


·Higher cost of credit - Orange is the only default on my credit file, which is, otherwise, quite strong. I never had any problems obtaining any credit before this. Furthermore it would be very easy to prove the impact Orange’s default has had on my ability to obtain credit (letters from my credit card, for example, saying they are reducing my limit). I considered the inclusion of a daily rate for the extra credit amount I would be paying because of Orange’s breach of contract but decided instead to simply include a £50 charge for this.

None of this would have occurred if Orange had simply honoured their side of the contract during one of the many communications I had asking them to.

[michty6]

Oh and 1 more thing I remember that might help people. Before posting my claim I emailed a copy of it to the Orange Executive Office - executive.office@orange.c o.uk

They phoned me the following day to say they would settle it, so I never ended up needing to phone them.

I had also requested, as part of my claim, that they contact and updated the Credit Reference Agencies which they agreed to do.

Cheers