Hello, I am looking for some advice as Vodafone have treated me very unfairly and I am disgusted with their customer service.

In April 2017 I called to give my 30 days cancellation notice as I had a new phone on order from a different carrier. I was told I could cancel my direct debit as I would get a letter with the final bill amount.

Towards the end of July I received a letter stating I owed £112, I called them to query why it was such a high amount and to make payment. The advisor said it was a termination fee, I asked if I could make payment next month and he checked with the billing department and came back and told me "as the account is closed I can make payment whenever I can".

He said he could set up an automated payment to come out of my bank on the 1st September, I asked him twice would it affect my credit file and he assured me it would have no affect at all so I gave him my card details and thought it was all done.

Towards the end of September I received another letter saying I owe £116. I was confused by this as I thought this was dealt with. Upon checking my bank I saw that they didn't take it out as promised. Also noticed 2 late payments from Vodafone on my credit file. I was very annoyed by this as he promised me it wouldn't touch my file and he set up an automated payment which failed!

I called them on the 2nd October to complain and the advisor said it was a mistake their end that the payment didn't go through and promised me the late payments would be removed, he put this in my notes. He said I can make payment now or at the end of the month when I get paid.

So I called on 27th October to make payment and to get my late payments removed as promised. The advisor told me they could not remove them as its correct.

I spoke to her manager and he was understanding and spoke to the credit department and said they cannot remove it as its correct from their point of view. I explained the advisor in July told me it wouldn't affect my file but he said he couldn't find the call recording so no proof he said that. He did say in my notes the advisor from the call in October had put he promised I could get them removed, however he said this was misinformation on their part.

I escalated it to someone called Paul from customer relations department who quite frankly didn't care, his attitude was unprofessional and basically implied I was lying. He offered me £50 for the "misinformation" but I said I didn't want £50, I want my credit file rectifying as I will be applying for a mortgage and because of them it would affect my file for the next 6 years and its not even my fault....

He said they cant do anything else and said I can complain to the ombudsman but they probably will favour them and not get it removed. He put my complaint in "deadlock" and I await their letter.

I have complained to the ombudsman and will forward them the deadlock reference when it arrives.

I cannot believe the way Vodafone treat their customers. I had been a customer of theirs all my life. Absolutely disgusting.

I will not give up until I get this fixed and I will be letting the public know how they have treated me.

Any help much appreciated.

Hi and Welcome to CAG

I assume you was still within the minimum contract period when you cancelled ?

According to their website they state.....

Log in to My Vodafone to check when your agreement ends. If you’re not at the end yet, you’ll need to wait or pay an early exit fee

Your agreement will end 30 days after you tell us you want it to finish – you can do this by phone

You’ll be billed as normal until the date when we disconnect your number. Your final bill will show any refunds and the early exit fee (if you need to pay it). If you pay by Direct Debit, please don’t cancel this until your final payment has been taken.

https://www.vodafone.co.uk/cancel-account/index.htm

Regards

Andy

Hi and welcome to CAG

In my opinion, the advisor got it wrong from the start. Telling you to 'just' cancel the direct debit does not cancel a contract. Unfortunately it is likely that no record of this conversation will exist as VF reps tend to get things wrong. VF have promised to up their game with disputes but I am still waiting to see any real progress. Yes, the amount of unresolved cases has gone down on official records but in reality, that means little. Some people give up early after being bamboozled into accepting that VF are right.

In your position, I would send VF a SAR (Subject Access Request-templates in library) to get a full picture of what has happened in your case. VF tend to send out the data on a disk with password protection.

With the Ombudsman, if they don't have a full picture, they will tend to favour the supplier because you are not in a position to prove otherwise. You are not obliged to accept that decision. Instead you could instigate court action. DO NOT make this threat without sticking to it.

Thanks for the replies guys... I don't believe I have done anything wrong. The advisors have got it wrong and as a result of this my credit file is affected permanently. They even promised to remove it which is on record. I don't see how this is my fault.

OK , I will send a SAR to VF, do you have any other advice for me? I will not give up until they remove these bad markers on my file.

Was you still in the minimum contract period...if not you owe nothing and the way to deal with this will be different..subject to your response.

Hi Yes, I was ending the contract early. thanks