Im with Barclays, last year i went into my "reserve" without realising it, incurred a £30 charge. Although because this was the first time i'd ever made a mistake they did recind that charge, however i hadn't realised this and the following day it was still in debt so they took the £30 again. And then another £30 the next day. I finally realised the problem and sorted it out simply enough, i then went in to say i dont want an overdraft on my account (as i specifically said i didn't want one when i took the account out 5 years ago) and they told me thats not possible, they'd have to reduce my account to a cashcard account to be able to remove it. Which i found unreasonable. What i find even more unreasonable is they tell me i MUST have a reserve, then they get all up in arms if i use it LOL! I admit its my fault for not keeping a closer eye on my account though, and since that experience ive watched my money like a hawk so i know it'll never happen again. And on the whole i havent got many complaints with Barclays service.

Hi there. I can't help but notice mobile phone network providers (Orange, Vodafone, T-Mobile etc) are getting desperate these days for subscribers. It seems after years of people in the UK being conditioned to believe that paying £35 a month for a mobile phone contract was reasonable, recent events have blown that belief down. I believe recently the Watchdog reported that the main 4 UK providers (T-Mobile, Orange, Vodafone and o2) had overcharged British consumers £1billion a year in comparison to costs in other countries. And in the last couple of years MVNO's (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) have sprung up all over the place, Supermarkets offering low cost PAYG sims like Tesco Mobile, ASDA Mobile (i myself am now with ASDA) and i find this very positive for consumers as the fact the big supermarkets like Tesco and Asda can provide this (Tesco using 02's network and Asda using Vodafone's network) for such a low cost because they make their money out of many other things instead is forcing the "Big Four" to lower their costs and provide more competative prices. People in the UK are clearly fed up of long 18 month contracts etc which is why all these 30 day contracts on sim only basis are cropping up, T-Mobile do a Solo 15 plan, 350 minutes a month for £15. Only need to commit to it for one month, then its a rolling 30 day contract, no penalties for cancelling. Vodafone have just launched something similair, with the new Tocco phone for £10 a month. Tesco Mobile are providing up to 400 minutes a month for £10 on a 30 day rolling contract. Now T-Mobile are throwing things like laptops and sat navs and netbooks etc in for free in a desperate bid to get subscribers. I must say its quite nice to see these companies Squirm a bit now LOL And as for 3, well, thats been a real disaster. £190m loss last year wasnt it? Personally i've always favoured PAYG, i was with T-Mobile for 3 years and never had any problems with them as a company, just eventually Asda Mobile were able to sway me with their 8p a min flat rate to any uk mobile or landline and 4p for texts, and only 47p for a sim card. Under half what i was paying on T-Mobile. The Asda ones have proved useful for me running a small business also, to keep phone call costs low, i believe Asda is the cheapest PAYG in the UK now, as they recently undercut Ikea's 9p a min flat rate deal. (Ikea use T-Mobile as their network provider by the way). If i was to go with a contract it would be a Solo 15 with T Mobile probably, ive never seen the value in these £30 a month things, and by the looks of it many consumers dont now either. What are your views, thoughts and experiences with mobiles and call costs/contracts etc?

Ah, BT Vision. Avoid it like the plague is what i say. I had been a BT customer for phone and broadband for two years, it became overpriced so i called to cancel and they offered me BT Vision box, new Home Hub and first 3 months free to convince me to stay. Now the only thing i'd want BT Vision for is Setanta Sports (see my comment in the "Me V Setanta" thread) as i cant receive Setanta Sports where i am. I said to BT over the phone it's only any use to me if the signal for it comes down the Broadband Line, and not down the ariel. I was assured multiple times categorically that the signal comes down the Broadband line and would work fine. So on the basis of that i took up the deal, received the box, set it all up with the viewing card etc, 3 hours on and the Setanta still looked like a stuck YouTube picture, so i phoned them up to complain, i said i was told the signal would come down the broadband and the salesman said to me "well it doesnt, it comes down the ariel." And that was just the last straw. Or so you'd think. I was out of contract with the Broadband and i then cancelled everything BT related in my house cos they'd lied to me too many times now and i'd got sick of them, constantly lying about absolutely everything. So i turned all BT items off, to later receive a phone call demanding i pay up an 18 month contract for the broadband all in one go, because they gave me a new Hub with the Vision. I found this absolutely ridiculous, they felt me taking it entered me into another 18 month deal on Broadband, which was never said to me when they sold it to me. And regardless of that, the deal was taken out on the basis that Setanta comes down the Broadband line, which it doesnt, so their lie makes any contract they think they had void as far as im concerned. They keep chasing me for their payment but they're never going to get it. They've had it explained in no uncertain terms that they can shove it up their arse, and the next time they speak to me will be in court if they want to take it that far, and even then im not paying them. I went with Sky after this for my Broadband and Phone, as ive had SkyTV for 5 years and never had a problem. And they've been great. They've done exactly what i asked them to do. Very simple isnt it? But BT cant manage this.

Hi there. I myself had an epic problem with Setanta Sports a while ago, i had signed up to them for the start of the 2007-2008 Premier League season, specifically as Aston Villa v Liverpool was the opening game of the season and it was on Setanta Sports i believe. It was £10 a month then, i signed up to it (im already a Sky customer) and when it came through it was all glitchy, barely worked, it was like Freeview in a bad reception area in the early days but even worse. It was like a moving slideshow of pictures from the game it was so bad. I phoned them up to complain and cancel, they did the usual trick of trying to blame my equipment, which was futile as it was all only about a month old as i'd recently replaced it all with brand new stuff, Sky Box, TV etc the works. Then they said that not only would i have to pay for the full month (which we were 3 days into and had not received any service to speak of) but i'd also have to pay for the following month as a cancellation fee plus £4.99 Admin fee. Needless to say i lost my rag with this lot, as charging for a service not provided is illegal for a start, but they were adament i was lying and that i should pay for it. Then i had some other plank on the phone with me saying my Dish is in the wrong place, as im in the East of England apparently my dish is alligned to receive Sky in perfect quality, but it needs to face the other way for Setanta. I refused to agree that i should be forced to pay for 2 dishes just to receive one channel and have gone without Setanta Sports ever since. Absolutely awful company, waste of space, and if there is any justice in the World they will go bust and fall very soon. And to get any of my money they'll have to force it out of my cold dead hand.

I was signed on to Job Seekers Allowance last year, i can understand it can get to you, the one i signed at on the whole wasn't too bad, but at times i did feel like a criminal having to check in every two weeks to justify myself to them. It gets frustrating when you actually want to work, want to find a job, and they just believe you're not trying. The job market began to dry up when i signed off, it was getting to the point when they say "you've not put any applications in" and i say "there are no jobs advertised which i can do" and they say "yes we know but you still have to apply for something". I mean, try and get your head round that if you can LOL. But as for the signing off itself, quickest thing you could ever do. Go in to the Job Centre Plus with your book, and say "i'd like to sign off please". They have no real interest as to your reason, they wont probe you, they wont question you (at most they'll just ask curiously if you found a job, if you say no they still wont bother to ask much more). As far as they're concerned, if you're not claiming money from them they have absolutely no interest in what you're doing. They really cannot get you out the door quickly enough if you go in there to sign off. Easiest thing i've ever done.