They just said they will waive all of roaming charges except for £500. I paid the amount just to avoid any credit rating knock on effects, however I am still pursuing them to get that amount refunded. Currently I am waiting for the SAR docs (it's been 20 days since they received the request).

Vodafone got in contact with me earlier in the month and advised they will be waiving all but 500 pounds of the bill. This was quite out of the blue as the last time I spoke to them they advised that I was liable for the whole amount and no "good faith" reductions were to be applied. So what changed? The only thing was that I submitted a SAR. The next day after it was received (I used tracked mail) was when I got the call that they would be waiving 90% of the bill. Now whether this was the sole factor or not, I can only speculate. Things I've learned from this whole ordeal: 1) Don't waste your time arguing with the customer service reps. They all read from a script and have no power to change the current decision that is listed in the notes to your account. If you don't like the current deciison, tell them you want it referred higher up the chain and hang up. The decisions are made behind the scenes. Furthermore, screaming till your blue in the face to multiple customer service reps will only wear you down and make you give up and take their decision (what they are banking on). 2) Write letters. I wrote letters to the CEO and General Counsel. These letters by law are placed on your account and must be reviewed. Having your arguments in print is much better than relying on some customer service rep paraphrasing your phone calls and making sub standard notes. 3) File an SAR as quickly as you can if you believe you have been given conflicting advice or promised actions that have not been undertaken. They will send you within 40 days all the notes to your account and written transcripts of all of your phone calls. This will be invaluable if you have to go to small claims at a later point or want media attention for your case. 4) Tell them you want the collections process to be frozen whilst you settle the dispute. The team that looks at your case is different to the collections team. You don't want the collections team proceeding down the default path. I had mine frozen for one month (at my request) to make sure the debt collectors were kept out of the picture. Lastly, be prepared to fight tooth and nail from the outset. Don't leave it too long to have your case referred up the chain as time (generally) is not on your side.

thanks rebel11. Has anyone had experience with SAR's before? I know they have up to 40 days to send you the information, but is this the norm?

Received a call from Vodafone tonight after I sent a letter to the CEO and General Counsel yesterday. First time they called me back! No joy though... They still want the whole amount. Now the case has been referred to the deadlock letter team for review. More hoops to jump through.

Lee from Vodafone got in contact with me yesterday to arrange a call to discuss. I replied, but no contact since...

Hi Peopod, I have also been caught out like this. I just created a separate thread. Can you please PM me (I cant PM as I have fewer than 45 posts). I would like to discuss the steps you took in your son's case. Thanks,

I've seen some posts on stolen phones abroad and massive bills. Please help someone... My scenario: I had my phone stolen in Spain and some criminal gang used it to make 369 phone calls (sometimes simultaneously) to Serbian premium numbers before I was able to report it stolen. This has left me with a 6.2k bill which I received on 16 Oct (the calls were made on 27/28 Sep). Not surprisingly this freaked my out as when I reported it stolen the rep told me that there was no suspicious activity on the account. I immediately called Vodafone and the rep I spoke to advised that this was obviously fraudulent activity and that he would have the charges reversed. I received multiple assurances that I wouldn't be charged and that he would send me a confirmation email (he wanted to send a text, but I wanted it in writing). Phew, I thought! No email for a few days and so I called back on 20 Oct to find out what was going on and boy oh boy had their attitude changed. Not only had they refused to acknowledge the contents of my prior call but also refused to acknowledge that any type of fraud had taken place at all. The "you are liable for all calls up until reported stolen" line was being regurgitated at will. The calls over the last few days were basically me pleading with them to explain how they did not notice such high call volumes and take no action whatsoever. I had made 12 voice calls in the whole of September, but 369 calls over a 30 hour window didn't raise any flags?!? I was told repeatedly it takes more than 24 hours for the systems to update. Then the breakthrough that exposes this myth of "not knowing" they seem to perpetuate. I kept referring to the incident as a fraud and one of the many reps I had spoken to replied (prob out of frustration), "it's not fraud, your account was checked on the night of 27 Sep at 23:40 (12 hours after the calls began) due to suspicious activity and it was decided that no fraud was taking place". This was re-confirmed by a supervisor 3 hours ago. In other words, they have the technology to identify suspicious activity, they just don't feel like acting on it. When I pushed the supervisor on the duty Vodafone has to assist or act in the customer's interest when this type of activity is occurring I got a response that pretty much sums up their whole attitude, "Sir, show me where in our T&C's it states that we should act in the manner you are describing". Now the threats of debt collectors and credit scores have started. The only thing they said they would do for me is offer a payment plan over 6 months (as this was an exceptional case). I find myself moving between anger and anxiety constantly now... How do I fix this??? I'm so close to having a deposit to buy a flat after years of saving. This whole episode looks like ruining that dream...