Please help: is this fraud/misconduct by a Vodafone telephone operator? *resolved*

[deckmunki]

(The message below has also been copied, more-or-less verbatim, to the Vodafone rep Lee on here. I would be very grateful if anybody could tell me whether I am right in thinking Vodafone have made a serious mistake here. Please also bear in mind I've tried my best to give the edited highlights but the bottom line is that the money Vodafone have cost me has left me with serious hardship problems; I work full-time for the NHS and have had to borrow money to cover food and travel to work both this month and the last month).

 

In a nutshell, the Vodafone buyback team offered me £110 for my old iPhone when I upgraded on April 16th this year. They wrote me a letter confirming the amount was £110.

 

When they credited £21 back instead of the £110, I phoned and was told it was the £110 value of my old phone minus the £89 cost of the new phone. I couldn't check my Vodafine account online as their website simply stopped responding after logging me in.

 

A couple of days later, Vodafone tried to take £150 out of my bank account for my monthly bill instead of the £45-ish I was expecting; the payment bounced, and a week later was re-attempted and bounced again, costing me £110 in bank charges.

 

When I complained, I was told Vodafone would refund the £110 for the bank charges into my account and credit £40 onto my bill as goodwill, but was passed from pillar to post when trying to resolve the buyback amount and eventually had to hang up.

 

I called back a couple of days later and it was then that the person I spoke to cancelled the £110 refund without telling me, and without anyone's permission. She had spoken to someone in the buyback team who had obviously taken it upon themselves to assume that the £21 credit was because the phone was scratched.

 

This bit is particularly important I think: The buyback team wrote confirming that I would be credited £110. At NO POINT was there any clear indication that they could choose, if they wanted, to reduce the amount they were going to pay me. No-one called or wrote to tell me they were going to give me a penny less than the £110 they had originally promised.

 

At this point, (I believe) Vodafone owed me £220, and had promised a further £40 as goodwill.

 

I have tried many times to resolve this. I have spoken to people who have claimed they are heads of Vodafone's customer service team in a department in Egypt, but who refused to give me the name of his manager, his job title, or tell me which department he actually worked for.

 

Two weeks ago I managed to get through to someone who confirmed an earlier operative had cancelled my refund, and categorically promised me the £110 would be transferred into my account within two weeks.

 

That has not transpired and my patience has really run out.

 

I am hoping that someone will be able to point me in the right direction of a department or person I can speak to.

 

The main issue here is that I believe I have been lied to, mis-sold, my credit file has been damaged by the bounced payments, and I believe Vodafone is treading a dangerously fine line with regards theft and dishonest conduct.

 

If somebody could help me straighten this out I would be very grateful. My lovely mum has arranged a solicitor's appointment this week with a colleague in case they can advise, but I would much rather this all be dealt with and everything rectified.

 

Any advice anyone can offer would be incredibly gratefully received.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Alex

Edited June 27, 2010 by deckmunki
Highlighting in bold the bit which has particularly upset me - that someone deliberately cancelled refund without telling me

[locutus]

Have you followed the advice here? :-

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/telecoms-mobile-fixed-internet/213340-vodafone-webteam-customers-problems.html

 

If you have been sent an email, post the reference number here and it will help Lee find your complaint ticket and get things resolved quickly.

[deckmunki]

Thank you for answering locutus. I haven't e-mailed - it's all been done by phone.

 

I'll read the link now. Thanks again.

[deckmunki]

I filled out the form, completed all the details and wrote a very polite message:

 

Title: Suspected misconduct by Vodafone operator, mis-selling, lies and dishonest behaviour

 

Message: Hello,

 

I have been subject to a series of errors, misconduct, lies, and other particularly reprehensible conduct by Vodafone operators stemming from a mistake on Vodafone's behalf.

 

I have been advised to contact you through this form on the Consumer Action Group forums.

 

A cut-down version of the issues can be found here:

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/telecoms-mobile-fixed-internet/264402-please-help-fraud-misconduct.html

 

I would be extremely grateful if somebody would look in to my complaint.

 

Many thanks in advance,

 

Alex [surname removed]

WRT135

 

This was the response:

 

Error:The page you are trying to access is not available. Please contact the administrator for more details.

 

I have now lost two days' work, spent several hours on the phone to Vodafone, and now this.

 

I am maintaining my cool, but this is testing even my reserves of patience.

 

I'm going to go and swear into the evening air for half an hour or so...*

 

* Of course I'm not. There are children asleep. But I'd love to...

[deckmunki]

Ok, resubmitted it and it seems to have gotten a little further:

 

Suggested articles

The information you are looking for may be found in one of the articles below. Your email has not yet been sent.

 

- My BlackBerry has a JVM error, what does this mean?

- If I switch network operator, can I still use my Dell Inspiron netbook?

- How do I report a user for misconduct in the chat rooms on Power Chat?

- I want to use Payforit, does it matter which mobile operator I'm with?

- How do I arrange for an operator to take my calls?

- What is Vodafone's fair usage policy for data?

- How do I change the signature on an 8 series BlackBerry?

 

Submit email

If the articles above haven't answered your query, please click the button to send your email.

 

Where the hell did Blackberry advice come from?

 

Vodafone, please also kick your web team's posteriors. And, another thing: it says in teeny, tiny text that the message hasn't been sent. It seems clear to me that Vodafone REALLY don't want people to send their messages in.

 

Another huge usability fail, and this makes them appear even more untrustworthy.

 

Of course I'm going to bloody well click "Send my sodding message"!

 

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

 

[deckmunki]

... And then it popped up a dialog saying "chat now with a Vodafone adviser" which got in the way of the "submit" button (which isn't even a button - another web usability fail).

 

This takes the ****.

 

Vodafone please, for christ's sake, employ a usability expert, a proper web development team, and stop trying to tell people that you know better:

 

IF I DECIDE I WANT TO E-MAIL YOU AND SPEAK TO A HUMAN BEING, DON'T BLOODY STAND IN MY WAY!

 

Really, really unimpressed now. If I make a website which worked that way*, I would probably be sacked.

 

* Full disclosure: I'm a web developer, usability and IA architect, and a grumpy, moody git when I feel people are messing me about to suit their own ends.

 

[deckmunki]

I've updated the first post to try and make the details more clear.

 

And, of course, apologies to any third parties who have read my rantyness!

[locutus]

LOL I always do my best with my work and expect others to do the same, so when I come across something in my field that is substandard I go into rant mode aswell.

 

I've PM'd Lee to ask him to come to this thread, He'll probably PM you as obviously he cannot discuss your personal things on an open forum, so keep an eye on your inbox.

 

I'm sure you've seen how many problems he's resolved to the satisfaction of the customer, and I've only seen 1 or 2 that he has not managed to resolve completely.

 

All the best. Hope this is all sorted quickly for you

[deckmunki]

Thanks locutus Have a great Sunday!

[Lee Vodafone Company Rep]

Hi deckmunki,

 

It certainly seem like things have gone far from according to plan here but I'm sure we can get to the bottom of them.

 

As you may've gathered from my earlier message I've got your email and will try to reach you again in a few minutes.

 

Kind regards,

 

Lee

 

Web Relations Team

 

Vodafone UK

[deckmunki]

Hi Lee, thanks for your efforts. I've been zonked out in bed today catching up on missed sleep thanks to a questionable bit of le cooking French (cheers Fathers' Day!).

 

Just picked up your messages. I'll endeavour to answer your call on Weds although I *may* not get it if I'm at work as the signal there is less than perfect. Still not sure I want to take the nice Vodafone sales chap up on his offer of the Sure Signal thingbob, not even out of a little bit of guilt given how even he got a bit of a telling-off when he called a few days ago and made the mistake of asking how everything was with my shiny new 'phone.

 

He was *very* quick to explain his opening gambit was sales patter and he couldn't help with this story ^, but he tried his best to sell

me a femtocell doodad to fry my remaining brain cells. Oh how I laughed at the cheek!

[Lee Vodafone Company Rep]

Hi deckmunki,

 

Thanks for your time on the phone the other day.

 

Would you be able to come back to thread to confirm that your query has been resolved for me?

 

Many thanks,

 

Lee

 

Web Relations Team

 

Vodafone UK

[deckmunki]

Hello Lee,

 

Terribly sorry I didn't reply sooner but I've been away for a few days.

 

Just to confirm, this is all sorted to my satisfaction and I can now sleep peacefully at night knowing Vodafone are stealing my money to pay for some nefarious behaviour ;o)

 

For anyone reading, the long-and-short of this is that one of Vodafone's biggest customer service failings might well be its lack of internal communications (maybe!) - it looks like at least one, and probably more than one Vodafone telephone operator has gone out of their way to fix the problem, so the money I thought I was owed had been re-credited to my account but, because this information isn't shown on my Vodafone portal, and because no-one at Vodafone took the time to explain in idiot-friendly detail what they had done, I had no idea of all this.

 

I'd just like to add my sincere thanks to Lee: whether or not he had been able to do anything with my complaint, the simple fact that I could ask for the help of a person - someone with a name and a presence (here) - rather than simply sending an e-mail into the ether meant that I felt the handling of my problem was done so properly.

 

All companies - regardless of their size and nature - can benefit from this "customer service renaissance" approach, employing a person (or a handful at the most) to deal individually with customers' problems.

 

I don't know a lot about business, but I know that I feel my custom is valued and my money is being spent properly when I receive service like this.

 

So, Lee, I'm too tight to buy you a beer, but you've come as close as anyone ever will to having a beer bought for themselves by me; so, thanks!

 

Al

[Lee Vodafone Company Rep]

Hi Al,

 

Thanks for updating the thread for me to confirm that everything has been resolved for you and for the virtual gesture as well - it's appreciated.

 

As I mentioned when we spoke in instances where can positively identify where someone has either not done something which they promised to do or made a mistake leading to further contact being necessary from the customer that we're keen to get these addressed internally to prevent them from happening again.

 

All the best.

 

Lee

 

Web Relations Team

 

Vodafone UK

[aleemafzal]

same thing is happening to me and its been so difficult...i cant waste time with these people...i have set up a facebook page for other people. please join us.

 

facebook com/ groups /248059665238877/

or search for vodafone buyback [problem]

 

I upgraded my phone last month . cost of handset for the new phone was 139 pounds. while i was getting the upgrade, i was told if i sent my old phone I will get 131 pounds for my old handset and 131 will be credited to my account in my next bill.

 

vodafone has taken 139 pounds from my account today through direct debit but not credited a single penny into my account for my old handset as agreed.

 

It took me half n hour to chase customer services people. they told me that the money didnt go through this bill....it will go in my oct bill. How could you bind yourself in a contract and then not stick to it?

 

who is going to pay for this stress and bank over draft charges....I dont want to waste my time following this up and correcting Vodafone MISTAKES...

 

(The message below has also been copied, more-or-less verbatim, to the Vodafone rep Lee on here. I would be very grateful if anybody could tell me whether I am right in thinking Vodafone have made a serious mistake here. Please also bear in mind I've tried my best to give the edited highlights but the bottom line is that the money Vodafone have cost me has left me with serious hardship problems; I work full-time for the NHS and have had to borrow money to cover food and travel to work both this month and the last month).

 

In a nutshell, the Vodafone buyback team offered me £110 for my old iPhone when I upgraded on April 16th this year. They wrote me a letter confirming the amount was £110.

 

When they credited £21 back instead of the £110, I phoned and was told it was the £110 value of my old phone minus the £89 cost of the new phone. I couldn't check my Vodafine account online as their website simply stopped responding after logging me in.

 

A couple of days later, Vodafone tried to take £150 out of my bank account for my monthly bill instead of the £45-ish I was expecting; the payment bounced, and a week later was re-attempted and bounced again, costing me £110 in bank charges.

 

When I complained, I was told Vodafone would refund the £110 for the bank charges into my account and credit £40 onto my bill as goodwill, but was passed from pillar to post when trying to resolve the buyback amount and eventually had to hang up.

 

I called back a couple of days later and it was then that the person I spoke to cancelled the £110 refund without telling me, and without anyone's permission. She had spoken to someone in the buyback team who had obviously taken it upon themselves to assume that the £21 credit was because the phone was scratched.

 

This bit is particularly important I think: The buyback team wrote confirming that I would be credited £110. At NO POINT was there any clear indication that they could choose, if they wanted, to reduce the amount they were going to pay me. No-one called or wrote to tell me they were going to give me a penny less than the £110 they had originally promised.

 

At this point, (I believe) Vodafone owed me £220, and had promised a further £40 as goodwill.

 

I have tried many times to resolve this. I have spoken to people who have claimed they are heads of Vodafone's customer service team in a department in Egypt, but who refused to give me the name of his manager, his job title, or tell me which department he actually worked for.

 

Two weeks ago I managed to get through to someone who confirmed an earlier operative had cancelled my refund, and categorically promised me the £110 would be transferred into my account within two weeks.

 

That has not transpired and my patience has really run out.

 

I am hoping that someone will be able to point me in the right direction of a department or person I can speak to.

 

The main issue here is that I believe I have been lied to, mis-sold, my credit file has been damaged by the bounced payments, and I believe Vodafone is treading a dangerously fine line with regards theft and dishonest conduct.

 

If somebody could help me straighten this out I would be very grateful. My lovely mum has arranged a solicitor's appointment this week with a colleague in case they can advise, but I would much rather this all be dealt with and everything rectified.

 

Any advice anyone can offer would be incredibly gratefully received.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Alex

[Lee Vodafone Company Rep]

Hi aleemafzal,

 

I'm sorry to read about your dissatisfaction with the recent level of service you've received but thanks for raising this with us.

 

When checking our emails earlier I noticed that you'd already emailed us about this and so please be assured that I'll get this looked into and get back to you as soon as possible.

 

Best wishes,

 

Lee

 

Web Relations Team

 

Vodafone UK

[aleemafzal]

Dear LEE, Thank you for your call almost a week back and then disappearing again and now I am waiting.

 

Vodafone was supposed to pay me £131 pounds for my old phone as PROMISED by your customer service at the time of upgrade.

 

The money was not paid in my next bill and the cost of new handset £139 pounds came out of my account.

 

This put me in trouble, I was short of £131 in my current account for the month. It put me through lot of stress and obviously I had other plans but due to Vodafone I could not carry out.

 

I would appreciate help from the members of the group to go through my posts and advise accordingly. LEE is a genuine guy but he is still employee of Vodafone and trying his best to get away with BIG` mistake and not offering me appropriate compensation.

 

Any advice will be highly appreciable.

 

regards

 

Hi aleemafzal,

 

I'm sorry to read about your dissatisfaction with the recent level of service you've received but thanks for raising this with us.

 

When checking our emails earlier I noticed that you'd already emailed us about this and so please be assured that I'll get this looked into and get back to you as soon as possible.

 

Best wishes,

 

Lee

 

Web Relations Team

 

Vodafone UK

[Jen Vodafone Company Rep]

Hi Aleemafzal,

 

Lee is currently out of the office and so I’m replying on his behalf.

 

I’ve taken a look into this for you and can see that Lee has been liaising with the relevant department regarding this.

 

I’ve emailed them today asking for further information relating to your query so that I can get this resolved for you.

 

I’m in the office this weekend so as soon as I receive a reply, I’ll get in touch.

 

Kind regards,

 

Jenny

Web Relations Team

Vodafone UK

[aleemafzal]

Dear jen, thanks for your call but lee assured me that it will dealt with.last week.

 

Now u told me after one week has passed that he is out of office.

 

I requested lee only call me in week days.but I guess u dont take any notes

 

n stop trying to negotiate with me

 

You guys have put me in lot of stress n wasted lot of time

 

Unless u propose decent solution I will seek legal help N a lawyer friend has already volunteered

 

Thanks

 

 

Hi Aleemafzal,

 

Lee is currently out of the office and so I’m replying on his behalf.

 

I’ve taken a look into this for you and can see that Lee has been liaising with the relevant department regarding this.

 

I’ve emailed them today asking for further information relating to your query so that I can get this resolved for you.

 

I’m in the office this weekend so as soon as I receive a reply, I’ll get in touch.

 

Kind regards,

 

Jenny

Web Relations Team

Vodafone UK

[Jen Vodafone Company Rep]

Hi Aleemafzal,

Thanks for your post.

As discussed, Lee is currently out of the office which is why I called on his behalf.

I’m looking into this further for you and will be in touch shortly.

Kind regards,

Jenny

Web Relations Team

Vodafone UK