spoof carphone warehouse contact go me a default - what can i claim?

[loring]

Hi

I am not sure if I have posted in the correct section of the forum. if not I would be thankful if someone move it to the correct place.

 

I am looking for some guidance as to how I should handle this untruthful bunch. I wii explain the storey so it will be a bit long winded.

In 2001 I bought a Fresh Mobile Sim Card costing £4.99 from Carphone Warehouse for a " pay as you go" phone which I already owned, just go in the shop or go online to top it up.

In 2004 I stopped using it, and got a monthly contract phone from T Mobile. Carphone Warehouse sent me a letter claiming I had not paid my bill and I was to send them £22. I wrote back I did not owe them any money as I was using a pay as you go sim card. I heard no more from them.

In July 2009 I send away for a copy of my credit file and was horrified to find that Carphone Warehouse had placed a default on my file in 2005 for a debt of £22.

I have battled with them since July 2009 till July 2010 to have this default removed.

At first CW claimed the alleged debt of £22 was for the monthly rental which I had not paid. They claimed that they sent me monthly statements for this account every month since 2001 and that when I stopped paying they sent me a default notice, which I did not respond to, so they had no option but to place the account in default.

I wrote to them and explained that I only purchased a pay as you go sim card and there was no monthly contract to pay and I also told them I never received any statements or default notices from them. I sent an SAR but they did't respond and sent my money back.

I kept at them and they have now changed their storey totally. They now claim to have discovered the account is a "fraudulent account" and removed the default in July 2010. They refuse to give me any information about this fraud which they claim was carried out under my name.They return my SAR statutory fees and won't provide any documentation.

They say they are going to credit my account with a £50 voucher, but I don't have an account with them, unless It could be another fraudulent one. The story about the account being a fraudulent one is total nonsense, I know that I bought the sim card and topped it up when I needed, fraud does come into it at all, it is an attempt to cover their tracks for issuing me a default I topped up the card at one of their shops and later online using my debit card. There is absolutely no fraud involved. I have sent them another SAR and this time I will hold out for some answers.

I would like to tell them what they can do with their £50 voucher but before I do, have any posters think I may have a case for getting more than a £50 voucher, after all they defaulted me when I queried the alleged debt with them. The default was on my account for 5 years and for a fairly paltry sum of £22. Who should I report this matter to and would I be entitled to any sort of compensation for their actions. I requested the ICO to investigate the matter but he wrote back basically saying that if Carphone Warehouse said the account was fraudulent then it must be as they had always found Carphone Warehouse reliable when handling data.

Glad to hear any advice or views on what I can now do.

I have sent them another SAR and I am waiting for a response to that.

 

Thanks

loring

.

[dx100uk]

per i think thats as far as it can go

p'haps ask for a voucher as you don't have an a/c with them?

 

dx

[buzby]

When 'Fresh' was launched in 2000 it was the first attempt at a 'virtual' PAYG service operated not by a network, but a third party 'virtual' operator. As such, this had a number of failings - it was not possible to tightly control the users account, which meant that the customer could actually overspend the available balance and if they stopped using it, would end up having a negative balance which CW would have to chase. This lasted for a few years until the networksa offered the same PAYG controls for the virtual operators. I believe it is this, NOT fraud, and because it happened so long ago there's probably not anyone who was there at the time who remembered how dreadful the original system was. A look at the service contract you agreed to - why did you not query this as a PAYG customer? - even stated that some charges would be billed in arrears and users should ensure their accounts are adequately funded. This contract also warned that details of your financial dealings would be shared with CRA's. Again, why - for PAYG?

 

Fresh was a lash up from the beginning, and its lack of account control meant it was always a bad move for consumers.

[loring]

Hi Buzby

I only purchased a SIM card from Carphone Warehouse for £4.99. There was no contract with it, when your credit was down to about £1.00 they would text you and tell you you needed more credit. You would take the SIM card to the shop, give them £10.00 and they would add the credit to SIM. There was no paperwork, later it was possible to add the credit online.There was nothing to question.

I had no problem with the service and stopped using it in 2004. It was July 2009 when I found out they put a default on my credit file in September 2005. They never told me.

loring

[locutus]

what can i claim?

Who should I report this matter to and would I be entitled to any sort of compensation for their actions.

Have you been out of pocket at all? IF you can prove you're out of pocket, and IF you can prove CPW was at fault then maybe you can claim money from them in court.

 

The easier route would be to complain as high as you can, tell them what you would accept as reasonable. If you are unhappy with their offer to rectify their error, then write bask asking for them to escalate the complaint higher.

[dx100uk]

typically it's £1000 a wrong marker

if its affected you availability to credit, then the sky's the limit.

 

i'e if you have been refused credit / mortgage/employment because of it.

 

there is a big long thread around on cag about a guy that got several £10k's for such a marker

 

but its finding it

 

dx