3 Mobile -Broken Handset

[Heat-Man]

I've been directed here as unfortunately I have been left in the mire by 3 mobile and their horribly incompetent, unwilling, greedy "policies" over broken handsets less than two months into a 24 month contract...!

 

The contract: £27 pm for the One Plan and getting a Sony Xperia S from end of Feb 2013.

 

The usage: I received the new Sony Xperia S in the first week of March. However I did not open, unbox or examine it for three-four weeks as I was extremely busy and continued to use my old Nokia E5.

 

On Sat 6th April I finally commission the new X-S phone and get my SIM changed over etc. I thought I might even like it...!

 

Sunday 7th April: A visit to a steam railway museum sees me using the handset as a camera. Unfortunately a jet of superheated ['dry'] steam is sent at me and I and the phone are in its way for about 1-2 seconds before I dodge out of its way. Phone is still working.

 

Sat 13th April: 10:30am - phone decides that it is going to reboot, delete my data but the tocuhscreen is still working. I now have a phone back in factory condition. It asks me to restart again after the setup.

 

Sat 13th April : 11am - phone has rebooted and the touchscreen has completely died. Refuses to respond in no way whatsoever. Even 'emergency call button' option will not function. Only way to shut off the phone is to use the two physical bttons emergency lockdown. Not good.

 

After this, I report the loss to 3-mobile. I receive a package and get it sent off for repair or replacement.

 

I then receive a somewhat snarky letter telling me that the device cannot be repaired due to "liquid damage". I am sent a crappy, blocky image of the so-called damage and then a blank space where "good device" example should be!

 

Since then I have waged a somewhat-losing war of attrition on the telephone using my old and on-its-last-legs Nokia E5 with their ill-trained staff, having had three escalations through their poor excuse for 'customer resolutions/complaints'.

 

My argument is that if both of my handsets die, I will not be able to USE their service and so why should I be paying? Secondly, they provided the damn handset and it has not even been three months since the failure.

 

Thirdly, when I spoke to the last complaint handler a week ago, after a so-called 'investigation', they could not supply WHAT the liquid damage was[broken microprocessor, fused circuit board?] [all they could parrot was "liquid damage! liquid damage!" nor WHAT liquid had CAUSED it!

Mention was made of the steam incident. However, I ask the following:-

 

1)A jet of steam for less than 2 seconds on a handset that would have been shielded by my hand.

 

2)It takes SIX DAYS for any such damage from it to occur? SERIOUSLY? Even after the cold April we had and condensation?

 

Since then they have shipped the duff handset back to me with no work done. They had the bloody cheek to try and extort £360 out of me for a replacement X-S and then offered a number of cheaper options, the least being £100, all of which I politley told them to go to hell regards. I am not paying anymore money to these people!

 

Fourthly, no matter what they say - the provision of the handset IS part of the contract which they are now, in my view, breaking. Afterall, why does exactly the same plan in terms of mins/texts/data cost £25 with x handset but £34 with y handset??

 

After several calls, I laid down a number of options.

 

Given that ultimately in my view they would not be able to honour the contract, they could do the following.

 

1)Replace the handset.

No can do. Liquid damage! We're not going to tell you any specifics either.

 

2)Allow me a lesser handset free of charge. I even asked for a new Nokia E5 just to settle this.

We don't do the Nokia E5 anymore. And the least we can do is £100 for the Galaxay Ace.

 

3)End my contract mutually - WITHOUT paying 20months worth of 'early termination'.

They can't do this either - its a contract afterall. [funny how they cannot abide their side of the contract]

 

4)Reduce my contract to £22-24 to compensate as I'm back on my old handset.

We could set you up a new contract but we can't reduce anything. []

 

After 7 years of customer loyalty, I am somewhat shafted by this disgusting practice. It gets better [worse?]:

 

They are now offering a superior handset for a pound less each month on the same plan as I had!

 

I then also find that they are practically Throwing Away new Samsung S4s in a bid to promote their awful, awful service in competitions!

 

So they could afford to dish out S3 Minis to clear out the stock, and throw out handsets costing £400+ but cannot even take into account customer loyalty and replace ONE lousy midrange handset?

 

I have had to purchase a secondhand E5 on Ebay and still have the broken X-S as at least I managed to claw it physically back off them.

 

Sadly once this contract is through I will be ditching them no matter what - it's when things go wrong that a company's service is put to the test and sadly 3 have reacted badly in this occasion.

 

Is there any advice CAGgers could lend or am I totally up the creek with this?

 

Many thanks for your time

[BazzaS]

I've been directed here as unfortunately I have been left in the mire by 3 mobile and their horribly incompetent, unwilling, greedy "policies" over broken handsets less than two months into a 24 month contract...!

 

The contract: £27 pm for the One Plan and getting a Sony Xperia S from end of Feb 2013.

 

The usage: I received the new Sony Xperia S in the first week of March. However I did not open, unbox or examine it for three-four weeks as I was extremely busy and continued to use my old Nokia E5.

 

On Sat 6th April I finally commission the new X-S phone and get my SIM changed over etc. I thought I might even like it...!

 

Sunday 7th April: A visit to a steam railway museum sees me using the handset as a camera. Unfortunately a jet of superheated ['dry'] steam is sent at me and I and the phone are in its way for about 1-2 seconds before I dodge out of its way. Phone is still working.

 

Sat 13th April: 10:30am - phone decides that it is going to reboot, delete my data but the tocuhscreen is still working. I now have a phone back in factory condition. It asks me to restart again after the setup.

 

Sat 13th April : 11am - phone has rebooted and the touchscreen has completely died. Refuses to respond in no way whatsoever. Even 'emergency call button' option will not function. Only way to shut off the phone is to use the two physical bttons emergency lockdown. Not good.

 

After this, I report the loss to 3-mobile. I receive a package and get it sent off for repair or replacement.

 

I then receive a somewhat snarky letter telling me that the device cannot be repaired due to "liquid damage". I am sent a crappy, blocky image of the so-called damage and then a blank space where "good device" example should be!

 

Since then I have waged a somewhat-losing war of attrition on the telephone using my old and on-its-last-legs Nokia E5 with their ill-trained staff, having had three escalations through their poor excuse for 'customer resolutions/complaints'.

 

My argument is that if both of my handsets die, I will not be able to USE their service and so why should I be paying? Secondly, they provided the damn handset and it has not even been three months since the failure.

 

Thirdly, when I spoke to the last complaint handler a week ago, after a so-called 'investigation', they could not supply WHAT the liquid damage was[broken microprocessor, fused circuit board?] [all they could parrot was "liquid damage! liquid damage!" nor WHAT liquid had CAUSED it!

Mention was made of the steam incident. However, I ask the following:-

 

1)A jet of steam for less than 2 seconds on a handset that would have been shielded by my hand.

 

2)It takes SIX DAYS for any such damage from it to occur? SERIOUSLY? Even after the cold April we had and condensation?

 

Since then they have shipped the duff handset back to me with no work done. They had the bloody cheek to try and extort £360 out of me for a replacement X-S and then offered a number of cheaper options, the least being £100, all of which I politley told them to go to hell regards. I am not paying anymore money to these people!

 

Fourthly, no matter what they say - the provision of the handset IS part of the contract which they are now, in my view, breaking. Afterall, why does exactly the same plan in terms of mins/texts/data cost £25 with x handset but £34 with y handset??

 

After several calls, I laid down a number of options.

 

Given that ultimately in my view they would not be able to honour the contract, they could do the following.

 

1)Replace the handset.

No can do. Liquid damage! We're not going to tell you any specifics either.

 

2)Allow me a lesser handset free of charge. I even asked for a new Nokia E5 just to settle this.

We don't do the Nokia E5 anymore. And the least we can do is £100 for the Galaxay Ace.

 

3)End my contract mutually - WITHOUT paying 20months worth of 'early termination'.

They can't do this either - its a contract afterall. [funny how they cannot abide their side of the contract]

 

4)Reduce my contract to £22-24 to compensate as I'm back on my old handset.

We could set you up a new contract but we can't reduce anything. []

 

After 7 years of customer loyalty, I am somewhat shafted by this disgusting practice. It gets better [worse?]:

 

They are now offering a superior handset for a pound less each month on the same plan as I had!

 

I then also find that they are practically Throwing Away new Samsung S4s in a bid to promote their awful, awful service in competitions!

 

So they could afford to dish out S3 Minis to clear out the stock, and throw out handsets costing £400+ but cannot even take into account customer loyalty and replace ONE lousy midrange handset?

 

I have had to purchase a secondhand E5 on Ebay and still have the broken X-S as at least I managed to claw it physically back off them.

 

Sadly once this contract is through I will be ditching them no matter what - it's when things go wrong that a company's service is put to the test and sadly 3 have reacted badly in this occasion.

 

Is there any advice CAGgers could lend or am I totally up the creek with this?

 

Many thanks for your time

 

Disclaimer : I use "3", merely because for the service I need at the price I have it, it suits. I have no expectation of ANY customer service, based on past experience. My wife will not

use them even if they are the only provider in that particular location.

 

However, if the handset was "user damaged" then that isn't 3's responsibility. Otherwise you could damage a handset a month and say "but I can't use the SIM, so I'm not paying"

 

So, the key is if the handset is water damaged, and if it is, if that happened as a result of the user. If you are sure that you couldn't have caused the damage : get the phone back from "3" checking it doesn't look worse off than when it went to them, then tell 3 if they don't replace it you will be seeking an independent engineer's report, and if it finds in your favour, you'll be claiming the cost from 3.

 

If they stick to their guns, stick to yours. If an independent engineer's report shows no water damage, or concludes that any "damage" was done by 3 / the problem is a manufacturing fault and the "water damage" is irrelevant : LBA 3, and follow that with a claim (including for the engineer's report cost) if they don't stump up!

[Heat-Man]

Hi Bazza, thanks for your advice. I guess an indy report will be my next port of call. Is there a time limit on these things? Unfortunately I'm somewhat skint and unemployed.

[MaxxPower]

Unfortunately from the sounds of things the liquid damage assessment is correct. If the phone was blasted with a jet of steam, which is just water vapour, then it has been water damaged as the steam will have gotten inside. Even if your hand was in the way, unless your hands were completely enclosed around the phone (and even then it wouldn't be a watertight seal) then the steam will still have gotten inside. Even 'dry steam' is still water vapour after all, condensation just becomes less likely, not impossible, especially in old steam engines.

It isn't 3's fault that the phone has stopped working through accidental damage and your contract is only for provision of a service. The handset is basically given as an incentive but is not a part of the actual contract itself.

 

Have you tried contacting the museum where the incident occurred? They might have insurance to cover this kind of incident. It's unlikely, but it's a possibility.