Future comms! joseph Stickler

[Louie2015]

Joined future comms in 2016 and at the start they were great.

Paid my final bills off from EE and the deal they gave us was the best around! 

 

Then 2017 I had a call to ask if I wanted to lower my tariff which I did but didn’t realise it would renew for another 3 year contract.

 

Then in 2018 due to my wife’s phone being knackered I asked them what deals they had in order to get my wife a new phone. I explained that I didn’t have my own business etc but they stated this didn’t matter it would just be a renewal.

 

The new contract they offered came with a £28 manual discount each month and this is where my experience with this company started to go wrong.

 

I haven’t received this discount at all since November 2018. 

They put the discount in writing because I asked it to be, then I have also had a further email in writing stating I should have this discount.

 

Then I complained to plan and they also put this in writing.

I have given up trying to speak to anyone over the phone as it’s just a waste of time really

 

. I have requested a copy of my phone call where they stated in the contract agreement I would get this discount (again I made sure she stated it)

 

. I still haven’t received this copy of the call yet and to be honest I don’t think I will. Well not until I actually get the ICO involved and they request it to be given to me which I am I the process of doing. 

 

Oh and also to add they have given me numerous excuses why this money hasn’t been paid, such as “the accountant has changed” “it will be paid in the first week of every month” “no actually the 18th” “we don’t have your bank account details” the list goes on. I have now given them my account details 3 times and still no joy. 

 

I think the only way forward now would be CISAS or small claims court. I wouldn’t recommend them to anyone. I even have a friend of mine who is with them and he is even worse off than me.

 

update from the above also is that I complained to plan.com as stated and now they have come back to me and stated that:

 

My colleague was with Future Comms at the end of last week looking to resolve any customer issues, I believe this payment will be made for you on 28th March. 

Kind regards

 

we will see........

[dx100uk]

Send them an sar

then when you dont get it 

goto the ico and the fos

 

 

[BankFodder]

Yes send SAR immediately.  Also read customer services guide and implement the advice there.

 

More later.

[BankFodder]

Just to try and condense this, you engaged with Future Comms to broker a telephone services contract for you with some company. I imagine it was O2 please confirm.

The benefit to you is that you will receive a "cashback" of £28 per month.

Since November you have not received anything despite chasing them.

This means that so far they owe you about £100 and you are being put up with excuses every time you try to raise the matter.

You have also asked them to provide you with some data – but it is not clear whether this was a request made in the form of an SAR.

We have advised you that you should send a formal SAR immediately.

If you have some writing in which you asked for the data then please will you reproduce it here.

Also, I understand that you have been dealing with them on the telephone despite the fact that this is a suspicious company and you are already feeling concerned about them. Yet you have been speaking with them on the phone and you have no record for yourself and you are attending to rely on the fact that they may have record-keeping and that they may be prepared to supply you with the evidence you need.

I've already suggested above that you read our customer services guide and the you implement the advice there. You really shouldn't make phone calls to any company you deal with without recording the court. It's an unfortunate fact of life that this is necessary. If you don't recall your calls then you will regret it. Sooner or later you will regret it – and may be that time is coming very soon.

What we are receiving here seems to be a standard M.O. in respect of Future Comms. I have no idea why anybody stands for it and why anybody is prepared to tolerate these kinds of delays in this level of excuses.

One problem for most customers of Future Comms is that they are business customers and that means that if they want to take Future Comms to court then any hearing will have to be brought in the court which is local to the defendant and that means local to Future Comms nearest county court.

You have an advantage in that I understand that you are a personal customer. This means that under the usual rules, if there is a hearing then because you would be a litigant in person, the case would be heard in your own local court. This would put additional pressure on Future Comms because if they wanted to attend the hearing then they would have to travel to you.

However, on the basis of what you say I don't really see that there is much of a problem. If you are prepared to threaten legal proceedings and then to issue them, I can imagine that Future Comms will fall into line very quickly and pay you out.

Of course there is a risk that they may be silly and they may try to defend the case – but I doubt it.

So what it comes down to is whether you are prepared to sue them. This means that you would have to send them a letter before claim and give them 14 days and to pay you all of the money that they owe you or else you will bring a small claim in the County Court and without any further notice.

I can imagine that part of their M.O. is to take it to the wire and to pay quite rapidly once they receive a letter of claim. This is good news – and yet it is bad news. It means that you get your money and that's good. However, it means that they can play you around and keep on delaying payments until they receive a letter of claim.

Because of this and because of their M.O. I would suggest that you send a more general letter of claim.

I would suggest that you tell them that in view of their business model which appears to be consistent all over the Internet – or delaying payments – that you are now serving them with notice that unless you have your money within 14 days that you will see them and that furthermore they should consider that this is equally a warning that if they delay on any future payment that you will be bringing a legal action immediately and without any notice in respect of that action. They should therefore consider your letter of claim as being a letter of claim which is recurring and effective every month.

If this idea appeals to you – then you must be certain that you are prepared to bring the legal action if they cause the delay. This means that on day 15 if they don't pay back your hundred pounds or so – you sue. After that, every month if one day one you have received your payment, then you sue. I'm quite sure that you would only need to issue the papers once and they probably won't trouble you again.

If this idea appeals to you then please draft out a letter of claim and post it here and we will discuss it and then you should send it off.

You should also read around this forum as to how to bring a small claim in the County Court. It's very easy. It's very cheap. And in your case with a likelihood of success of much better than 95% – it is pretty well risk-free.

You should also log onto the County Court money claim website. Register for an account – it's free – and start to understand how it works. You can also start drafting your claim and save your work as you go along so that on day 15 you are ready to click the papers off.

If you post your suggested draft here then we will have a look at it. It does need any special language. The trick is to keep it as short as possible. You will also claim interest which are 8% is pretty good nowadays.

[BankFodder]

 

[Louie2015]

Hey all 

 

Thank you for the advice again with work and being on holiday I am in the process of sending the SAR this weekend. 

 

Just an an update though, I complained to plan as stated and they have stated that I will be paid the discount by FC on the 28th March. Then I sent an email and asked for an update from them to see if they heard anything further. They stated as far as they are aware it has been agreed that I will be paid on the 28th. 

 

Well low low and behold I get a phone call out of the blue from FC today stating that the director has signed off my payment and it will be paid on the 28th April!! I could of burst out laughing! I stated what plan said above and they would like me to forward them the email so they can see if they can speed this up. 

 

Yeah ok then 

[BankFodder]

I suggest that as well as forwarding them the email, you forward them a letter of claim and explain to them very clearly what will happen if they miss the deadline by even one day – that you will issue the court papers.

Also please see one or two of the other Future Comms threads where I have now suggested that you should send a single letter of claim making it clear that this is a continuous rolling-over letter of claim and that in future any time they miss a deadline by a single day the court papers will be issued. Tell them that you are justifying that by their previous history and their very clear record of late payments which are documented throughout the Internet.

Do not get mucked around by these people. They obsolete a delaying game. They will call your bluff on your letter of claim and will try to push it by being a day late, a couple of days late, three days late – don't stand for any more if you want to take control of this. So far they have dominated you. Is that you want?

[BankFodder]

I'm slightly losing track of the various Future comms threads that are going here. If you have already send the letter of claim then if I were you I wouldn't respond to them except with court papers when they exceed the deadline.

Don't get dragged into conversations with these people. You made your position clear in a letter of claim. There's nothing else to say. Issue the court papers and you can almost guarantee that they will never do it again

[BankFodder]

By the way, if you have the names of any of these so-called directors – or anyone else you are dealing with. Post them up here.

We may as well start putting some identities up here. Don't be shy

[ericsbrother]

there are several companies called future comms, all with different directors. One has no director at all so breaking the law.

I would bet they all have cashflow problems and that is why you havent got your cashback. If you do go down the court route make sure you name the correct entity

[BankFodder]

Good point

It seems to be this one - but needs confirmation

[workaholic duck]

Think you must be right. The address I have is Joe Stickler, managing director, Future Communications Specialists, Unit 4The Mill Office, Royal Clarence Marina, Gosport, Hampshire, PO12 1AX.

Wonder how many more addresses there are??!

My last email was from Liam Stickler, Business Development Manager. Seems it runs in the family.

[Louie2015]

Just an update all, 

 

I have now been paid 90% of what I was owed. I complained to plan.com and put pressure on them to sort it out with FC. They took it right up until the last day of the eighth week and to be fair didn’t pay when they said they would. Next day I got on to plan about it and stated I would be in touch with ofcom and like magic I had money in my account. 

 

When I rang FC on the day they were meant to pay they stated they hadn’t got my bank details although I had gave them over 3 times previous. 

 

I am still owed some money albeit not a huge amount but plan are aware of this. I have stated that if this occurs again then court action will be the only way forward for me which I have been prepared to do. 

 

In relation to the recording of the phone call I requested which has been ignored. I have complained to the ICO and plan about this as they are clearly denying me a copy of my personal information. 

[Louie2015]

Another update 

 

I have now received another email from plan.com stating that they are in touch with FC over my SAR and small amount of money that is still owed. 

 

Then i receive 2 emails this afternoon with copies of my recordings from FC and an email with the confirmation of payment (the one they already have paid me) 

 

plan then sent me an email to say I should have received this and also FC stated they would pay the final last amount of the discount I was owed today. (They paid 90% just calculated it wrong)  I haven’t received the final part of my owed money yet so I have stated to plan until this is receive my complaint will remain open as they wanted to close it. 

 

I will update when I hear anything more