I've been conned by BT

im...LOST · 14-05-2009 4:25pm #1

Right so.

Student house. Got a 6 month contract back in October. Everything has been grand since.

The bill is charged on the 14th of every second month. I rang on the 1st of May to cancel as I was moving out. They said that I'm paid up until the 14th and just to ring back on the 10th (which I didn't know was a Sunday until later) and it only takes 3 days to cancel so just to that.

So I rang on Monday to cancel and he said it wasn't too late and that it's grand and he'll cancel that now for good. Grand so.

Rang today just to confirm that everything is cancelled and hunkey dory. I was told that they have no record of me even ringing them, nevermind canceling with them and that the last phone call I had with them was the 1st of May.

And now I've already payed for the next two months as it's passed the 14th and it's a joke. I'm moving out so it's not going to be much good to me.

What the hell can I do?

chrism2007 · 14-05-2009 4:27pm

right a letter of complaint. not a call or email. a letter

all calls have to be recorded if such an incident does happen

if you want it dealt with send a letter to there complaints dept

give as much info as you can including dates you called, who you spoke to etc...

Mr. Incognito · 14-05-2009 4:29pm

Um- Ring the bank and cancel the direct debit?

Gone Drinking · 14-05-2009 4:32pm

http://www.drcc.ie/

iMax · 14-05-2009 4:32pm

Maybe consider a less inflamitory thread title... you've been gouged, robbed or conned by BT.

EKRIUQ · 14-05-2009 4:33pm

I wouldn’t class this as getting raped. Thread title needs a bit of work,

im...LOST · 14-05-2009 4:42pm

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Um- Ring the bank and cancel the direct debit?

Do they not have any way or reaching me in the future though? I mean, will they not follow that up somehow?

Mr. Incognito · 14-05-2009 4:45pm

Do they not have any way or reaching me in the future though? I mean, will they not follow that up somehow?

No. They haven't been paid for the two months in advance that you have informed them they have cancelled everything.

Cancel the direct debit- send their customer service an email outlining the transaction to date and informing them it has been cancelled- if they get huffy down the road forward the correspondence.

Today is the 14th though- the money is probably gone already

stephens770 · 14-05-2009 4:55pm

you can do nothing like the other few thousand people its happened to ,they rip everyone off wont even get started on NTL biggest bunch of scammers ul come across i had to get on the phone and practically threat the superviser to turn back on my channels,id paid for one package but coincidently there were all the good channels switched off,none id had picked out anyways were watchable maybe 2 or 3 were,my advice get THE BOX there 120 you get every channel named and no bills ,no monthly payments nothing!just buy it hook it up and off you go its as easy as hooking up a dvd player seriously dont make accounts or buy packages or monthly payments from NTL or BT the sky digibox and THE BOX is the only one you get what you payed for,you will get ripped off trust me iv a mate that works for NTL,there pulling scams left right and centre,dirty b******s

im...LOST · 14-05-2009 5:47pm

I really would not be surprised if I was to turn around in two months time and they would say "actually, you are in a 12 month contract."

tricky D · 14-05-2009 6:01pm

im...LOST wrote: »

Do they not have any way or reaching me in the future though? I mean, will they not follow that up somehow?

They will have ways of making your credit rating worse if you don't pay or don't get it sorted.

dub45 · 14-05-2009 6:07pm

im...LOST wrote: »

I really would not be surprised if I was to turn around in two months time and they would say "actually, you are in a 12 month contract."

Could you clarify for us if you have in fact paid for the next two months and if so why are you worried about them following you up?

im...LOST · 14-05-2009 6:37pm

My bad.

The man on the phone actually said that the bill has been already made but I checked my statements there and they don't actually take the money out until the 29/30th of the month.

I think I'll cancel the DirectDebit and write to them. I've been messed around.

Cabaal · 14-05-2009 7:07pm

As already suggested on Twitter if you called to cancel track down your phone bill and make sure its itemized showing number called and time spent calling it.

With this info in hand I'd complaint and see how far you get, however if you don't

Next you can make a Data Info Request requesting copies of your account historys and call recordings (if available), companys generally don't like these requests

If the agent told you they have no record of calling then ask them to explain the long phone call you made which you have a record of and if they said they have no record they won't have a problem providing you with A/C records

If they refuse to either give you details on how to make a DPA request OR they refuse to comply with the request report them to the Data Commissioner.

Essentially you want everything backed up in writing, you want a paper trail of your actions and what BT are saying

dub45 · 14-05-2009 11:12pm

im...LOST wrote: »

My bad.

The man on the phone actually said that the bill has been already made but I checked my statements there and they don't actually take the money out until the 29/30th of the month.

I think I'll cancel the DirectDebit and write to them. I've been messed around.

Cancel the direct debit with the bank in writing immediately. Note cancelling a direct debit does not in any way absolve you from any legitimate liabilities with BT or anyone else for that matter! (keep a copy of your letter to the bank)

I would then write to BT detailing what has happened so far and informing them formally that wish to cancel your contract with them from the date you originally communicated to them in your phone conversation. (It would really be in everyone's interest if all cancellations had to be made in writing!)
Incidentally given that it is BT that you are dealing with I would send them a registered letter - I know it costs extra but you have no idea how difficult a company you are dealing with.

Ask them to acknowledge receipt of your cancellation request and ask them to confirm that the bb will be cancelled immediately.

If they dont comply with your request then go along the lines that others are suggesting but I really would not do any further cancellation requests over the phone.

jor el · 15-05-2009 12:16am

tricky D wrote: »

They will have ways of making your credit rating worse if you don't pay or don't get it sorted.

Nope, they cannot touch your credit rating.

im...LOST wrote: »

The man on the phone actually said that the bill has been already made but I checked my statements there and they don't actually take the money out until the 29/30th of the month.

BT's notification period is 14 days, not the 28 days that they often seem to quote people. You should have paid that much from the first time you contacted them about canceling. If you have, then you owe them no more, and don't pay a penny more either.

im...LOST wrote: »

I think I'll cancel the DirectDebit and write to them. I've been messed around.

Yes indeed, do that in writing to the bank.

If they call in the debt collectors, Credit Solutions Limited, you can safely ignore them, believe me.

If you still get nowhere, here's some helpful contacts.
Emer Kennedy - Director of Consumer Division 01-4325158
emer.2.kennedy@bt.com

Chris Clark - CEO BT Ireland
chris.clark@bt.com

I've been down this road with BT, and they are beyond useless when it comes to customer service, billing issues, refunds, etc. You need to go straight to the top.

I've been conned by BT

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