Vodafone Bill

theTomness

Hi

Just wondering if anyone else has been in this situation and how they dealt with it?

The background: Have been with Vodafone-at-home service for several years, broadband and telephone.

May 2011 I signed up for UPC and was using that for Broadband. For at least a year or more I have not been using Vodafone's box.



Any experience appreciated

I just cant understand why I am getting a bill like this.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

What bill did you get? Did you cancel Vodafone and were you in a contract at the time?

kev1.3s

A bill like what?
I presume you mean they kept charging you after you switched, if so and you have the emails from the switch team or copies of contracts tell them to take a hike.

theTomness

sorry i managed to get stuck in edit hell - newbie alert!

Just wondering if anyone else has been in this situation and how they dealt with it?

The background: Have been with Vodafone-at-home service for several years, broadband and telephone.

May 2011 I signed up for UPC and was using that for Broadband. For at least a year or more I have not been using Vodafone's box. Other family members were using this but at least a year ago i moved them to the UPC broadband connection)

In May this year (2013) i cancelled my direct debit and mailed them to close my account - and explicitly stated to disconnect me from broadband and telephone

They responded after a few days with a follow up email about needing some more identificiation, which i duly provided

Didnt get any confirmation after that so i rang them up sometime, it may have been days or weeks later. i have no recollection ,and spoke to someone explaining it all again. After that I considered the matter closed.

Then last week i receive a bill; in the post stating i owe them €191 and that is payment is not received within 7 days they will be forced to refer my account to a debt collection agency, the implication after this is the legal jargon of sum and costs, name published and my credit rating affected.

What is going on ? How can i receive a bill when i haven't been using their service for at least a year and i had emailed them to close my account.


Baffling. Any experience appreciated - I just cant understand why I am getting a bill like this.

theTomness

Aubree Millions Script wrote: »

What bill did you get? Did you cancel Vodafone and were you in a contract at the time?

I was a letter in the post with Amount outstanding on it of €191

theTomness

kev1.3s wrote: »

A bill like what?
I presume you mean they kept charging you after you switched, if so and you have the emails from the switch team or copies of contracts tell them to take a hike.

This is the only explanation i can think of, that they kept on charging me after i asked for my account to be closed. Unfortnately i don't have anything in writing from them that it is closed.

Does this happen to other people that they are charged after requesting accound closures?

foggy_lad

theTomness wrote: »

This is the only explanation i can think of, that they kept on charging me after i asked for my account to be closed. Unfortnately i don't have anything in writing from them that it is closed.

Does this happen to other people that they are charged after requesting accound closures?

It happens to lots of people and is a dirty tactic/trick used by several different companies not just Vodafone!

Would you not have cancelled your broadband and land line from the date you switched to UPC? Why the delay? If a relative was using the Vodafone router that is just a router which can be used for any supplier including eircon perlico sky etc.

Have you got a copy of the email that stated your intention to cancel and also the email from them asking for more details to confirm your identity and your response?

You do not need anything from them stating the account is closed if you have evidence of requesting the closure and evidence of their acknowledgement of that.

emeldc

As you switched to UPC, should they not have handled your termination of service with Vodafone.

theTomness

foggy_lad wrote: »

It happens to lots of people and is a dirty tactic/trick used by several different companies not just Vodafone!

Would you not have cancelled your broadband and land line from the date you switched to UPC? Why the delay? If a relative was using the Vodafone router that is just a router which can be used for any supplier including eircon perlico sky etc.

Have you got a copy of the email that stated your intention to cancel and also the email from them asking for more details to confirm your identity and your response?

You do not need anything from them stating the account is closed if you have evidence of requesting the closure and evidence of their acknowledgement of that.

I do have the emails stating that i was requesting my account to be closed..i think i will have to ring them and make them see sense. I appreciate your reply, thanks

theTomness

emeldc wrote: »

As you switched to UPC, should they not have handled your termination of service with Vodafone.

Good Point, thank you. I'm upset about this bill and cant think straight.

kev1.3s

It happened me with eircom last year, I cancelled and they duely sent cancellation email from this point on I heard no more for 6 months or so until a bill arrived for over €300, rang them and told them I had an email saying when they would terminate and they said that if I mailed it back they would get there fraud team examine it and if they find it acceptable it would be ok. Fast forward a couple of months and a " solicitors " letter arrives saying that the money is still outstanding regardless so I make a polite call saying if there is any balance due up until the date stated in the email I would be happy to pay but I wouldn't pay a penny after, which he says he'll run by eircom but warned me that eircom are tired of people like me and are quite aggressive in collecting outstanding monies. Move on another month or so and I arrive home in a bad mood to be greeted by a very threatening letter saying I have 14 days to pay the outstanding balance or I would be going to court and the ramifications will be felt for years and all that so a not so pleasant call to the " solicitor " to tell him I'm tired of this **** and I'll gladly go to court with copies of all correspondence and I'm not naive enough to believe that eircom we're going to waste time bringing me to court for a case they couldn't possibly win! Haven't heard about it since.

Snake Plisken

Any point contacting the vodafone reps on here or is that a waste of time?

ABajaninCork

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Any point contacting the vodafone reps on here or is that a waste of time?

The Voda reps are slow to reply, and I've never had any joy with them.

I suggest the OP puts all this in writing (NOT an e-mail), enclose a copy of their original mail requesting cessation and sends it to Voda's Customer Relations department via registered mail. Mark the outside of the envelope 'Official Complaint'. I think their HO is in Leopardstown, but you can get the details from their website.

A letter, especially registered is very hard to ignore. If you get no joy from that, then complain to Comreg.

theTomness

Thanks Kev1.3s for outlining all the stages of your dilemna - that sounds like it could potentially happen to me - I really like the way you handled that in the end. I guess when it gets to the solicitors letter in the post stage it gets quite scary for a law abiding citizen (which nearly all of us are)

theTomness

Thanks Also ABajaninCork - I also like this approach.

To all who replied Thank You. There's a lot of people out there willing to help another stranger like me which i find uplifting when dealing with negative things like this. I guess i will sleep on this and willupdate here on the outcome.

crafty dodger

I am in dispute with vodafone for exactly the same issue.....advised them of termination in line with the contract etc and still getting bills 2 months later.

I have raised a complaint with Comreg and will let them deal with it after NUMEROUS attempts to get Vodafone to deal with it.

PS if anyone else has this issue, contact your bank and terminate the Direct debit to Vodafone

kev1.3s

theTomness wrote: »

Thanks Kev1.3s for outlining all the stages of your dilemna - that sounds like it could potentially happen to me - I really like the way you handled that in the end. I guess when it gets to the solicitors letter in the post stage it gets quite scary for a law abiding citizen (which nearly all of us are)

I tried to do the reasoning and I genuinely knew I was right and it's only because I had a perticulary bad day when the letter came that I gave them the full force of my mood. I think it's bulling tatics to for the want of a better word extort money out of people and they know it's the decent people who will pay up. If you have copies of the contract with the new provider you have enough ammo to get them to back down.

theTomness

crafty dodger - I am heartened to see that I am not the only one in a similar situation, and I hope it wont be too long before you get closure on this. Any hint of goodwill I felt for vodafone is long gone now. At least I am fortunate in that I cancelled my direct debit prior to emailing them with my wish to disconnect all and close account. DO let me know when this is resolved for your situation.

theTomness

Kev1.3s yes, it seems strange that they are threatening to go to court etc all over a "measly" €191 (which is a lot to me actually at the moment when its already hard to pay all the bills, and thats another situation that most of us are facing) i could understand more if i owed them say several thousand euro - and it does amount to bullying, especially as I'm 100% sure that i *cannot* owe them this money

dudara

OP - do you want me to move this thread to the Talk to Vodafone forum, to see if the reps there can assist?

dudara

Snake Plisken

dudara wrote: »

OP - do you want me to move this thread to the Talk to Vodafone forum, to see if the reps there can assist?

dudara

Sounds like from the comments from the lads above they are a bit slow better if the op posts on the forum linking to this thread as I'm sure he will need more advice from this forum

dudara

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Sounds like from the comments from the lads above they are a bit slow better if the op posts on the forum linking to this thread as I'm sure he will need more advice from this forum

In fairness, I always want to give the Official reps a chance to respond, and I do not want duplicate posts on the same topic.

dudara

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

theTomness

dudara wrote: »

OP - do you want me to move this thread to the Talk to Vodafone forum, to see if the reps there can assist?

dudara

Hi - Not for the moment thanks - I am going to call them tomorrow and see if I can get an explanation, before taking this further based on advice here. I will keep you posted!

Snake Plisken

Hey Tomness,

Please feedback to us on the thread on what kind of response you get from them tomorrow! Vodafone should be ashamed of themselves on how they act with customers!

dudara

Posters - just a gentle reminder not to turn this into a "bashing" thread. Focus instead on offering advice on how to deal with the issue.

dudara

DanWall

Some companies are tying people in to 18 month contracts now, if your cancel during the contract period you still pay. They phone you up at the end of the contract period offering you a better deal, when you accept it you are into another contract. Last time they called me, I refused and said I was happy with the present arrangement and I don't want another contract.
I also pay my bill cash at the post office, I will not take on Direct Debits, that way you have control of what payments they receive.

Mssg

same happend to me when I was switching to eircom... I just ignore them cuz my friend have same situation. They are just looking to get more money.

crafty dodger

theTomness wrote: »

crafty dodger - I am heartened to see that I am not the only one in a similar situation, and I hope it wont be too long before you get closure on this. Any hint of goodwill I felt for vodafone is long gone now. At least I am fortunate in that I cancelled my direct debit prior to emailing them with my wish to disconnect all and close account. DO let me know when this is resolved for your situation.

Tomness
My problem has been resolved.

BUT only because i got Com Reg involved. They took ownership of the problem after the 10 working day period which they say is part of the process.
Within a couple of days after the 'wait' period of 10 days i had an email from a guy in the 'Comreg' section of Vodafone.
He advised me that yes i was totally correct and that a cheque for the overbilled amount would be sent to me within 28 days.

Moral of the story....get Comreg involved if you dont get a result from Vodafone directly!