Dodgy Vodafone Bill Tactics

I got a huge Voda bill out of the blue today. There is no explanation at all on the bill what or why it's changed. No extra charges etc.

I called them and the agent had no recollection whatsoever of the contract and price I was on. :eek: I was nervous AF as my computer wiped last year and I had no proof of anything I saved! Last I had an email last year saying the package, no duration or price.

By the way, when I called it said expect 20 min wait time "due to many billing enquiries" - which clearly shows I'm not alone.

The agent just repeated herself like a zombie, I explained what I agreed to last summer, I asked for an escalation. 5 mins later I got a callback saying the agent found details with the correct price. I asked for a copy of my contract, the agent last year never sent it as agreed/required. I was told they could only send something by SMS! How dodgy is that! By text I got not even a link, just a quick mention of my bill balance! BS. I called again, on the phone for ages, how many times did I have to ask for PRICE DURATION PACKAGE. Eventually I was told I'll get something in 30 days. This is the second BS bill I got from them for my broadband.

Make sure you have your contract. If you get a BS bill out of the blue, what do you refer to?

Ten Pin

Submit a SAR to get a file of all details, contracts etc Vodafone have about the account.

Ten Pin

Ten Pin wrote: »

Submit a SAR to get a file of all details, contracts etc Vodafone have about the account.

:):)

Brilliant.

martinhannon

Hi Forestsman
The first thing you should do is cancel your direct debit (if you have one).
It's the first thing I do when starting a contract with VF or eir. Your perfectly entitled to do this.
Your in a much stronger position when something goes wrong (and it will).
I Still pay my bills of course (if I'm happy with the service). VF sends me a text once a month and I pay online.

Also, to help with your current problem, request ALL phone call made to/from VF with yourself. It takes them 30 days to get you this info but it might help with your currant problem.

Good Luck.

Hi all, thanks a million for the responses.

So, I submitted the SAR request to the GDPR team. They replied that they could not find a contract in existence between us two. How bizarre. I sent a copy of my current bill of my own volition and they replied they still couldn't find a contract. They also essentially dismissed my SAR request and deferred me to the sales team for questions. There are several errors and issues cropping up here. I replied in plain English again that I'd like all personal data. Days later, they sent a very short list of a few telephone conversatiions and a very heavily redacted excel sheet. The lack of professionalism and errors would make it something worth sending on to the DPC.

But, I've sat down and thought about this. What do I really want? I only wanted my contract. That was like getting blood from a stone and I'm still waiting on it. The amount of issues that have cropped up makes me wonder should I bail out of this. If I have 2 emails from the GDPR team saying there is no contract (was it done under the radar, off the books??) then perhaps I only need to raise that, pay the current month and get out. It's the only company causing issues and I'm thinking they're not worth the hassle and maybe just move on.

okidoki987

Forestsman wrote: »

Hi all, thanks a million for the responses.

So, I submitted the SAR request to the GDPR team. They replied that they could not find a contract in existence between us two. How bizarre. I sent a copy of my current bill of my own volition and they replied they still couldn't find a contract. They also essentially dismissed my SAR request and deferred me to the sales team for questions. There are several errors and issues cropping up here. I replied in plain English again that I'd like all personal data. Days later, they sent a very short list of a few telephone conversatiions and a very heavily redacted excel sheet. The lack of professionalism and errors would make it something worth sending on to the DPC.

But, I've sat down and thought about this. What do I really want? I only wanted my contract. That was like getting blood from a stone and I'm still waiting on it. The amount of issues that have cropped up makes me wonder should I bail out of this. If I have 2 emails from the GDPR team saying there is no contract (was it done under the radar, off the books??) then perhaps I only need to raise that, pay the current month and get out. It's the only company causing issues and I'm thinking they're not worth the hassle and maybe just move on.

Can you request a copy of the initial phone call where you were told the t&c's of the contract you were entering into?
I have the same problem going back some months where they stuck in a large bill.
Have tried to download the bill but it's doesn't work and when I called them about it, they said they would investigate and return my call.
Still waiting 4 days later.

okidoki987

okidoki987 wrote: »

Can you request a copy of the initial phone call where you were told the t&c's of the contract you were entering into?
I have the same problem going back some months where they stuck in a large bill.
Have tried to download the bill but it's doesn't work and when I called them about it, they said they would investigate and return my call.
Still waiting 4 days later.

Hi, you certainly can request that yes. It's personal data about you, you have GDPR rights.

They sent me a few calls in file format but not all of them. I can request/demand the rest but I'm considering best options.

Ten Pin

Hi all, thanks a million for the responses.

So, I submitted the SAR request to the GDPR team. They replied that they could not find a contract in existence between us two. How bizarre. I sent a copy of my current bill of my own volition and they replied they still couldn't find a contract. They also essentially dismissed my SAR request and deferred me to the sales team for questions. There are several errors and issues cropping up here. I replied in plain English again that I'd like all personal data. Days later, they sent a very short list of a few telephone conversatiions and a very heavily redacted excel sheet. The lack of professionalism and errors would make it something worth sending on to the DPC.

But, I've sat down and thought about this. What do I really want? I only wanted my contract. That was like getting blood from a stone and I'm still waiting on it. The amount of issues that have cropped up makes me wonder should I bail out of this. If I have 2 emails from the GDPR team saying there is no contract (was it done under the radar, off the books??) then perhaps I only need to raise that, pay the current month and get out. It's the only company causing issues and I'm thinking they're not worth the hassle and maybe just move on.

Seems dodgy....VF don't seem to understand SAR, it isn't a trivial matter and is worth referring to DPC if you think they're withholding any data....you shouldn't have to keep asking for individual call recordings etc etc. AIUI, SAR info needs to include 'the data, all of the data and nothing but the data', they can't pick and choose what to provide or find something else down the back of the couch afterwards.


The 'no contract' is an issue for Comreg ie no contract means you can leave them without penalty.

okidoki987

okidoki987 wrote: »

I have the same problem going back some months where they stuck in a large bill.
Have tried to download the bill but it's doesn't work and when I called them about it, they said they would investigate and return my call.
Still waiting 4 days later.

Decided to ring myself, cut off twice :mad:, eventually got someone who told me "oh yeah, we overcharged you by mistake, we'll put it back on your account as a credit" :mad:.