Problems with 3 THREE (Mobile phone company)

Money_saving_Martyn · 1 February 2008 at 6:42PM

[FONT=&quot]Hi all

I wasn't sure where to post this. But it's definately important for you all to know - and we need some advice!!

My girlfriend signed up for an 18 month contract with 3 the mobile phone company. For 6 months she was to get a £50 tariff for only £25 per month (can't remember the EXACT figures) and that after 6 months, to avoid the increased monthly cost, if she so wished, she could just switch to any other tariff. So she signed up

After 6 months it came the time to change the tariff. She was then told that she could only "downgrade" to a tariff £5 cheaper each time. (And the £5 cheaper tariff offered about a quarter (maybe I exaggerate) of what her current tariff did in terms of inclusive minutes etc). Annoyed, but she'd signed on the dotted line and had a further 12 months with them. Oh well.

Then it came to cancelling the contract. Having felt completely cheated by 3 THREE she definitely wasn't going to fall for the suck, slap, flop of them again. She asked (when she'd finally got onto the cheapest price plan) if she could cancel the contract at the end of her 18 months, and action that now. She was told she couldn’t do it more than a month in advance but that was no problem.

We were at the airport on the day she had to ring them to cancel it (no doubt any late and it wouldn’t have been enough notice.... and earlier wasn't allowed) as we were going abroad for 12 months. She was told (at 7 in the morning) that the department that dealt with it was only open between (something like) 10am and 2pm and she should call back then. After a 30 min battle with them (ie. her saying "I've called you to cancel it now, why should I then have to pay roaming call rates to call you again later.... you can call me on my German phone, at your expense... (and them refusing)) they agreed to cancel it for her straight away (hang on, you said the department was closed... fishy, obviously cancellations go through the sales (retention?) department so they can suck slap and flop you all over again!)

So, it was cancelled, the direct debit stopped and the phone switched off and left in a drawer, unused since September.

Yesterday we get a panicked call from her step mother, saying that a debit collection agency are demanding money from my girlfriend. With a big of calling around, we found out it was from 3, wanting X many monthly payments (no doubt since it was "cancelled)

A long story, but thanks for reading so far! What's the best way to tackle this? (I'm not sure if THREE have been writing to my girlfriend (ie. a monthly bill) as we're out of the country). The contract was cancelled and no money owed. Obviously, this will have been marked as a bad debt (on her credit file too?) and none of it is accurate nor my girlfriends fault. What's the best thing to do to 1) Get rid of the collectors and 2) Clear up any credit file entries which 3 have made.

Thanks in advance to any help. Please also say if you have had similar problems with THREE 3.

Martyn (NOT Lewis)[/FONT]

daveboy · 1 February 2008 at 7:21PM

This is not at all surprising....3 have the most appalling customer service and in my opinion are trying to rival BT for how bad they are. Ironically, today I finally got out of the 18 month contract I signed with them (it expired today).

I tried to phone them around the middle of December to get them to note that I wished to cancel mine upon its expiry, only to be told that they couldn't do it and I should ring back on 31 December (apparently they need 30 days notice and I seem to remember it is in the contract somewhere).

Before I did this I wrote to them, and I suggest that this is what you do, as it would be much cheaper than phoning from whichever country you are now in. The address I wrote to was:

3 Customer Services
PO Box 333
Glasgow
G2 9AG

I would refer both to the address at which they have instructed the debt collection agency to write to, and your current address. You may think telling them where you are now isn't a good idea but you will have to get into some sort of dialogue with 3 to sort this out, and if they can't contact you there will be no chance of getting the entries on the credit file erased.

It is a shame you aren't here because I'm sure the CAB would be able to put your on the right lines.

The above is the way I'd go about it. Others may have a different view and ultimately it is your decision.

terryw · 1 February 2008 at 7:25PM

Martyn,

There is a bit of over-the top-stuff in your post i.e cancellations can only be made between 10 and 2, but have I got the following right:

1. You canceled a mobile phone contract by telephone at 7.00am on the morning that you were leaving the country as it could not be done at any other time.
2. You did not send confirmation in writing.
3. You did not arrange for mail to be forwarded to you.
4. This company sent in debt collectors without sending any reminder letters
5. You did not check the final bill to see if the prepaid line rental had been refunded and calls correctly charged for.
6. You are guessing that this disputed charge relates to the cancellation......could it not be calls outstanding
7. You canceled a direct debit before the final payment was made but made no effort to ascertain the final amount outstanding.

daveboy · 1 February 2008 at 7:46PM

terryw wrote: »

Martyn,

There is a bit of over-the top-stuff in your post i.e cancellations can only be made between 10 and 2, but have I got the following right:

1. You canceled a mobile phone contract by telephone at 7.00am on the morning that you were leaving the country as it could not be done at any other time.
2. You did not send confirmation in writing.
3. You did not arrange for mail to be forwarded to you.
4. This company sent in debt collectors without sending any reminder letters
5. You did not check the final bill to see if the prepaid line rental had been refunded and calls correctly charged for.
6. You are guessing that this disputed charge relates to the cancellation......could it not be calls outstanding
7. You canceled a direct debit before the final payment was made but made no effort to ascertain the final amount outstanding.

I Initially wrote to them and got a letter back saying I'd have to pay an early disconnection fee or something (they basically misunderstood my letter which said that I did not want to continue once my contract expires, which ended today). So I therefore phoned them on 31 December and was told it was all sorted...I did not follow that up with a letter so I think that criticism of the OP is unfair.

I wouldn't normally say this but after my experience with 3, their non-existent customer service, their non-English, reading from a script in a call centre somewhere in Asia operators, anyone who gets one over on this company will get a pat on the back from me. Add to that, numerous numbers calling my phone, that after entering them on Google turn out to be more dodgy companies that are trying to get me to have another contract....all of them linked to 3. Many people have suffered this....and it must be 3 themselves who have given them mine and other peoples numbers.

If anyone is reading this and is thinking about joining 3....some people think they are cheap....but they will give you many problems and you'll be stuck with them. It is far worth paying a little bit more and getting much better service. Cheaper isn't always better, especially with these fly-by-night cowboys.

terryw · 1 February 2008 at 10:30PM

Dave

My reply was to Martyn. I have not responded to your input. I am sorry about your problems but it might be best if we dealt with Martyn's queries first. I am asking for confirmation/clarification of HIS dealings with 3.

I have not criticised the original poster. I have asked for clarification in order to assist him if I am able. If Martyn will kindly elucidate I will do my best to assist.

Some parts of your post are difficult to understand. But the bit about dodgy companies contacting you is, believe me, not peculiar to you. Dodgy companies ring up every mobile phone user trying to arrange a new contract. It is nothing to do with 3.

poet123 · 1 February 2008 at 11:06PM

A contact at 3 head office is Brendan Paulz he was very helpful to me when I had endless trouble with their incompetent CS dept.

Money_saving_Martyn · 1 February 2008 at 11:18PM

terryw wrote: »

Martyn,

There is a bit of over-the top-stuff in your post i.e cancellations can only be made between 10 and 2, but have I got the following right:

1. You canceled a mobile phone contract by telephone at 7.00am on the morning that you were leaving the country as it could not be done at any other time.
2. You did not send confirmation in writing.
3. You did not arrange for mail to be forwarded to you.
4. This company sent in debt collectors without sending any reminder letters
5. You did not check the final bill to see if the prepaid line rental had been refunded and calls correctly charged for.
6. You are guessing that this disputed charge relates to the cancellation......could it not be calls outstanding
7. You canceled a direct debit before the final payment was made but made no effort to ascertain the final amount outstanding.

Thanks for your reply.

1. It could not have been done before, due to 3's rules and whatever. Was done on the earliest day allowed by 3, which happened to be the day we left the UK.
2. Written confirmation was not asked for by 3 as it was done straight away on their screen - "no problems". (Yes, maybe written confirmation should always be sent when dealing with contracts to be "on the safer side of things".... but sayng that wouldn't help resolve this without a time machine [Just getting in there before someone much older and wiser does!])
3. Mail is still going to the address in the UK as other family members live there. The last mail from 3 (just a normal bill) was sent to us here in Germany. Mail is forwarded to us by family members.
4. Nothing was received from 3 since the last normal bill (which was paid on time). No final demands (and none expected!)
5. Line rental was not prepaid. Last bill date was 20th October [contract also finished on this day] final payment taken on 11th or so of Nov by Direct Debit for all that was outstanding (calls, warts and all)
6. No. Call charges were less than £2 and listed on the bill, and paid by DD on 11th Nov. Phone had not been used anytime that would mean they'd need to send out another bill, nor was one sent.
7. No, the DD was cancelled after 3 had taken there last payment (i.e. They got all that they were owed... why would we cancel it before?) When dealing with the cancellation by phone, the customer "service" rep confirmed that the final payment would be on 11th Nov (and it was)

I hope this clears up those few points.

terryw · 2 February 2008 at 11:20AM

It looks as though 3 have made some slip-ups here. As a way forward, it would be a good idea to check credit record. https://www.experian.co.uk is a start as at the moment this can be done free. If there is anything wrong you have the right to put a notice of correction on the file.

Personally, I would be inclined to write to both 3 and the debt-collectors rather than phone so that you have a record. Certificates of posting etc as well.

Just make your letter factual and ask for an explanation. Avoid emotive language and having a dig just in case the thing ends up in the small claims court one day. Ask which credit reference agency they use in case it is not Experian. Let the debt collectors know that the matter is in dispute and that no letters or calls should be made until the dispute is reconciled.

It will be interesting to find out what the alleged debt is for!

Money_saving_Martyn · 2 February 2008 at 12:28PM

terryw wrote: »

It looks as though 3 have made some slip-ups here. As a way forward, it would be a good idea to check credit record. www.experian.co.uk is a start as at the moment this can be done free. If there is anything wrong you have the right to put a notice of correction on the file.

Personally, I would be inclined to write to both 3 and the debt-collectors rather than phone so that you have a record. Certificates of posting etc as well.

Just make your letter factual and ask for an explanation. Avoid emotive language and having a dig just in case the thing ends up in the small claims court one day. Ask which credit reference agency they use in case it is not Experian. Let the debt collectors know that the matter is in dispute and that no letters or calls should be made until the dispute is reconciled.

It will be interesting to find out what the alleged debt is for!

Hi, thanks for the reply.

I'm saving having a dig for here! Correspondence would be more factual and less emotive (and proof read! ooops!)

Thanks for the credit file advice.

So far, the debit colletion agency has been called, and they are refering it to 3. We've been instructed to call 3 after the weekend.

If it does get into letters and phone calls, how would we stand asking them for £££ to cover our expenses caused by their error? Why should it have cost us money to sort our their mistake? No doubt as soon as they passed the make up debt to the collection agency the price doubled through charges..... what's the going rate, £12 per letter (that banks send out!). (Obviously, I'm more concerned about getting this matter cleared up than profiting (*ahem* covering my expenses) from it but why should only companies/banks have the power to demand charges[apart from the fact you sign a contract saying you'll pay them if you don't pay on time]?)

hooptydog · 12 February 2008 at 4:51AM

hi

i am from Australia and after getting off the phone to 'three' for the past 4 hours in regards to a repair/replacement issue i have had that is "meant" to be under "warranty", i googled 'problems with three phone service' and found this thread..

My apologies for this rant but i think i need to vent as much as possible and if anything it is more of a sympathetic understanding reply rather than a helpful insightful answer. I am also involved in certain print and television media circles and believe me I am biding my time and would love nothing more than to expose and 'pull one over' this incompatant phone company.

Martyn, I feel for you as for the past few months i have had nothing but extremely bad and boarderline offensive dealings with this company.

I am right in the middle of finding a new company and about to dive head first into what you have been dealing with although I have dealt with these guys for the past few years so I feel I am ready.

The previous comments made in regards to writing to the offices are very smart as a lot of businesses these days require written letters (posted by legal mail service) in order to do most things...strange but true and also provides tangible evidence of correspondence.

Dealing with a company that has their call centre and help desk run from India hasn't helped with any of my issues either but rather intensified my resentment for this company who has a serious lack of customer service and at most times the English language.

If they put half as much attention into their customer care as they do with their marketing and sponsorship then it could almost be a decent and credible company.

An example of the ever increasing gap between the customer and company with it's overseas workers is when i rang about a problem i was having with my phone.
It took a 3hour long conversation to first confirm what phone i had and which plan i was on.
i then had to wait for a call the next day and spent another 3 and a half hours on the phone going over the exact same conversation I had the previous day.

You see 'three' upgraded my handset due to my dedicated and supportive time with them and they wanted to thank me by giving me a new phone as long as i signed on with them again for the next 12 months. I did so and even upgraded my plan to a higher paying and higher using service.

They had no record of this whatsoever. Hence the 6 and a half hours of pointless phone conversation explaining that they did in fact give me a new handset and even though i was holding it my hand and repeating the serial numbers and customer number on my phone bill back to them they still did not believe me.

Fed up with unproductive phone conversations i took my handset into a store to get fixed and speak to a 'three' representative face to face. They took my handset (which is under warranty) and sent it off to be fixed 'free of charge'.
Today (12th of Feb 2008) i recieved a txt message saying my phone was ready to be collected and promptly returned to the store to collect the handset.

They store assistants were as surprised as I was to find out that my phone was NOT there to be picked up and i had to actually call another number in order to find out where and when i could get it back.

slightly annoyed at the disruption and time wasting of my day I obtained and called the number given to me to get my phone back. For four hours I couldn't even get through as it was engaged and when it wasn't it would ring out and never be picked up. At one stage when i did get a connection and the phone started ringing i was using 2 phones rotating alternativley to keep the number ringing for a period of 12 minutes and STILL no one answered.
Disgruntled and bewildered at what was happening i called the 'three' help desk (in India) and asked them to possibly contact the phone number i had been given. That simple request of the phone number alone took around 5 minutes to express to the barely English speaking girl on the other end. Magically she was able to get through to this number and relayed a message back to me that my phone was in fact damaged some way or another that was void of warranty (it in fact was not). I had to then request to be transfered through to the number (which incidently was in the same town as i live in) so as i could get a better and clearer understanding of what was going on......

an entire morning wasted in just finding out where my handset was and that it will NOT be covered by warranty if i want it fixed when i was told it will be and that a store assistant will 'enlighten' me with my options and upgrade to a newer (and more costly ) phone.

The problems I have had with the phone that 'three' wont fix has cost me an extra $200 - $400 ($AUS) a month on my bill.

My option I will be chosing is to find a phone company that has a customer service centre based in the same country as I live in and who I can understand and they can understand me.

If you have read all of this then I thank you for listening to my rant and this is only one experiance of countless i have had with 'three'.

i feel if people you know have had issues also then please speak up because if we don't take a stand to corporate bullying then we will continue to supply them with our hard earned money and keep them in business....

Simply stop using the company and they will die out.

Ice_2 · 12 February 2008 at 6:54AM

I've been with 3 for 4 year's now and I agree there CS has gone down the hill some what in the last 12 months for me...:DI can't wait to get away from them...:mad:

Problems with 3 THREE (Mobile phone company)

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