Three Itemised Billing Charges (merged threads)

rev_henry

kelltic wrote: »

The impression I get from 3 and from Consumer Advice, is that they adhered to their own T&Cs by changing the price plan on their website. In the quote I posted earlier their T&Cs explicitly state that we the consumer are responsible for monitoring these online. Its a complete con, imo, but its there in their T&Cs and its this which is allowing them to refuse us cancellation. I am fuming, but have been led to believe that there isnt much to be done. :mad:

I can see that from that clause it appears that way, but in fact they state elsewhere in the t&cs that they will inform customers of any change to t&cs within 30 days of the change. The way I see it, the clauses are not contradictory. You are advised to keep up to date with possible changes on the website BUT they will tell you if there are any changes. Sounds a bit stupid really but I think we have them cornered.

jasonwatkins

i've just had another go with the call centre - i rang them and asked them to confirm if my PAC code had been sent

She read my notes and told me that the executive office had told me I couldn't cancel because the M&M price plan was always per-minute billing.

She fed me the line about the T's & C's being available online and I said to her "what about the people in this country who don't have an internet connection?". She said "well they can go into the 3 store and ask to go online to check them"

She then fed me the line that the woman from the executive office had declared that I accepted the T's & C's when I took out the M & M, and I said "I fail to see how she knows that because she wasn't there with me in the shop when I upgraded, so there's no way she could have known".

I told her that i'd been a customer with 3 for nearly 18 months prior to upgrading and if i'd been given notice of the change prior to the upgrade I would have never upgraded and I would have let me contract run out, and she didn't quite have an answer for that one so I wonder if that's an angle worth pursuing ??

If they implemented the changes last October, as they say they have done, then they should have sent out the notification in September and they didn't. Hhmmmmmmmm

Anon

studentdave wrote: »

Here's where I am.

I emailed Executive Office on the Minute Issue and was told it was already in my plan.
Offered an extra 200 minutes/text (Mix n Match)
And I Accepted!

I'm reasonably happy with that. Though I would have preferred a Cancellation I'm transferring the Contract to a friend anyway. So its a win-win situation.

Its worth a try, even if its just for more Minutes

Odd - if it was already in your plan (Mix and Match?) then why give you another 200 minutes/texts for free, unless they are on shaky ground and are buying people off (even on Mix and Match)?

Anon

rev_henry

Anon wrote: »

Odd - if it was already in your plan (Mix and Match?) then why give you another 200 minutes/texts for free, unless they are on shaky ground and are buying people off (even on Mix and Match)?

Anon

Indeed, I was thinking something like that too. I think cracks are starting to appear.
On another note, just lodged complaint with OFCOM, and I'm about to send a final letter to exec office.
For those of us who are struggling to get a deadlock letter, the (very helpful) guy at OFCOM informed me that if they refuse to send a deadlock letter, we have to wait 12 weeks, then we can just proceed to OTELO anyway. Still, 12 weeks is 3 months of bills! A long time to wait really.

jennimoo

I recieved the following after stating that as I stayed on the same price plan when I upgraded it didn't apply, and asking why I hadn't been informed:

"Thank you for your latest email, in which you queried why you were not informed of the change Terms for 3 Services, prior to receiving the letter in August 2008.
I can confirm that when an upgrade takes place, you agree to the current Terms for 3 Services and we also send a copy of the Terms for 3 Services booklet in every handset box. This booklet advises that we also publish the latest Terms for 3 Services, including an up to date Price Guide, on our website at www.three.co.uk.
In addition, when you upgrade by telephone, you are transferred to an Automated Disclaimer, which advises that you are bound by all relevant Terms for 3 Services, referring you to the booklet in your handset box and the website.
Should you require further clarification, please contact me at the Executive Office on 08707 330295. Our business hours are Monday to Friday, 9am until 6.30pm.

Thank you once again for highlighting your concerns and I trust that my explanations have clarified 3’s final position in this matter."

Any ideas what I should do next?

jasonwatkins

The more I think about this, the more I think it might be worth a try.

Look at my situation as an example.

I was a 3 customer in the final 3 months on my contract in December 07, so I would have been with 3 for 15 months prior to my upgrade date.

3, by their own admission, implemented the per-minute billing on the talk and text plan at the end of October 2007, which would have meant that it would have directly - and detrimentally - affected my billing situation for the remaining 3 months of my deal had I not upgraded.

Because I wasn't made aware of the change until now, I went ahead and upgraded to a per-minute billing plan.

So, I'm starting to wonder if I could argue that if 3 had correctly informed me of their intention to change to per-minute billing by the end of October that I would not have gone ahead and upgraded and would have given my notice to quit.

Because they sneaked in the change under the radar and only now are telling people about it, they can deny cancellation requests on Mix and Match because they can claim that by agreeing to the priceplan, you agreed to per minute billing.

What do people think ??

*EDIT : Follow Up

No luck for me on that respect because I rang three and they said that per-minute billing was introduced on my original price plan in july this year.

So for me, it won't work, but it might for other people.

It has given me an idea for my last throw of the dice though.

What i'm basically going to say to three, and this James Harkin fella in particular, is that when 3 started rolling out per minute billing this year, they should have informed their customers that this was going to be happening and would ultimately cover every priceplan.

By not telling people that their priceplan would eventually be affected and giving them the chance to quit, as per the T's & C's, they have acted fraudulently.

I know it's the longest of long shots, but at the end of the day, it's only the cost of a stamp so it might be worth it.

diamonds

jasonwatkins wrote: »

If you're on the texter plan, I can't see how they can refuse - they claim that Mix and Match was always per minute billing, but I can't see how they can claim the same with the texter plan.

There's actually someone on Digital Spy who says he was on a Mix and Match plan that he took out in July 07 and he claims to have succesfully cancelled and got his PAC code, so i've pm'ed him for more info ..

1st minute billing changed Nov 07 on MnM & 3 had loads of customers walk at that time, my dad was 6 weeks into 18 months & walked FREE with a Nokia 6120 so MnM contracts that did NOT cancel at that time or MnM contract taken after Nov are !!!!!!ed, upgrades since Nov are another matter if you were not told of the changes......

jasonwatkins

diamonds wrote: »

upgrades since Nov are another matter if you were not told of the changes......

I upgraded from video talk and text 700 to mix and match in december .. and wasn't told of any changes.

jasonwatkins

ok, this is the letter i've written to james harkin. I totally accept it is a complete punt and will probably be tossed straight in the bin but i really have nothing to lose and potentially £120 to save

i'd appreciate opinions .. cheers ..

Mobile Number : XXXXX XXXXXX
Account Number : XXXXXXXXXX

Dear Mr Harkin,

I have been advised by OTELO to contact you regarding my ongoing dispute over Three's decision to implement per-minute billing and I have attached a copy of my previous letter to Kevin Russell.

It is my contention that once Three started to roll out per-minute billing last year, you failed to adequately inform me of this company-wide decision and this put me at a distinct disadvantage.

By not informing me last year of the company's decision to introduce per-minute billing to all current and future price plans, you failed to give me adequate notice of this detrimental change to your company policy.

If I had been informed of this decision, as required by section 4.1(b) ii of your Terms and Conditions, then I would have not upgraded my contract and would have allowed it to expire in February 2008.

I accept that, as a customer of Three, I have a certain duty to be advised of the current terms and conditions of the company, but I cannot reasonably be expected to be aware of a major change in the company policy if I am unaware of it until 10 months after it has begun.

I have to rely on the honesty and professionalism of Three employees to advise me of any major changes to the terms of the price plan I was on, or the price plan I was moving to, and clearly this has not happened, which leads me to speculate if the employees themselves were even aware of the change to per-minute billing.

I must, once again, request the immediate cancellation of my Three contract and the issue of my PAC code, with no termination fee levied under section 10.1(d) of Three's terms and conditions.

If you are unwilling to comply with this request, then I must request that you inform me by return of post and issue me with a deadlock reference number. I have informed OTELO and OFCOM of this situation, and I fully intend on pursuing this matter through those channels.

Thankyou for your time.


Yours Sincerely .. yadda yadda

Anon

Does anyone realise that Three are just as likely to be reading this thread as anyone else and therefore posting the letters that you plan to send to them, combined with any earlier posts, may put you at a disadvantage in negotiations ...

Anon