Orange contract misled

magic57

Hi

Please can anyone offer advice that I can pass on to my son?

He had an Orange Dolphin 18 month contact that was due for renewal in March 2009. He was planning to go to O2 as he though the bills were too high. In December he went into the Orange shop as his phone had broken and asked for it to be fixed under the insurance and stated that he didn't want to renew his contract.

He's just logged into his account and guess what they have renewed his contact for another 18 months! He is pretty fed up with them. He has a receipt that clearly says no change to contact but the assistant has ticked the box that says upgrade. This should have been done under the insurance but I think he was seriously misled by the assistant.

Who should he ring? Does he have any comeback do you think.

Thank you anyone who can help.

Jon_01

You need to either take it up with the shop or the exec office. The shops are run as a totally separate company to the internet side and the CS guys you talk to when you call in have no access to any retail systems and have no authority over them.
You need to call the store and talk to the manager, if that get you no where ask for the name and number of the area manager and contact him.
If that fails to get you anywhere try the exec office (I'll find email and added in a while). I 'think' that they have control over retail as well but I'll check...

magic57

Oh sorry I should have made it clear that Orange gave him a new phone that he thought was part of the insurance claim.
Thanks.

Jon_01

Did they give him the same phone as he had or a new model ?

magic57

Thanks Jon 01 I really appreciate your help. I'll pass on your advice to my son.

He says the assistants were very slick and he feels that they tricked him.

magic57

I think it was a newer model. It's a sony errikson.
Thanks

Jon_01

Humm, that might be a problem then. Any insurance only replaces like for like.
It's going to depend on what he says was said in the shop against what they say.
Did he say why they gave him a newer model ?
Did he go in and expect to get a replacement there and then ?
and, did he get the phone in store or online ?

magic57

Thanks Jon
He went into the Orange shop in Hertfordshire which was where he got the phone in the first place. He asked for a repair or replacement under the terms of his insurance. This is the reason he got the insurance after all so he could get a relacement if it went wrong. I think the phone he was given was a newer model as it was over a year old.

He says he stated clearly that he did not want to renew but I believe they tricked him. This just about confirms what he already though about Orange and is the reason he was planning to go to O2.

I think he'll try to fight it though but I think they work on commission so it is in their interest to get people to stay with them by whatever method.

Anyone going into an Orange shop I would advise them to take someone else with them as a witness. Or else stay away from Orange!

Jon_01

As long as he can get through to the right person and explain calmly and clearly what's happened he has a good chance. Yes, the retail staff work on commission and it was close to Christmas.
If he gets no where with retail he needs to contact the exec office (I WILL find the email address, sorry, I've been a bit tied up this morning...).

magic57

Thanks so much Jon I do appreciate your help.

He is planning to go abroad so there is no way he would have or can afford an 18 month contract. He was quite upset this morning and I know he has to sort this out himself I just want to give him the right advice. This website is full of such helpful people I knew that some kind soul such as yourself would have some ideas.

Thanks

dhbedson

I have just recently renewed my contract with Orange.. the guy I spoke to was really nice, and I said I was a bit sceptical, but he kept insisting that I had 7 days from the day we spoke to cancel the contract, return the phone and not have to pay anything more.

If you pop back within 7 days, you should be able to do this. Also, my OH is on Orange and has Orange Care Insurance.. she recently had problems with her phone and called them (rather than go into store) and they arranged a next day delivery of a new phone, which was a swap when the courier arrived. This was all free of charge as she's paying insurance, but was warned that if the courier arrived and nobody was in, she would be charged for the cost of the courier having to come again, which is fair enough.