Faulty mobile phone - no returns!

smoot

Hi,
I was wondering if anyone could help me with regards to what I’m entitled to.
18 months ago, I started a new phone contract with t-mobile. I was already with them and they told me my contract would be exactly the same as what I was already on, but with “web n’ walk” also. It wasn’t until my bill came that I realised it wasn’t exactly the same as my previous contract as I was now charged for accessing my voicemail. When I called them about it, they said that “free voicemail is really a thing of the past”, and I had voicemail removed from my account. The phone they provided also didn’t work properly. When I called them about it, they redirected me to a tmobile shop who sent me to a sony Ericson repair shop. I took the phone to this shop twice, and still had problems. I said to t-mobile that the problem had been worse, and since it had been faulty since I bought it, “couldn’t they just take it back and replace it”. They said no, so I had to send the phone back to them to be repaired, and it’s come back even worse. I phoned them so many times about my faulty phone and poor mobile broadband service. They said I could never get a replacement phone, and that I couldn’t leave until my 18 month contract was finished. It’s just about to finish now, much to my relief, but I’m looking for a new contract now and don’t want to be stuck in the same position with a faulty phone that doesn’t work and locked in a contract. How can I avoid this in future, and is there any way I can claim back from t-mobile?

PNPSUKNET

As you have given them several chances, you need to formaly reject the phone in writting stating that it is in breach of the sales of goods act as it is not for the purpose sold. If you get no joy contact consumer direct

ABH_3

smoot wrote: »

Hi,
I was wondering if anyone could help me with regards to what I’m entitled to.
18 months ago, I started a new phone contract with t-mobile. I was already with them and they told me my contract would be exactly the same as what I was already on, but with “web n’ walk” also. It wasn’t until my bill came that I realised it wasn’t exactly the same as my previous contract as I was now charged for accessing my voicemail. When I called them about it, they said that “free voicemail is really a thing of the past”, and I had voicemail removed from my account. The phone they provided also didn’t work properly. When I called them about it, they redirected me to a tmobile shop who sent me to a sony Ericson repair shop. I took the phone to this shop twice, and still had problems. I said to t-mobile that the problem had been worse, and since it had been faulty since I bought it, “couldn’t they just take it back and replace it”. They said no, so I had to send the phone back to them to be repaired, and it’s come back even worse. I phoned them so many times about my faulty phone and poor mobile broadband service. They said I could never get a replacement phone, and that I couldn’t leave until my 18 month contract was finished. It’s just about to finish now, much to my relief, but I’m looking for a new contract now and don’t want to be stuck in the same position with a faulty phone that doesn’t work and locked in a contract. How can I avoid this in future, and is there any way I can claim back from t-mobile?

The problem you'll have here is proving how you've 'suffered' and in which way the behaviour of T-Mobile will have cost you something. That is to say if a series of calls was to secure a contract, and the parties needed to leave you urgent messages but you couldn't retrieve them ontime, then it could have cost you a contract for instance. Then that would be something you could prove 'cost you a loss', otherwise no.

So unless you've kept a long diary of how you've suffered with the phone and how T-Mobile have not lived upto their side of the contract, you're better off putting this down to a bad experience and avoiding T-Mobile for your next contract, likewise Sony Erickson.

Now regards your new contract, as soon as you've accepted that means USED the phone on the contract, you're deemed to have accepted the terms and conditions. As such it's in your interest to try the phone for a couple of days and should ANYTHING be wrong with it, then simply send it back to the supplier under the DSR (Distance Selling Regulations) this assumes of course you purchase it online. If you get past the first 7 days you have a further 7 days after which you're deemed to have accepted both the phone and the contract.

HTH

Tozer

ABH wrote: »

Now regards your new contract, as soon as you've accepted that means USED the phone on the contract, you're deemed to have accepted the terms and conditions. As such it's in your interest to try the phone for a couple of days and should ANYTHING be wrong with it, then simply send it back to the supplier under the DSR (Distance Selling Regulations) this assumes of course you purchase it online. If you get past the first 7 days you have a further 7 days after which you're deemed to have accepted both the phone and the contract.

HTH

The phone is faulty apparently. DSR is irrelevant in these circumstances.

ABH_3

Tozer wrote: »

The phone is faulty apparently. DSR is irrelevant in these circumstances.

You'll need to read the OP's post to settle you're own curiosity, but here's how it goes:

Broken phone, part of old contract coming to its natural conclusion. Too late for T-Mobile to care whether it works or not.

DSR would apply to NEW contract, that's why I put 'Now regards your new contract', at the start of the sentence . As I suspected that the OP may not be entirely sure of her rights. Of course she could spend money needlessly and assert her rights using SOGA to a phone repair on her OLD contract, but seeing as she's just about to leave the company behind due to bad signal where she uses her phone the majority of the time, I doubt T-Mobile will be too bothered to be honest so it will be money spent needlessly.

So DSR would be applicable to her NEW contract\phone as it would mean she's not trapped by not knowing, or understanding she can reject the new phone\contract upto any point in the first 7 days, after which she's deemed to have accepted the phone, or the contract, but she's also got 14 days to accept the contract and seeing as the contract would be greater value she would in effect have 14 days to find the phone to her liking. As if she didn't she could reject the phone and the contract.

HTH

DCFC79

ABH wrote: »

So unless you've kept a long diary of how you've suffered with the phone and how T-Mobile have not lived upto their side of the contract, you're better off putting this down to a bad experience and avoiding T-Mobile for your next contract, likewise Sony Erickson.

theres nothing wrong with sony ericsson phones, im on my third now and no problems at all,

ABH_3

DCFC79 wrote: »

theres nothing wrong with sony ericsson phones, im on my third now and no problems at all,

There's something wrong here, first Tozer incorrectly assumes that I've mentioned the DSR in relation to a past event, when it's plainly evident should they have read it that I mentioned it in the context of a forthcoming event.

Now you pop up needlessly defending Sony Ericsson phones. It's the OP whose having issues with her phone, maybe someone somewhere cursed her, that everytime she picks up a Sony Ericsson phone she's going to have problems, therefore she's better off with Nokia, Iphone, HTC it matters not what phones we prefer. But it may matter to the OP which phone she prefers to use in future.

Yes, I too can testify to the build quality of them, I've a fully working T39 in the draw too and just for good measure there's a Nokia 3210, 3310 and a Bosch 509e in there too. So for us, some phones have no problems for others maybe they do. But all of this is of no consequence to the OP though is it. If she can't get any reception where she's located due to the brand of phone she's using having a hidden aerial for instance which means calls drop for no reason as its not sensitive enough or is covered completely when you put the phone to your ear\head or whatever other feature causes them a problem.

HTH