3 is the cheapest, but is it best

Saeed

matrix999 wrote: »

My Three contract was originally set up as an 18 month contract after noticing this I contacted Three and explained that it should be a 6 month contract.

The advisor on the phone gave me a case reference number and told me I should send a fax to the Glasgow call centre explaining the circumstances.

A few hours later received a call from Three advising that my contract was now 6 months and an apology for the error.

I've called them up today and they have confused the hell out of me. My contract start date was 20 March, so I need to give 30 days notice today to cancel (right ) at 6 months minimum term. First they said it has only been 4 months since I took out the contract, then when I said it's five March-April-May-June-July, she said ummm OK after a bit of two-and-for, then she said I don't need to give 30 days notice and that I can cancel on 20 August on the day, all I need to do is call up on 20 August. I informed her all the documentation on the website and when you call 3 CS the recorded message says you need to give 30 days notice and she still said I do not need to give 30 days notice and can cancel on 20 August, I just need to phone up! I am really confused now.... I've had a few contracts, but she totally spun my brain! I connected on 20 March, so will complete my 6 months 20 August. So I need to give 30 days from today which will take me to 20 August??

I am right or has she just zapped my logic circuits?

GunJack

Actually Saeed, 6 months from 20 March is 20 SEPTEMBER !!

If you don't believe me, get a calendar out and count it out. You should be able to give your 30 day's notice on 20 August to finish on 20 September, and I think probably that's what the CS rep meant. CDheck it out before you end up missing your notice date and service end date.....

digitaltoast

squirrelcatcher wrote: »

My wife bought a 3 phone from Luton - a Nokia (not sure which) on the £15 per month deal. Very recently, the display went dead. She took it back and the store sent it off. It was returned with a photo of an apparent water spot on the board (she doesn't know how or when it received water damage - she would tell me if she knew).
The store apprently said that because it was water damage(?), they were not contractually obliged to do anything, and she would have to wait until July when she was due for a phone upgrade. Now she is left without a mobile (with 3 young children to get to school and back). Not in my opinion a very good customer service.
To make matters worse, I have a spare mobile, but the 3 SIM is not transferrable (something you may want to consider when choosing 18 month contract).
On the other hand, I am with Virgin/Orange/anyone else who deos better at the time PAYG. I may pay a little more, but I'm not left without a phone for a month due to mysterious water damage.

VERY interesting post there - I had EXACTLY the same excuse given. So, I invested £3 in a set of Torx screwdrivers, popped the back off and guess what? On the spot allegedly marking the water spot, there was NOTHING! They then said if I wanted to challenge it, it would be 3 weeks and a £35 charge. Oh, and this is after it took me a month to persuade them that a physically broken key could NOT be fixed by taking the sim out!

digitaltoast

amar_fiaz wrote: »

I've just taken out a 300 mix and match contract (via quidco + refer a friend + promo-code) and selected the Nokia 6120 (mainly because i want to use the Skype functionality to call my folks back home, its free and i like Nokia phones!).

The picture of the Nokia 6120 has a note next to it that says "just 6 month min term". I called customer services to find out more they confirmed that on some of the older models you are allowed to cancel after 6 months and not have to pay any cancellation fees

Great post! Thanks! I have to admit, my head is starting to get done in a bit by all the different options. I spent nearly half a day going round the stores today, and in one of the Three stores, Jamjood (they all sound the same after a while) told me that this weekend, they were doing a special deal whereby it was actually only a 6 month deal, even though the contract said 18 months, I should ignore that, 'cos he'd tell them, innit? I was recording it, in case anyone wants to hear it! Sounds dodgy?

Right, I found a reasonable deal: http://threestore.three.co.uk/mixnmatchtariff.aspx?tariffid=672&mixnmatch=1
There's 2 phones to choose from on the 6 month deal - 3120 or 6120. Which to get?! And is £15/month on 6 months with 300 units a good deal?

The only thing that REALLY bugs me about three is the sneaky way they charge random texts (like those to Twitter's UK +447... number) as international, with NO warning, but OFCOM are investigating that right now, so let's hope that nonsense ends soon!

Sneezy

Handset:
Nokia 6120c
Most commonly used location:

Manchester, Rochdale, Bury, Oldham

Ease and reliability and connection:

good signal most of the time.

Any other problems:

Had a problem with access to the internet which took me 6 wks to sort
out, after too many hours on the phone (they gave me a £5 goodwill credit for time it took to sort AFTER i threatened breach of contract - it worked) - will be staying though as they have the cheapest deals (and in Oldham there is a specialist repair centre which is who i used in March)

Overall service and rating (out of 10):
6.5

Paulee

I have three contracts with 3 and have been with them for several years, their service is good and I am a fan HOWEVER.......

I recently renewed two contracts and took out the newer Mix&Match tarriffs. These are very good in as much as you can choose to use allowance how you please, spending on either texts or voice calls. The major difference, that is not clearly evident until the first bill arrives, is that calls are now charged by the minute up to the first minute used and thereafter by the second. This may not sound much, but if you make a call and say it goes to voicemail and you cancel, it will log a fews seconds use. Because it has connected this will show as one minute on your bill. Believe me, it doesn't take long to use up your monthly allowance; my daughters phone bill for the first months use totalled 210 minutes/texts (actual use total) but she had overspent by £3.21 due to the rounding up system!

When abroad the story gets MUCH, MUCH worse..... She is now spending her summer working in British Columbia and exactly the same problem has occurred BUT the international rates charged mean that the resulting bill is HUGE. With texts costing 25p each and voice calls at £1.20 - £2.40/minute her latest bill is a whopping £67.05!!!!!!

3 is very good and it is still very competetively priced, but it's beginning to get more expensive in quite a stealthy way - beware!

imagia

I've yet to encounter any real service from 3, the online shop in particular. I was waiting for 2 and a half weeks for a phone to come that I ordered, and the reps kept on telling me that it would be delivered "tomorrow". A few hours after this I would always get a "delivery postponed" email, and after going through this cycle 3 or 4 times I just cancelled the order.

If they'd just been straight with me and said "we don't expect to have it in stock for a few weeks," I'd have a much higher opinion of them. In the end play.com won my business, and delivered the phone I wanted in 24 hours!

I wonder, is it any easier to actually get hold of a phone from the high street stores??

gromituk

@Paulee: Good point, but I believe it's just repeating the sneaky wheeze of the other networks.

iseethestrals

I have been very pleased with 3. Their signal is much better than any network I have previously been on and their sister networks is a great idea specially in NI when roaming in Irealand cost no extra.
Its great that I can use my phone as a modem and do not have to purchase a broadband modem device seperately.
The plan I am on is 10quid cheaper than equivalent on Orange or o2

Paulee

Thanks gromituk. I've also posted this on the holiday and travel forum and got a reply saying that she should be using a local sim card. It's a sign of me getting old that I completely forgot to suggest this to her, even though she would need to get her phone unlocked!