Mobiles.co.uk - A cautionary tale

Silk

Yeah just found a good explanation on the AV forum ....and from 4 months ago so this has been going on for ages http://www.avforums.com/forums/mobile-phones-pdas/1005487-o2-600-mobiles-co-uk.html

Any update on this? I've taken out the O2 600 from mobiles.co.uk and am in the process of returning the phone for the following reasons.

1) As the poster indicated above, this is an O2 £25 tariff with extra minutes, not the full O2 600 tariff at a reduced price. O2 have confirmed this to me.

2) Swapping the bolt-on removes all inclusive texts. The base tariff is 600 minutes, with no texts. mobiles.co.uk rely on the bolt-on to gain the unlimited texts, swapping it removes all inclusive texts.

I had hoped to do as suggested (swap to the web bolt-on, decreasing my number of texts but gaining inclusive web use) but this appears to not be possible.

As far as I can tell, mobiles.co.uk are being less than transparent about the tariff as that is not the full £35pm tariff available from O2 directly.

Edit - An update. I called O2 for a second time and was told the same information. This is a "special" 24 month £25 contract with no inclusive texts without the bolt on. However this time the CS rep was not willing to contemplate changing the bolt on so that does seem hit and miss depending on who you talk to.

The phone is going back today.

So it looks like O2 25 is a basic £25 a month contract with 600 minutes no texts so taking off a text bolt on that you would be entitled to (1 free for any 600 min tariff ) to replace a data would mean you would lose the texts.
I think you need to get it verified by O2 in writing and then take it further because they are 2 different tariffs .
It seems you just have the O2 25 with a text bolt on which would cost £25 ...it doesn't seem to be a O2 600 with a £5 discount which explains why seems to be verified by the fact they bill you for O2 25

Littlemiss27

WychWeird wrote: »

Hi Silk - the tariff I have on my O2 bill is "O2 25 24 Month"

http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/5868/o2tariff2.jpg

You'll have to remove the space after the slashes to see the screenshot (until I lose new user status)

Not sure this will be of much interest but I am on the £35, 18month, 600mins, 500txt, foc internet bolt on (due to upgrade) tariff. A lot of third party retailers call this the O2 600 (18m) tariff but this shows on my bills as the following:

My tariff: O2 35 18 Month Contract duration: 18 months Contract renewal date: **th *** 2011
Services:
Your Family
Unlimited Web Bolt On

WychWeird

And that is exactly the point I'm trying to get across to Ben (and other thread watchers.)

My local Trading Standards claim that Ealing Trading Standards (local to Mobiles offices) have not come across this before and is therefore not an issue they would follow up.

I will see if I can get O2 to confirm the differences in tariffs - cheers

iwanttosave_2

I've already confirmed the tariff in this very thread.

The £25 is a bonus tariff, the base allowance is 600 minutes/0 SMS + 1Free of charge bolt-on (unlimited texts). The 02 600 24m is 600/500 unlimited (although if it is a new contract, all 3rd parties can only offer FOC unlim SMS, and it cannot be changed for another bolt-on, only on upgrade can it be changed).

WychWeird

iwanttosave wrote: »

The £25 is a bonus tariff, the base allowance is 600 minutes/0 SMS + 1Free of charge bolt-on (unlimited texts). The 02 600 24m is 600/500 unlimited (although if it is a new contract, all 3rd parties can only offer FOC unlim SMS, and it cannot be changed for another bolt-on, only on upgrade can it be changed).

Rep, do you make it clear on your website that on this tariff you cannot make any changes to your tariff (including changing tariff)? Also do you make it clear that unlike all other o2 tariffs, any MMS or roaming SMS are chargeable as an extra?

I don't disagree with you - I got a £25 bonus tariff; the advertising lead me to believe it was the O2 600 tariff with a discount, however. Mobiles.co.uk's information did not clearly state that MMS or roaming SMS are chargeable extras which is why I maintain the tariff I received is misrepresented. The listing of charges for data, texts, SMS, etc are the standard ones from O2 which are applied to the majority of O2 tariffs irrespective if certain aspects are included free on that tariff.

OneADay

WychWeird wrote: »

I don't disagree with you - I got a £25 bonus tariff; the advertising lead me to believe it was the O2 600 tariff with a discount, however. Mobiles.co.uk's information did not clearly state that MMS or roaming SMS are chargeable extras which is why I maintain the tariff I received is misrepresented. The listing of charges for data, texts, SMS, etc are the standard ones from O2 which are applied to the majority of O2 tariffs irrespective if certain aspects are included free on that tariff.

Personally I would not expect MMS to be part of a text bundle - although networks like o2 I think can send MMS but deduct 4 text message allowance, i..e. 1 MMS = 4 texts. As for roaming SMS, if you mean going abroad that again is not what I would expect to be free.

Think somewhere earlier in this thread you said o2 said that you lose text allowance if you put internet data bundle on? Why?

Silk

OneADay wrote: »

Think somewhere earlier in this thread you said o2 said that you lose text allowance if you put internet data bundle on? Why?

Hi Oneaday
As iwantosave posted ......

The £25 is a bonus tariff, the base allowance is 600 minutes/0 SMS + 1Free of charge bolt-on (unlimited texts).

So take off the bundle and you lose the sms

OneADay

Silk wrote: »

So take off the bundle and you lose the sms

This is a real confusing one (to me) - for me if I were to sign up to anything saying "Bonus Tariff" and mention of free bolt ons - I would assume its not the same tariff as what I might expect - then again I never bother to look at tariff names myself (just mins and text allowance).

Wychweird quote

"[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Note: The 'INFO' link included the following information relating to the unlimited texts:[/FONT]

“ [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Unlimited Texts – your free O2 bolt-on! Where and O2 tariff lists inclusive unlimited texts, please note that this is a promotional Bolt On which increases the standard number of inclusive texts on that tariff (e.g 500 on O2 600) to unlimited. Therefore further free Bolt Ons will not be available.”"

So you can't change the free bolt on or can you - why cant an internet add on be simply added on at a cost of £5 a month (if done for whole durationof contract).

And upon realising the name was different and the O2 25 Bonus tariff allows changing the free bolt on - Wychweird is trying to manipulate the argument I say to take advantage of the tariff name even though had the tariff name stayed as O2 600 (with a bolt on added on top) it would cost more. In his own words it was clear that further free bolt on will not be available.

Just pay £5 extra a month if you want any more bolt ons.
[/FONT]

WychWeird

The deal that Mobiles.co.uk offered appeared to offer the O2 600 with a £5 discount, as per the screenshot I took of it:

There is no mention that this is a "bonus tariff" and it was the 'info' link on the screenshot that provided the bolt on information.

A number of O2 tariffs restrict you to only one bolt on, the O2 600 and O2 25 24 are two such tariffs.

There was nothing mentioned in the conditions on Mobiles.co.uk's website that said I could not change the bolt on to a different one (and indeed, nothing that said I could.) My partner's conversation with O2 before we committed to the O2 600 deal (through Mobiles.co.uk) said we were able to change the bolt on although we would would have to wait 3 months, if I recall correctly.

I am not trying to manipulate the argument - the offer appeared on the Mobiles.co.uk website to be an O2 600 (£30) with £5 discount. I have got a tariff that is not an O2 600 although it is for £25.

I'm not actually trying to take advantage of the situation - I've asked that Mobiles.co.uk honour the deal that appeared to be offered and thus I signed up for or to cancel the contracts entirely (returning all monies paid, less MMS texts and internet usage). I have not cancelled the direct debits; Mobiles.co.uk is still taking my money - the phones have been turned off and not used since I discovered I was being billed for MMS; I am actually, at this time, paying for a service I didn't order and wouldn't have ordered if it had not been misrepresented.

gtaz

I would say it is mis-selling for this reason:

OP clicked the website, checked the details and saw that they get: O2 600 + 500 texts increased to unlimited using the free Promotional Bolt On.

It should have been described as O2 600 + unlimited texts, as a Bolt On increasing it to unlimited implies that removing the Bolt On (regardless of trying to change it, purely removing it only) would decrease it to 500 texts.

If the OP has O2 600 + 500 texts they would get 4 MMS taken from their inclusive texts and not paying extra. The site suggests they have O2 600 + 500 texts + unlimited texts. (Definition of a Bolt On is an addition to your tariff?)

In reality he has O2 600 + 0 Texts + Unlimited Texts Bolt On and so with no inclusive texts they have to pay for MMS. This is not how it was advertised on the site and so they have been mis-sold and can incur charges from MMS which wouldn't be the case if the OP bought what they believed they did.

Ben from Mobiles would you agree that if it was advertised that the Bolt On increases the texts from 500 to unlimited, then removing the Bolt On would decrease to 500.

You advertise it as O2 600 with a promotional Bolt On and so really without this 'promotion' you have O2 600 + 0 texts and not 500 as implied/advertised.

And everyone please stop referring to how O2 advertise the O2 600 and how mobiles.co.uk do, as it is unrelated.