Vodafone - 14 month battle

Up_the_reds

Update,

Well I thought I would update all those that have advised so far.

I wrote to Guy Laurence, but unfortunately he is removed from a team of people who keep complaints such as mine away from him.

I received a call from a guy called Dan from the Directors office this morning. Brilliant I thought at last we seem to be getting someone who will listen.

Wrong, Dan just called to say as one of the managers has deadlocked it, and he cannot do anything. He has said he will speak to one of his superiors and call me tomorrow but I now don't think they will do anything about it and hope I go away.

They have confirmed that I never used the card. I had it as a free gift and never signed any agreement to use it, or a verbal agreement for that matter. It would appear that buying a laptop and accepting the free gift constitutes an agreement. Vodafone say they then linked it to my mobile at the time. Why was this not terminated then when I cancelled my mobile phone?

I again reiterated to Dan the device had no SIM card, they tell me that this is not possible???????? I asked how then criminals are able to clone card details and hack your personal details but supposedly cannot run up mobile bills in your name?

I am disgusted, really disgusted by the treatment of Vodafone and they are just bullying me into submission, as they think I will go away.

One thing today has done has given me the resolve not to give up on this. I am going to get Guy Laurences personal address details form companies house as well as other executive board members and either write to them or knock on the doors of their homes and to request a meeting to discuss this appalling situation with me. That way he will not be shielded from my complaint.

I am going to post my account on every single forum I can and will take legal advice now as they just seem to think they can treat people like this.

I received no default letter either, which I have been told i 'should have received in may' I have had one letter from Vodafone in 14 months! and that is the deadlock letter.

Besides Martin Lewis's programme can anyone suggest other consumer programmes or avenues I can highlight my case too. Also would anyone be able to recommend a legal professional that would look at my case?

I have to say this site is excellent and I really appreciate all the help and assistance you have all offered.

Chris

daggy

Watchdog? Local paper? Local MP maybe?

It's just typical corporate ignorance, wouldn't necessarily say it's unique to vodafone... most mobile operators are total !!!!s nowadays... surely they must see that they simply don't have a leg to stand on?

Couldn't they find the IP addy of the person who used the card? This would obviously prove that it wasn't you?

OneADay

daggy wrote: »

Couldn't they find the IP addy of the person who used the card? This would obviously prove that it wasn't you?

IP addresses changes frequently - and you cannot track down anyone by that method unless its static ip.

Responsibility lies with customer imho.

Up_the_reds

They seem to accept that I have never used it, they just think someone has and that I should pay. I am sure they could trace the person via the data that was used on the card but its easier to bully me into paying for it. At no point have they given me the chance to go to court to discuss this case.

OnaAday, if I had signed up for this thing and been using it, then negligently lost it or sold it with the sim in then yeah, I would have paid the invoice in a heartbeat.

Tell me, if you received a free mobile phone, never used it and four years later sold it. Are you then liable for the equipment and how its used???

OneADay

Four years on, the particular mobile would have been cancelled by me and confirmed or if it was a pay and go one it would have been de-activated. And to make doubly sure I would have confirmed and destroyed the sim.

If you had lost, you would report it lost and not get charged for any usage made from the point you reported it lost.

Data cards/dongles seem to be different cattle of fish to mobiles. There is no way they would keep a history of what was accessed (simply for privacy reasons) and there is no way of concluding who was responsible. Its impossible.

daggy

OneADay wrote: »

IP addresses changes frequently - and you cannot track down anyone by that method unless its static ip.

Responsibility lies with customer imho.

I'd assume they could still track where it was used somehow, depending on when it was last used.

Up_the_reds

OneADay wrote: »

Four years on, the particular mobile would have been cancelled by me and confirmed or if it was a pay and go one it would have been de-activated. And to make doubly sure I would have confirmed and destroyed the sim.

If you had lost, you would report it lost and not get charged for any usage made from the point you reported it lost.

Data cards/dongles seem to be different cattle of fish to mobiles. There is no way they would keep a history of what was accessed (simply for privacy reasons) and there is no way of concluding who was responsible. Its impossible.

How would you cancel something you you didn't have an agreement for? something you had never signed or verbally agreed. But had simply received free with a laptop and never taken out of the box except to have a look at it. Without a sim card in it or and agreement and with it being four years since it had been given to me. I imagined it was safe to do so. For the record the mobile number had been cancelled by me. Vodafone appear to take the stance when it suits that because it was paired with my mobile contract that that it is my liability. Except when I question why in that case was it not cancelled with my phone in 2007 when I wrote cancelling the agreement for the phone they supposedly paired it with, they don't have an answer. Double standards totally. Every part of this case is flawed.

Thanks for your opinion OneAday, much appreciated.

Up_the_reds

Well, I have to say I am very shocked.

I received a call from Vodafone this evening, from a very helpful and professional woman by the name of Amy Cope. After speaking to Dan in the directors office earlier I had all but given up hope of getting a result without legal actions.

Amy is from the web team and is a colleague of Lee. I would like to take the opportunity to say a huge thank you to Amy and additionally Lee.

In 14 months Amy is the first person to actually listen to what i had to say instead of talking over me and treating me like something they have trodden in.

Whilst Amy and I still have differing opinions about the responsibility and the liability. Amy has said that she is going to remove the default and close the case based on the human element rather than an admission of wrong doing.

I am hugely relieved to get this resolved, and am extremely grateful to both Lee and Amy, and also to all of you who offered advice and the MSE Forum.

Thanks very much


Chris

Tony5101

Congratulations Chris, and well done to Amy too.

daggy

:j Top notch that is.
Obviously they didn't admit fault, even though it's obviously their fault, but still a good resolution.

Now go have a :beer: