?Mis-sold Orange Home package

HappyChickDiva

Hi - I wonder if someone can help with my query. I wasn't sure whether to post this message here in the 'Home Phone' section or if it should have gone in 'Consumer Rights' (or indeed in one of the other telecom-related sections) - my sincere apologies if it is in the wrong place - and also for the long length of the post.

I called Orange on 9th March and verbally agreed to pay £60 per month for an all-inclusive plan covering an iPhone mobile, home phone line rental and broadband, on a 24-month contract. (I was already an existing Orange mobile customer but this was a new contract for an upgraded mobile phone plus additional services). The iPhone arrived by next day delivery and I was told to expect a phone call or text from Orange in the next few days confirming when the broadband and phoneline would be taken over from my current providers.

However, my problem is that I am being charged an extra £8 per month for this package i.e. a total of £68 per month. This extra £8 charge has been taken as a separate direct debit from my account (which I do not believe I authorised) and it was not immediately clear what this charge was for.

However, on 9th March I was sent an email from the Orange Broadband team containing an attachment - the 'orange retail home broadband customer agreement' - which I was asked to check and confirm my agreement by signing and dating the form. I read the agreement and I was a little puzzled by the following lines and therefore I did not sign or date the agreement:

'You are taking Home Max at £8.00 a month for 18 months as part of your pay monthly mobile contract. You will keep the discounted broadband price for as long as you have an eligible pay monthly mobile package.'

There was no other clarification for this charge, and I made the assumption that it was either an error that could be easily rectified or perhaps I would be charged for each of the three components of the package deal separately (mobile, home phone line rental and broadband) but in total they would amount to £60 per month. I did not sign or date this agreement, but perhaps I should have contacted Orange immediately for clarification. However, as I was on an overseas holiday from 16th March until Easter weekend, and the agreement stated that it could take up to 20 days for the switch to be made from my current provider to Orange, I planned to contact Orange for clarification on my return from holiday if it later appeared to be an additional charge, which it did.

After discussions with Orange Customer Services (CS) on Thursday 8th April, it appears that as I do not live in an Orange Broadband Network area, Orange has to pay a line rental to BT in order to supply my services, therefore, they pass on this cost to their customers. At no time during the phone call with Orange CS on the day I agreed to the contract (9th March) was I informed that this £60 all-inclusive offer was only available if you live in a an Orange Broadband Network area, otherwise it would cost £68 per month, and I had not come across this charge in the terms and conditions (which are only available through the Orange website and it is quite difficult to determine which sections are relevant to you as they cover all of their products and services). I am certainly not happy to be charged more than I believe I had agreed to and so I feel I have been mis-sold the product. I was wondering what my rights were regarding this.

My home phone line had been provided by the Post Office on their ‘no minimum term’ contract prior to being taken over by Orange, so I have never been under contract to BT, and I live in a well-populated area of a major city so would not expect to have problems with supply of telecom services. The Orange £60 all-inclusive package offer is still available on their website, and I note that it does now state that the package is "£68 if you do not live in an Orange Broadband Network area", however, I have a printout of the offer as I first saw it at the beginning of February which does NOT include this line (with date of print and web address on bottom of page).

As I was not informed of the additional cost when I agreed to the £60 per month contract, and it was not obvious from their website advert at the time I took out the contract that there may be extra charges, am I able to argue that they have mis-sold me the product and either refuse to pay the additional charges or mutually agree to dissolve the contract at no additional cost? I would certainly not have taken this contract at £68 per month as there are far less expensive and more suitable deals (for my needs) available, but at £60 per month the offer was attractive as it avoided the need to port my mobile number from one provider to another. I have always been very careful about smallprint and I would have immediately questioned further any mention of possible additional charges during the phonecall had it arisen, so I am absolutely certain that it had not. I am sure that if the phonecall has been recorded that it will reflect my recollections.

On 8th April, I initially spoke to a member of the mobile Customer Services team who felt this was a problem for the broadband team and so I was transferred across. The person I spoke to did explain that some customers were charged an additional £8 because the line was owned by BT and thus this charge was levied by BT and beyond the control of Orange. I was unhappy with this response as I had not been under contract with BT and, as far as I was aware, my contract with the Post Office ended as soon as Orange took over the line. I can understand why Orange would want to pass on this charge to its customers but I had not been informed of this additional charge when I took out the contract on 9th March and I certainly had not agreed to it, so I feel I was mis-sold the product. I asked to speak to a manager, who could look into this case further. I took the manager’s full name for my records but she was not able to waive the charges and eventually she transferred me to an Escalation Manager.

At first, the Escalation Manager did not believe the £60 all-inclusive offer was genuine and informed me he would need to investigate the whole issue further and promised to call me back later in the day or the following day. I took his name in case I did not hear from him, however, I am pleased to say he did call me back later that same day and the number he called from came up on my phone so I have made a note of it. He felt this problem could not be easily resolved as the charges were set by BT, however, he agreed to put my call through to the Disconnections team as he appreciated that I had not been informed about the additional charges by the sales team at the time of agreeing to the contract. I then spoke to a member of the Disconnections team who informed me that she would need to email a manager, as only managers were authorised to disconnect or alter a contract. I was told to expect a callback from a manager within the next 10 minutes. I have still not received a callback.

I am aware of my options in terms of the complaints procedure from reading other posts on similar complaints-related issues, and from Orange’s own internet code of practice, but initially I was hoping someone might be able to clarify for me whether I may have a case for mis-selling against Orange in order for me to decide how to put my case forward to the complaints team or to contact the disconnections team again to insist on cancellation if they will not waive the fees. If I do not have the right to contest these charges and, thus, if I am tied to this £68 per month contract for the next 24 months, I will make a complaint and see if Orange is willing to offer some other deductions or perhaps include their insurance without charge which would go some way towards healing the wound.

Many thanks for your help.

Ella

Rufus_348

Woah... Really long post.

You seem to be handling it pretty well so far - continue to complain since you've been sold an LLU (unbundled exchange) broadband deal but are only receiving a BT Wholesale non-LUU product.

Orange should have made this clear (and under OFCOM's vol code of practice given you an estimated line speed too) but they tend to be pretty flakey with explaining this sort of thing so the odds are probably stacked against you a bit - keep complaining, as you say they might take some money off as a goodwill gesture.

Good luck!

HappyChickDiva

Thanks Rufus - that's really useful info and I appreciate the reassurance encouragement - I will keep trying :-)
E
PS really sorry it was so long - just started typing and it all just poured out!