HTC Desire Vodafone 500mb Fair Usage Policy

Vodafone

Hi Everyone,

I've just put this message on the eForum, so thought I'd pop it here too.

We are planning to introduce Out Of Bundle charging for Pay Monthly customers from 1st June 2010. The reason we're introducing these charges is to make it fairer for everyone, and to protect our network from data abuse. We're introducing a real-time notifications service to be completely transparent about these charges and keep customers in control of their spend. No Out Of Bundle charges will happen this month but they will take effect from 1st June. The messages you've received this month were sent in error and no more will be sent out from today.

The charging will be as follows:

Monthly bundle customers will pay £5 for every 500MB after the first 500MB
Customers without a monthly bundle will pay 50p for every 10MB after the first 25MB

Whilst you've all previously been used to there not being any Out Of Bundle charging, the current information available online is clear in explaining that we could introduce such charging at any time. The Vodafone Mobile Internet costs page does state:
We'll keep an eye on things and let you know your options if it looks like you'll go over your 500MB Flexi or Value Pack limit.

Our Pay Monthly Terms and Conditions already state that we reserve the right to charge for any usage beyond the Fair Usage limit:

27. All Vodafone services offered free or under unlimited subscription are subject to our Fair Use Policy. If, in the reasonable opinion of Vodafone, your use is excessive, we may ask you to moderate your usage. If, after we have asked you to moderate your usage, you fail to do so, we reserve the right to:

(a) charge you for the excessive element of your usage at your price plan's standard rate;

(b) throttle your usage; or

(c) suspend or terminate your service in accordance with your airtime terms and conditions.

So you can ignore the messages which have been sent so far, but there's the information we have on this subject.

Thanks,

Tom

Web Relations Team

Vodafone UK

P.S. TheLibertine, you have a great point about how much data people actually use. I'm going to put together some examples for you tomorrow which I'll add on the eForum. Personally, I use an iPhone and have a stack of apps on it that use the internet. I normally don't use more than about 100MB a month, leaving tons of data for video streaming and other stuff on top.

TheLibertine

One course of action that can be taken initially...but we effectively need a show of hands as to how many people are willing to engage in it because you need weight of numbers in these situations.

Firstly you can complain online to the advertising standards authority about Vodafone's current press (papers/magazines) campaign that advertises the Desire/Satio etc as having unlimited internet. With the fair usage policy now removed effectively and a 500mb cap in place this is a dubious claim and it would hurt Vodafone to not be able to print this, and may force them to revert back to the FUP so as to be able to print it again.
http://www.asa.org.uk/Complaints-and-ASA-action/How-to-complain/Online-Form.aspx

Please take the 2m it takes to register here and just post saying if you will do this.

Thanks

Jimvy

Consider it done. Thanks for making the effort to get this off the ground TheLibertine - I'm utterly hacked off at Vodafone for the underhand way they've gone about this whole business and have also contacted the CEO's office at Vodafone.

1jim

Id also posted on vodafones eforum because i had 3 different views from their staff, one said you want be charged, another said you might be charged and another said you will be charged. crystal clear?

Fifer

Reading this thread, I'm so glad I went with T-Mobile.

MattJ_2

Fifer wrote: »

Reading this thread, I'm so glad I went with T-Mobile.

And I wish I had too - esp now they have joined with Orange - the future is surely bright!

MattJ_2

An e-mail I received when renewing states the following: So if VF are now saying they will charge £5 for every 500MB, what if I only use 501MB ??? The following states I will be charged per KB and not per 500MB !!

Mobile internet and data usage
We will charge you for any data you access outside your monthly allowance at the published rates for your price plan. We charge data use by kilobyte (Kb) at our published rates in 1Kb steps. We round up the charge to the next whole penny at the end of each use. If our content control prevents you from looking at any mobile internet content, you will still have to pay a data charge at your normal price-plan rate for any data used in your attempt to see the content. If you are on an unrestricted data price plan or you have an unrestricted data bundle, you can use the mobile internet for:



a
b
c

calls over the internet;
legally sharing data files over the internet; and
giving other people access to your mobile equipment over the internet.



If you are on a restricted price plan without an unrestricted data bundle, we will:





·

block access to these services;

·

restrict network performance or

·

charge you for this use at the full published rates as set out at vodafone.co.uk.





If you want to use your mobile phone as a modem, you will need to be on one of our price plans or using a data bundle which specifically allows this. If not, you may be prevented from using your mobile phone in this way. For all our information on the cost of using data, please see vodafone.co.uk.

MattJ_2

7
a

Changing charges and terms
We may change our charges or introduce new charges. If we increase our charges, we will give you at least 14 days' notice and you may have a right to end this agreement under clause 11. If we believe any change in our charges will not disadvantage you, we may include it without telling you.



b

We can make changes to or withdraw services at any time and we can make changes to or introduce new terms to this agreement at any time. We will give you at least 30 days’ notice of these changes if we do and you may have a right to end this agreement under clause 11.





11
a

Ending this agreement
Either of us may end this agreement by giving the other 30 days’ notice in writing. Your notice must include your mobile number and the signature of the account holder. You must pay the charges during the notice period.



b

You may end this agreement by writing to us if:





·

we don’t do something fundamental that we should have done under this agreement (for example, if there is a complete failure of the network for seven days in a row due to something we have done), within seven days of you asking us in writing;

·

we tell you that there will be an increase in the line-rental charge by more than the increase in the retail price index (worked out as a percentage) since the last line-rental increase and you write to us before the increase applies;

·

we increase your charges in the UK which have the effect of increasing your total call and usage charges (based on your usage in the previous month) by more than 10% and you write to us before the increase applies; or

·

we change this agreement to your significant disadvantage including changing or withdrawing services (we will tell you if this is the case) and you write to us within one month of us telling you about the change. This does not apply if the change relates to services which you can cancel without us ending this agreement.

c_man

I've been following this thread on the Vodafone forums, via lurking, and was surprised to see Vodafone forum moderators deleting posts from their own customers, and as such am glad this thread has been created.

Great work, TheLibertine - for getting this moving in the right direction.

I think we need to get a numbered list of questions drawn up; this way, we can ensure everything is answered from the Vodafone representative.
Otherwise, [as we have already seen on the Vodafone eForum] a Vodafone rep will come along, post a very very carefully yet generically worded post to address our frustrations and conveniently disappear [I suspect to get help from their line manager!!].





Let me start, and please add to this:

1] Are current customers charged another £5 [on top of their £5 for VMI] as soon as they go over 500Mb OR when they go over 999Mb ?

2] Vodafone's terms and conditions state 1 month notice will be given if changes to tariff/plans are to be made. If these changes are effective 01/06/2010 - this leaves less than 30 days. Do Vodafone realise they are breaking the terms of their own contract?

3] Your terms state: "terms state "If, after we have asked you to moderate your usage, you fail to do so, we reserve the right to: (a) charge you for the excessive element of your usage". " According to your post, the change will apply to everyone, regardless of notice/request of moderation.

4] How do you plan on dealing with [form a legal perspective] the differentiation of the advertised 'unlimited' iPhone tariffs [apparently 1Gb] and the advertised 'unlimited' Desire/Legend tariffs [apparently 500Mb] ?


Please do add to this with 5], ...we must not give up until each and every question is clearly answered.





In the meantime, everyone should visit the following link to flag Vodafone's ridiculous behaviour to the Advertising Standards Agency:
<http://www.asa.org.uk/Complaints-and-ASA-action/How-to-complain/Online-Form.aspx&gt;

They work closely with statutory regulatory partners, such as Trading Standards, the OFT and Ofcom - this could really add weight to our views.

Power to the people!!! :cool:

MattJ_2

Posted on VF forums c_man, hope you dont mind