O2 have refunded me twice

thewinkshow

Hi,

Looking for some advice,

Last month I decided I wanted to pay up my Iphone o2 18 month contract early in full so I could get the new Iphone 4.

I rang O2 and they said it would basically cost the £35 a month x how many months I had left - total amount was going to be £253

So I received a bill for this amount a few days later from the cancellations team, I rang up O2 on 1st of June and made this payment over the phone by debit card.

But....then on the 3rd June 2 days later O2 took this amount again from my account, the 3rd of June was my normal monthly payment date, so basically they had just taken the full amount again.

I rang up and explained the error, (which may have been part my fault and O2s, because maybe a didn't need to make the card payment)

They fully understood and said they would refund the duplicate 253 payment but it would take 7-10 working days to hit my bank.

I waited 10 days and the refund had not arrived, so I called again, I was told that there was no pending refund and the person I must have spoken to 10 days earlier didn't actually process the refund.

I was obviously a bit angry, but I was assured that it had now been done, but would take another 7-10 days to hit my bank

I waited for 7 days and decided to give them a call, just to ensure it had definitely been processed this time, and it was pending and on the way.I was told the refund was pending and would be in my account within 3 days - taking me up to the 10 days maximum.

I checked on the 10th Days and it had still not arrived, I rang again and was told that it was still pending and had only been processed on the 24th June, I told them this was strange because I first called for a refund on 2nd June, and had waited through 2 sets of 10 day refund periods, taken me up to around 22nd June - When I called the 2nd time after 7 days I was told the refund was actually pending and would just take another 3 days.

Anyway, the reason now given was that due to it being a refund they must wait 10 days after the initial direct debit, then another 10 days for the actual refund.......I explained that this was never mentioned to me, and I was assured twice it would be refunded within 10 days.

Lady on phone apolagised but said there was nothing she could do.

All I could so was wait......so it got processed on 24th June and may take 7-10 days

I checked my bank on 1st July and the refund has arrived, but they have refunded me double the actual amount - £506

My question is do I mention this to them, or do I play dumb and its there own fault?

Can there be any comebacks towards me for this?

Can they put any default on my credit file in the future if I dont tell them about it? I ask this because I am going to be applying for a mortgage in a few months and dont want this to harm my file

I had checked my credit report and it actually shows that my O2 contract account has now been settled, this got closed/settled on 2nd of june, so the account is no longer active - its just taken them nearly a month to give me the refund.

with the account now being closed, would them ever find out now?

Any ideas?

preable

Yes they can claim it back at anytime and is classed as theft if you dont pay up so best to call them and tell them

Rev

I hate that they can take the payment twice and make you wait a month for a refund. I'd call them, tell them what they've done and that their refund is pending. As above, keeping it is stealing, but I'd make them wait a month for it just as they did you. Just make sure you call the bank and cancel any o2 related direct debit.

I know it wont achieve much, and it's actually pretty petty, but it'd give me a little satisfaction.

boo_star

I wouldn't just keep quiet about it, eventually they will find out about it and they could potentially screw up your credit file over it. At a minimum I would expect them to block your account until you bring it up to date and sod's law would dictate they will find out when you can least afford to pay the lump sum.

That being said, I am confused about the offer you were given. http://shop.o2.co.uk/new-iphone/earlyupgradeoffer.html shows that it's a £20 for each month you have left, not whatever you normally pay per month. I would phone them up, tell them about the double refund and demand they rebill you at the rate their own website says you should be paying. It seems like the double refund could be a blessing in disguise

mobilejunkie

I'd definitely NOT call them. Their mistake, up to them to realise it - they cannot possibly ruin your credit file when you haven't refused to pay anything upon request. It is not theft - they would have to prove that you knew about it when they didn't! Companies treat their customers with utter disdain; why be generous to them? Be ready to repay IF and when they discover it, otherwise keep it in an account earning interest.

boo_star

mobilejunkie wrote: »

I'd definitely NOT call them. Their mistake, up to them to realise it - they cannot possibly ruin your credit file when you haven't refused to pay anything upon request. It is not theft - they would have to prove that you knew about it when they didn't! Companies treat their customers with utter disdain; why be generous to them? Be ready to repay IF and when they discover it, otherwise keep it in an account earning interest.

Is keeping it in an account really worth it with interest rates being so low vs the potential hassle (even if minor that this will create.). Even at 4% you, net a whopping £10 over a year and they'd undoubtedly find out long before that. I wouldn't be suprised if it gets picked up when you go to upgrade TBH.

I suppose it's a matter of opinion but I'd rather call them and get them to rebill at the correct rate (£20 per month as per their website) and save about £100 in the process.

parallax_20

Did you actually receive a final bill for your contract by post to confirm the cancellation request? If you cancelled shortly after the last bill was generated and DD taken. You will have to wait until the next billing cycle where they would probably pickup the double refund and generate a final payment for the outstanding amount on your account.

When I cancelled with three.co.uk recently just after my bill was produced, I still had to wait for a final bill to come through to cover the 30 days notice period for any calls made during that time and a final payment was made. I then got another invoice 2 months after cancellation to confirm my account balance was now zero and I had nothing to pay. So that was 2 invoices after my requested cancellation.

It depends on your moral standing on this. I agree with most of what mobilejunkie is saying. It was their error and if they don't spot the mistake you get to keep the money, but you must be prepared for them to debit it back if they come for it and always have the money in the account to cover this. If the DD is still setup they will automatically take it back without notifying you, without the funds in your account, it could leave you overdrawn and possible bank charges thereafter or they just write to you stating you have an unpaid balance on your O2 account. They won't blacklist you unless you decline to pay.

If you don't want the hassle, give them a call and let them take the money back. It can save you a load of grief later if it gets messy.

Personally I would always try to leave on a clean break. So everyones happy.

parallax_20

boo_star wrote: »

I wouldn't just keep quiet about it, eventually they will find out about it and they could potentially screw up your credit file over it. At a minimum I would expect them to block your account until you bring it up to date and sod's law would dictate they will find out when you can least afford to pay the lump sum.

That being said, I am confused about the offer you were given. http://shop.o2.co.uk/new-iphone/earlyupgradeoffer.html shows that it's a £20 for each month you have left, not whatever you normally pay per month. I would phone them up, tell them about the double refund and demand they rebill you at the rate their own website says you should be paying. It seems like the double refund could be a blessing in disguise

By stating OP is paying £35pm x remaining months instead of £20pm, that sort of implies they are not upgrading to iPhone4 with O2 and possibly a PAYG and SimOnly option :think:

boo_star

parallax_20 wrote: »

By stating OP is paying £35pm x remaining months instead of £20pm, that sort of implies they are not upgrading to iPhone4 with O2 and possibly a PAYG and SimOnly option :think:

But if they were buying Sim Only (the only one available at present) why bother paying off the remaining contract? May as well let it run it's course then terminate at 18 months surely?

Edit: I guess the only reason is another network, I am curious as to why the OP would waste £100 paying off early with o2 then going to another network, unless their o2 service is truly diabolical.

parallax_20

boo_star wrote: »

But if they were buying Sim Only (the only one available at present) why bother paying off the remaining contract? May as well let it run it's course then terminate at 18 months surely?

Edit: I guess the only reason is another network, I am curious as to why the OP would waste £100 paying off early with o2 then going to another network, unless their o2 service is truly diabolical.

I suspect the OP may be considering the Tesco's option. Anyway, O2 doesn't have the greatest of 3G signals and their recent changes to their data tariff to 500MB doesn't really help. Moving to Tescos doesn't quite change the signal but their overall package is difficult to beat.

I'm currently on their Simplicity plan and rarely get a decent 3G signal, mostly 2.5G Edge at best.

PaddyUK

This will be picked up on the billing system and it will automatically raise another post-termination invoice within 14 days of the refund, saying that you owe the money back. It would be easier for you just to call them and pay it back, less hassle for you, O2 and your credit file.