forced to pay a bill they cannot provide

jspritch

Does anyone know the law in relation to billing. I have had a heated discussion with the orange network today as their internet page was not working properly and therefore i could not view my bill.

i contacted them direct and was told it would take 2 weeks for me to get a paper bill.

i need to review the bill before paying as it for a £120 more than normal but they have threatened me that if i do not pay my bill within 6 days then my credit file will be affected with a late payment indicator :mad:

any advice would be really helpful

robt_2

Have you been told you won't be able to check your bill online in the future too? Why can't you just check it tomorrow?

Silk

jspritch wrote: »

Does anyone know the law in relation to billing. I have had a heated discussion with the orange network today as their internet page was not working properly and therefore i could not view my bill.

i contacted them direct and was told it would take 2 weeks for me to get a paper bill.

i need to review the bill before paying as it for a £120 more than normal but they have threatened me that if i do not pay my bill within 6 days then my credit file will be affected with a late payment indicator :mad:

any advice would be really helpful

From memory you have to be billed via durable media before any payment can be expected unless it's for standing charges you have previously agreed to such as in the case of mobile phones line rental etc.
If a bill is not going to be available for you to consult then you have every right to dispute those charges (apart from what has been previously agreed)
Probably best to offer payment for the charges you expect and offer to make payment for any outstanding as and when they are able to bill you for them

Bob_the_Saver

robt wrote: »

Have you been told you won't be able to check your bill online in the future too? Why can't you just check it tomorrow?

Or even the day after?

Silk

Bob_the_Saver wrote: »

Or even the day after?

The impression I got from the OP's post was that it would be 2 weeks before he would be able to see his bill ????
They don't seem to have told him it would be available online tomorrow or the day after.
Maybe if they had told the OP that it might not have been a concern ???

TREVORCOLMAN

Can you not call them and ask them to go through the items charged on the bill (if it takes a long time and they are paying for the call then all the better).

:rotfl:

smcaul

I believe that for a direct debit that they have to provide you with a bill at least 14 days before taking payment - otherwise they are in breach of the terms of Direct Debits.

jspritch

Hi

Thanks for all of your comments. They are unable to provide me with a date when the billing part of the website will be up and running.

My main gripe really is that they threatened to give me a late strike on my credit file even if I am unable to view it and I feel like giving them a piece of my mind as they told me that I had no rights in relation to this.

Any further legal knowledge on this matter would be really helpful

DarkConvict

Take the matter up with consumer direct, - http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/about/how-we-help/

Obviously, it would be possible to run through the bill over the phone but this could take a while.

Silk

TREVORCOLMAN wrote: »

Can you not call them and ask them to go through the items charged on the bill (if it takes a long time and they are paying for the call then all the better).

:rotfl:

Hi Trevor,
I must remember that one when the Tax Man or the Vat Man asks me where the bill is ! I could tell them to phone up the supplier and ask them to run through the bill with them :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Silk

jspritch wrote: »

Hi

Thanks for all of your comments. They are unable to provide me with a date when the billing part of the website will be up and running.

My main gripe really is that they threatened to give me a late strike on my credit file even if I am unable to view it and I feel like giving them a piece of my mind as they told me that I had no rights in relation to this.

Any further legal knowledge on this matter would be really helpful

Have they told you this in writing or email ?

If not I would suggest you contacting their accounts dept. and explaining when you able to view the bill and study the increase charges you will get back to them...pref in writing or email.

I would certainly not expect any of our customers to pay any bills unless we had sent them first