Debt collection letter - in dispute with Vodafone, what to do for best?

DVet2015

Seems Vodafone does this a lot.

I was a Lieutenant in the Armed Forces and posted abroad. Vodafone at the time therefore didn't suit my international move and as I was past the end of my contract I emailed and posted a letter stating I would like my account cancelled and a PAC code to keep my number. I moved abroad, gave it a month or so then turned the phone off and cancelled the direct debit, sending another letter stating I wanted the account cancelled. I received no PAC code and had to change numbers. Post this point I did not provided a forwarding address and Vodafone were aware of my international move.

After no contact from Vodafone for months I then received a made up amount (account rolled on) via my original address. I wrote another letter saying that was incorrect, no reply again. Long story short, I then tried to get a brand new car and my credit history had been adversely affected by an unpaid debt from Vodafone. I called Vodafone and stated again that it was incorrect and I had cancelled my account, with proof of postage. Clearly nothing changed as after a gap of six months I received a letter on Christmas Eve stating I was being transferred to a debt collector.

Customer services and the supposed CEO department have been useless, repeatedly saying that whilst they received my letter asking for cancellation of my account, because I didn't use my PAC code (not received) they didn't cancel my account as requested (numerous times) and continued to charge me.

In summary, the treatment I have received from Vodafone has been appalling. Despite numerous requests Vodafone has failed to act as it should. I find it astonishing that Vodafone feels they can treat anyone, including a loyal customer and a member of HM Forces this way. I will be contacting the Obudsman, with both my evidence and that found here/elsewhere to demonstrate the repeated same issue with Vodafone. I will also seek compensation for my time unless this matter is resolved swiftly. I have emailed your department using the link here as I can see you have resolved some issues on this forum and I sincerely hope you will act to resolve this case as well as others who have found themselves in a similar position.

Regards,

Danielle

sourcrates

It's not just vodaphone that have useless customer service, you wanna try EE (orange) they are horrendous to deal with, good luck with your complaint !!

FarhanaH123

Hi all, just saw this and had to reply. I renewed my contract with vodafone late december 2015 with the cancellations team who offered me a great deal I couldn't pass up! I got he phone had it a few days and it overheated and stopped working. I posted this back in the envelope vodafone provided within the cooling off and was advised a replacement would be sent. Not only was this not sent when they said it was (tracking number didn't work turned out the phone hadnt even been collected by the courier) when it arrived I called vodafone about the bill amount which was showing up on the app. I agreed to £25 per month the bill was £42! They said thats what I had agreed to but eventually said they could listen to the recordings to check. I asked what would happen if they didn't find them or if they didn't get back to me until after the cooling off period. They advised they couldn't do anything. So to be safe I cancelled. I had it confirmed from 5 people that I was definitely within my cooling off (I was paranoid and wanted to be sure as they keep telling me one thing then changing the goal posts) I sent back the phone they received it, I called them to be sure all was okay checked again about cooling off and was told all was fine. This was January (took a while for me to get that postage bag they told me to wait for) anyway in february I notice the sim is still running it was now in an old phone so I called and they said they hadnt disconnected and had it done that day. Now im thinking all is fine except its NOT!! N.B Before I cancelled I coincidentally had a call to say that yes they could offer it to me for £25 that they listened to the calls but to be honest even though it was an amazing deal I didn't have faith in vodafone to live up to it and so cancelled anyway. They actually still owed me money for overcharging me but because I just wanted to wash my hands of the whole ordeal I let it go and cut my losses

In may I get a letter to say I owe them around £800! I called up obviously concerned to be told its an early cancellation charge I disputed this was passed around a few departments it was confirmed that it was an error on their end. I was told itnwpuld be sorted not to worry. I called back a few days later (as advised) and was assured it was done.

June I get another letter. Same thing again.

July I get a final notice letter I called up again was advised it would be sorted and escalated to a manager not to worry that it wont affect my credit rating and if it does they will send a letter to confirm the error.

Now it is August. I got an email today from a credit agency I called them and guess what vodafone STILL havent rectified the situation. I spoke to one lady in the india call centre who was unhelpful and told me she couldn't do anything refused to read the notes.

Called again got a man who seemed helpful in egypt call centre he said it wasnt his department Who dealt with it transferred me to someone in cancellation who also fobbed me off.

Then I tried again, I got a helpful lady in egypt she read the notes said she would
Help that she was going to escalate the issue to the credit department and said she would call me
Back in the next 3 hours. I spoke to her at 10 this morning its now almost 6pm!!

I am freaking out iv never been in this situation before I just want to cry, I just want someone to fiz this and actually do it instead of saying it and them letting it get worse. Please help!

Vodafone

Hi FarhanaH123,

So we can help you with this issue, please email us via the Contact us form here.

To access the form you'll need to enter the code WRT135.

As well as stating your query in the question box, please also quote "MSE Forum".

Once sent, you'll receive an automated reply with a reference number. Post it on here and we'll check we've received it.

Thanks,

Nathan

Social Media Operations

Vodafone UK

katethekiwi

I have just arrived home from holiday and received a letter from a debt collection agency over a final bill after having closed my account in August 2015. I thought this had been sorted as I have a transcript from a web chat that assures me that the account has been closed and also a letter from the Director of Customer operations. No one seems to want to help. They also took money from myaccount without my authority. Thankfully the bank reversed this charge immediately. Any tips on what to do next please?

Vodafone

Hi katethekiwi,

So we can look into this issue for you, please email us via the Contact us form here.

To access the form you'll need to enter the code WRT135.

As well as stating your query in the question box, please also quote "MSE Forum".

Once sent, you'll receive an automated reply with a reference number. Post it on here and we'll check we've received it.

Thanks,

Nathan

Social Media Operations

Vodafone UK

Karonher

[QUOTE=

What does this all mean? Where have Vodafone got my address from?[/QUOTE]

Is it your name or just your address?

I had the same yesterday but this was Rossendales regarding council tax - only this was my address and someone else's name. I phoned them and after a bit of an argument - them saying we needed to prove we owned the house - he came back and apologised by saying it was their mistake. As the council are dealing with it as well I am hoping that is the end of it but will feel better when and if they reply to the email I sent asking for confirmation.

There is another road with the same name in the neighbouring authority and the debt is owed to that authority so I am assuming they just picked the wrong one. It could be the same for you.

Rffht

My partner cancelled her contract with Vodafone 2 years ago. We were assured that it was all tied up just as it should be and were even advised that she was owed a refund due to an over payment. However, this refund did not show up. However, at this point, two years on, we do not care about the refund. We just want vodafone to sort this mess out.

My girlfriend continued to receive e-mails for a few months saying that she owed money as the phone was still in use, despite the fact we were told everything was cancelled.

We called Vodaphone again and were asked for her mobile number to bring up her account. When given the old number they said they could not locate anything as the number was not in use anymore. The adviser on the phone said this was a sure sign that it was cancelled. After searching the system with a different reference number they could see that everything had been cancelled and that we would receive any more e-mails.

After this the e-mails did stop. However, she has now been e-mailed by a debt collection company saying that she owes money to their client, Vodafone. So we called Vodafone and I spoke on her behalf, as this matter has really stressed her out, and she is pregnant, and nobody should have to go through the hell of a giant company's customer service phone network in that condition. Of course, we got bounced around many different departments, all very unwilling to take on what should be a simple task and passing us on the the next person.

They advised me again that the number no longer existed and that yes, the contract was clearly cancelled. When asked if they could contact the debt collection company to advise them that there was no debt to be collected they said 'of course'! When asked if we could get a copy of that correspondence or at least a document that said it was cancelled we were told 'no problem'. We are still to receive any formal ackowledgement of cancellation despite many assurances. We have now received another e-mail from the debt collector demanding payment.

Vodafone, this is not a fair way for customers to be treated and it would seem like it is a rather common issue. We would really appreciate this matter being resolved and concrete evidence provided of the resolution. We really don't care about the refund, we just want a resolution.

Thanks,

James

Vodafone

Hi James,

Thanks for making me aware of this.

So I can look into this for your partner, ask her to email me via the form here.

To access the form she'll need to enter the code WRT135.

As well as stating her query in the question box, she'll also need to quote "MSE Forum".

Once sent, she'll receive an automated reply with a reference number. Post it on here and I'll check I've received it.

Kind regards,

Lee

Vodafone Social Media

Rffht

Hi Lee,

Thank you for your response and apologies for the delay in responding.

Unfortunately we are unable to complete the form as we do not have a valid UK mobile number. We no longer live in the UK.

What would be the best course of action for us to take?

Regards,

James