Select Calls [TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM]

TheEstateAgent1963

I fell for it unfortunately, everything I've read on here is true. The lies I was told and the way I have been treated is sickening. I did read the small print and amended my term to 12 months, I was mislead re Early Termination Fees and have had numerous business contacts call them and recieve the same misleading information! I compalined in writing, this was not acknowledged, I have now taken my case to CISAS but unfortunately they don't appear to appreciate the gravity of the situation. The cap everything off, I recieved an invoice yesterday from Select Calls for over £19,500, and I am at my wits end, I'm petrified and don't know what to do next. HELP!!!!

Savabundle

mej555 wrote: »

6. Payment terms: Section N: To achieve the fifty percent line rental reduction an upfront payment is required to cover the first year's line rental, after the first year the line rental reverts to the standard fifteen percent discount. **This is tucked in right at the end of the Payment Terms section and I almost missed it. I am certain I was not told that the cost would rise.

Interesting to read that the 50% rental reduction rate is only for ONE year. My recollection from the call I had yesterday was fixed at £99 rental per year paid up front each year, and the reduced call rates, call diversion etc were also fixed...... for the 5 year period! This part of the call came towards the end when he realised he was losing me and was also the first mention of the agreement being five years!

Their website states 'rates are capped for 5 years and will never go up for 60 months' so quite alarming that some who have actually signed up received paperwork saying the rental was fixed only for one year. This was not mentioned in the telephone conversation and is very misleading indeed.

I wouldn't be pushed and told them I wanted to do some research on their company before making a decision so they are calling me back later this week. Armed with information on this thread, it will be interesting to see what answers I get.

It is very unlikely that I would sign up with anyone for 5 years, not even BT, but at least BT charges are transparent even if they are not the cheapest.

I look forward to their call, but I won't be switching!

peterthehack

Thanks, that is really helpful. Their approach is very similar to one I nearly went for a couple of years ago - even the details of 5-year contracts etc.
Later I read that that particular company was threatened with closure by the regulator, although this was later rescinded. There are suggestions that automatic renewal might become illegal.
When you look at the T&Cs of some of these outfits you can see they are not intended to be read: huge screeds printed in tiny light grey type (not black). So well done, mej555!

mej555 wrote: »

Further to the previous posts on this subject I thought it was worth adding my experience of Select Calls to this thread in case it helps anybody else.

They rang me yesterday and [TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM] I was offered a 50% discount on line rental, with massively cut call costs and 60 month contract, which seemed too good to refuse.

I agreed to go ahead with it, after a fifteen minute conversation, which I realised afterwards was quite intense, with a very friendly woman. After ending the call I received a second call from another friendly woman on their accounts team, which I was told was being recorded to form a verbal contract. They took my bank details to set up a direct debit. As I have read elsewhere there was a lot of noise in the call centre, a lot of raised voices, and it sounded like rather a pressured environment.

On reflection after this was all done, I felt uncomfortable, that I might have been slightly hustled into agreeing. I also found myself wondering what the catch was, as I believe in the adage that if something's too good to be true it probably is. I also found myself feeling slightly embarrassed, that I had fallen for something I should have stayed well clear of. I was grateful to know that I had a seven day cooling off period, and fully expected to need to use it.

Anyway, that was yesterday, and the contract arrived in today's post. While reading carefully through the Ts&Cs on the back [TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM] I found a few items which justified my doubtful feelings.

Tariff: You will be charged for line rental and calls at the rates shown in our tariff guide (please contact us for our full price list). [TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM]

4. Duration: This agreement will have the duration specified on the confirmation call, which was included with your confirmation letter and will be automatically renewed at the end of the period unless and until either of us gives the other written notice of termination at least 42 days before the relevant anniversary. The minimum period is the first sixty months of the service after the seven day cooling off period from point of sale with Select Calls Ltd. The contract will continue for the minimum period and shall automatically renew for periods of sixty months on the expiry of the minimum period. **[TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM] I have a six week window in five years time to tell them I want to cancel, or I'm locked into a new contract?

6. Payment terms: Section L: If you wish to end your contract during the minimum period, you will be charged your monthly line rental and average bill amount in advance up to the end of your contractual agreement date or a minimum disconnection fee of £199. The customer will also forfeit any service charges or line rentals paid in advance. **This kind of thing may perhaps be standard, I don't know, but it sounds expensive to me.

6. Payment terms: Section N: To achieve the fifty percent line rental reduction an upfront payment is required to cover the first year's line rental, after the first year the line rental reverts to the standard fifteen percent discount. **This is tucked in right at the end of the Payment Terms section and I almost missed it. I am certain I was not told that the cost would rise.

10. Suspension of service: We may suspend the service without being liable to compensate you: (e) If we reasonably believe that you will fail to pay any amount due to us (whether or not we have issued you an invoice). **What? So they can cut off [TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM] my business, our telephone lines, if they think we're not going to pay a future bill? That sounds utterly crazy to me.

Anyway, so needless to say I rang Select Calls today and explained firmly that after reading the Ts&Cs, I wished to cancel. I was passed through to a honey-voiced call centre operative who did actually cancel the account, but who naturally was concerned that I was unhappy with them. When I explained I was unhappy with a sixty month contract and that the line rental went up after one year. He asked if I would stay with them if he arranged a two year contract with the 50% discounted line rental for both years. He couldn’t believe it when I said I just wasn’t interested and couldn’t put the phone down quickly enough.

[TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM] I am very happy and relieved to have cancelled the contract with Select during the cooling off period and would not recommend them as I have not enjoyed their selling methods. I would rather pay more to BT for their perfectly okay service, as I have for many years.

Ainsley11

Hi everyone,
I have just 'signed' up (verbal agreement) with Select Calls and now wish I hadn't as I've entered into a SIXTY MONTH contract, without actually being aware of it.
Apparently the phonecall was recorded and they always state that it's for 60 months. ( I do not remember being told this at all)
BT are threatening to charge me a termination fee for cancelling my contract with them early and Select Calls say this isn't a problem as they will deal with the charges, so I've got to get onto them to pay it now.
I too am embarrassed at being talked into something from a cold call, I usually say no thank you and hang up but these people virtually bully you into it.
When I thought it through and phoned them (SC) back to cancel within the cooling off period I was kind of bullied into staying, and in not so many words told that I would be an idiot not to stay as my line rental will be virtually half the price of that BT so I have now gone past the cooling off period and am stuck with them. When I tried again to cancel outside of the cooling off period I was told I would be charged more than £1000 cancellation fee.
I have just spoken to OFCOM who told me I have no choice in the matter now my line has gone live with SC, and they are within their rights to charge a cancellation fee as I have signed up, and a verbal agreement is just as good as a signed agreement.

I haven't heard much about this company, I can't believe I was talked into ending my contract with BT as I was perfectly happy with their service and I'm now thinking whoops what have I done, although they could be great and really true to their word in saving me money but I am thinking there must be a catch and why am I so stupid as to agreeing to things I haven't even checked out first!

OFCOM advised me to get a copy of the recorded phoenecall from SC where I was supposedly told of the 60 month agreement so I will be doing this but anyone could easily 'doctor' a recorded phonecall if they needed to and who's to say they haven't told me it's a 60 week contract and then changed the word 'week' to 'month' on the recording????!!! Eeeek

hessy

I worked for this company, it was awful! I only stayed for about a week to 10 days, easily the worst job I have ever had. It is very high pressured and sometimes humiliating if you do not make a sale. I would tell anybody thinking of switching your phone line service to select calls...

DO NOT DO IT, STAY WELL AWAY!

As people have said on here, it is too good to be true.

Herongull

Never ever sign up to anything if cold called.

My view is that if they use cold callers, they are dodgy. Any legitimate company that has a good product will be able got customers from adverts and word of mouth.

Cold callers harass ordinary people. Don't encourage them!

Cherry12

hessy wrote: »

I worked for this company, it was awful! I only stayed for about a week to 10 days, easily the worst job I have ever had. It is very high pressured and sometimes humiliating if you do not make a sale. I would tell anybody thinking of switching your phone line service to select calls...

DO NOT DO IT, STAY WELL AWAY!

As people have said on here, it is too good to be true.

Jus[FONT=&quot]t ou[FONT=&quot]t of in[FONT=&quot]teres[FONT=&quot]t did [FONT=&quot]they pay you for your shor[FONT=&quot]t [FONT=&quot]time [FONT=&quot]there? I worked for 5/6 days as well and have go[FONT=&quot]t abou[FONT=&quot]t half [FONT=&quot]the money owed [FONT=&quot]to me so far, am s[FONT=&quot]till figh[FONT=&quot]ting for [FONT=&quot]the res[FONT=&quot]t. Would be in[FONT=&quot]teres[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]ted [FONT=&quot][/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]to hear how o[FONT=&quot]ther ex 'employees' go[FONT=&quot]t on.[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

MrCranky

Ainsley11 wrote: »

Apparently the phonecall was recorded and they always state that it's for 60 months. ( I do not remember being told this at all)

I've just been through this process with Select Calls, called yesterday, agreed tentatively, and now cancelled once the T&Cs came through today. Perhaps you had the same experience I did where they stated in the sales call that the discounted rate was 'locked in' for 60 months, but made no mention of a minimum contract period or of cancellation terms in any way. Just saying the words "60 months" several times isn't the same as stating that the minimum contract period is for 60 months, at least in my eyes.

To summarise the misleading claims made in the sales call:

• Seller insisted that no financial agreement was being made at this point, and that I wouldn't be committed financially until I signed the Direct Debit mandate and sent it back. Lie: the T&Cs posted through made it clear that by agreeing on the recorded call, I'd already committed.
• Seller insisted that even though I spend less than £1 per quarter, I still somehow qualified for the 50% off line rental rate.
• Seller instructed to tell me to state on the second confirmation call that I intended to spend at least £15 per month (i.e. lie), so that I would qualify for the 50% discount instead of just a 15% on BT's standard quarterly rate. When I pointed out that this wasn't going to be the case, he insisted that I would still qualify. I pointed out I was uncomfortable with this, and he insisted that by saying so I wasn't committing to spend such an amount, but that discount would still apply, and they just needed to "hear the words."
• Seller recommended that if I ever wanted to switch away from Select Calls, that I should call them to see about negotiating a different deal; implying that leaving the contract was possible and/or normal. Misleading: T&Cs are clear that cancelling early means you get charged all your remaining bills at once (not just line rental but also the average cost of your bills to date), and a cancellation fee of £200.
• When I pointed out that I was tentatively happy with the rate but that I would need to see all the details before I would confirm, seller insisted that was fine and that I could make sure I was happy with the T&Cs before proceeding. Lie: the transfer was going to proceed regardless, and I'd have to actively cancel the arrangement.

Furthermore, when I phoned to cancel the arrangement, the person handling it pretended to be surprised that I'd been signed up for the 'full 60 months', stating that it was the 'longest contract period they do', and had the cheek to ask me why I 'hadn't asked for a shorter contract period on the original call,' implying it was my fault. The 60 month period is written in the small print in the T&Cs, which in turn are printed in hard to read grey text on the back of every page of their stationery - implying that it's not a contract option, but their standard length of service.

Then the operator said "so you didn't intend to go through with it at all then?" to which I pointed out that I had specifically stated that my proceeding was dependant on the exact T&Cs, that I'd said as much to the seller on the original call, and had been assured that my confirmation would be required before proceeding.

So with my big list of reasons why I wasn't happy with the misleading sales call I instructed them to cancel, after a couple of attempts to haggle over details in an attempt to dissuade me they agreed. They did however refuse to provide written confirmation that the agreement has been cancelled, so I will be following up with BT if a transfer of service is arranged.

Mylo2013

We are currently in dispute with Select Calls, we too are arguing that their VC which eventually they emailed to me (which I later found out to mean Verbal Contract) was edited. The member of staff going through the terms appeared to be speaking as fast as she possibly coulde, a couple of times she asked my husband if he understood what she had said, not wanting to appear to sound like an idiot he said yes. We then had a conversation about the length of contract. He checked with me that the contract was 60 months, at first thinking she had said 6 months. I confirmed that we did not want a 60 month contract. Thinking that was the end of it and getting on with our very busy lives I then received a Direct Debit confirmation in the post which I promptly cancelled with my bank. We were then contacted by Select Calls and were told that we were in a 60 month contract and they promptly suspended one of our two phone lines. We then had to agree to provide our credit card details as the phone line they suspended was the line that we use for our B & B business. They took £119 from the card, no receipt nothing. In my opinion, this company do not want you to understand their terms of business because if you did you would never engage in a phone conversation with them in the first place. I dont know why we did, we don't normally respond to cold calling but we had recently had some problems with BT over our Broadband which wasnt even included in the package afterall. We rang BT and asked to move back to them as soon as we realised what had happened. We are being asked "as a gesture of goodwill" for £948.00 instead of £7,745.33!! Clearly I am disputing this.

Mylo2013

TheEstateAgent1963 wrote: »

I fell for it unfortunately, everything I've read on here is true. The lies I was told and the way I have been treated is sickening. I did read the small print and amended my term to 12 months, I was mislead re Early Termination Fees and have had numerous business contacts call them and recieve the same misleading information! I compalined in writing, this was not acknowledged, I have now taken my case to CISAS but unfortunately they don't appear to appreciate the gravity of the situation. The cap everything off, I recieved an invoice yesterday from Select Calls for over £19,500, and I am at my wits end, I'm petrified and don't know what to do next. HELP!!!!

How have you got on. Have you managed to find any help?