Missold Phones 4 U Mobile Phone Upgrade

AndyOdish

Hi Guys,

Really hoping you can help me with your expertise on this forum.

I've been with Orange for a while and was able to upgrade last Tuesday.
My previous price plan was

900 Minutes plus 600 Mins loyalty
Unlimited Texts
Unlimited Internet (Loyalty) for £28 a month on 18 month contract.

I wasn't expecting the same deal as my average bill has dropped a lot since I had that deal.

I went into Phones 4 U in Fulham Broadway and the Manager clearly told me that speaking to Orange he was able to do me the following upgrade.

Dolphin 40 - 800 Mins Per Month with £10 Discount Totalling £25 a month with Unlimited Text and Unlimited Internet as long as I took out insurance with them which I could cancel after 3 months.

Speaking to Orange they have told me I am on 800 Mins Per Month for £35 with no Internet Package. Basically the standard normal package.

I was really clear as was the manager who sold me the upgrade that it was

- £25 a month
- 800 Mins Per Month
- Unlimited Texts
- Unlimited Internet

We even spent 10 mins discussing that it was a good deal.

Orange have told me that only Phones 4 U can sort it. The manager was off when I rang the store on Friday and he is back tomorrow. Phones 4 U Customer services basically told me that Orange made a mistake as all my loyalty offers ended when I upgraded and its my problem.

My paperwork just says 18 month handset only upgrade. No other details on there.

I'm seeing the Store Manager tomorrow but any advice on where I stand if they fail to sort out my contract would be greatly appreciated.

I feel like I have been lied to to take the contract out. There is no way I would of taken out a stock 18 month contract with Phones4 U and I was clearly misled to believe I was getting a different price plan.

Thanks

Andy

Guys_Dad

Have you not got a copy in writing of what the manager signed you up for spelling out exactly what you agreed? If not, why?

If you have got it, P4U are obliged to get you that deal otherwise the contract is void.

reehsetin

oh dear, very unfortunate that there's no info on the contract, I would put your complaint in writing to the store and copy in P4U head office and Orange saying that the contract is not what was agreed with the manager, you were mis sold etc

Did you previously have a £10 loyalty discount on your account? If so the p4u person probably saw the discount and assumed it would continue with your new deal but loyalty offers often expire after the fixed term

"I went into Phones 4 U in Fulham Broadway and the Manager clearly told me that speaking to Orange he was able to do me the following upgrade."
as far as I know dealers wouldn't negotiate with orange on the phone, they have fixed deals from Orange and they then do their own cashback etc

"Dolphin 40 - 800 Mins Per Month with £10 Discount Totalling £25 a month with Unlimited Text and Unlimited Internet as long as I took out insurance with them which I could cancel after 3 months." I don't think they can sell Orange's own insurance, they sell their own so orange wouldn't give a bleep about you taking P4U insurance!

AndyOdish

Hi Guys Dad, the paperwork just says 18 month handset only upgrade. Clearly I've made a mistake in not getting him to spell it out exactly.

I had a lot of loyalty discounts with Orange which all ended as soon as I upgraded so I can see the potential confusion. I was surprised to see the Manager speaking to Orange on the Phone but he made out he was speaking to the retentions / upgrade team at Orange who were the only people that could sort out a discount not him.

I'm seeing the store at 10 so hopefully I'll know where I stand then.

Andy

mobilejunkie

From what I've read over the years it is quite common for Phones4u sales staff to sell things which prove to be quite different from what was promised. Given that I would assume it wasn't a mistake but deliberate - and I would never sign up to anything without having it clearly in writing first. The same thing applies to companies (such as Vodafone or others purporting falsely to be them) calling with upgrade offers; again, it seems normal for that company to encourage/allow its sales people to make false promises and then deny complaints - many ending up on here, but I am sure that must be only the tip of the iceberg.

Basic lesson/warning; salesmen work mainly (and sometimes solely) on commission with companies like these. That means that if they don't sell, they don't earn - or only earn a pittance. Most of them will therefore tell/promise you anything to make a sale - and their employers generally turn a blind eye since that's how they also make money.

Caveat emptor - buyer beware - should be on every shop window and every website (and announced at the start of every sales call) in this industry. To make up for the fact that it isn't, it is up to YOU to emblazon it on your forehead lest you forget and end up joining the armies of people on here who regularly appear in very similar circumstances.

Guys_Dad

AndyOdish wrote: »

I'm seeing the store at 10 so hopefully I'll know where I stand then.

Andy

Good luck. If you hit a problem with him, take the stance that you would not have settled for a worse deal than you already had, would you?

AndyOdish

I spoke to the store today and they told it was communication error between Connections and Billings.

They spoke to Orange today and have agreed the following

Free Desire HD on 18 month
Dolphin 40 with £5 rebate and further 10% discount totalling £25 per month or £27.40 because of the VAT Rise.

800 Mins, Unlimited texts and 500mb Internet.

I have also got them to reimburse me for the data charges used so far (about £4)

I ensured I got down the extension number and name of the person at Orange as well as the store to document what was agreed so I have it in writing.

The manager claims the insurance was the reason I got the handset for free however I rang up the insurance directly and cancelled with no problems.

Looks like it has been sorted.

I'm happy with the price plan too, while not as good as my previous one I do accept that my bills have roughly been £30-£35 a month compared to £60+ before I upgraded 18 months ago hence why I wasn't expecting the same deal.

Thanks again everyone for your support with this. Sounds a bit lame but I made sure I put on my work suit, was clear, concise and made it plain that failure to resolve this would mean more more action against them and it did the trick.

Andy

reese

Thanks for the update and glad you got it sorted.

Orange_Company_Representative

Hi AndyOdish,

Unfortunately from Orange's side of things we can only set up the account with the information we are sent from the dealer. The Customer Information Form should state if there is any reductions/offers that need applying to the account. The only way this can be rectified is if P4U contact the dealer support and send across the correct details. If they are do not do this for you I would suggest you escalate this matter further through P4U.

Hope this helps,

Steve, Orange Helpers

Twitter: @OrangeHelpers
Facebook: Orange UK