My ISP "upgraded" me needlessly

Hannibanal

Without seeing transcriptions of everything that was said, obviously it's not really possible to say for sure.

But their so-called "mistake" could quite possibly be just another selling ploy to get you into another contract.
So you need to bear that in mind.

If you're thinking of staying with them, then presumably you want them to acknowledge that it was their mistake, that you are not on any new contract and are free to leave at any time (ask for a MAC) without any penalty.

That needs to be agreed there and then, while you are on the phone,

So you obviously need the name of the person you are talking to,
I would also ask for an email to be sent to yourself stating their error and your current status and stay on the phone until that arrives.
Also i would ask that they write to your account address stating the above and including an apology.

Being fobbed off with any of the above, then i would immediately ask for a MAC (NOT CANCEL account)
Ask if there will be any charges, find out what the charges are for and if you think they are unreasonable, then tell them why you think that.
You need to have all your facts ready and prepared if you intend to convince them you were misled into the contract.


The measures above may sound a bit extreme, but it looks like they've been fobbing you off to string out the cooling-off period of some contract you may have agreed to, and you've allowed them to do that.

So now is the time to sort it out properly, not just accepting wishy-washy worthless guarantees

Good luck! let us know how you get on.



btw, the MAC is the code that allows you to 'migrate' your 'phone line to another broadband provider smoothly, free of charge.


http://ask.ofcom.org.uk/help/internet-service/MAC

Lavender13

Experienced similar . I contacted consumer direct , they were very helpful and explained the legal side and consumer rights .If a contract's T & C is changed without notifying you then there is a breach of the terms of the contract, making it null and void. Collect as much written evidence that you can and if you write, record deliver the letter. Hope it is resolved soon.

MrsTinks

OK.... I would start with a phone call (make notes - because you will tell them you are going to confirm in writing everything you have discussed with them by recorded mail and also make sure you get their name and if possible direct line or at least their line managers name. Agents might not give you their full name - but they SHOULD give you their line managers...) and tell them that you want your MAC code as you want to take up service with another ISP. Explain the reasons WHY you are leaving their service (mis-selling by forcing you into a contract by knowingly providing you with false information about the service you currently purchase) and that you would like a full transcript of the conversation or the original recording as you intend to make a full complaint to OFCOM regarding their behaviour and underhand tactics... (BTW THIS is Ofcom - if they have any sense they will let you go without any complaints...) Make sure you tell them that due to their mis-selling you do not accept the "new" contract term and will NOT pay any possible exit fees or penalties.

Confirm what you have told them in writing and feel free to send a copy to OFCOM and make sure that you let them know this has been sent to OFCOM...

Best of luck

BuzzandWoody

contacted them earlier after having spoken to consumer direct (thanks for that!)

despite initially being what i felt to be a little hostile to my points, he came back and i guess the lady who set this up initially must have read the email i sent her - complete with original contract - because they were very apologetic, offered to reduce my payments by a few more quid etc.

politely refused and insisted on my MAC address and also got the chaps name - despite him saying "there is no contract" and that there wouldn't be any charges for cancelling, it's good to have info should anything silly arise at a later date.

it seems i was on a "wrong database", hence the phonecall. that wrong database just cost them a longtime customer! (to be fair, i've never had a problem or issue with their broadband which has been rock solid for me).

thanks for your help, everyone.

Ihatecameron

this is where it gets tricky: because nobody at their end resolved this, i imagine i'm now past the "7 day cooloff" and the new terms say i'm locked into 18 months.

Not so if you were duped into it. I have got out of contracts in the past once I realised I had been lied to. You can have a bit of fun with them in the meantime, ask for the recording of the call where you allegedly said you agreed to the new T&C's. The one where they lied to you about your bandwidth.

Hannibanal

Thanks for the update and Well Done! Excellent result.

I suspect they were 'trying it on'; I had a call from them a year or so ago concerning my old email addresses i had with them.
They wanted me to fork out a yearly fee to keep them 'live. I politely declined and allowed them to be deleted, but the point i'm making is they do appear to look at areas where they can generate other income.

If you read Ofcom's rules in that link i posted earlier, it tells you that they have 5 working days to issue you with the MAC code, also, not mentioned, but it is valid (has to be used by) for 30 days.
So best not to leave it too late, if you are going to use it, best to use it within 2 to 3 weeks.
If you decide not to use the MAC then nothing happens, things stay the same, with the present provider.
So just because you have a MAC, you aren't forced to use it.

Also if you are intending to leave them be sure to read their terms to see if they require separate notice of you intending to move.
For most ISPs, just asking for the MAC is sufficient to give notice, but it's possible they may require you to give a separate (30 days?) notice by email or whatever.
If you don't comply with their terms then they may try to charge you for a further month.

I won't get involved in suggesting possible alternative ISPs, but just to say that your first port of call is to go to the SamKnows website and input your exchange name and see what options they offer, pay particular attention to what LLU offerings you may have.

http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange_search

Worth taking a look to see what's available before finally deciding on moving or staying,
Either way, Good luck with that.

abandonded

Three months on and they are still at it! Checking my April statement online, I noticed that my line rental had gone up by about £2.00 and also that my Talk 300 package had gone up from £1.00 to £4.99. Phoned billing who told me that the actual cost of my contract had gone up because of the recent VAT increase and that the extra costs would be credited. Next day I received an 'Order Confirmation' tying me in for an extra 6 months on a new contract. Phoned to complain about the 'new contract' and a stroppy guy said that the person who had dealt with me would have made the terms very clear and that he would phone back within 30 minutes. He did not. I e-mailed back stating that I a) wanted my original contract to continue and b) advising them that I had sent details of my complaint to both Ofcom and Otele. Reply today confirmed that original contract was still in place. It would appear therefore, that on this occasion, I have not lost out. I didn't lose out last October either when they tried the same thing.

The real question is, why do they do it? Going by my own experiences and the experiences of others I've read about on forums like this one,it would appear, that time after time after time, Supanet keeps moving the goalposts. It would also appear that Ofcom and Otele are powerless to do anything about it!

steveE2

The real question is, why do they do it?

No.The real question is, why are you still with them?