Help with orange

Herbmonstar_2

My brother has contracts with orange, he has always paid bills no hassle in the past but the last dew months he has been unable to work due to illness. Basically I tried to pay his outstanding bill this evening and they said it had gone to "collection". What does this mean? They also said his phone has been disconnected? We need to phone tomorrow. I am prepared to pay to cover his outstanding debt but I know that until he returns to work he will be unable to pay his monthly charges. Will they be sympathetic and assist to say downgrade to a cheaper tariff so the contract can be reduced? Am I best paying his contract off or transferring to my name until he is back at work? He did not know he was going to be disconnected today. Will thus mean I can pay tomorrow for him?

macman

It means they have passed or sold the debt onto a debt collection agency. No, they won't accept illness as reason to downgrade or terminate early.
Unfortunately now it has gone to a DCA there will be extra charges added, plus any reconnection charges. But if he won't be able to pay the ongoing charges, there's little point in paying a reconnection charge, unless you are prepared to pay for the remainder of the contract. Buying out the contract will cost as much as seeing it to minimum term.

grumbler

Can it be a debt collection department within Orange, not an external company?

It's beyond my understanding how a person without savings and any income except a salary can get himself involved in contracts...

Herbmonstar_2

Surely if they disconnected today then it would still be in orange and not a debt collecting agency? Also if it has gone to a DCA, orange have to send a letter to say basically you gave 7 days to pay or they are sending it to a DCA? My brother has not had a letter to say this and I am prepared to pay any outstanding payments tomorrow and take on his contracts (his and his wife) until he is back on his feet which will be very soon.
Grumbler, I wish people could have another income but alas up until a couple if months ago he was working and paying, other than getting a winning lottery ticket he us a lucky one who has a job.

grumbler

Herbmonstar wrote: »

... Am I best paying his contract off or transferring to my name until he is back at work? He did not know he was going to be disconnected today. Will thus mean I can pay tomorrow for him?

That's what the T&C say:

17 assignment of Contract and change of ownership of Device
your Contract is personal to you
17.1 Your Contract is personal to you and you may not assign it. However, we may at our discretion (not to be unreasonably withheld) allow you to:
a) nominate a User other than yourself while you remain primarily liable to us under your Contract,
b) terminate your Contract on short notice if you have transferred title to your Device to a new Orange Customer who has Connected the Device to the Network.
17.2 We may assign our rights to your Contract only if such assignment is on terms which are at least as advantageous to you as those set out in your Contract.

herbmonstar

On a previous post I had said brother had got in a bit of trouble as could not pay his mobile phone bill. They had passed into onto collections on Monday and disconnected his lines. I phoned yesterday to clear the outstanding balance and brother was going to see if could reduce his plans or transfer into mine. They allowed me' to pay his outstanding bill and then they said we were lucky as a loophole meant his contracts had been stopped so we were no longer tied in! We expected to have to pay the contracts off!! Is this correct? My bruv asked them and I did? O.K it will mean my brother will probably not beable to get a contract with them again but at the moment he doesn't want to have any or any other debt or commitments as he is unable to work. I hope this is correct as don't want to be stung for outstanding contracts.

macman

How long did he have to run on his minimum term contract? Has he been reconnected? I would be more concerned as to whether they have already placed a default on his credit file.

herbmonstar

How would he know that there us a default on his record?

macman

By obtaining a copy of his credit record and checking.

grumbler

Ask Orange first which CRA(s) they report to.