huge bill due to text service

pixiesgirl

Please help!
I took out an orange contract in my name for my 16 yr old son after assurances from the salesman that he would not be able to go over his limit.

In one month, a bill of over £1200 was run up as he stupidly subscribed to a text service.

I am now being chased by debt collectors even though I am paying £40 month to clear the bill (apparently that is not enough). They cant have money I havent got!!!!

Wot do I do? I have contacted Orange and the text service but they didnt want to know.

gjchester

pixiesgirl wrote: »

Please help!
I took out an orange contract in my name for my 16 yr old son after assurances from the salesman that he would not be able to go over his limit.

In one month, a bill of over £1200 was run up as he stupidly subscribed to a text service.

I am now being chased by debt collectors even though I am paying £40 month to clear the bill (apparently that is not enough). They cant have money I havent got!!!!

Wot do I do? I have contacted Orange and the text service but they didnt want to know.

Unfortunatly you are liable for the cost, as the contract is in your name although if it was a month of texts thats £40 a day. Given that £1.50 is the highest they can charge a text that seems a lot of texts.

Was it just one company? You may want to take that up with PhonePayPlus who regulate the market, try them on 0800 500 212 or www.phonepayplus.org.uk

Jon_01

There is a maximum (or there used to be) that they could charge in a day. I can't remember what it was now, but I used to work on the same floor as the team that police these things.

There is a complaints process and people at Orange that will look at this for you.
They're one of those 'none customer facing' dept. You need to get on to CS, if you get someone that doesn't understand what you're asking for ask for their team leader and tell them you want it passing the dept that monitor premium rate text's (they should be able to find the info on the intranet system they have access to).

Good luck.

wantmemoney

gjchester wrote:

Unfortunatly you are liable for the cost, as the contract is in your name

at least get some background before making such a sweeping unhelpful statement

gjchester wrote:

Was it just one company? You may want to take that up with PhonePayPlus who regulate the market, try them on 0800 500 212 or https://www.phonepayplus.org.uk

grumbler

wantmemoney wrote: »

at least get some background before making such a sweeping unhelpful statement

Maybe unhelpful indeed, but certainly doesn't require any background.

wantmemoney

grumbler wrote:

Originally Posted by wantmemoney
at least get some background before making such a sweeping unhelpful statement

Maybe unhelpful indeed, but certainly doesn't require any background.

I suggest all you 'experts' that continually give the same advice about who is 'liable' first go and try to understand the difference between a contract agreement to supply a service and a retail agreement with a third party seller.

baconbuttieman

if it was my son,i would make him pay it him self, get a job and pay it off

jsnar5

Hi Pixiegirl
The phone that you took out for your 16year old son is, unfortunately your responsibility as it is in your name because he is under 18.
I would suggest firstly you call Orange and ask to speak to the billing department. They can give you a break down of the bill, they can tell you the numbers called and if they are short code numbers they can give you the names of the services and alternative contact numbers and email address but in the mean time you need to text each of the short codes (the 5 digit number of the service) with 'STOP ALL'. I would then suggest you ask billing about the capped amount for contacting these numbers. You can also try contacting the companies concerned to see if they are willing to refund any of the cost (I have to admit that is a long shot, but worth a try as I have seen it work)
You say that the account is with a debt collection agency (the Collection department can tell you which one your account is with and their contact details). If that is the case then you need to call them and come to an agreement of how you can clear it. The DCA's are usually able to accept lower amounts being paid off at a time than the Orange Collections department but they tend to be much tougher on you as their view is that you have already had time whilst the account was still being dealt with in house by Orange to come to an agreement and clear the debt. If you explain that you need more time they are in the best position to help you. Unfortunately this is likely to show on your credit file. Please don't be tempted to ignore it as although things in time may go quiet as far as chasing you for the debt, Orange will start again when you least expect it and it could stop you getting any further credit.

Good luck, I hope you get some resolution on this

gjchester

wantmemoney wrote: »

I suggest all you 'experts' that continually give the same advice about who is 'liable' first go and try to understand the difference between a contract agreement to supply a service and a retail agreement with a third party seller.

It may not be what the OP wants to hear but the OP took the contract out and said her son subscribed to a text service. Theres no doubt that the son subscribed sher said so in her post and as mum took the contract out theres no doubt who's liable foir the bill.

This is no different to say a credit card by taking on the contract the OP agrees to pay all valid charges.

Note I said *valid* because the cost seems high for a months service, hence my suggestion to find out if it's one service or more, it's possible but unlikley the son subscribed to 30 different services and each one has just charged £1.50 a day.

It's possible that the service has not followed Phonepayplus guideleins and the op can get a refund, but that doesn't change the fact the OP will be liable, has to pay the bill and then try and get it back from the text company.

wantmemoney

gjchester wrote:

and as mum took the contract out theres no doubt who's liable foir the bill.

A phone contract and a 'bill' for a third party premium rate service are two completely separate things

gjchester wrote:

This is no different to say a credit card by taking on the contract the OP agrees to pay all valid charges

again a phone and a credit card are completely different things governed by completely different consumer laws.

@gjchester you continue to talk complete and utter nonsense.

to be honest it's because of type of person phone companies employ and the fact that I don't want any unscrupulous phone company or premium rate crook any where near my bank account that I don't have a 'normal' phone contract.

OneADay

wantmemoney - what actually is the problem you have with other people's opinions.

The contract is in the mum's name and she is liable for all charges???? What is the problem you have with this concept?

gjchester makes good contributions on here usually with some sound knowledge on legal terms. And "Jon 01" works for Orange (think I have read somewhere). So what is it that you find is complete and utter nonsense?