HELP West Coast Mobile Co. Not letting us cancel within the cooling off period

jasper27

I need urgent help please!

Basically my daughter's with O2 and her contract was up for renewal. While out shopping she was approached by an independant company in the local shopping centre who talked her into taking a contract out with them, providing her with an HTC phone.

They told her she had a 14 day 'cooling off period' and that if she wasn't satisfied she could return the phone, which she did to be told they would order her a different phone, a Sony Ericsson Arc which would be delivered within the 14 day period.

My daughter decided she didn't want to stay with this company and decided to cancel the contract. We went to do this today ( 5 days before the cooling off period expires) and to cut a long story short we have spent FOUR HOURS in town today trying to cancel it.

We were told the original salesman was the only one who could cancel it and they would email him to do this. When i asked what would happen if the original salesman had left I was told by the salesman 'I could do it but why should i waste 2 hours of my time doing so!'

They asked for the phone back and said they would email O2 to say it had been returned and that the contract had been cancelled.

We went into O2 shop and explained this, hoping to take out a new contract with O2. They said there was no way that company could have sent the email to O2 in those circumstances.

The O2 rep came back with us to see the West Coast Salesman and basically ( after much abuse and sheer rudeness to all of us ) he said a cancellation email will be sent within 24 hrs.

The O2 rep phoned HTC and complained and they are looking into it as this salesman is representing their company.... Badly!
The O2 rep aslo rang the West Coast Mobile head office and made a complaint but it sounds like they weren't interested.

My concerns are :

1) We have no receipt to say we handed the phone back (although i approached a security guard in the shopping centre to complain about the salesman and he said it was being watched on the CCTV cameras)

2) We only have 2 days to get this sorted and they are dragging their feet and keep fobbing us off and saying things have been done when they clearly haven't ( the emails ).

3) After the 14 day cooling off period, if things are not resolved, could my daughter end up with a contract and no phone?

We are going back tomorrow as I very much doubt the email will have been sent, and quite frankly I am not looking forward to confronting this salesman or another one to be given the same amount of abuse.

My daughter is a young mother, who had her children with her and today she was in tears. This company have verbally battered her.

What can we do?

OneADay

There is a cooling off period for purchases in store in the high street.
Was it a renwal or new contract - a renewal / upgrade would have no cancellation rights.

Saying all of that - given the hassle you have had (be it your fault or the retailers fault), it might be best if they let you cancel.
You really should have got a receipt if you handed the phone back.

Best thing I can think of is get some proper advice from Consumer Direct / Trading Standards.

Number is 08454 04 05 06 from here http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Dl1/Directories/UsefulContactsByCategory/Governmentcitizensandrightscontacts/DG_195948

Call them before going back to the shop.

grumbler

OneADay wrote: »

There is a cooling off period for purchases in store in the high street

It's up to the retailer's internal policy. The law says nothing about this.

jasper27

Thanks OneADay.

It was a renewal, my daughter has been with O2 for quite a few years and this contract was to renew and provide a new phone whilst staying with O2 and the original number ( she still has her sim card )

Also they took her card details originally and took a token 1p from her account, should she cancel the Direct Debit? Her concern is she will be without any air time all over the weekend if she does this, but I'm concerned they may try and take money from her account.

I have got the number for our local Trading Standards office, so can call in and see them tomorrow, but I'm conscious that we only have a short period of time left to resolve this and the turnaround time of corresspondence could hinder this.

This has worn us down today and I've just spoken to my daughter and she's been in tears again. I feel so angry yet helpless.

grumbler

jasper27 wrote: »

Also they took her card details originally and took a token 1p from her account, should she cancel the Direct Debit?

What DD? How was she paying for the contract that she renewed? 1p was taken without any DD. Also, cancelling a DD without having everything sorted out is the shortest way to ruined credit history.

OneADay

Don't cancel the direct debit yet - there should be nothing to renew.

Given you have handed the phone back already, the deal should be cancelled but agagin, get definitive advice from Trading Standards and take that advice with you to the shop. Don't force an argument yourself, just get confirmation that the upgrade is being cancelled. If there is a problem still, quote the fact that you have been in touch with trading standards but don't say that right away, just makes things worse.

There was a similar case on here a few days/weeks ago - consumer entered an upgrade, had trouble returning phone. But in meantime contacted the network who made an upgrade offer which consumer took. In affect voiding the upgrade through retailer.

You might want to contact the network and explain the hassle you are having, they may listen.

jasper27

grumbler wrote: »

What DD? How was she paying for the contract that she renewed? 1p was taken without any DD. Also, cancelling a DD without having everything sorted out is the shortest way to ruined credit history.

Her original contract with O2 is on DD and the new contract with this other company was to be using the O2 contract.. I'm not really sure of the facts, will clarify with my daughter in the morning.

jasper27

OneADay wrote: »

Don't cancel the direct debit yet - there should be nothing to renew.

Given you have handed the phone back already, the deal should be cancelled but agagin, get definitive advice from Trading Standards and take that advice with you to the shop. Don't force an argument yourself, just get confirmation that the upgrade is being cancelled. If there is a problem still, quote the fact that you have been in touch with trading standards but don't say that right away, just makes things worse.

There was a similar case on here a few days/weeks ago - consumer entered an upgrade, had trouble returning phone. But in meantime contacted the network who made an upgrade offer which consumer took. In affect voiding the upgrade through retailer.

You might want to contact the network and explain the hassle you are having, they may listen.

O2 said they can't give her a new contract until this one is cancelled, so there shouldn't be a problem like the other consumer had.

Which network do you mean? We have be in touch with O2 who are being very helpful ..and also the apparent 'owner' of West Coast Mobile has spoken to my daughter and the O2 rep on the phone, basically saying this email to cancel has been sent, this was at approx 3pm this afternoon and as I type at 9.30pm no such email has yet been received.

I will contact Trading Standards in the morning before we go back into town.

I think the salesperson or alternative salesperson is going to be very unhelpful again though.

OneADay

jasper27 wrote: »

Which network do you mean? We have be in touch with O2 who are being very helpful ..and also the apparent 'owner' of West Coast Mobile has spoken to my daughter and the O2 rep on the phone, basically saying this email to cancel has been sent, this was at approx 3pm this afternoon and as I type at 9.30pm no such email has yet been received.

The case I mentioned was with Orange I think from memory.

Just keep calm, no point worrying yourself. Trading standards will be on your side but it ought to sort itself out. They may have sent email to cancel to O2 maybe?

But in any case, your best course of action is taking some advice from trading standards - so you are making a record in case there is a problem. Also contact O2 again before going back to the retailer. Maybe O2 have got confirmation - maybe try to get O2 to get involved, never know.

And then head back and be calm - just ask for confirmation of cancellation.

I have never heard of West Coast Mobile Co., if there is a web site for them, then check that to lodge some complaint if it allows it - but worry about that after doing the above.

Guys_Dad

grumbler wrote: »

It's up to the retailer's internal policy. The law says nothing about this.

It does. See here http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/Consumerrights/Yourconsumerrightswhenbuyinggoodsandservices/DG_195147

Your cancellation rights
You usually get seven working days to cancel your order if you buy your phone or sign up to a new contract:
by mail order
by phone
online
But if you activate the SIM card, you usually lose this right to cancel.
If there is nothing wrong with a phone you bought in a shop, you have no legal right to return it. Some shops may let you return the phone if you provide the proof of purchase that the shop wants, eg a receipt and the box. Check the shop’s returns policy before you buy.

I would be a bit worried if they have the phone back and you have nothing in writing recording either their returns policy or a receipt for the returned handset.

Hopefully things will sort themselves out, but don't get caught again.

jasper27

OneADay wrote: »

The case I mentioned was with Orange I think from memory.

Just keep calm, no point worrying yourself. Trading standards will be on your side but it ought to sort itself out. They may have sent email to cancel to O2 maybe?

But in any case, your best course of action is taking some advice from trading standards - so you are making a record in case there is a problem. Also contact O2 again before going back to the retailer. Maybe O2 have got confirmation - maybe try to get O2 to get involved, never know.

And then head back and be calm - just ask for confirmation of cancellation.

I have never heard of West Coast Mobile Co., if there is a web site for them, then check that to lodge some complaint if it allows it - but worry about that after doing the above.

O2 are being very helpful ..the rep actually taped some of the conversation and this has been sent to HTC on request.

West Coast rep told us the email would be sent to O2 with my daughter's email copied in.

This is the West Coast website,

http://www.westcoast.co.uk/index.php?SesId=201108252142414106813&FirstVis=1

although this is only the IT site, they did launch into Mobiles this year

http://www.mobiletoday.co.uk/Dealer_News/11391/Westcoast_makes_move_into_mobile.aspx