Orange Data Charge - Please Help!?!

NFH

gjchester wrote: »

Tethering possbily could and the Iphone would have been taking power from the PC.

I didn't use tethering at all. It was phantom billing without a doubt.

ruggedtoast

Orange are coining it with this data scam. As a company they can charge what they want, but under ofcom's guidelines as a telecom provider, then their charges should be fair and proportionate. Orange's out of bundle data charges are neither.

When I declined to upgrade to a smart phone with them it was due to this. After being confidently (and inaccurately)told by numerous sales people that 500mb was "huge" and "enormous" and actually being told it was "impossible" to go over that, I called back and just demanded they tell me in plain english what the charges were.

65p a megabyte, we have no way of stopping you going over or of warning you if you are, the guy said sheepishly. I told them not to bother.

gjchester

NFH wrote: »

I didn't use tethering at all. It was phantom billing without a doubt.

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply you did but you said that the phone could not do that much data without running flat.

Tethering would keep the phone charged and could allow that much data to be used, and something like iPlayer or any other download service could easily use that much data in one go if set at high quality.

NFH

gjchester wrote: »

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply you did but you said that the phone could not do that much data without running flat.

Yes, I still maintain that the phone could not have used that much data without draining the battery, because it was in my pocket at the alleged times and not plugged into any power source.

drajling

2 days after I sent the e-mail complaint - still no contact from orange!

Hammyman

ruggedtoast wrote: »

Orange are coining it with this data scam. As a company they can charge what they want, but under ofcom's guidelines as a telecom provider, then their charges should be fair and proportionate.

Ofcoms guidelines are just that - a guide. They are a suggestion, not the law.

drajling

Well, turns out I was in the right. I contacted Orange after waiting for them for 2 days to reply to my complaint. They admitted that there should have been a cap on the contract but for some mysterious reason it was taken off. My new bill is £46.60, quite some difference to the £1154 they said originally. They gave me my money back 2 days later. I will be persuing the bank charges further. My advice if this happens to anyone else, don't ask for help off forums until you have spoken to the company first. I thought I would get some advice before I spoke to them but the posts just scared me half to death. They made me extremely worried and it turned out it was unnecessary.

Brian_The_Lion

drajling wrote: »

Well, turns out I was in the right. I contacted Orange after waiting for them for 2 days to reply to my complaint. They admitted that there should have been a cap on the contract but for some mysterious reason it was taken off. My new bill is £46.60, quite some difference to the £1154 they said originally. They gave me my money back 2 days later. I will be persuing the bank charges further. My advice if this happens to anyone else, don't ask for help off forums until you have spoken to the company first. I thought I would get some advice before I spoke to them but the posts just scared me half to death. They made me extremely worried and it turned out it was unnecessary.

Glad to see that you have finally had your bill amended. Although taking over a grand from anyones bank account is inconvenient to say the least! Maybe Orange should acknowledge that aswell!

Techhead_2

I think general advice is to:

*make sure you know all the charges (look on the providers website)
*be aware of what you are using (use the call/text/data counter on your phone)
*always check your bill WHEN its produced, don't wait for the money to be taken two weeks later.

If you do spot a discrepancy, then armed with the information from the first two points.
Call the provider. Ask for the disputed part of the bill to be put on hold and for an investigation into the charges to take place.

In summary, you need to be switched on about what your phone can do and how much it costs. Check your bills and bank statements immediately and then you'll catch any errors before they cause problems.

grumbler

drajling wrote: »

...They admitted that there should have been a cap on the contract but for some mysterious reason it was taken off.

AFAIK the maximum daily data charge if you go over your allowance at Orange is £1. Is this the cap that they meant?