£20 charges for data on Three, help!

edam

It's not my week this week, it really isn't.

Got a text from three saying I was near my limit, I had a check and there was 200 meg still to use, so I used the phone to check my bank details that day (tethered to my laptop as I always do) and that was it.


Then, between 9 and 9.30 that evening I get a tirade of texts whilst driving. I cant check, obviously, as I'm driving.

When I get out, I find out I've had one text saying I'd reached my limit and then a series of texts telling me I'd been charged increasing amounts for using data, and it stopped at £21!!!! When I checked my useage my charges went up again, they'd even charged me to check my allowance! I turned my phone off at this point and phoned three in the morning.

They couldn't say what the data was for, which seems entirely unreasonable. They're perfectly happy to charge me but when asked cannot justify how it was incurred and what exactly is supposed to have been down/uploaded.

What's worse is they offer unlimited all you can eat data for just over £3.00 a month. How on earth do they reconcile that with charging me almost £2 per megabye for going over 2GB (on an old contract).

When I confront them about this they just tell me it's "my opinion" that it's unreasonable. They seem entirely unwilling to enter into any discussion in which I ask them to justify this.

Anyway, I need my data and have 12 days until my allowance resets, so I ask to have unlimited data. They say they can't do this because I've got Internet Max which gives me 2GB for £5.11 per month. I ask why they can't just change this to unlimited all you can eat data, which is £3.00 per month. I even offer to keep paying £5.11 per month but take the all you can eat data, so they're making money over other customers who pay £3.00 per month. He just says he can't do it.

He says he can cancel my Internet Max 2GB and give me unlimited for £3.00 a month, but only if I pay £25 for the 5 months remaining on the contract for the internet max add on.

This is completely and utterly unreasonable but I have no choice and accept, but make it clear I am paying in protest and that I'll be chasing them for a full refund. Without the internet I am unable to receive e-mails vital for my job and I'll lose my work.

What hope do I have of reclaiming

a) the charges for using over 2GB; and
b) the £25 I had to pay to cancel internet Max 2GB at £5.11 per month so I could get the £3.00 per month all you can eat data add on?

The way they've treated me simply cannot be justified or reconciled with the fact they allow all you can eat data for £3.00 per month!!

grumbler

edam wrote: »

It's not my week this week, it really isn't.

Got a text from three saying I was near my limit, I had a check and there was 200 meg still to use, so I used the phone to check my bank details that day (tethered to my laptop as I always do) and that was it.

So, they warned you (other networks don't do this), but you decided to ignore the warning.

Then, between 9 and 9.30 that evening I get a tirade of texts whilst driving. I cant check, obviously, as I'm driving.

Obviously it is their fault that they allow your phone to use data when you drive. It is their duty to keep an eye on you and switch the data off as soon as you get into a car.

When I get out, I find out I've had one text saying I'd reached my limit and then a series of texts telling me I'd been charged increasing amounts for using data, and it stopped at £21!!!! When I checked my useage my charges went up again, they'd even charged me to check my allowance!

How dare they!

They couldn't say what the data was for, which seems entirely unreasonable. They're perfectly happy to charge me but when asked cannot justify how it was incurred and what exactly is supposed to have been down/uploaded.

Do you expect them to provide you with your browsing/downloading history?

He says he can cancel my Internet Max 2GB and give me unlimited for £3.00 a month, but only if I pay £25 for the 5 months remaining on the contract for the internet max add on.

This is completely and utterly unreasonable but I have no choice and accept, but make it clear I am paying in protest and that I'll be chasing them for a full refund. Without the internet I am unable to receive e-mails vital for my job and I'll lose my work.

What hope do I have of reclaiming

a) the charges for using over 2GB; and
b) the £25 I had to pay to cancel internet Max 2GB at £5.11 per month so I could get the £3.00 per month all you can eat data add on?

a) No chance unless they agree to demonstrate some goodwill.
b) What's 'Internet Max'? If it's an add-on then "All Pay Monthly Add-ons have a one month minimum term if bought when you connect to the Three network.There's no rollover to the next month for any Add-ons." So, your 'Internet Max' doesn't look like an add-on. What does your contract say?

Guys_Dad

Grumbler - you are getting even more cantankerous these days. :beer:
Piles playing up?? :rotfl::rotfl:

Apart from that, you are right.

Edam - you are obviously nearing the end of your contract, but when you sign up for one, you agree to abide by it for the period. Inevitably, during the period of your contract, the network will bring out other deals and that's life.

It's not a lot of money to buy yourself out and I am sure that tethering isn't what 3 envisaged anyway.

So, with respect to your forum name, hard cheese.

[Deleted User]

edam wrote: »

I even offer to keep paying £5.11 per month but take the all you can eat data, so they're making money over other customers who pay £3.00 per month. He just says he can't do it.

He says he can cancel my Internet Max 2GB and give me unlimited for £3.00 a month, but only if I pay £25 for the 5 months remaining on the contract for the internet max add on.

Aren't you contradicting yourself there? You're happy to pay the £5.11 for 5 months, but not happy to pay £25 (5 times 5)...

Also remember the £3 unlimited data doesn't work for laptop use.

grumbler

billbennett wrote: »

Aren't you contradicting yourself there? You're happy to pay the £5.11 for 5 months, but not happy to pay £25 (5 times 5)...

No, he isn't contradicting.
He is happy to keep paying 5x£5.11 for unlimited, but not £25+5x£3 (or 5x£5.11+5x£3)

edam

grumbler wrote: »

So, they warned you (other networks don't do this), but you decided to ignore the warning.

You didn't read what I said, did you? I said I got the warning, checked my allowance (200meg) checked my bank details online (what, not more than a few meg?) and then stopped.

Obviously it is their fault that they allow your phone to use data when you drive. It is their duty to keep an eye on you and switch the data off as soon as you get into a car.

No, it's their fault that they warn me at 200meg and then nothing until I've run out of data. They should warn me at 95% use age as well. According the Three I've used over 200meg in one day from simply checking my internet banking and then having the phone sat in my pocket doing nothing all day. That's highly unusual and if they want to charge for it then they should prove how that cost has been incurred. I shouldn't have to simply accept their word.

How dare they!
Do you expect them to provide you with your browsing/downloading history?

If they want to charge me £21 then I fully expect them to show how and what for. If they can't justify it, why should I pay it?

a) No chance unless they agree to demonstrate some goodwill.
b) What's 'Internet Max'? If it's an add-on then "All Pay Monthly Add-ons have a one month minimum term if bought when you connect to the Three network.There's no rollover to the next month for any Add-ons." So, your 'Internet Max' doesn't look like an add-on. What does your contract say?

Internet Max is an add on I selected when I signed up to the contract giving me 2GB of data rather than just 500meg per month.

Guys_Dad wrote:

Edam - you are obviously nearing the end of your contract, but when you sign up for one, you agree to abide by it for the period. Inevitably, during the period of your contract, the network will bring out other deals and that's life.

I appreciate that. However, contracts are two sided and the nature of contract law means that parties can negotiate terms. I think it's completely unreasonable of them not to enter into discussions regarding specific terms of the contract. I think this rings especially true if they now see fit to, as a standard almost, provide new customers with unlimited data at a cost cheaper than my 2GB per month.

I think it's also completely unreasonable that they cannot justify how they can charge £2 per meg when they offer unlimited data at £3.00 per month. It's pure profit making and that's something the Courts look down on quite sternly.

grumbler

edam wrote: »

You didn't read what I said, did you? I said I got the warning, checked my allowance (200meg) checked my bank details online (what, not more than a few meg?) and then stopped.


No, it's their fault that they warn me at 200meg and then nothing until I've run out of data. They should warn me at 95% use age as well. According the Three I've used over 200meg in one day from simply checking my internet banking and then having the phone sat in my pocket doing nothing all day. That's highly unusual and if they want to charge for it then they should prove how that cost has been incurred. I shouldn't have to simply accept their word.

It is not unusual for smartphones to use data without asking you, but I agree that 200Mb is a big amount that you have to concentrate on and challenge '3' for - instead of blaming them for charging you for using data to check your online statement and blaming them for not giving you several warnings.
When you say "they should warn", is it something that they agreed to or promised you or just your presumption?

ruggedtoast

edam wrote: »

You didn't read what I said, did you? I said I got the warning, checked my allowance (200meg) checked my bank details online (what, not more than a few meg?) and then stopped.



No, it's their fault that they warn me at 200meg and then nothing until I've run out of data. They should warn me at 95% use age as well. According the Three I've used over 200meg in one day from simply checking my internet banking and then having the phone sat in my pocket doing nothing all day. That's highly unusual and if they want to charge for it then they should prove how that cost has been incurred. I shouldn't have to simply accept their word.




If they want to charge me £21 then I fully expect them to show how and what for. If they can't justify it, why should I pay it?




Internet Max is an add on I selected when I signed up to the contract giving me 2GB of data rather than just 500meg per month.




I appreciate that. However, contracts are two sided and the nature of contract law means that parties can negotiate terms. I think it's completely unreasonable of them not to enter into discussions regarding specific terms of the contract. I think this rings especially true if they now see fit to, as a standard almost, provide new customers with unlimited data at a cost cheaper than my 2GB per month.

I think it's also completely unreasonable that they cannot justify how they can charge £2 per meg when they offer unlimited data at £3.00 per month. It's pure profit making and that's something the Courts look down on quite sternly.

You can easily use 200mb very quickly when tethering. As soon as you connect to the internet your pc is connecting with MS servers for updates, the webpage you are on can be sending all kinds of things back and forth, loading flash application, java, etc.

In addition to that it sounds like your phone was polling data continuously as well.

You have no hope of getting your £20 back.

Unfortunately you are stuck with your contract.

arielcohen

Usualy when i request my data usage Orange tell me that this information is correct as of such and such a date. Clearly the 200mb remaining text was sent belatedly and in he was probably over the limit already. Their system seems to take time to process the data and therefore you have 'lag' between what you have actually consumed and what they think you have (which only increases if you use data abroad as others will tell you). I suggest that you keep some data monitoring software on your phone or pc to track and hopefully avoid this problem.

Unless you asked to put a cap so you wont go over your data then I don't see them refunding you the money back but if you go higher up the chain you might be in luck to get the unlimited data deal on your contract.

zenmaster

edam wrote: »

I appreciate that. However, contracts are two sided and the nature of contract law means that parties can negotiate terms. I think it's completely unreasonable of them not to enter into discussions regarding specific terms of the contract. I think this rings especially true if they now see fit to, as a standard almost, provide new customers with unlimited data at a cost cheaper than my 2GB per month.

I think it's also completely unreasonable that they cannot justify how they can charge £2 per meg when they offer unlimited data at £3.00 per month. It's pure profit making and that's something the Courts look down on quite sternly.

The time for negotiation is before entering into a contract, not afterwards.

They have offered you a reasonable solution, i.e. you pay up the remainder of your contracted amount and they will allow you to vary the terms.

Be warned though that they may consider it a new contract and you could be locked in for 12/18/24 months.

As for "pure profit making" and "the courts looking down quite sternly" - it's a frikkin business :rotfl:.

It's sole purpose is to make a profit and the courts can look any way they want - it's perfectly legal.

mrochester

arielcohen wrote: »

Usualy when i request my data usage Orange tell me that this information is correct as of such and such a date. Clearly the 200mb remaining text was sent belatedly and in he was probably over the limit already. Their system seems to take time to process the data and therefore you have 'lag' between what you have actually consumed and what they think you have (which only increases if you use data abroad as others will tell you). I suggest that you keep some data monitoring software on your phone or pc to track and hopefully avoid this problem.

Unless you asked to put a cap so you wont go over your data then I don't see them refunding you the money back but if you go higher up the chain you might be in luck to get the unlimited data deal on your contract.

This sounds like the most likely answer to me. Unless dated and time stamped in the body of the text (not the time and date it was received), it sounds like the text could have been late in arriving and thus the 200mb data you thought you had left may have already been depleted, making your usage that day chargable. You may wish to appeal to their goodwill by suggesting that could be what happened and that you feel the message was very confusing to you when making a judgement as to whether you should use your data connection that day or not.