Unicom Complaints

Wildlife_Sculptor

I have land-line, business BB and mobile with Unicom. I'm dispensing with their services (moving to XLN) because their service, methods and tactics have not been fit for purpose.

They say they will take over £800 in fines from my bank via the variable DD they have with my account. I've written to the bank to try to stop this. They say if I do not pay they will take legal action.

I really don't want to continue with them, but what can I do to prevent legal action?

Browntoa

you have a contract with them , from memory they tie you in for up to 5 years

Pixarstem

Unicom has been featured on BBC Radio 4 in the You & Yours programme and can be heard by clicking on these links

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04cf9gx (The Unicom piece starts at 2:20 minutes and is the lead item) First aired on 6th August 2014

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b045bss8 (The Unicom item starts at around 6:30 minutes) First aired on 4th June 2014

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/player/b040hhnp#threeG (Unicom item starts at around 40 minutes) First aired 14th April 2014

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-27026272

mike_jm

Hi, can anyone help?

i had one line with unicom for about a 18 months. i wanted to move my line to my home address. they said "we cant do this as it is a different area code"

so, i took another line out. i asked "if i took another line out could i cancel the old one and would it cost?" they said "yes you can cancel the other one and there would be NO COST" as i had taken another line out!

months later i was still getting billed for the other line. its taken months to deal with this and they still billed me.

i stopped paying the bill and after a few months they passed it to a debt collector. i rang unicom and they said not to worry, its noted on the system and they were dealing with it.

they haven't delt with it and have now passed it to another debt collector. i was ordered to pay £1046.00 (outstanding bills + £800 termination fees for both lines)

i rang unicom and they said they can not talk to me about the account anymore as it is being delt with by the debt collector.
i explained to the debt collector and he knocked off the line rental for the first line and said all i have to pay is £800 (which had to be payed on that day or i would have to pay the full £1046!! what a joker.). i have payed £400 and have to pay the other £400 next month.

so stressed out!!

unicom said they cant find the recording of when i took the 2nd line out, surprise surprise.
and the debt collector can only take my word for it!

HELP ME PLEASE!

[Deleted User]

Your debt has defaulted and been passed over to Debt collectors. Unicom won't discuss it with you now and all you can do is pay off the outstanding amount demanded by the collector.
You should post this over at the Debt Free Wannabe board as I advised at your duplicate posting..
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=76

inthedeepend_2

Sparing most of the horrible details, I too have joined the unfortunate throngs of others who trustingly signed up with Unicom and find myself in the mire of complications resultant from the switch.


I run a small business completely on my own, working every week and weekend of the year and approximately 100 hours per week. I suspect now that there are others in a similar situation who find themselves at a great disadvantage when it comes to trying to scrutinise paperwork that we had no initial reason to distrust. I thought it was a legal requirement that salespeople be truthful, so I thought that when I was given information, strong assurances, and answers to what I thought were the right questions, that I was actually getting accurate information. I couldn't have been more wrong.


The sales representative came to my premises and I know now, blatantly lied on every single point. The things he used to induce me to switch to Unicom turned out to be wholly untrue. The promised savings have turned out to be massively more expensive telecom and broadband services, the fastest broadband speed promised has turned out to be unusably slow (having previously had superfast internet), the wonderful customer service promised has turned out to be.....well, you all know by now.


A couple of potentially pertinent details are that he sold me services for both my business and my home and told me that Unicom only has 3 year contracts (which I would never have chosen to sign up for had there been any other choice for this provider that he had convinced me would benefit me so greatly). Also, since summer of 2013 I have submitted hundreds of internet speed tests documenting the extremely slow broadband service. Unicom ultimately said that because of this they would release me from my contract at the business premises, but when I tried to switch to a different (much more affordable) provider, Unicom said they wouldn't allow the phone line to be switched away. The sales representative had clearly told me that Unicom ONLY sells the broadband and telephone together, and that is for everyone. He said the £29.99 package is the only one they sell. Based on that, I considered them as one entity all along, and to be forced to separate broadband from telephone service because Unicom was unable to provide me with fit-for-purpose broadband, causing me further financial loss, seems fundamentally wrong to me.


This has been financially disastrous for me as I was barely earning £1 per hour to survive on living alone, and now due to Unicom I cannot financially survive. Any time I spend away from my work is detrimental to the business, and I have wasted countless hours trying to deal with Unicom and now trying to research (with such a poverty of time availability) the best way to try to extricate myself from this mess. I am now trying to prepare my case for the ombudsman, so afraid I will make a grave error (like signing up with Unicom initially) that will ensure Unicom skates free again.


In searching for the best advice, I see that some people are grateful to Pixarstem for information he has sent to them in private messages. I am wondering if I am missing something very important, and would be most grateful for any similar assistance that could help me prevail in this case.


Many thanks.


(p.s. This is the first time I have ever posted on a forum or anything like that - ever, tried to be briefer but it's a big mess.)

Pixarstem

UNICOM TELECOM FEATURED ON BBC 1 RIP OFF BRITAIN WEDNESDAY 1ST OCTOBER
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04kft46
(Unicom item starts at around 32 minutes)

Chris.Marsh

inthedeepend,

As you are probably aware Ofcom are currently carrying out an investigation into Unicom and their practices.

So I would circumnavigate the Ombudsman and go straight to Ofcom.

You need to email Jonathan Ruff the case leader for this investigation at Ofcom, with more or less what you have written here, [TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM] and also bring their attention to the fact that they only supply 3 Year contracts (they have to OFFER you a 12 month contract as an alternative (This is European Law, that Ofcom have signed up to).

I have to say that to tackle Unicom you will need to be very thick skinned and stay strong as [TEXT DELETED BY FORUM TEAM]. However that said this is a numbers game and the more people who raise issues with Ofcom the more chance that Ofcom will have to do something about it.

Chris.Marsh

Having watched the Adjournment Debate on TV I wonder how impartial Ombudsman Services Ltd really are? Mr Healey's constituent Mr Jones was sold a pup by a very persuasive Unicom salesperson. The salesperson even sold him a business broadband package when he didn't have a computer and when Ombudsman Services investigated they found that Unicom had done no wrong. Although there appears to be a big turn around once this case was taken before Parliament.

Big-Vern

In 2006 a member of staff signed with Unicom for a bar which we owned at the time. We cancelled the service in 2010 because the line quality was so poor as to be useless and numerous complaints received no response. In 2010 we sold the bar. In 2011 Unicom started chasing the ex-employee at her home address (which she had never supplied) for £700 of cancellation fees.

We contacted CAB who confirmed that the contract was with our bar and that the employee had no responsibility for any fees. We wrote to Unicom and heard no more at all until this week when they wrote to the ex-employee again, now chasing £1400 and threatening court.

Even after 30 years in business I have never dealt with such a immoral grasping organisation - surely they have no legal leg to stand on?