MSE News: Three to raise mobile prices

Stuart_W

amiehall wrote: »

People would never stand for it in another industry.

Really? Not that many people are on fixed rate prices for electricity, gas, food, fuel, water, etc etc. All of these have been going up recently.

aldredd wrote:

A little extreme, but it's like buying a TV, then a couple of years later Sony ringing you up asking for extra cash to fund R&D of their next range.

Not really. The last time I bought a TV it involved giving the retailer some money in return for a TV. End of transaction. I believe purchasing a SIM-free handset can operate in the same way.

I do agree, though, that when someone believes that they have agreed to paying £15/month for 24 months as a fixed rate, it should be either clearly advertised as to whether it is indeed variable or fixed (like mortgages or loans).

amiehall

Stuart_W wrote: »

Really? Not that many people are on fixed rate prices for electricity, gas, food, fuel, water, etc etc. All of these have been going up recently.

It's not the same. My electricity bill goes up (and up and up...) but I'm not penalised for leaving to join another supplier. If I was on a fixed price tariff then I would be penalised but my price wouldn't be going up.

I feel it's intrinsically unfair to tie people into contracts while also keeping the ability to increase the price. I will stand by the fact that these arrangements do not exist in other industries as the examples you've given are not the same. If Asda increase their prices I can decide to shop at Sainsburys or whatever....

Makeandsave

reclusive46 wrote: »

Indeed. Two of my sons are on the £15 sim 300 plan. One signed up just before the cut off date and one after. So one will get the price increase but they are exactly the same tariffs. Work that out lol

I pay £12 for this still a great deal if you think what you get for your money.

callum9999

clockit wrote: »

There are such things as 'unfair terms and conditions'.
Ask Martin.

Nobody reads all the t&c's
If you use Paypal, did you read their t&c's: they are 35000 words long

Of course there is, but how on earth could a rise equal to the rate of inflation be labelled "unfair" by a reasonable person?

And I don't read all the t&c's either. I generally skim read looking for the important keywords, but otherwise I accept that if I lie (which everyone getting a contract without reading them is doing) and pretend that I've read them, I can't complain if there is one to my detriment. (Unless of course, it is particularly unfair).

callum9999

amiehall wrote: »

It's not the same. My electricity bill goes up (and up and up...) but I'm not penalised for leaving to join another supplier. If I was on a fixed price tariff then I would be penalised but my price wouldn't be going up.

I feel it's intrinsically unfair to tie people into contracts while also keeping the ability to increase the price. I will stand by the fact that these arrangements do not exist in other industries as the examples you've given are not the same. If Asda increase their prices I can decide to shop at Sainsburys or whatever....

Asda also don't give you a discount for committing to shop with them for a fixed period either (which is what mobile contracts do - otherwise use PAYG), so I hardly see how the comparison can be made.

KTF

Details on 3 here:

http://support.three.co.uk/SRVS/CGI-BIN/WEBISAPI.DLL?Command=New,Kb=Mobile,Ts=Mobile,T=Article,varset_cat=billing,varset_subcat=3767,Case=obj%285856%29

nononsence

Folks

I don't believe 3 have a leg to stand on here. If you read their T&Cs that we all signed up to it clearly says:-

'10.1 You may end this agreement
in the following ways:
.........
(d) Within one month of a detrimental variation to your agreement.
You can end the agreement within one month of us telling you about a variation to your agreement (which includes your Package) which is likely to be of detriment to you. You must give notice to Three Customer Services within that month and your agreement will finish at the end of that month once we receive your notice.
(A Cancellation Fee will not be charged.)'

I can see no way how anyone (even 3) can argue that a price rise (however small) is not a detrimental change.

So if you are on the £35 tariff I can see no reason why you can't cancel this contract without penalty, keep your phone and then get a SIM only contract for £25 per month and save £10 per month.

The link posted by KTF post implies a change to the T&Cs that we signed up to however any detrimental change to the T&Cs gives you a right to terminate without penalty. So even if they try and argue that the T&Cs have changed you still have a right to cancel without penalty.

Any comparison to other mobile operators who have done the same is not valid. The T&Cs of the other operators I have looked at do give them a right to increase prices in line with RPI - but not 3.

MillicentBystander

One of the perils of wanting a sparkly new phone every 2 years, I guess. I jumped off that bandwagon ages ago, got myself a nice enough phone that allows me to ring/text people and if I so desire even go onto to the internet :eek::D. Then just got a 30 day SIM only deal. They put the price up I can !!!!!! off very quickly. Probably why they haven't put the price up in quite a while

aldredd

nononsence wrote: »

Folks

I don't believe 3 have a leg to stand on here. If you read their T&Cs that we all signed up to it clearly says:-

'10.1 You may end this agreement
in the following ways:
.........
(d) Within one month of a detrimental variation to your agreement.
You can end the agreement within one month of us telling you about a variation to your agreement (which includes your Package) which is likely to be of detriment to you. You must give notice to Three Customer Services within that month and your agreement will finish at the end of that month once we receive your notice.
(A Cancellation Fee will not be charged.)'

I can see no way how anyone (even 3) can argue that a price rise (however small) is not a detrimental change.

They would argue that an increase in line with inflation isn't detrimental. This is the problem with having ambiguous T&Cs - always open to interpretation

The_Pixi

I have a contract with O2 but I have a question if they did this to me.

I had an old (2008) iPhone and the contract had expired and moved onto a rolling £15pm and had done so for about a year, I called them asking how I could get a free new iPhone4 for under £30 a month.

I was put through to 'retentions' when the operator couldn't get a package for me - anyway having been with them so long etc they managed to get me a iPhone 4 for a £5 payment and a £29pm contract for 18months

Now I havent signed anything and my previous contract had expired, so this is a new contract for which I have never been given the T&C or had any explained.

All this was done over the phone, instantly.

Could I claim that the T&C don't count and only the agreement to pay £29pm for 18 months does as that was what was agreed at the time of taking out the NEW contract.

I don't think it would be right to say the old T&C roll over from an expired contract.

how does this work for others like me ont he networks that are jacking up prices?