Vodafone

kw5

I have six phones on my contract including friends and family for all of them.

Since July 3rd we have not had any signal so have been unable to use our phones, which has been very difficult due to my husband being in hospital.

I am still in contract and want to cancel due to poor reception and on looking on their site they have no idea how long it will take to fix.

I have called Vodafone on my house phone which has cost a fortune and also emailed them. All I have been offered is half my monthly bill back, which I find unacceptable as it has cost me much more using other means of communication.

Can I cancel due to them breaching their contract with me?

Kirsty

Annie._2

Hello kw5

Its not a breach of contract, Vodafone have a fault in your area which they know about and will fix as soon as possible.

When a fault is reported, Vodafone or any other mobile operator cannot simply barge in and start fixing the fault. Vodafone do not own the land where there is a fault and there is landlords permission to be given each and every time they enter the site. Then the fault has to be ascertained and specialist equipment to be ordered and erected.

No network can guarantee a fault free service, in fact my BT landline has been out of order now for the last month and I am fully dependant on my mobile, but I know the problem and BT cannot simply start digging a hole to lay new cable.

It sounds like the Sure Signal will sort out your problems, it works off your home broadband connection and you will then get perfect 3G signal around your home.

buscape

kw5 wrote: »

I am still in contract and want to cancel due to poor reception and on looking on their site they have no idea how long it will take to fix.

I have called Vodafone on my house phone which has cost a fortune and also emailed them. All I have been offered is half my monthly bill back, which I find unacceptable as it has cost me much more using other means of communication.

Can I cancel due to them breaching their contract with me?

Kirsty

You can't cancel because of this, the most they have to do is give you a line rental credit for the period you haven't had any signal for. From Vodafones Terms and Conditions:

10 Credits if there is a failure of the service

a If we have to maintain our network or if there is a technical fault on our network that means you can’t use all our services for three days in a row, we’ll credit you for the line-rental charge for the period the service was not available.

You can call Vodafone on for free on 0808 0000166, other numbers for them can be found here.

Buzby

As others have said - your contract remains valid whether you have coverage or not. Do remember, not all of your phones will be unable to make calls - so a 50% reduction for the contract is pretty good. Clealry there will be an issue that needs to be fixed, and by rebating your line rental you've taken the first step. If this continues for more than 3 months, you should be able to negotiate a no-fault termination, but not before that!

Vodafone

Hi kw5,

Ann S has given a great answer to your query here.

I can appreciate how frustrating it is to be without signal, especially in your current circumstance with your husband being in hospital. I can assure you that we will be doing everything we can to get this resolved as quickly as possible.

If you would like to discuss this in more detail or need any further information, you can email me personally via the address shown here with WRT135 FAO Heidi in the subject. I will be happy to help in any way I can.

Many thanks,

Heidi
Web Relations Team
Vodafone UK

kw5

I have just read the terms and conditions and have seen this.

So as We have not had any signal for vertually 4 weeks unless we go to chichester which is 9 miles away, then Vodafone are in breach of contract and I can cancel.

Oh and by the way, having the sure signal would not help as it would not allow me to contact my children unless they were home and that really isnt helpful.

Ending this agreement
a Either you or we may end this agreement by giving the other 30 days’ notice in writing. Your notice must include your mobile number and your signature or appropriate security details. You must pay the charges during the notice period.
b You may end this agreement by writing to us if:

• we don’t do something fundamental that we should have done under this agreement (for example, if there is a complete failure of the network for seven days in a row due to something we have done), within seven days of you asking us in writing;

latecomer

But its not complete failure of the network - its a localised issue and hence not the same. That said I would have thought that you should at least be able to get a refund for the unusable time which would presumably cover the cost of a 30 day sim on another network to keep you going.

spiro

It also says it has to be as a result of something they have DONE rather than not done. So if they removed a mast which left a town with no signal then that may work, if the same mast fails then no you cant unless of course you want to pay the remaining months on your contract.

Buzby

They never guarantee a signal - so your interpretation is flawed. As Spiro says, if they removed a cellsite you relied upon, it is their problem, if you moved to an area with no coverage - it's yours. See out your minimum period and move to a network that provides coverage.