Vodafone endless problems

JamesN

Hi guys,

I'll start by explaining the disgraceful service vodafone have provided me thus far.

Problem, Galaxy S2 started having problems with charging and the battery flashing. Sent it off to get repaired. They come back saying it is water damaged (its been no where near water and it was in a bag when the fault started occuring) and that they want an extortionate amount of £100 to fix it. Despite several times of asking I was not provided with a breakdown of what this entailed and discovered that its just a general cost so i assume they are making a nice margin on that.

I requested to speak to a manager who contacted me the next day. He like all of his other colleagues was incredibly rude and arrogant and totally unwilling to help. He states that he believed that it hadn't been near water but the most he could do was offer a goodwill of £50 (so i'd still be down £50 for something that should be under warranty).

I asked him for an engineers report which he said he would provide upon return of the phone (as i wasn't getting it fixed). When I went to pick the phone up on saturday (after being told it was going to be there for friday) I was told the phone hadn't even been sent.

Rang up customer services and they said it would be delivered with an engineers report (i'm an engineer for the record so it would be useful) the following mon/tues. I get the phone and ask for the report, which there isn't one. I refuse to leave the store until speaking to customer services which did happen and i was told i would be emailed the report (which wasn't possible before). I get home to check my emails to find a couple of sentences basically saying the phone is water damaged which the bloke at C.S clearly wrote himself. Absolutely ridiculous.

So i ring up customer services and ask for a manager and have to wait the ridiculous 24-48 hours for one to call me back. I wasn't happy with his response and asked him to escalate it to customer relations as i'd had so much of my time wasted and that the claims of water damage (which so far has not been proved by them) were ridiculous.

He agrees to escalate the call and asks me to wait 5 days. I wait 7 and there is no call back, So i ring back and guess what, no mention of the escalation or record of the call from the liar of a manager that I spoke to. I ask to speak to another manager and get the obligatory 24-48 hour wait. I wait 3 days, no call back. This time i've got the call reference and names so they will be reported. I then ask for another call back after pleading to speak with a manager there and then, for some reason thats too much to ask. I then get a phonecall which rang for 1 second before going to voicemail where he left a message saying you can call us anytime (not the managers) if i have a problem. He clearly didn't read any of the notes or try calling back again. So i'll be expected to wait another 24-48 hours when i ring them back later.... Do they not realise people have jobs to go to?

All of this on a 5 month old phone...

These were only the key points, there have been plenty more calls to c.s in which i encountered rude and unhelpful staff. But they weren't worth mentioning.

So, in true moneysavingexpert fashion. How should I overcome the constant incompetence and deceit i've encountered thus far? I've tried obtaining the head office number but had no joy. They seem to be trying to prevent me from getting that far. It almost seems intentional....

I'm really at the end of my tether with them.

grumbler

>> Vodafone water damage scam - so angry?!
>> liquid damage - Vodaphone

Get the phone back.
If they send it without any proofs and if you are sure that there is no any water damage, send them a letter before action, then sue them either for the cost of repair or for the market value of your handset.
Money Claim Online

I assumed that the handset was supplied by Vodafone.

JamesN

Thanks, I'm certain but I can't be 100% certain, its incredibly unlikely that is the cause.

I have the phone back and they provided no evidence.

Surely its unlikely I can beat such a large company, they got out of having to pay tax, what chance do i have?

grumbler

JamesN wrote: »

Thanks, I'm certain but I can't be 100% certain, its incredibly unlikely that is the cause.

I have the phone back and they provided no evidence.

Consumer Rights Armour
During the firs 6 months the onus lies on them to prove that you damaged the phone.
They failed to do this.
Assuming that the the water damage indicators inside the phone are untripped, they don't have a leg to stand on in the court.

Surely its unlikely I can beat such a large company, they got out of having to pay tax, what chance do i have?

It will be cheaper and easier for them to settle before court and they are unlikely to win regardless.

JamesN

So would you advise sending it off to be repaired by samsung? I'd potentially need an engineers report from them to prove the cause of damage.

I'm technically competent and have the tools to open the phone up to check the stickers as i work a lot on my desktop as a hobby. I'm just worried they could tell if i did and what the implications would be?

Surely, they wouldn't try it unless the stickers were tripped? (lets face it those stickers change due to the slightest contact which might not even be a cause of damage, no idea how it isn't clamped down on).

If they are tripped what is my next course of action?

grumbler

JamesN wrote: »

So would you advise sending it off to be repaired by samsung?

Well, it's covered by Samsung's 24-month warranty regardless of the SOGA. If it's not damaged, Samsung will repair it for free.

I'd potentially need an engineers report from them to prove the cause of damage.

If you repair it in any other place, their report will suffice if you want to claim the cost of repair. If you want to claim the market value, any engineer's report will do the job. It will cost you, but you will claim the cost of the report from Vodafone.

I'm technically competent and have the tools to open the phone up to check the stickers as i work a lot on my desktop as a hobby. I'm just worried they could tell if i did and what the implications would be?

You normally need to remove the back cover only to see the sticker(s).

Surely, they wouldn't try it unless the stickers were tripped?

I wouldn't bet on this. Just read the threads I quoted. They do try because the majority of customers are not strong enough to challenge them.

(lets face it those stickers change due to the slightest contact which might not even be a cause of damage, no idea how it isn't clamped down on). If they are tripped what is my next course of action?

Yes, the stickers are over-sensitive. That's why IMO if they are white this proves perfectly that there is no any water damage. If they are pink/red you are unlucky as it's the proof for Voda and you'll find it difficult to prove that they are wrong.

benjaminwootton

I'm having the same issue with Vodafone.

This water damage thing is such a scam - I'm 100% certain it hasn't even been near water, damp, condensation. The complains are almost always about the S2 or S3.

I'm going the MoneyClaim route as a matter of principle.

Vodafone

Hi JamesN,

I can certainly appreciate your frustration regarding the service you have received along the way. It's certainly not the impression we want our customers to have of the service we provide and I will be happy to address this directly.

Regarding the handset, I will be happy to liaise directly with the repair centre to request the report and any photographic evidence for you.

In order for me to do so, can you get in touch with me using the link shown here with WRT135 FAO Heidi in the subject.

If you could also include a link to your post and a contact number, I will get in touch to discuss it further.

Many thanks,

Heidi
Web Relations Team
Vodafone UK

JamesN

I have now sent this request Heidi.

Very interested to see what you come back with...

What_todo

Hi

I am having exactly the same problem with Vodafone. I know that my Samsung was not in any contact with liquid and was not used in the rain etc. I am sorry to say that I am completely OCD when it comes to my phone and it is like new even though it is almost two years old.

I too believe that this is a scam but I am worried that Vodafone will have deliberately damaged my phone to prove their point.

I cannot afford £150 to repair my phone and so I am expecting it to be returned to the store any day now.

Is the next stage an NBA or should I return it to Samsung for their view?

diamonds

Samsung send it to a third party, poss the same as Vodafone's third party. So that may not work at all.


The amount of phones going through these 'repair' companies ALL are not checked or dealt with properly. I know mine came back from 3UK 2 times untouched, then they lost it on 3rd repair visit and I ended up in a situation with no mobile just a sim I refused to use and pay for - it defaulted on my credit file and 8 months later the phone got delivered !!

3 India were trying to stand their ground but even the external debt collection company said to 3 your third party LOST his mobile and he could not use the account even when he asked you to replace the mobile that was lost repeatedly you refused.

3 India backed down, wrote off the whole amount due as they could not re-open the account for the rest of the minimum term left to run that I was happy to pay for given my mobile appeared after 6 months of being lost AND software upgrade DONE & fixed!

I got to keep the phone and 3 unlocked it for free for all the mistakes they made and cleared the credit file default, was a crappy HTC Wildfire but was still retailing for £150 payg at that point.

Go to Citizens Advice.


I refuse to use a networks own third party repairand use a local "manufacturer" approved repair centre, the service is better, honest, fair and keeps money in the local community over a high volume national incompetent repair service authorised by the network that has more financially led short cuts than Vodafone UK.