MSE News: O2 raises prices for 7 million mobile customers

jhe

simpywimpy wrote: »

I have three contracts with O2 in my family so the increase is likely to be around £5 a month for us in total. What if I didnt have that extra fiver floating around???

i also have 3 contracts 2 of them taken out 8 weeks ago.
the other was taken out 3 years ago sim only. i cannot find the paperwork for this contract, but one of the contracts i have just renewed/replaced 8 weeks ago originally guaranteed to never raise the price.

Guys_Dad

missamoo wrote: »

Can you expand please? They cant just change their T&Cs

Have you cherry picked that paragraph? Is there nothing like thie following in the t&c

5. Charges for our Services
5.1 Detailed charging information can be found on our Website and in our Tariff Terms.

5.2 We may increase or decrease our Charges from time to time. If we increase our Charges (apart from for Additional Services), we’ll let you know at least 30 days before the Charges are due to go up and you’ll have the rights explained in paragraphs 5.3 and 5.4. We won’t increase your Monthly Subscription Charges more than once in any 12 month period.

5.3 You can end this Agreement without having to pay the Monthly Subscription Charges up to the end of any Minimum Period you have left, if:
(a) we increase your Monthly Subscription Charges by more than the Retail Price Index (RPI) annual inflation rate at the date we notify you of the applicable price increase; or
(b) we increase any of our Charges (apart from for Additional Services) in such a way that would have increased your total bill for the immediately previous month by more than 10% (if the increase(s) had applied for the whole of that month).

The regulator last year took the view that the RPI increase was not, in nearly all cases, sufficiently detrimental to invoke the conditions you quoted.

missamoo

Nope! The T&Cs which I received when I signed up are completely different to the ones on the interweb. The clause about ending the agreement is a different no, no 8. There is no mention about RPI. Therefore if it wasn't in the agreement that I signed, how can they completely revamp their T&Cs to fit what they want to do? Even the guy I was chatting to on their online help said the T&Cs had been updated a few days ago to reflect the RPI increase!!!

missamoo

BTW - I don't cherry pick, if you'd like me to type in the whole of the agreement I will but I'll be a while...

etty_bear

I think its shocking that they can change their terms of contract mid term, if any of us dared to challenge it with a breach of contract, how far would we get.?...no where

Another lost customer for o2, was pretty fed up with them before, but as they say...the final nail

Guys_Dad

missamoo wrote: »

BTW - I don't cherry pick, if you'd like me to type in the whole of the agreement I will but I'll be a while...

No - I believe you.

I would get in touch with them again, by email or letter, and send them a full copy of your t&c and then ask them where they have the right to increase your contract.

Or wait till you get the first bill, then tell them they have broken the contract and you are cancelling.

But please do nothing till they agree or are forced to agree or they will (unfairly) trash your credit record.

samwardill

I have complained via O2 complaints procedure and I will take this all the way to the Ombudsman. I hope more people do the same so that a) Ofcom see the consumer backlash and b) It costs O2 a lot of money processing the complaints so they will think twice about such a customer unfriendly move in the future.

Guys_Dad

samwardill wrote: »

I have complained via O2 complaints procedure and I will take this all the way to the Ombudsman. I hope more people do the same so that a) Ofcom see the consumer backlash and b) It costs O2 a lot of money processing the complaints so they will think twice about such a customer unfriendly move in the future.

Given he amount of dust this kicked up last year, your complaint will be yet another bin-it letter to Ofcom.

However, some people had success is getting a eduction in their monthly charges equal to the increase - or even more - by appealing to the network.

samwardill

Guys_Dad wrote: »

Given he amount of dust this kicked up last year, your complaint will be yet another bin-it letter to Ofcom.

However, some people had success is getting a eduction in their monthly charges equal to the increase - or even more - by appealing to the network.

I'm not suggesting writing to Ofcom. I'm suggesting writing to the Ombudsman. See O2 complaints procedure http://service.o2.co.uk/IQ/SRVS/CGI-BIN/WEBCGI.EXE?New,Kb=Companion,question=ref(User):str(Mobile),CASE=13668. Note that you have to exhaust O2's internal process first.

Southend1

I called O2 customer services to complain about their rubbish service and this price rise and was given credit on my account to cover the cost of the increase to the end of my contract plus a gesture of goodwill for poor service. Worth a try for others but I think you need to get past the first line agent to a floor manager who has authority to give account credit for this to work. I will be leaving O2 as soon as my contract is up, I'm so fed up with their poor service.