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Vodafone Credit Report Late Payments
A friend of mine (genuinely!) sent a 30-day-notice cancellation letter to Vodafone in 2011. He presumed that Vodafone would bill the final amount in the direct debit payment taken January 2012 - of course this was not the case and there was a debt amount of £11 remaining on the account.
Following the January 2012 direct debit payment, he cancelled it unaware of said remaining debt. He received no final bill nor any debt notification letter prior to contact from a Debt Collection Agency in June 2012, at which point he immediately settled the balance in full (with fees around £37).
In November 2013 I helped him write a letter to Vodafone appealing the information being displayed on his credit report, acknowledging the cancellation of the direct debit was an error but he acted in good faith. At the time the credit report displayed the following:
Date of Default XX/06/2012
Default Balance £11
Feb AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Mar AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Apr BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
May BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
Jun DF (Default)
Jul SF (Satisfied)
Vodafone, off of the back of the letter, amended the account to display:
Feb AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Mar AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Apr BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
May BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
Jun OK (Repayment Requirements Fulfilled)
Jul ST (Settled)
I helped him write another letter to Vodafone last week appealing that the late payment history was removed on the basis of the lack of communication from Vodafone to indicate that there was a debt. It was never a case of "can't pay"/"won't pay", and the cancellation only came about as a result of his employer offering him a work contract with Vodafone (so it's a little bitter for him to use the network daily but to stomach their handling of his personal contract).
Vodafone's CEO office made contact, essentially saying that their Quality Assurance Team had no intention of making any further changes to the entry. The claim is that their computer says that a final bill was sent as well as a debt notification letter - though neither was received.
Now after having a 'common sense' conversation with their representative over how just because a computer says something it doesn't necessarily make it accurate, that there is potentially error on Vodafone's part and that the debt was immediately settled when he became aware of it: the representative is going to speak to the Quality Assurance Team again to ascertain if it's their final position.
In the event that this is their final position: are there options that can be pursued through an ombudsman or solicitor? On the basis that Vodafone is at fault as they failed to communicate the debt and are unable to prove delivery of either a final bill or debt notification letter? or an argument that their position is unfair and detrimental to his ability to obtain credit and properly explore his mortgage options? given he has acted in good faith.
Additionally, would a submitting a Notice of Correction be advisable?
I appreciate where Vodafone is coming from and the direct debit cancellation has hindered the situation. However, I find it difficult to believe that there is no one at Vodafone whom is in a position to look at this from a reasonable point of view and either reduce the severity of the arrears history or acknowledge potential for fault removing it completely. By this point in time everyone has spent more time, effort and money on discussing the debt than the value of the original debt - this is only going to increase if it has to be pursued further.
Following the January 2012 direct debit payment, he cancelled it unaware of said remaining debt. He received no final bill nor any debt notification letter prior to contact from a Debt Collection Agency in June 2012, at which point he immediately settled the balance in full (with fees around £37).
In November 2013 I helped him write a letter to Vodafone appealing the information being displayed on his credit report, acknowledging the cancellation of the direct debit was an error but he acted in good faith. At the time the credit report displayed the following:
Date of Default XX/06/2012
Default Balance £11
Feb AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Mar AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Apr BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
May BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
Jun DF (Default)
Jul SF (Satisfied)
Vodafone, off of the back of the letter, amended the account to display:
Feb AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Mar AA (Arrears 1-2 Months)
Apr BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
May BB (Arrears 3+ Months)
Jun OK (Repayment Requirements Fulfilled)
Jul ST (Settled)
I helped him write another letter to Vodafone last week appealing that the late payment history was removed on the basis of the lack of communication from Vodafone to indicate that there was a debt. It was never a case of "can't pay"/"won't pay", and the cancellation only came about as a result of his employer offering him a work contract with Vodafone (so it's a little bitter for him to use the network daily but to stomach their handling of his personal contract).
Vodafone's CEO office made contact, essentially saying that their Quality Assurance Team had no intention of making any further changes to the entry. The claim is that their computer says that a final bill was sent as well as a debt notification letter - though neither was received.
Now after having a 'common sense' conversation with their representative over how just because a computer says something it doesn't necessarily make it accurate, that there is potentially error on Vodafone's part and that the debt was immediately settled when he became aware of it: the representative is going to speak to the Quality Assurance Team again to ascertain if it's their final position.
In the event that this is their final position: are there options that can be pursued through an ombudsman or solicitor? On the basis that Vodafone is at fault as they failed to communicate the debt and are unable to prove delivery of either a final bill or debt notification letter? or an argument that their position is unfair and detrimental to his ability to obtain credit and properly explore his mortgage options? given he has acted in good faith.
Additionally, would a submitting a Notice of Correction be advisable?
I appreciate where Vodafone is coming from and the direct debit cancellation has hindered the situation. However, I find it difficult to believe that there is no one at Vodafone whom is in a position to look at this from a reasonable point of view and either reduce the severity of the arrears history or acknowledge potential for fault removing it completely. By this point in time everyone has spent more time, effort and money on discussing the debt than the value of the original debt - this is only going to increase if it has to be pursued further.
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Comments
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On the basis that Vodafone is at faultthat there is potentially error on Vodafone's partbecause a computer says something it doesn't necessarily make it accurate
Sorry but I have to disagree with these comments. Your friend was at fault for not making sure he had paid what he owed before he cancelled the direct debit, and therefore the entry IS accurate.
Mobile networks are not regulated by the Consumer Credit Act, and are not obliged by law to send out notifications before a default occurs.
You could get in touch with the Vodafone rep on here, but if you have already gone to the CEO's office I'm not sure if there is anywhere left to take it.
To go to the ombudsman you need to have exhausted Vodafone's complaints procedure.
Did your friend use online billing? If so, the final bill would probably have been available there rather than posted.0 -
Possibly not, but Vodafone has stated that this was the case. I can appreciate a final bill maybe going missing, but a final bill and a debt notification letter is a highly unlikely coincidence. So per above, it's not unreasonable to put a case out there that something may have gone wrong and Vodafone could be at error to some extent.Mobile networks are not regulated by the Consumer Credit Act, and are not obliged by law to send out notifications before a default occurs.
Vodafone's operating policy is to terminate online billing accounts and issue a final bill by post, one wasn't received. Had it have been received then the entire situation would have been avoided as a payment could have been made, it would have acted as notification.Did your friend use online billing? If so, the final bill would probably have been available there rather than posted.0 -
Do try the Web Relations Team (see Vodafone complaints thread). Make a formal complaint and if they don't resolve it go to CISAS (you need to wait 8 weeks if you don't get a final resolution letter).
Don't bother waiting for a further response; you're unlikely to get one, but if you do you may be able to use that to go to CISAS.0 -
I gave WRT a nudge last night with the thread link and asked them to contact me for the specifics if they could do anything to help. I should be able to give them enough direction, as middle man, for them to follow it up.mobilejunkie wrote: »Do try the Web Relations Team (see Vodafone complaints thread). Make a formal complaint and if they don't resolve it go to CISAS (you need to wait 8 weeks if you don't get a final resolution letter).
Thanks for mentioning CISAS. I think if Vodafone does stand their ground on this one then CISAS will definitely have an application made to them requesting they take this on - as well as other third parties should it become necessary.mobilejunkie wrote: »Don't bother waiting for a further response; you're unlikely to get one, but if you do you may be able to use that to go to CISAS.
Personally I've always received my final bills from Vodafone and never had a billing issue (thankfully) so I'm not here to slam Vodafone in it's entirety. As an active customer however this situation looks far from good on them, I think it's fairly disgraceful that they have the ability to ruin someones future and financial profile where there are questionable or disputed circumstances. I also question the policy of 'assumed receipt' of anything Vodafone sends by post while not retaining any real proof of sending or delivery.
Bottom line, I want to see my friend be able to get the right mortgage product for him and move on with his life. Some 'common sense' will hopefully prevail for all involved.0 -
Hi enjkwn,
Thanks for your time yesterday.
I'll try to reach your friend during the course of today to discuss things further.
Kind regards,
Lee
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After several more phone calls a conclusion has finally been reached:
Vodafone have issued a letter of deadlock, an ombudsman will be requested to investigate.0
This discussion has been closed.
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