Is Skype completely unregulated?

baxtersbuddy

Hello, I've tried to make a complaint about Skype but the chat agent repeatedly stated that they are not regulated by Ofcom, or any other independent or governmental organisation. There is no dispute resolution procedure, and no higher authority (short of going to court I suppose). Can this really be right? I thought any large company had to have the ability to make independent complaints, but apparently not.

As background, my complaint is that one operator told me that I would receive a refund for my premium account (since it is now the same as their free account and I bought it just a few weeks before the change), but now I have been told that this was wrong. I've saved all the chat records, but it seems like there's nothing you can do about it - the decision of the chat operator is final. Can this really be correct? Any advice appreciated.

macman

Skype is not a UK company, so Ofcom would have no jurisdiction anyway.
All you can do is email Skype customer service.

eddddy

baxtersbuddy wrote: »

... - the decision of the chat operator is final. Can this really be correct? Any advice appreciated.

It's not really a case of the chat operator's decision, it's a case of what it said in the terms and conditions when you signed up.

So you need to check whether the t&cs said you would get a refund in these circumstances.

If the contract was governed by English Law, you could check whether you have grounds to cancel the contract if, for example, the contract contained unfair terms (as defined by Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999), or Skype misrepresented something before you signed up.

But Skype's t&cs say:

These Terms other than paragraph 20.3 shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of Luxembourg and shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of the district of Luxembourg. Paragraph 20.3 is governed by the United States Federal Arbitration Act.

So you would need to brush up on Luxembourg law!


Otherwise, it's just a case of asking Skype to refund you as a goodwill gesture.

baxtersbuddy

Thanks for responses... don't think it's worth contacting my Luxembourg legal team for this, but at £80 it's still a tough one to just take. I'll give a formal letter a go, then there's also the chargeback route or just sharing the experience as widely as possible to do a bit of PR damage. I suppose there's nothing legally wrong with selling something to people and then giving it away free to everyone two weeks later, I'm not actually failing to get what I paid for. It just smacks of dishonesty as they clearly had plans to make it free later but did not let you know this in advance.