Help with Service Provider

Recent_Runes

Hi,

I hope that I have got the right board. Apologies if not, could you point me in the direction of the correct one?

I'm really just after what options I have to take this forward, rather than raging against the company (hence not naming them).

I made a payment to my provider online, and received a confirmation email (with authorisation code). Said payment is also visible on my bank statement.

I was then cut off. It appears that said payment hasn't been applied to my bill.

I called up the provider, and they said if I provided proof of payment, it could be added to my account. So, I provided proof.

When I next spoke to the provider, they said that they had received the proof of payment. However, they found their server had declined the transaction. Speaking to my bank, they said they had authorised it, and re-iterated the authorisation number.

The provider said that they couldn't find the payment, it was my problem, not theirs, and that I needed to repay, and that there was nothing they could do.

The money that I payed has not re-appeared in my account.

I could really do with advice as to how to progress from now. I'm conisdering settling my providers account in full, so that I can leave them, but I don't know if this means it would be hard to get the amount refunded.

Are there any other options?

Many thanks in advance...

Heinz

You will have to complete your provider's complaints process to the point of them providing you with a deadlock letter before you can take the matter to Otelo (who will then impose a binding decision). That's likely to take weeks.

Because money is now missing though, another possibility is taking them to the 'Small Claims Court'.

Recent_Runes

Many thanks for the reply.

I feared that this maybe the case, but I just wanted to make sure that there were no other avenues to explore that I was unaware of.

teddysmum

I had something similar, last year, when buying a laptop online, but didn't get email confirmation.


It was what I believe is called a grey payment. My bank had set the money aside, so I couldn't access it, but the laptop company didn't claim the money, which was freed after , I think, 14 days.


My son told me this is what happened, but the first bank call centre person I spoke to didn't know about such things, though, . luckily, the second one did and assured me that, if I wanted to make another purchase (I did as an offer was ending) only one payment would go ahead.

Recent_Runes

Thanks Teddysmum, I'll definitely see what they have to say