Carphone Warehouse Pay Monthly SIM Offers - Not What They Seem!

CoreZone

Hi

Just wanted to offer caution for anyone looking for a new Pay Monthly SIM. I found a deal on Carphone Warehouse for a Virgin Pay Monthly 30 day rolling SIM for £10 month which included 250 mins, unlimited texts and 1GB data.

I purchased this at the weekend, entered my bank details for the monthly Direct Debit, and the card arrived yesterday.

On activating my Virgin Account it showed the balance as £0.00 and didn't give any package details. I called Carphone Warehouse to check if I had been sent the correct SIM but he said he wasn't currently able to access the Virgin website so I'd need to contact them direct, and then he wished me luck!

I called Virgin to be told that Carphone Warehouse had sent me a PAYG SIM but they'd try and switch it over to the Pay Monthly deal I'd purchased for £10 which would be 250 mins, unlimited text and 250mb data. When I told him I'd bought 1GB data, he said they'd not had that offer for months. I then told him that the deal was still available on Carphone Warehouse website so he went to speak to a manager and to check the website. He came back and apologised, saying that they'd been informed of the issue a couple of months ago and unfortunately they were not able to honour the deal.

That's left me feeling a little cheated as I thought I'd bought 1GB data and I've ended up with 250mb - :mad:

mobilejunkie

Then you can sue CPW for the equivalent cost for the extra allowance - provided you can prove it was what you were offered and accepted AND that at no time did they notify you that they had made a mistake and it wasn't the same as you purchased.

A LBA will usually prompt CPW to pay up provided your case is sound.

Whilst they could have refused to honour a purchase where the offer was a mistake on the website, they can't wriggle out of it if it all went through on that basis. They could of course buy out your contract. The problem you have is that it's a 30 day rolling contract - so the amounts involved are minimal, since you could cancel the contract yourself and only payfor the initial period (and therefore what you could claim from CPW is also limited).

In practice, you could demand the £10 but not a lot else.

AndyPK

I'm not surprised your unhappy.

If your a vm cable customer u will get a setter deal.

CoreZone

Thanks for the replies and here is an update.

I did write a letter of complaint to Carphone Warehouse and they replied confirming that the tariff advertised on their website was still "live". They asked me to visit my local store where they would be able to suggest how to rectify the matter.

On visiting my local store it became apparent it wasn't going to be so easy to settle and we agreed that I would speak to Virgin and if they were still adamant that the package was no longer available that I get this in writing and pass the letter to Carphone Warehouse who would then arrange an alternative package.

I rang Virgin who explained that the package I had bought was no longer available but as I had been mis-sold a package they would offer me a discount to get me on a 1GB package for £10.

This was done instantly so I am now receiving 1GB for the £10 Pay Monthly SIM only deal that I originally purchased.

Well done Virgin :T

Harald

CoreZone wrote: »

Hi

Just wanted to offer caution for anyone looking for a new Pay Monthly SIM. I found a deal on Carphone Warehouse for a Virgin Pay Monthly 30 day rolling SIM for £10 month which included 250 mins, unlimited texts and 1GB data.

I purchased this at the weekend, entered my bank details for the monthly Direct Debit, and the card arrived yesterday.

On activating my Virgin Account it showed the balance as £0.00 and didn't give any package details. I called Carphone Warehouse to check if I had been sent the correct SIM but he said he wasn't currently able to access the Virgin website so I'd need to contact them direct, and then he wished me luck!

This is absolutely standard Virgin Mobile Mess. Incredible mess.

My horrible story how I was stupid enough to became their client 2 years ago:

Tempted by £12 a month, 1 month rolling offer ported my number from T-Mobile. Legal requirement at a time was 24 hours to port a number. A week later it still was not done.
Made numerous calls to customer support and was told only about undisclosed problems with my port. And that "it department is looking into the case" Personally don't care which department is dealing with my problem, just want it done.
10 days from day 0 my number finally was working in Virgin Mobile network. But it was not the end. It was beginning. When tried to make a call automated voice told me that... I have no credit on my account. These idiots gave me sim with payg tarriff instead of pay monthly.
And it took only 10 days (again) to solve the problem. But not completely
My sim was on pay monthly tarriff, but without any allowance - no minutes, no texts, no 1GB of data. Nothing. Every call, every text and every bit of internet access was counting as out of allowance - which means freaking expensive.
Customer service was giving me various refunds, but I did not wanted refunds, wanted my phone working as we agreed.

This was too much for me and asked for PAC code. Also told them this is another breach of contract and I want to cancel my account (please remember - it was 1 month rolling contract and NEVER received what I paid for). And it took just ten days to process PAC request from my new provider:

New network activated my number within required time, but... Virgin did not released my number!!!!
As a result i had to carry two phones with me, because some incoming calls were routed to old SIM and some to new one.
And it took only.. a month. A WHOLE MONTH to finally release my number.
But it was not end yet. Regardless I was given refunds from day 0 to day of deactivation of my SIM card, these bunch if idiots was still charging me for imaginary contract. Cancelled direct debit and wrote on paper if they continue charging me I will treat it as an fraud.

Finally they stopped charging me but not cancelled charges for 3 months after cancelling my account. And they contacted debt recovery company. But not any debt recovery company.
They're using debt recovery company as sh**ty as themselves. They sent me official letters using Comic-sans font. This was ultimate insult.
Opened a case with Ombudsman requesting written statement they service was unacceptable sh**tty and I owe them nothing. And just after 14 months (!!!!) received such letter. Obviously the wording is slightly different and they obviously blame some technical glitches (apparently caused by hostile trolls if not by Virgin employees), but luckily it says charging me outside contract was wrong and I owe them nothing.
No apologies for comic-sans font thought.

If you're certain type of person, getting sexual pleasure from being humiliated (it's called masochism as far I know) - then Virgin Mobile is for you.
If not - not only stay away. RUUUUUUUN!!!!!!!

Collabora

Harald wrote: »

This is absolutely standard Virgin Mobile Mess. Incredible mess.

You need to read before commenting, this is nothing to do with Virgin Mobile mistake.

Carphone Warehouse sent the OP the wrong sim ,which as the OP says Virgin Media came to their rescue

Harald

I was trying to explain it doesn't have to be CP error.

Techhead_2

Collabora wrote: »

You need to read before commenting, this is nothing to do with Virgin Mobile mistake.

Carphone Warehouse sent the OP the wrong sim ,which as the OP says Virgin Media came to their rescue

Not quite, Virgin said that Carphone Warehouse sent the wrong SIM. But as we have seen (in this and other threads) Virgin have a history of not setting up accounts properly. So it's equally likely the fault is with Virgin.

mije1983

Harald wrote: »

I was trying to explain it doesn't have to be CP error.

But CPW are the ones who are advertising an incorrect and invalid deal on their website.

Collabora

Techhead wrote: »

Not quite, Virgin said that Carphone Warehouse sent the wrong SIM. But as we have seen (in this and other threads) Virgin have a history of not setting up accounts properly. So it's equally likely the fault is with Virgin.

but as other stated CPW advertised a deal VM no longer offer, so this is 100% CPW fault

1simongarner

I have just experienced exactly the same situation as Carzone experienced back in Jan. I shopped around for the best sim only deal that was available on the High St & CPW offered me the 250mins, unlimited texts & 1GB of data on a 1 month rolling contract with Virgin. This was over 6 pounds cheaper than my current deal with the same bundle offered through O2. Obviously I jumped at this offer.


However, when I came to activate the sim provided, it too showed that I had zero balance, even though I had set up a direct debit in store with CPW. I foolishly added 10 quid so at least I would have some credit to send txts & call home as I work away. I even received a text from Virgin stating that I was all good to go.


Surprisingly, within a couple of days I got a text from Virgin stating that I had zero credit left, even though I had only made 11 mins worth of calls! (nowhere near the 250mins I thought I was getting for my tenner). It appears that I too had been placed on a PAYG contract? I contacted Virgin customer support (laughable) to be passed from pillar to post through some 7 different operatives for over an hour & a half of which the outcome is that Virgin do not do this deal anymore & if I wanted the agreed tariff it would cost me 17 pounds - more expensive than the deal I left!



I feel like I have bought a car & ended up with a wheel! I have been advised to contact Virgin upgrades on a weekday as my problem cannot be dealt with at the weekends or evenings :mad:
Surely this is a breach of contract from either CPW &/or Virgin (if they are allowing CPW to sell their products incorrectly)? Either way I appear to be back to square 1 looking for a decent sim only deal!
Buyers Beware!