Did O2 steal my money??

kiaiki

Our Pay as You Go sim was deactivated by O2 as we had not used it for a while. This practice is dangerous, as it may leave a vulnerable person with no access to emergency help. However, my complaint is this:

They not only refused to reactivate it BUT ALSO KEPT ALL THE CREDIT!! Surely the credit is mine, not theirs. Why could they not refund me as my details were registered with them? All they could do was to quote their T&C. Of course, after a few years, it cannot be proved by us that they were in force when we bought the sim.

Martin, here's one for you - surely, like bank charges, this is an illegal penalty.

If we add up all the credit confiscated by O2 I bet it will be a tidy sum. Do all the networks work this way? On a contract they fall over backwards to keep your business; on prepay they obviously couldn't care less if they cut you off AND take your money.

Not only has this cost me the lost credit but I've had to get a new sim and pay for credit all over again - doubling the cost to me!! (Needless to say it is not with O2, who I will never use again - and will warn off everyone I meet. Please do the same!)

stacey21_2

You can re-register a PAYG sim easily?

kiaiki

O2 customer care said deactivation of a sim is permanent, as is the loss of all credit, so their policy is strictly no to 'reactivation'. The sim was registered but that made no difference.

The message comes up as 'sim deactivated' which is different from blocking it and needing an unblocking code. They will give you unblocking codes but will not reactivate a sim they have deactivated.

I'm sure their technology must be capable of reactivation but they prefer to lose your custom and add insult to injury by keeping your credit, which you have paid for and which IMHO belongs to you, not them.

If their small print allows such pillaging of customers' accounts then it should be challenged under the Unfair Contract Terms Act or as an illegal penalty.

thesaint

kiaiki wrote: »

<snip>Of course, after a few years, it cannot be proved by us that they were in force when we bought the sim.

Martin, here's one for you - surely, like bank charges, this is an illegal penalty.

<snip>

You could prove it if you bothered to keep the paperwork.

Bank charges aren't illegal.

kiaiki

OK, clever clogs, not ALL bank charges are illegal, just excessive ones.

Even if their T&C did allow them to keep your credit, it is IMHO an excessive penalty charged as they terminate a contract without notice or notification and should be able to be challenged as an unfair contract term or an excessive punitive charge.

I don't expect them to try and track down customers who have not registered, but as I stated, in this case the sim was registered so I'm sure their PC skills are capable of sending a letter. I kept plenty of credit on the sim as it was in a phone we keep in the car for emergencies.

thesaint

kiaiki wrote: »

OK, clever clogs, not ALL bank charges are illegal, just excessive ones.

Even if their T&C did allow them to keep your credit, it is IMHO an excessive penalty charged as they terminate a contract without notice or notification and should be able to be challenged as an unfair contract term or an excessive punitive charge.

I don't expect them to try and track down customers who have not registered, but as I stated, in this case the sim was registered so I'm sure their PC skills are capable of sending a letter. I kept plenty of credit on the sim as it was in a phone we keep in the car for emergencies.

There are no bank charges that've been shown to be illegal, including excessive ones.

You had no contract with 02, that's the beauty of PAYG, so no contract to terminate.

You can challenge it as an unfair contract term, no need to wait for Martin :money:

Good Luck :A

kiaiki

I don't have the money to challenge it, even in a small claims court.

I think you are confusing two uses of 'contract' - mobile jargon and legal jargon differ. The term 'contract' in this case is, technically, my payment to O2 for a service. The term 'contract' bandied about in the mobile world as just convenient shorthand and is very misleading. All transactions where there is a service in return for a consideration (payment) are the basis of a contrct in law, I think. They terminated it, so there is an acceptance that a contract exists on their part as well.
As I have paid them in advance as credit, they are bound to provide a service or refund me the payment, surely. Or does the law now allow a company to keep your cash and not provide you with goods or services? I think not.

stacey21_2

How long was it not used for? De-activations usually only take place after about 6 months.

kiaiki

That would be about right. I realise they can't go on for ever as their network is limited in capacity.

I'm not much bothered by the de-activation itself, albeit potentially dangerous if a lone woman in a car relied on it, for example. (I don't thnk even emergency calls are possible, as they are if your sim is simply blocked.)

I'm angry that they refuse to reactivate it, kept all the credit and even wanted cash for a new sim - no way!

stacey21_2

How much credit was on it? They *may* be willing to transfer it across onto another sim however if it is a couple of pounds its probably not worth the phone call ;-) Six months is a long time. A sim can be kept active even just by sending a text every now and then.

kiaiki

It was about £20 but they point blank refused any such deal.
'Your sim will remain de-activated, this is final, and you have lost all credit.'

No offer of a transfer to a new sim etc, just a very formal and almost stroppy reaction to the fact that I should even dare ask for my money back.

My daughter worked in a mobile network's call centre so I know that someone could have been helpful or escalated the problem to a team leader etc. Basically, I got the impression that if you don't spend heaps of money a month, you am worthless and receive the brush-off.