Orange/EE charging 17p each for SMS delivery receipts

littlerock

I have a SIM only plan, originally with Orange, paid monthly, currently out of contract. I only use it in emergency and then only for texts. It is a Sony Xperia phone.

Last month I got a large bill, well over the cost of the SIM only plan. So I contacted EE. After some run around I finally spoke to a helpful advisor who said that my phone was set up to send me SMS delivery receipts and these were not included in the SIM-only plan and charged at 17p each. The large bill was because I had sent a lot of texts that month.

I looked at my phone Message Settings and it was indeed set to request SMS receipt confirmation although I do not recall doing this - as I was not even aware that receipt confirmations were possible. I had noticed them coming in occasionally, but certainly not consistently and even so did not imagine it was a chargeable service at 17p a time. I suppose it might be a default setting on the phone and a fairly recent charge, at the 17p level anyway. I cannot find any reference to a charge for SMS delivery receipts in my contract.

I have now turned it off (in Messages/Settings/Delivery receipts/)
I do not know if EE makes this charge across the board but it seems very steep. Be aware.

d123

The normal charge on Orange is 1.7p. It is free on EE.


https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4379597

Unfortunately, as you’re on a business plan you could be charged different prices for various services, but I think you’ll discover you misunderstood the adviser you spoke to, or there’s a fault with your charging.

Perhaps ask for Orange to reset your online password so you can check your bills and verify what you’ve been charged.

Inner_Zone

Another thread by the OP on basically the same subject:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5724917

littlerock

The first post was a query about the difficulty in reaching someone to talk to in Orange/EE. The second post was to warn people about the 17p charge for delivery receipt as a separate topic.

littlerock

No the advisor was quite specific that the SMS delivery receipt was not covered by my sim only plan and that it was 17p a text. Can you point me to somewhere it says the Orange charge should be 1.7p. There is no mention of receipt charges anywhere on my plan paperwork.

The link supplied is for 2013, I suspect the changes post date that. I have found postings on the Internet by EE advisors which both confirm it is a free charge and that it is chargeable.

eDicky

I used to pay 1.7p per SMS delivery report when I was on Orange (when they were enabled on my handset). Perhaps there's a tenfold increase to help persuade customers to move to EE from Orange.

littlerock

I have managed to get into Manage Your Money (got Customer advisor to reset password) and I have looked at my itemised bill and am definitely being charged 17p per SMS delivery receipt.

d123

littlerock wrote: »

The link supplied is for 2013, I suspect the changes post date that. I have found postings on the Internet by EE advisors which both confirm it is a free charge and that it is chargeable.

Orange was closed to new business in April 2014, so that’s why it’s still relevant, most EE advisers probably have very little knowledge of the old Orange plans (as it’s been around 3 and a ½ years since they closed).

Your case confuses it even further as you were on an Orange Business tariff so would have little in common with consumer tariffs.