Warning to Sky Q customers on discount packages

smjxm09

I was getting a 12 month discount on my $ky package which I renew every year when in November last year I was persuaded to invest in a $ky Q package. The upfront price and monthly cost was agreed and I was sent an email confirming my new package and that I was now on an 18 month minimum contract.


On March 16th I was send a letter informing me of a £3.50 increase from April.


So today not remembering whether I was on a 12 or 18 month contract I go online and look at my billing only to find that since April $ky have added another £50 per month to my bill. On contacting $ky I am now informed that the discount package expired in March and that the new $ky Q contract did not include billing even though I was given a monthly price.


The bottom line is that although $ky admit I should have been told they won’t give me the money back or give me a credit so I am on notice to leave. Clearly the £1.7bn profit is not enough, which I accept but $ky has lost a 30 year customer and $ky would have got that money back in a continuing subscription.


Not sure if I am the only person affected by this but I feel there is a dose of sharp practice taking place that others should be aware of.

Boohoo

smjxm09 wrote: »

I was getting a 12 month discount on my $ky package which I renew every year when in November last year I was persuaded to invest in a $ky Q package. The upfront price and monthly cost was agreed and I was sent an email confirming my new package and that I was now on an 18 month minimum contract.


On March 16th I was send a letter informing me of a £3.50 increase from April.


So today not remembering whether I was on a 12 or 18 month contract I go online and look at my billing only to find that since April $ky have added another £50 per month to my bill. On contacting $ky I am now informed that the discount package expired in March and that the new $ky Q contract did not include billing even though I was given a monthly price.


The bottom line is that although $ky admit I should have been told they won’t give me the money back or give me a credit so I am on notice to leave. Clearly the £1.7bn profit is not enough, which I accept but $ky has lost a 30 year customer and $ky would have got that money back in a continuing subscription.


Not sure if I am the only person affected by this but I feel there is a dose of sharp practice taking place that others should be aware of.

How did you not know that your Sky monthly bill was at least £50 pm more than it used to be and you did nothing for at least 6 month's.


With Sky it's best to keep all emails/letters/contact somewhere safe so you have evidence of what Sky said they were going to offer you and for how long.


A costly lesson for you but if you look on here and other forums you will see that you are not alone in Sky's funny billing system.

[Deleted User]

The obvious thing to learn here is to always check bills and statements regularly.

A £50 increase not noticed for half a year?:eek:

How will you be able to leave if you are still on an eighteen month minimum term?

smjxm09

Points taken but I have so many direct debits and standing orders and general monthly payments that this one slipped through. In the opening first couple of months it was checked monthly to make sure the correct money was being taken out and in March I am sent a letter telling me my subscription is going up by £3.50 and not close to £50.

smjxm09

How will you be able to leave if you are still on an eighteen month minimum term?

I told them I was leaving and they dropped the cancellation charge.

smjxm09

Just an update after another fruitless conversion with Sky complaints with me quoting their own contracts.

From the email I was sent in November 2017

Product description - Sky Q Multiscreen pact with a minimum 18 month contract.

According to Sky this means just hardware even though if I Google Sky Q multiscreen pact it takes me to Sky's bundle page. Seeing that I was already paying around £300 for hardware the assumption was that I am tied into a subscription contract at an agreed price as I was not told any different.

From the contract

Sky TV - If you've upgraded to Sky Q from Sky+


• Your current Sky TV contracts will end and a new contract for Sky Q under new terms and conditions starts

My interpretation is that my existing 12 month contract with my discount would end early and a new contract begins at the agreed new price.

Sky say this is not the case and the existing 12 month discount that was meant to end in March 2018 would still run until that date despite the T&C telling me that all contracts will end.

Paying for your Sky services and your bill

• Prices and services may vary, including during the minimum term. We will let you know about any material changes and your options before we make them.

So I get a letter in March telling me of a £3.50 increase while ignoring the near doubling of the subscription despite their contract telling me I would be told.

Trying to see both points of view but I am struggling. I am just staggered how bad Sky treat their customers in the full knowledge that they will lose out in the long run with a cancelled subscription which is on countdown now. According to them with 30+ years of subscriptions I am a VIP customer. Yeah right.

What I find so insulting is the £1.7bn profit is clearly not enough and the thought of returning £400 would give them sleepless nights even though they would have kept my subscription going.

[Deleted User]

smjxm09 wrote: »

So I get a letter in March telling me of a £3.50 increase while ignoring the near doubling of the subscription despite their contract telling me I would be told.

Trying to see both points of view but I am struggling. I am just staggered how bad Sky treat their customers in the full knowledge that they will lose out in the long run with a cancelled subscription which is on countdown now. According to them with 30+ years of subscriptions I am a VIP customer. Yeah right.

They're required to advise you of the £3.50 increase but they're NOT required to advise you of the end of any discount period (the miscommunication is another matter).

Just for clarity the original Sky TV launched in 1989 (with 9 channels :eek:) so it'll be a maximum of 29 years.

smjxm09

Yes I know that which is why I always put in my diary to contact them when the deal finishes. The point is that I signed a new 18 month contract for a "Sky Q Multiscreen pact" and was told it would run for 18 months. Not my words but their words, email and contract. There was no mention the price I was quoted would end in March. Also as pointed out the T&C states that all old contracts became void so the old discount should have ended when the new contract started.

DoaM

Contra Proferentem

Look it up and then decide what your next course of action is.

smjxm09

Contra proferentem rule

The contra proferentem rule states, broadly, that where there is doubt about the meaning of the contract, the words will be construed against the person who put them forward.

That is very interesting thanks.

smjxm09

Just an update after speaking to a manager. Seems he is holding out now on the grounds that I should have told them earlier so is only willing to refund one month's payments.

I have been in contact with my bank to just explained the relevant fact that I was not told in writing of a direct Debit increase to £95.50 and that Sky are refusing to refund me the difference.

The bank informs me that they can't do that and are in breach of the DD mandate rules and that I should initiate a direct debit guarantee indemnity claim which has no time limit. The bank are now in the process of putting 8 payments of £95.50 back into my account. Clearly this is too much as Sky had informed me of an increase to £51.10 but I can't request a part refund.

Feels like a case of roll reversal where I have gone from being owned just under £400 in my opinion to owing Sky almost £800 in their opinion. They can claim that money back by DD after appealing.

I don't expect Sky to write this off but they can't just snatch it off me in a raid of my bank account.

I will update when something happens but I have a flexible viewpoint that it will eventually sort itself out. If they snatch the money back I won't lose any sleep as I have many other options open to me.