Talktalk Refund

Virtualmeuk

Hi All,


Looking for advice and possibly small claims court details. I had a Talktalk mobile account a few years ago for the kids and when i managed to get a deal on 3Mobile i decided to cancel the Talktalk. This was on the 7th Jan 2017. When i canceled the mobile account i was asked if i needed a PAC code and as the kid wasnt around i said yes incase he wanted to keep his number. Anyway, he didnt want the number so we got a new one with three and all was great. A few months later i noticed that i was still being billed from Talktalk so in April i contacted them again asking why. They expleained that because i hadnt used the PAC code i was still being billed. I told them that it was not used and to cancel it again. In July 2017 i checked again and i was STILL being billed so this time i used the online chat so that i have a record of the conversation. They said:
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Zama:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I will disconnect now on your account, so you can stop these charges happening.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]You:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] AND REFUND ME[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Zama:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I will speak to my manger about that refund.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Zama:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Because on your account, the notes state that you were read the terms and conditions.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]You:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] WELL THE NOTES ARE A LIE[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Zama:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I am really sorry about that, my manger will contact you regarding the refund.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]You:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] CAN HE CALL ME PLEASE[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]You:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] 0************[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Zama:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] Do you wish to be contacted on 0*******?
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Zama:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Oh, thanks for that information.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]You:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] THATS REALLY FUNNY[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]You:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] IT WAS DESTROYYED IN JANUARY WHEN I CANCELED[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Zama:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]You will be contacted in the next 24 to 48 hours.[/FONT]





Si i thought that was the end of it. Anyway, whilst having a review of my standing orders and direct debits with my financial adviser she flagged up that Talktalk were still taking money from me!! so told me to cancel the DD which i did.


I then got a demand from them for 24.00 so i contacted them yet again. I spent 50 minutes on the phone being passsed from person to person and the lady again said it would be canceled and that she would get a manager to get in touch with me. The chap called back on Saturday just gone and said that he could only authorize the cancellation of the account and wipe the outstanding debt and could not refund me. He said he would have to raise this with a higher manager who would get back to me within 48 hours.



Today, Thursday 120 hours later, the same chap rang saying he had spoken to them and they were only prepared to offer wht he said initially. They cannot refund me the money.


So my question is:-
1) Do you think i have a valid claim for a refund?
2) Do you think i have a case for small claims?


ANy help, advice, infor would be appreciated.


Steve

mobilejunkie

1) Only for the charges after they told you they would disconnect the phone (July 2017 - though you'd still have to pay for 30 days from that point.

2) Same.

I'd start by raising a formal complaint. Then you could try the Ombudsman after 8 weeks or a letter of deadlock. After that, a LBA ( or do that instead of the Ombudsman). Initially not exercising the PAC would have left the contract running, as they stated.

VERY important; you need to ensure they haven't placed an adverse mark for an unpaid bill on your external credit files. If it's not resolved the amount they claim is due will escalate rapidly too. Any adverse mark will stay on there for 6 years and may prevent you with worse problems with other forms of credit.

Virtualmeuk

Hi, Thanks for the reply. I would accept a refund back to July no problem to be honest.



The chap i spoke to said he is raising it as a formal complaint to get the managers to reply but is there any formal way to do this?


What is an LBA? and how do i check an adverse mark on my credit?

mobilejunkie

Make a note of the time/date person who raised it. That should be sufficient.

Letter Before Legal Proceedings.

Sign up for a free trials with the credit reference agencies (such as Experien).

TalkTalk

Hi Steve,

I'm really sorry to read about what's happened with your mobile account, I completely understand your concern and we'd be happy to escalate this for investigation if you'd like us to do this for you. If you have access to Twitter, you can reach my team directly there (@TalkTalk). You can also reach out on our Online Community, or by using one of the contact methods on our Help & Support page on our website.

Thanks,
Becky - TalkTalk Social Team

Virtualmeuk

Hi Becky,


I have so far spent over 2 hours on the phone, via online chat and i am not about to start using twitter as well. My last conversation with the 'manager' today was that he was going to escalate it to another 'more senior' manager and i have asked for this more senior manager to call me but the under manager chap i spoke to said he cant guarantee that. I am just sick of wasting time and energy on this. As it stands, if i don't get a suitable resolution from this 'senior manager', i will be contacting the ombudsman / small claims court.

The_Fat_Controller

You can only go to the resolution service after a formal complaint has been made,it is investigated, there is no resolution and a deadlock letter has been issued.

pmduk

OP, make sure you have received a reference number for the formal complaint.