Vodafone

2021BJ

Smcginn14 said:

The zoom call was UK and I have proof of it . I didn't use mobile data but Vodafone said I called USA . All I did was click on the link to join meeting .  Credit file wasn't mentioned with ombudsman but I kept checking with vodafone and they said everytime no it won't go on my file . 
I never received a bill or any reminders . As soon as I saw the amount online I queried it straight away.   I didn't withold payment because as soon as the review was complete I paid in full .  When I pay 20 a month usually I had every right to query 600.  Vodafone have lied to me on every occasion . I feel it's totally unfair that they have did this. 
If they refuse to remove the markers I will go to ICO and I will be prepared to go to court.  I can't stress how detrimental to mine and my children's life this will be.  I have an unblemished report previous to this . I'm hoping Vodafone will do the right thing but my past experience with their horrific  customer service doesn't give me much faith.  Thanks for everyone's help I will escalate this if needed 

You obviously didn't pay for something, or else you wouldn't have had to pay anything when the Ombudsman made their decision. So what was it that you ended up paying for?

xlnc99

Exactly - You are being vague. 600 pound bill for a zoom call does not even make sense. You do not get charged for a zoom call, it is free. They offer some packages that they charge for but that is to zoom and not the mobile company. You said you did not use mobile data so be straight up.

What is the 600 charge for? you clearly know the answer but for some bizarre reason are not willing to share what the 600 charge is for.

Smcginn14

They said I called the USA . It went to ombudsman and their decision was final and I paid bill .  This is not the issue . The marks on my credit file are when they clearly told me it wouldn't be because it was under review .  

Smcginn14

Thank you I appreciate your advice .  They are meant to contact me today and I'm still waiting. I've already messaged them.  I don't have any faith Vodafone will remove the markers but this will affect my life and my children's life  massively so I will continue to fight it . 

xlnc99

In all fairness the issue is the £600 outstanding bill. Not sure how you can say it isnt it. This is the key issue for this complaint. IT seems to me you got charged for making a call to the USA from your mobile. The fact that you have brushed this under the carpet and you keep focusing on the fact they said 'it would not be on your file as its under review' says to me that you were in the wrong regarding the 600 charge. You were fully aware of the charge (perhaps you made a mistake, it happens) but the £600 charge was correct. The FO even agreed and made you pay.

So that is not in dispute, but you are disputing they told you wouldnt have a marker on your account until it was reviewed. Why didnt you just pay the 600 at the time? Did you not have the funds. My guess is you were stalling to get the funds, which is understandable - 600 is a lot of money for a monthly bill.

Either way, regardless of what Voda said - technically they are in the right. The only thing you can hope for is if you get a good person handling your complaint and they waive the marker. It has happened before. It has happened to me in occasions in which i got a default removed two or three times. But then again also ive had stubborn people who refused to remove some.

Its a lottery - good luck!

2021BJ

Smcginn14 said:

They said I called the USA . It went to ombudsman and their decision was final and I paid bill .  This is not the issue . The marks on my credit file are when they clearly told me it wouldn't be because it was under review .  

Perhaps if you hadn't continued to pursue this the markers would not have been applied.

From Vodafone's perspective;

1.  You made a chargeable call
2.  You disputed making this call.
3.  They put everything on hold whilst they spent time reviewing the case and still came to the same conclusion.
4.  You wouldn't accept their answer and took it to the Ombudsman, further delaying the repayment of the bill.

It's obviously not clear how reasonable your assertion that this charge was incorrect was, but Ombudsman services, in general, are extremely consumer-centric giving far more leeway than a court certainly would.  It seems that if you couldn't even convince them that you were right that you probably didn't have a leg to stand on from the beginning.  If that's the case then it doesn't seem unreasonable for Vodafone to not be quite so generous with the markers.

It does sound a lot like you were just dragging this out until such time as you could pay it (with fingers crossed that maybe you could get it wiped.)

Dellgrad12

Reading between the lines it seems you may have joined the zoom call via the dial in phone option, as opposed to the more common video option which would use your data. When using the dial in option Zoom would supply various different phone numbers to use depending on the country you are in. Using the UK option would have given you a local rate number to use but it sounds like you used a US number instead and that is where this charge came from. It might be that the US number is the ‘default’ or that the zoom call was set up by a US based company and therefore it suggested that number first, but it could still be changed before calling.

It would make sense therefore that the ombudsman sided with Vodafone because it was a valid charge. Therefore the query with Vodafone on the credit file could go either way. If you have some kind of proof that they made promises this wouldn’t impact your credit file then that will help your case. Otherwise you are just reliant on them being kind in this instance, best of luck.

kaMelo

Smcginn14 said:

They said I called the USA . It went to ombudsman and their decision was final and I paid bill .  This is not the issue . The marks on my credit file are when they clearly told me it wouldn't be because it was under review .  

You haven't said in much detail what view the ombudsman took and what they ruled, for example how much of the £600 bill you paid or what the 'compensation' was for.
If the Ombudsman hasn't instructed Vodafone over it's credit file reporting then it's fully entitled to mark your credit file accordingly if it thinks you haven't paid in full.

RHF2020

I've recently had Vodafone agree to remove an unfair default from my credit file. You probably won't want to hear this, but it was 3 months of constant pushing, applying pressure and toil. The CEO was emailed, I chased their team every couple of days, I threatened to involve the FOS without a satisfactory outcome. But ultimately, I have been successful. If it is urgent and is having such a disproportion impact, I'd recommend emailing the CEO and you'll hear from their Directors Office complaints team. Be polite and courteous, and set out all the facts clearly. I'd also focus on the fairness of it; they may try and claim that they were contractually entitled to charge you what they did, but their regulators (Ofcom) have clear standards on how they should treat their customers fairly, and it sounds like they are falling short of this and it is having a disproportionate unfair impact upon you.

Their CEO's email address is nick.jeffery@vodafone.com. I would reference Ofcom's fairness for customers framework as set out here:
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/information-for-industry/policy/fairness-for-customers

Menasim

Hi all
I'm at my wits end. Vodafone has been issuing me with a bad credit rating since 2019, and I can't get to the bottom of the problem. 
I've called umpteen times to try to resolve this issue, but they keep coming back with more and more elaborate lies. I pay by direct debit, and have always done so. I've been a customer with them for around 20 years. They have admitted that my account is clear, but have still not resolved the issue. I called again to day and they are now saying that I owe them a bill of £41, yet when i called last week they told me that they owed me £5.60? 
I just dont know where to go from here. They wont put me through to anyone that could possibly sort this out. 
Can anyone suggest what I can do, going forward! 
Thanks.