Help! EE dispute with Comm Ombudsman then went to debt collector

tip2tail

Hello

Hope someone might offer some advice here.  I am currently in dispute with EE regarding my final bill (long story, they told me wrong info, I paid too little according to them, then they chasing) - but now I find that while the case is still open with the Communication Ombudsman they have referred my case (with penalties) over to Moorcroft debt.  I have spent years fixing my credit scores after my ex-partner screwed it up, now to have this ruin everything!

I'm mad!

Is this right that they can refer to debt collectors while in dispute?

Cube123

There isn't really enough info here to say if they were justified tbh.

What was the dispute?  Was you paying to little your fault or there's?

TELLIT01

Safest way to protect your credit worthiness is to pay up and see what the outcome of the Ombudsman investigation is.  If they find in your favour I would expect EE to have to pay the costs of the debt collectors too.

Hoenir

Raising a dispute doesn't stop a supplier from following due process if they believe the billing to be correct. Who ever is in the wrong will pay the consequences. 

tip2tail

OK - so yeah, the dispute has now been found in their favour - they misinformed me multiple times of the cost of the final bill, removed access to my EE app meaning I cannot see bills or the chat history where they had previously informed me of the higher costs.  But because they HAD told me in the past there is nothing the ombudsman will do (despite me asking for confirmation on the phone and them telling me the wrong info).

I'll call tomorrow and arrange to pay

PHK

Wasn't the final bill taken automatically like all the previous bills?

One general point (and it’s the same with other ombudsman services like the FOS)  if the other side makes a mistake but there’s something to tell you there’s a mistake , for example a contract or previous contact, then you can’t get away with benefitting from the mistake. You might get compensation for the upset caused to you by being told different things. 

For anyone else in a similar situation. If it’s not a huge amount then pay it and complain or claim the difference back. If it’s (in your opinion) a large amount then pay what you think is the correct amount then complain with the evidence to back you up. Whatever you do, make a payment.