O2 Case - Kind Of A Big Deal!

xskullx

Dear MSE Community,

I’m seeking advice regarding a stressful experience with O2's “Switch Up” extra while upgrading from the iPhone 15 Pro Max to the 16 Pro Max. I was informed the upgrade would be available for collection within 24 hours. However, it has now been over four weeks, involving repeated trips to the store (9 in total), daily calls to reserve the device (which can only be held for 24 hours), and countless hours spent on the phone with customer service to no avail. 

Despite my efforts, the issue remains unresolved.

I have been logging each interaction which has been confirmed in-store with their staff:

-          10 Nov Store Visit to initiate the upgrade

-          11 Nov Store Visit

-          13 Nov Store Visit

-          14 Nov Store Visit

-          15 Nov Store Visit

-          15 Nov Web Chat

-          16 Nov Store Visit

-          21 Nov Called 02

-          2nd Nov Called 02

-          23 Nov Store Visit

-          25 Nov Called 02

-          30 Nov Store Visit

-          3 Dec Called 02

-          5 Dec Called 02

-          6 Dec Store Visit

-          9 Dec Store Visit

-          10 Dec Called 02 to raise a complaint.

-          11 Dec Manager called me to say they were still working on it to rectify. Error code was mentioned and still no update or progress. Escalated by the manager to the “back-office” who raised the ticket with the department's management team.

-          12 Dec Waiting for a call back from the manager on another update.

This ordeal has significantly impacted my mental health, caused wasted time and travel expenses, and added stress from the need to call daily to reserve the only phone in stock in that colour and storage size. Additionally, I have already been charged for the new upgrade on my latest bill, even though I haven’t received the device.

I informed the manager that I wished to file a formal complaint. He offered £250 as compensation for the inconvenience. My two questions are:

1) Should I accept the £250 or escalate this matter to the Ombudsman for potential further compensation and resolution?

2) By not accepting the £250 and escalating with the Ombudsman will I lose the right to receive the £250 in compensation?

I appreciate your advice and look forward to your feedback.

Thank you,
L

Ergates

You're not going to be awarded more than £250 for "stress" - this isn't America.  

What are your actual losses? 

DE_612183

Wow - £250? I'd take that without any hesitation - thats about just over a quarter of the price of the device!

Aylesbury_Duck

Grab the £250, it could be withdrawn at any time.

xskullx

But if I go Ombudsman route will the Ombudsman make them honour the £250.

born_again

xskullx said:

But if I go Ombudsman route will the Ombudsman make them honour the £250.

They do not have to.

Aylesbury_Duck

xskullx said:

But if I go Ombudsman route will the Ombudsman make them honour the £250.

No one knows.  How long is the ombudsman backlog at the moment?  I dealt with the financial ombudsman a couple of years ago and it took a number of months to be resolved.

Be honest, how much are you after?

jon81uk

xskullx said:

But if I go Ombudsman route will the Ombudsman make them honour the £250.

What Ombudsman?

I don't think there is one for reservations that are not in stock.

mr_stripey

£250 is a great offer for the "ordeal" you have been through. 
You're making a drama out of a non-crisis

IvanOpinion

Why are you letting this affect your 'mental health'? It is only a mobile phone, you already have a perfectly good one, just not the one you want to have. I hope you get this sorted soon, and hopefully the very generous offer of £250 goes a long way to calming things down.

born_again

Why not get the phone delivered?
All colour & storage option are avaiable online for next day delivery.