cuckoo broadband unjustified debt claim

micronaut

Hi,

Last year I set up a broadband account with Cuckoo but they were unable to set up the service. After 2 weeks of failed attempts they closed the account and I have in writing a confirmation that there would be no exit fees as they couldn't supply any service.  I heard nothing from them until March this year when they sent a bag to return the router, which I did and collected a postage receipt from the post office.

Last week I was contacted by CRS, a debt collection agency explaining that Cuckoo had passed on my details to them and there's a debt of £780 owed.  They're now phoning and texting me to repay the money.  I contacted Cuckoo 3 days ago and they claimed that the debt would be removed, but as of yet it's still active.  They contacted me this morning to tell me they didn't receive the router and have added an additional £128 to the debt.

I've sent copies of the emails and receipts to cuckoo and continue to seek resolution but it seems to be escalating.

I believe that Cuckoo is acting in breach of the FCA and telecoms ombudsman's policies for fair treatment of consumers as they didn't provide any notification before engaging a debt collector and the issue with the router return was also never mentioned prior to my contacting them regarding the early exit fee.  

I've sent a letter to CRS disputing the debt and requesting they suspend their action until this is investigated, as well as requesting all the details of their communication with cuckoo but I have had no response from them. Likewise, I've notified cuckoo that if this isn't resolved I will report it to the FCA and Ofcom in 14 days. Cuckoo responded to this letter by demanding payment be made in 7 days.

Does anybody have any advice on how to proceed with this? I feel I am being unfairly harassed by the company for money at this point and it's causing a great deal of stress.

Thanks.

QrizB

micronaut said:

Does anybody have any advice on how to proceed with this?

Cuckoo will have a complaints process. You should follow it.

Meanwhile, instruct CRS to stop the calls and texts and only to contact you in writing. That'll slow them down and should reduce the stress levels.

micronaut

still ongoing. I've followed their processes, had emails from cuckoo informing me the debt is cleared and no further action, then had to contact CRS 2 weeks later as they're still chasing me for the money, CRS says they've cleared the debt but it's still showing up on their website as an unresolved case.

At what point would I be justified in contacting the financial services authority? I feel that cuckoo should be punished for this. It's shocking to have debt collectors chasing people for their administrative error they don't seem to be bothered to clean up.

micronaut

I finally got the debt cleared today after over a month of phone calls and emails. Cuckoo backed down on the early exit fee after being shown email conversations when the contract was terminated, but then raised the debt higher, claiming it was for not returning the router. After presenting them with the Royal Mail tracking receipt they backed down again. CRS then took weeks to clear the record with no communication despite numerous requests. Both these organisations are a disgrace.

Hopefully for me it's over now, but anybody thinking of taking out a cheap broadband deal with Cuckoo should keep detailed records or all interactions, or just avoid them entirely.

 

QrizB

I'm glad you managed to resolve this. Hope your current broadband supplier is less litigious.

prowla

Nicely done - the take-home here is to keep all records of conversations, do screen dumps, etc. when dealing with companies so that you have them to refer back to when automated processes kick in.