Applicateka - Premium rate refund
I have a mobile on Three that is used by my brother-in-law.
I noticed a larger amount taken from my bank by direct debit and when I looked at the bill I saw charges via Payforit from a company called Applicateka, part of NRS Group.
When I contacted them they sent me a link that he allegedly clicked on to subscribe as well as a log of texts they allegedly sent reminding him that he is subscribed.
I showed my brother-in-law and he doesn't remember clicking the link nor does he recall receiving any of these texts.
The crux of the matter is that my brother-in-law has learning difficulties but he's not stupid and I believe him.
I have logged a complaint with PhonepayPlus but on the face of it, it doesn't appear that they've breached any regulations. I have also tried to appeal to NRS Group on the basis that we haven't received any texts etc. I have also blocked any further charges directly with Three (not something I was aware I could do).
My questions:
1) Has anyone successfully obtained a refund from these people?
2) if they can show logs that he's subscribed and they've sent follow up texts but he's adamant he didn't click on anything or receive those texts, it's their word against ours! Any ideas how we could prove this?
Clearly consumers need more protection against this sort of thing. Shouldn't the operators take more responsibility for obtaining authorisation prior to allowing recurring payments to be applied to your account?
Any help or guidance would be appreciated.
Thanks.
I noticed a larger amount taken from my bank by direct debit and when I looked at the bill I saw charges via Payforit from a company called Applicateka, part of NRS Group.
When I contacted them they sent me a link that he allegedly clicked on to subscribe as well as a log of texts they allegedly sent reminding him that he is subscribed.
I showed my brother-in-law and he doesn't remember clicking the link nor does he recall receiving any of these texts.
The crux of the matter is that my brother-in-law has learning difficulties but he's not stupid and I believe him.
I have logged a complaint with PhonepayPlus but on the face of it, it doesn't appear that they've breached any regulations. I have also tried to appeal to NRS Group on the basis that we haven't received any texts etc. I have also blocked any further charges directly with Three (not something I was aware I could do).
My questions:
1) Has anyone successfully obtained a refund from these people?
2) if they can show logs that he's subscribed and they've sent follow up texts but he's adamant he didn't click on anything or receive those texts, it's their word against ours! Any ideas how we could prove this?
Clearly consumers need more protection against this sort of thing. Shouldn't the operators take more responsibility for obtaining authorisation prior to allowing recurring payments to be applied to your account?
Any help or guidance would be appreciated.
Thanks.
0
Comments
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AFAIK, they have to demonstrate a text from him in the first place that he allegedly sent to confirm the subscription....
When I contacted them they sent me a link that he allegedly clicked on to subscribe as well as a log of texts they allegedly sent reminding him that he is subscribed.
Clicking a link can start the procedure, but isn't sufficient for completing it.0 -
Hi Landore
I understand how you feel. I have been victim of this scam
I am also on 3 network
3 managed to stop two of the charges but two more got away .o have no clue how to stop this.I didn't click on any yes on Web page. I don't gamble and don't go for voucher scam
I hope we can find some solutions
Gkat0 -
How is this company still managing to scam people. I received a text out of the blue yesterday saying I had subscribed (which I certainly had not) and had £4.50 debited from my account. I contacted my povider BT who said I must have subscribed, or had given my phone to someone else. This has been going on for years as far as I can see and people are still being scammed by these people. Where are the Regulators?0
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Make sure you complain to the Phone-Paid Services Authority. They take action only when they receive complaints.
It is estimated that only about one person in one thousand to one person in ten thousand actually bothers to submit a complaint. Without complaints, regulators assume there is no issue. Upon receiving one or two complaints, regulators assume they are one-off or isolated instances. They only start to act when there are dozens or hundreds of complaints about the same thing.0 -
Thanks Ian, I have done that already, and also on advice, reported it to Action Fraud UK.0
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Interesting...and how this happened I have no idea...it looks like some malware has used the phone number I have for my Google account, and subscribed me to this service, and so debiting my phone account. I have no idea how this has happened as I have premium Internet security.....thats all I can think of.0
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I received a text message from this company last night. I knew I definitely hadn't subscribed to Applicateka (or anything else) for £4.50pw. I tried Vodafone first who weren't very helpful. I did try the Phone Services Authority but they weren't able to help (as I wasn't keen on contacting NRS-group.com direct after everything I had read about them).
Today I rang Vodafone back and insisted they do something about it. They called the company for me and got the charge reversed and have stopped them from contacting me again.
Surely our phone providers have some responsibility, if we report the problem as spam, to cancel all future charges?0
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