harrie1700
New member
I am after any help or advice anyone can offer. I am so frustrated by this and the lack of effort on the part of vodafone to resolve it that I would like advice on how to take it the highest possible authorities. Hopefully this can prevent other people from being treated so badly by vodafone.
I have had a long-running dispute with vodafone for three years now which has caused such a lot of stress and worry. Now it is seriously affecting my credit rating and I am unable to get an overdraft or loan - this is down to a ?800 debt that is not mine. I have had years of correspondance with vodafone and at least three debt collection agencies yet this issue is no closer to being resolved as no one is prepared to address the problems.
It is a long story, but please bear with me!
I sold a phone contract on ebay (there is a specific section for this on ebay, and also Vodafone had a password system to transfer a phone contract).
The buyer said she was changing the phone into her name that day, I still have these messages. Having spoken to her again, incredibly stupidly, I sent her the handset (I still have the recorded delivery slip). A few days later, she called and said that, in fact she would have to establish a 3 month payment record before the account could be transferred into her name. I had spoken to vodafone during this period, but had understood that this process was underway.
(I do realise that these actions are far too na?ve and trusting - I am truly suffering for it now)
From then on things became much, much worse. The buyer contacted me again a couple of months later (I was away at university at the time) and said that she had set up another line on the account and the phone had been sent to my home address. By the time I got home, it was beyond the 14 day cancellation period, and I felt forced to send yet another handset to her, as I was very nervous that she would not pay the bills on the first one (still have delivery slip for this one too).
As I had feared, she then stopped paying bills on either handset and I got a letter asking for around ?800 for call charges and early termination fees on the two lines. I tried to contact the buyer, but she always hung up on me.
I wrote to the buyer but she ignored my letters.
I did once speak to a very helpful man at vodafone, known only as Lee, who said (and sent me an email to confirm) that "per the guidelines from the CAB and Offcom, the users of the handset and telephone numbers on your account are liable for any charges that they run up in conjunction with the service, along with any disconnection fees despite the fact that the numbers are in your name" (this is a direct quote, I do not acknowledge the account as being in my name, since vodafone accepted instruction from someone else to set up another line, and I certainly do not acknowldge any debts on the account).
Since then, unfortunately vodafone have provided shockingly poor customer service, responding very slowly, if at all, to my emails and letters. The replies also do not address the points I raise.
This has now gone on for 3 years and I have had very aggressive calls from at least 3 debt collection agencies, and a huge black mark on my credit rating that is making things extremely difficult for me.
I realise that vodafone has sent out 2 handsets and provided for calls that have not been payed for. I fully agree that they should persue payment from this woman. However, this is not seriously adversely affecting me. I need advice on the following things as the situation with vodafone has become awful and I am taking steps to report them Offcom, and any other regulatory bodies, as they should not be allowed to treat people this way.
1. How can they accept instruction from someone else to set up a new line on an account that is still in my name?
2. Vodafone have been incredibly evasive in replying to or even acknowledging letters and emails. I have sent everything by recorded post, but if I receive a reply, the (numbered!) points I ask them to address are not mentioned. The various debt collection agencies the debt has been passed to and from have been much more forthcoming in correspondence, and have returned the debt to vodafone, I assume because they acknowledge it is a bad debt. I am in the process of reporting this evasive approach to the relevant authorities. Is there anything else I can do to get them to address the actual problems?
Any help would be really appreciated. If possible, don't focus on my stupidity at sending the phones to her in the first place - I am already well aware of this!!
I have posted this in a few place as I want other people to be warned and also to receive responses. I will of course the posts when I have found someone who can help so I don't waste anyone elses time
Thanks in advance for any help.
H
I have had a long-running dispute with vodafone for three years now which has caused such a lot of stress and worry. Now it is seriously affecting my credit rating and I am unable to get an overdraft or loan - this is down to a ?800 debt that is not mine. I have had years of correspondance with vodafone and at least three debt collection agencies yet this issue is no closer to being resolved as no one is prepared to address the problems.
It is a long story, but please bear with me!
I sold a phone contract on ebay (there is a specific section for this on ebay, and also Vodafone had a password system to transfer a phone contract).
The buyer said she was changing the phone into her name that day, I still have these messages. Having spoken to her again, incredibly stupidly, I sent her the handset (I still have the recorded delivery slip). A few days later, she called and said that, in fact she would have to establish a 3 month payment record before the account could be transferred into her name. I had spoken to vodafone during this period, but had understood that this process was underway.
(I do realise that these actions are far too na?ve and trusting - I am truly suffering for it now)
From then on things became much, much worse. The buyer contacted me again a couple of months later (I was away at university at the time) and said that she had set up another line on the account and the phone had been sent to my home address. By the time I got home, it was beyond the 14 day cancellation period, and I felt forced to send yet another handset to her, as I was very nervous that she would not pay the bills on the first one (still have delivery slip for this one too).
As I had feared, she then stopped paying bills on either handset and I got a letter asking for around ?800 for call charges and early termination fees on the two lines. I tried to contact the buyer, but she always hung up on me.
I wrote to the buyer but she ignored my letters.
I did once speak to a very helpful man at vodafone, known only as Lee, who said (and sent me an email to confirm) that "per the guidelines from the CAB and Offcom, the users of the handset and telephone numbers on your account are liable for any charges that they run up in conjunction with the service, along with any disconnection fees despite the fact that the numbers are in your name" (this is a direct quote, I do not acknowledge the account as being in my name, since vodafone accepted instruction from someone else to set up another line, and I certainly do not acknowldge any debts on the account).
Since then, unfortunately vodafone have provided shockingly poor customer service, responding very slowly, if at all, to my emails and letters. The replies also do not address the points I raise.
This has now gone on for 3 years and I have had very aggressive calls from at least 3 debt collection agencies, and a huge black mark on my credit rating that is making things extremely difficult for me.
I realise that vodafone has sent out 2 handsets and provided for calls that have not been payed for. I fully agree that they should persue payment from this woman. However, this is not seriously adversely affecting me. I need advice on the following things as the situation with vodafone has become awful and I am taking steps to report them Offcom, and any other regulatory bodies, as they should not be allowed to treat people this way.
1. How can they accept instruction from someone else to set up a new line on an account that is still in my name?
2. Vodafone have been incredibly evasive in replying to or even acknowledging letters and emails. I have sent everything by recorded post, but if I receive a reply, the (numbered!) points I ask them to address are not mentioned. The various debt collection agencies the debt has been passed to and from have been much more forthcoming in correspondence, and have returned the debt to vodafone, I assume because they acknowledge it is a bad debt. I am in the process of reporting this evasive approach to the relevant authorities. Is there anything else I can do to get them to address the actual problems?
Any help would be really appreciated. If possible, don't focus on my stupidity at sending the phones to her in the first place - I am already well aware of this!!
I have posted this in a few place as I want other people to be warned and also to receive responses. I will of course the posts when I have found someone who can help so I don't waste anyone elses time
Thanks in advance for any help.
H