My feed
Premium

Please
or
to access all these features

AIBU?

To think this is a total scam

34 replies

lyinginthesundrinkingbubbles · 19/08/2018 10:50

Today I scrutinised my mobile bill to discover that since June 2017 I have been billed £2.50 per week by EE fo services to a third party- Bouncegames.

Firstly I would like to stress I have never subscribed to this- I can't hand on heart promise my kids didn't click on a link but they rarely get access to my phone and June 7th 2017 was a work day/School Day so exceedingly unlikely.

I have once a month got an annoying text which came from Bouncegames it reads "U r subscribed to Bouncegames enjoy 24 hrs free (link) then pay £2.50/week. Text STOP to.....".

Initially I thought it a scam so deleted the messages and anyhow it reads it's "free" and then you get charged if you click the link. The messages got a bit annoying so I did text STOP (for 10p) but they kept coming.

So today I phoned up EE mightily pissed off and they said they couldn't help apparently it's in my "terms and conditions".

So AIBU at this total scam?
Surely the mobile phone companies should be doing more to protect their customers? I am willing to bet they take a cut of the profit from this immoral practice.

Anyone had success in getting money back off these crooks?

OP posts:
JennyBlueWren · 19/08/2018 10:54

I don't know about getting your money back but to stop losing more money I would get a new phone on a different contract especially as ee.say there's nothing they can do.

Yoksha · 19/08/2018 11:08

I had something similar a couple of years ago. It was just before this mobile phone company joined EE (name escapes me).

I contacted my network provider. They were not interested in helping me. I suspended my DD and informed them that I wanted a full refund. It was about £36. The £2 deduction had gone on for 18months. I also informed them that they were facilitating fraud on my account, and I'd be taking legal action over it. I didn't know if that really was true in essence, but I'd never given them any instruction with this gaming site. Later that same evening I got a call from a manager who apologised, refunded my money, and credited me with 1 months free mobile usage. Could be worth a try!

longwayoff · 19/08/2018 11:47

Thanks yoksha, I've been similarly infuriated and had similar conversation with provider last week. I will be suspending my Dd tomorrow. I dont see how these shysters can claim its legal. I've been charged for texts from various gambling sites and to add insult to injury I've never received any notification from them no matter what they say. I wasnt in a position to STOP them as didnt know about them, have just noticed them on my bill. I am bloody furious. Good luck to everyone.

Benandhollysmum · 19/08/2018 11:53

NEVEr reply to text messages ever, shoulda blocked first one, and get onto ee for advice if they refuse tell them u are ending ur contract as it’s a failure of customer services

Mmmmdanone · 19/08/2018 12:30

I had similar too. They are very sneaky these companies. I had clicked on some sort of link but had no idea they were then going to start billing me. I was with Vodafone at the time, and although they have also been pretty shit at other things they did reimburse me and cancel this contract that I wasn't aware I'd taken. I've been more careful since.

Nicketynac · 19/08/2018 12:33

I had an issue with being charged for receiving recipes from some scam site. I can't remember which provider I was with but they were affiliated with the recipe people when I googled the name. A lot of people had been caught out - it wasn't just recipes, they charged people for all sorts of crap that you would never pay for.
I was told that my son could not have clicked on it by accident as he would have had to click on a very specific part of the screen to sign up (he was three and used to randomly bash the whole screen like a maniac so he could have clicked anything). Anyway, I got most of it refunded after pointing out that I hadn't actually been sent any recipes, just a few texts which I assumed were a scam until I saw my bill.
I am now with O2 and they allow you to block premium services - I had to do this by phoning them rather than online.

pigsDOfly · 19/08/2018 12:42

I never click on anything that tells me to text stop in order to stop them sending me further texts and the same with spam emails.

I always assume that they are doing it to try to get money out of me.

They're crooks who somehow seems to be above the law.

TooTrueToBeGood · 19/08/2018 12:43

I think you have to accept a bit more responsibility. You didn't check your bill for over a year and presumably didn't notice your direct debit was higher than it should be for the same length of time. Yet you presumably expect EE to cover the vosts associated with your lack of diligence?
Society now expects to be able to buy things at the click of a button, figuratively speaking. That convenience introduces risks and we, the consumers, have to accept some responsibility for mitigating those risks.

longwayoff · 19/08/2018 12:52

Hello.I will happily swear in court that I have NEVER clicked on a link to any random texts. I'm not a child. I block all potential ppi rubbish etc. So yes, personally I do expect the provider to pay for this unsought rubbish. If it was all above board they wouldnt refund a penny.

aperolspritzplease · 19/08/2018 12:58

If you or your children clicked the links that's why you're getting them. Can't blame the company!

greenlanes · 19/08/2018 13:06

I am with TooTrue on this. You have received monthly bills over this time and could have spotted and stopped this much earlier. ie minimised your potential loss. Consumers have a duty of care to mitigate financial loss and complaining that you havent read the T&C doesnt cut it with me at all.

However I do agree with everyone - it does seem a total con that these "facilities" can be so easily added to an account. On my Amazon account I have to retype my password everytime I buy anything.

Juells · 19/08/2018 13:07

A few years ago I started getting loads of crappy 'inspirational' texts. I deleted them as they came in, without reading. I had a PAYG phone at the time, and noticed my credit was nose-diving. Read a text to the end and found I was being charged for each text unless I texted STOP. Bastards.

RestingBitchFace101 · 19/08/2018 13:19

I had the same a few years ago. O2 was totally useless and spun me the same line of you must of signed up nothing we can do. But I cancelled my contact - luckily I was at that time, and went onto Giffgaff with no way to call paid numbers unless I loaded my account. So cheap, only negative is I have to buy my phones.

longwayoff · 19/08/2018 13:28

You arent hearing me. I have not signed up to these. I have not received the texts I've been charged for. My phone records will show this and I will be refunded. I will also complain to Ofcom.

imamum21 · 19/08/2018 13:37

my dad was getting messages like this, called up his provider and got premium numbers blocked and they refunded the credit back to him, he is with o2, i am with vodafone so from start i asked for all premium numbers to be blocked for mine also. o2 advised me the minute you reply stop to them they send more and it gets harder to stop them

lyinginthesundrinkingbubbles · 19/08/2018 13:38

I have evidence I text "STOP" on two occasions in June and July last year but the annoying messages kept coming. So I assumed it was a scam and didn't try again- I hadn't realised they were already charging me!
My mobile bill is ++++£ and I bill through my company which is why it took me so long to realise.
I have just sent an intention to claim letter to the CEO of Bouncegames asking for evidence of contract (there will be none) and I will pursue this through the Small claims court if I haven't received a full refund by the beginning of Sept.
These companies are crooks and the network providers allow access direct to bills so are also culpable (a quick search suggests they get 10-30% if the profit.
I'll let you know how I get on!

OP posts:
blueshoes · 19/08/2018 13:42

OP, you are the victim of a scam and not doing anything wrong. However, you do still have to take measures to avoid being a victim, one of which is the expectation from phone companies, banks that you will check your statements every month.

No one asks to be burgled but if you leave your house with windows and doors unlocked, you are not helping yourself. I always give a glance to all the statements I receive. Ok, not always but if a bill or amount looks high, I do look more carefully and query it with the provider.

Thanks for bringing this scam to my attention.

MusterMark · 19/08/2018 13:44

See also this site: psauthority.org.uk/

Mrsglitterfairy · 19/08/2018 13:48

I work for a mobile phone company (not ee) and the best advice I can give you is to go to the phonepayplus website and put in the number that these texts are coming from (will be on your bill) and it will tell you how to stop them and the contact details of the company that are sending them.
Unfortunately it isn’t illegal for them to send these messages and charge for them, it will have been something that you put your phone number in to at any time over the past few years and in the small print it will have said they will send you messages and charge you for them.
Your phone company doesn’t have an obligation to refund you for these, although they might. They should however be telling you the details of the company, how to stop them and how to claim a refund from the company sending them

KERALA1 · 19/08/2018 14:08

Talktalk lied to me for months. Sold me a package of tv, internet and phone. Got the Internet and phone but not the tv. I rang sporadically when I remembered and was fobbed off they said it would be a day or two. After 6 months finally one operator said he couldn't lie any more the tv thing wasn't available in our area despite me being sold it and paying for it for months. I went ballistic and refused to pay. They said they would refer me to their legal team I said bring it on! Eventually they gave me a free 3 months and a good price package. But they lied and told their staff to lie.

youwouldthink · 19/08/2018 14:09

If you have evidence then you need to call bouncemobi and state this and ask for a refund, The subscription had to be taken from your phone there's no other possible way.
EE are charged the money the same as if you subscribed to Apple Music or Spotify. You need to contact the company directly.
If they dont please you then you can go online to the PSA and log a complaint.
EE can place a charge to mobile bar to your acc to stop any further subscriptions being added.

tinytemper66 · 19/08/2018 14:39

My son who has SN took out a phone contract withEE despite many phone calls etc we cannot cancel the contract , even though t has been up over a year unless my son remembers his password or we get power of attorney. We were going to do that anyway so we have to wait a few more weeks to sort it out. If they then don't play ball I will not be happy and seek advice. As they record their calls it should all be on there.

Newsletters you might like

Discover Exclusive Savings!

Sign up to our Money Saver newsletter now and receive exclusive deals and hot tips on where to find the biggest online bargains, tailored just for Mumsnetters.

Log in to update your newsletter preferences.

You've subscribed!

Parent-Approved Gems Await!

Subscribe to our weekly Swears By newsletter and receive handpicked recommendations for parents, by parents, every Sunday.

Log in to update your newsletter preferences.

You've subscribed!

Walkingdeadfangirl · 19/08/2018 14:53

Happened to me a few years ago, after a few heated calls to the phone company I ended up blocking premium services. Problem solved.

Then contacted the company that had sent me the messages, demanding they either prove I had consented to them or refund me. And if they didn't I would peruse them in small claims. They refunded me within a few days with an apology.

youwouldthink · 19/08/2018 17:48

@tinytemper you simply have to take your son to an EE store with ID and change password!

Mamamiaherewegoagainmymy · 19/08/2018 18:09

@tinytemper my son has SN and signed up to a ( crappy deal imho ) contract. I went down to the EE store with DS and ID/ Tablet and spoke to the manager there. They refunded me and cancelled contract as s goodwill gesture

Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.