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Original poster

Orange harassing Widow over late husbands bill, despite her sending death certificate.

24 replies

Starchart · 23/06/2011 10:50

Hiya,

Full story below. My mum has been receiving bills from them despite my calling them many times, faxing the death certificate (from their own orange shops for which I have a receipt) and being stuck in orange shop for hours arguing and being promised in all ocassions it will stop.

Now my mum has a letter informing her that if she sends them the death certificate then they will not charge her for the bills they have been sending her as a 'gesture of good will'.

She has been soooo stressed out by these bills and has fallen out with me a couple of times because 'you said you were dealing with it'.

Perhaps if I even vaguely believed sending off the certificate again would have any effect I would do it. But I have done EVERYTHING that has been asked, and more.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/other_products_chat/1243155-What-do-I-do-about-Orange/AllOnOnePage#26062141

OP posts:
xstitch · 23/06/2011 10:52

Contact ofcom and complain to them. If they won't listen after repeated attempts to give them information then you have to step it up.

I am really sorry to hear of your loss and your poor mum too.

Geordieminx · 23/06/2011 10:53

I would send q letter to the consumer bit or the guardian. I would also threaten them with OFCOM.

If you can leave it with me I will get name for head of customer services

Limy · 23/06/2011 10:53

Sorry to hear of your loss. I agree with xstitch contact Ofcom they should be able to help.

onepieceofcremeegg · 23/06/2011 10:54

So sorry to hear about your loss and then this horrible stress from Orange as well.

A few thoughts (but you may have tried this already). Try and get the name of the MD/someone high up and liaise with him or her direct. (try e-mail first?)

Another thought is to get a proper address/ contact name for someone high up at Orange, and send a solicitor's letter, recorded delivery if possible. I know that this will incur a cost that you shouldn't have to pay, but they may take more notice?

Pumpernickel10 · 23/06/2011 10:54

So sorry to hear this is happening to you,we had the same with Egg,who harassed my poor father over it in the months after my moms death. In the end we went to CAB who helped us resolve it and the matter was dropped,we also contacted the financial ombudsman which issued them with a fine. I am not sure if they will deal with Orange though but its worth a phone call.
0800 023 4567
Good luck

onepieceofcremeegg · 23/06/2011 10:55

Oh and any further letters send back, unopened. Scrawl across them big and clear something like "no longer at this address, please refer to previous correspondence)

ashamedandconfused · 23/06/2011 10:55

Have you tried going to CRB?

Danthe4th · 23/06/2011 10:56

Theres someone who does a column in the saturday times that deals with problems like this and also that Dominic chap who does a bbc programme, perhaps you should get them to speak to Orange.

ashamedandconfused · 23/06/2011 10:57

that should say CAB not CRB

Original poster
Starchart · 23/06/2011 11:03

Thank you for responding. I see I have some options.

I think it is the 'gesture of goodwill' bit that has me the angriest. How DARE they?

I'm sorry, but even if we had never informed them of his death then that is pretty dodgy wording to address to the family of a recently deceased, but in light of us having done everything we were supposed to do (and fast as i prioritised Orange due to having had problems with them before) it just made me very angry.

OP posts:
fivegomadindorset · 23/06/2011 11:04

CEO is [email protected]

MorelliOrRanger · 23/06/2011 11:06

Ooh well done five, good luck OP - this is disgraceful behaviour from Orange Sad

Original poster
Starchart · 23/06/2011 11:07

Blimey thank you five. How did you do that!

OP posts:
Original poster
Starchart · 23/06/2011 11:13

So what do I do? Send an email or just a link to this thread!

OP posts:
fivegomadindorset · 23/06/2011 11:16

Send an email explaining exactly what has happened and what you have done to try and stop the account. IF you have the receipt then you will have a date that you faxed the death certificate.

EldritchCleavage · 23/06/2011 17:02

Or try the consumer pages of a national newspaper. Once they think there will be bad publicity these things seem to get sorted out with lightening speed. Brignall & King in the Guardian/Observer is a good one.

confuddledDOTcom · 23/06/2011 18:27

My Grandma had this with BT when my aunt died and my dad when Grandma died. I seem to remember in the end Grandma offered them an
address for my aunt...

It's terrible that they can be so insensitive when someone dies :( I hope your family manages to sort it out soon. I can't add any advice not already offered.

blushingm · 23/06/2011 18:30

if you are sending an email make sure it has a tracker so you know if it's been delivered and if it's been read. Keep the notifications incase they say they've never had it

i'm very sorry for your loss and hope it is sorted soon

Honeydragon · 23/06/2011 18:38

If Orange have had the death certificate they are being incompetent. Also THEY DO NOT NEED THE CERTIFICATE. They can check the bereavement register. They have probably lost the certificate or destroyed it

On receiving the certificate copy they should have done this and closed his account.

Either way they are grossly at fault ...if they believe your father to be deceased they should not be chasing your mother for the money, they should have asked for the executer of the estate and dealt in writing with them.

If they do not believe your father is deceased without the death certificate they should not be hounding or chasing your dm for payment as they are breaking data protection.

Either way they are in the wrong and believing very very badly and can be fined for such misdemeanour's.

call them, point this out and instruct them that if the matter is so urgent they need to check the register.

I am so Angry on your mother s behalf.

Onemorning · 23/06/2011 22:01

I'm so sorry for your loss. How awful. And Orange - arses.

I lost a friend a few years ago, and EDF wrote to him twice monthly to chase the outstanding monies for gas and electric despite having had the death certificate.

When he and I both queried, they said they couldn't stop them as they were 'automatic' until the outstanding balance was paid.

I was co-executor and eventually got them sent to me, because he was in bits when he got them.

Heartless fucking evil bastards.

biddysmama · 23/06/2011 22:35

orange did the same to my friend, sending the letters in her husbands name after she told them he died, ringing and asking to speak to him but refusoing to speak to her about it as it wasnt in her name etc,,,her son ended up paying it toget them off her back :(

Honeydragon · 23/06/2011 22:44

DO NOT PAY THEM!!!!!

This is what they are trying to do, get money regardless, if they are that desperate they need to go down the correct channels.

Honeydragon · 23/06/2011 22:45

(have posted on your other thread)

cerealqueen · 23/06/2011 22:55

I'm really sorry for your loss and that you are going through this.

It seems to be so common, these companies determined to get their money at any cost. I arranged for my Dad's bills to be sent to me as he kept forgetting to pay them. When he died, British Gas plagued me to pay a closing bill on the basis that 'I had benefitted from his estate'. They actually said that to me. He hadn't left a will so it took ages to sort things out. I should have just sent the bill to my brother as he was was doing the sorting but it felt like they were going to take to me to court, the nature of the letters.

I finally paid it as I couldn't handle getting the letters addressed to him at my home when I was still mourning. Then, as I was a British gas customer myself, they started sending my bills care of my dad at my home address! It took me months to stop them doing that.

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