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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to be fuming with O2 for overcharging me?

26 replies

OTheHugeManatee · 16/10/2014 14:07

I just got off the phone with O2, my phone carrier. It turns out they don't notify customers any more when their contracts expire or their tariff is wrong. It turns out that I've been paying £31.50 for a tariff that a new customer would get for £15 and that this has been the case SINCE LAST NOVEMBER.

They seem to think it's my lookout if I'm being overcharged and I should have downloaded their app ad looked at it all the time to make sure I wasn't being overcharged. The 'adviser' just weakly offered me a tenner and some anonymous email address to complain.

I've been an O2 customer for absolutely years and think this is a disgraceful and contemptuous way to treat a loyal customer.

AIBU to think they absolutely should have informed me, to be hopping mad and want either a socking great refund and apology or a different phone provider?

OP posts:
AnythingNotEverything · 16/10/2014 14:09

YANBU. It's your responsibility to make sure you're on the right tariff. They aren't running a public service?

19lottie82 · 16/10/2014 14:11

so just to confirm you took out a contract with a "free phone" and after the minimum term expired, you didn't take actions to change your package?

if so, yes, YABU. They haven't done anything wrong. They haven't overcharged you. Read the T&C's.

GaryTheTankEngine · 16/10/2014 14:11

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
OTheHugeManatee · 16/10/2014 14:14

So you think it's perfectly ethical to charge someone double what they should be charged if they let it happen? On what planet is that a good way to ensure trust and customer loyalty?

OP posts:
AnythingNotEverything · 16/10/2014 14:14

Bugger. In my haste I did an epic typo. Just to be clear:

YADBU.

youbethemummylion · 16/10/2014 14:16

I work in a company with tariffs (not phones) people always complain about this but if you go to Tesco to buy a tin of tuna do you expect the check out operator to tell you if you buy the value tuna its cheaper? No you expect to look and work that out for yourself, of course a business wants you to pay more its up to the customer to make sure they make the best choices for themselves!

Original poster
OTheHugeManatee · 16/10/2014 14:18

Well it seems as though MN reckons I'm not in my rights to feel ripped off. I guess I feel pissed off at having been treated with such indifference and basically milked like a sucker having been a loyal customer for years. It may be legal but to me it feels contemptuous and wrong.

OP posts:
19lottie82 · 16/10/2014 14:21

OP, with the greatest respect, if you had read the contract that you signed when you got the phone, this would have all been clear.

Just chalk it down to experience and be glad it won't happen again.

19lottie82 · 16/10/2014 14:21

This would have happened with any phone company, not just o2.

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 16/10/2014 14:21

I think I would feel exactly the same, OhTheHugeManatee. As a mobile phone provider it would not be that difficult for them to send you a text informing you that your tariff was changing. I bet they have sent you other texts during the time they have been charging you all that amount.

kali110 · 16/10/2014 14:24

Yabu. It's your responsibilty to sort things out when your contract expires. If you don't then ofcorse you carry on paying what you were and not what a new customer would because you didn't contact them.It's not a new contract. It's your responsibilty to sort these things not theirs.

Scarletfever · 16/10/2014 14:30

YABU - sorry, but like the other say, its not up to O2 to tell you when you can get it cheaper.

I know to the minute when my mobile contract runs out (mainly because i have a calendar reminder to tell me) and when it does i will be moving to a new contract, i dont expect Vodafone to tell me when, unless they are trying to sell me an upgrade

Allstoppedup · 16/10/2014 14:31

I used to work for another of the large phone companies and had to deal with this complaint all the time.

It's not within the companies power to call every customer about the end of their tariff, the man power required to contact these customers and make them aware of what's available would be huge. Most customers are very on the ball and as such are aware of when their contract ends so they can shop about etc...

If you had called them at the end of your contract they certainly would have tried to match/better a new customer deal but the onus is on you. It's in your T & Cs that you will go into a rolling contract when your term ends.

It's annoying that they can't always give you a heads up (to be fair, more recent contracts tend to involve you getting update texts letting you know your renewal is near) but it's a business and you were obviously happy with their service overall. You have to take most of the responsibility here. YABU.

Scarletfever · 16/10/2014 14:32

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius Thu 16-Oct-14 14:21:35

I think I would feel exactly the same, OhTheHugeManatee. As a mobile phone provider it would not be that difficult for them to send you a text informing you that your tariff was changing. I bet they have sent you other texts during the time they have been charging you all that amount.

(i dont know how to quote a message, so am copy/pasting!)

The tariff has not changed, thats the issue - the OP was under contract which expired in Nov, and could have moved. However they decided not to (due to not knowing - i was going to put ignorance, but that sounds rude and thats not my intention)

The OP could have phoned up anytime after November (end of contracted term) to change - but didnt

jacks365 · 16/10/2014 14:33

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius but they didn't change the tariff they just didn't move her onto a cheaper one which was available.

Op yabu you are getting what you agreed to.

mymummademelistentoshitmusic · 16/10/2014 14:35

Sorry, yabu. You should have known your contract was up and checked. Still bloody annoying though.

Siarie · 16/10/2014 14:36

YABU, in fact same thing happened with my DH. It's his fault for not checking, if I hadn't had got a new contract myself he would still be paying double lol! They're running a business the more you pay, great for them.

They haven't been overcharging you, you've just not checked for the latest deals and argued your case until now.

whatsthatcomingoverthehill · 16/10/2014 14:45

I think the critical thing in the OP is "they don't notify customers any more when their contracts expire".

I'm sure companies used to send a letter out when you were coming to the end of the contract. I got caught out with Orange because I assumed I would be told so ended up going a few months over the end of the contract. Apparently I had requested no promotional literature to be sent out, and this would be a promotion as they want to sign you up to a new contract....

So now I know when my contract expires so I don't get caught any more. YABU but it is really annoying. (And surely you know that a big chunk f your contract is paying off the phone, and a sim-only type contract is cheaper?)

VeryStressedMum · 16/10/2014 14:46

Your tariff wasn't wrong and you weren't being overcharged you just kept on paying what you'd been paying during your contract period. It's not the same as if your contract was £10 then after your contract ended they charged you £20...

cherrybombxo · 16/10/2014 14:48

This happened to me and I lowered my tariff by £10 for the same deal. I was really annoyed but it's not like they can keep tabs on every single customer's tariff.

19lottie82 · 16/10/2014 14:53

guys, just to confirm, "contracts" don't expire, only the minimum term does, hence why the OP's rate stayed the same as the end of hers......

KnackeredMuchly · 16/10/2014 14:55

Yanbu, loyalty nowadays is abused not rewarded

CanadianJohn · 16/10/2014 15:34

Knackered: Loyalty nowadays is abused, not rewarded

Absolutely true. We had the same phone company for several years, and discovered the new customers were paying half of our rate. When I complained, the (very nice) rep was semi-sympathetic... "these days, you have to check every year to ensure you are getting the best rate".

But we'll never deal with that company again.

getdownshep · 16/10/2014 15:42

I've just left 02, I also had it written on my calendar as I knew they would just swop me on to any old contract.
They still tried to charge me for leaving but I knew the exact day my contract ended so I argued and they dropped the charge.
They only care about money, loyalty means nothing these days.

Fairylea · 16/10/2014 15:42

All companies do this... they are all out to make money after all. This is why you should always search out better deals for insurance (car / buildings / contents), Internet and phone etc and mobile phone deals towards the end of your contract period.

I saved £30 a month on my home insurance just by switching to another company at the end of the contract period and another £25 with doing the same with my car insurance.