Hi,

I just wanted to know where I stand on this. About a month ago, I ordered a TV package to add on to my existing broadband I have with Virgin Media. I called several times before making the order as I had a few questions and each time I double checked the quote. However I have just got my bill through and they are charging me more per month than what I was quoted (on more than one occasion).

I have since complained to them and they have effectively told me that what I am being charged now is the correct price and what I was quoted was incorrect. Well that's great but they still mis-sold it to me. Also conveniently, as I find with almost every company I have a problem with, they don't have any record of what I was told on the account, despite the fact that I called more than once.

I just wanted to know if there was anything I could do other than canceling the package or putting up with this? Is there some kind of regulation to protect consumers when they have been given a quote to stop them getting charged more once they have made the order?

Also I am pretty much despondent now with the amount of times I get these problems with companies. I would say about 80% of the companies I deal with I get some kind of problem, which if I had recorded the conversation I would have had concrete proof to show them what I was told. Where do I stand on recording calls to companies? Someone once told me that you have to tell them you're recording the conversation (if you plan on using it as evidence) and they have been trained to hang-up if that's the case.

Thanks

Nathalie

Hi

I would phone them or check their internet site for details of the complaints process. I suspect that they record the phone calls and will listen back to them if a complaint is made. If VM do not resolve, you could then go to ofcom.

When dealing with any big company by phone always make a note of the date/time, name of person you talked to and a brief summary of prices/actions agreed. With these details, obtaining a sucessful resolution to any complaint is made easier, as they can then find the phone call, to listen to what was said.

At the end of any phone call to call centres, always read back to the person taking your call, a summary of the prices/action agreed and ask for confirmation that you are correct. There can then be no doubt. Most call centres have targets relating to call handling time, so calls get rushed and mistakes can be made when computer records are updated. Some call centre staff talk to over 100 customers a day, 1000's of calls handled a day within one centre. So it is easy to see why problems occur, when quantity becomes more important than quality.

I have found VM to be ok, not totally hassle proof. You really have to be determined with any complaint/issue as some of their staff seem to avoid helping, due to lack of experience. I actually found the VM staff in their India office more helpful than some of their English colleagues, when dealing with a technical issue. Even one VM engineer who visited was totally fed up with the VM UK call centre, as he found that they were very poorly trained.

Good luck

Huckster

Nathalie007:

Lots of issues here.

A good guide to recording legality can be found here...

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/oftel/consumer/advice/faqs/prvfaq3.htm

If you have, or are prepared to install, a voice modem an excellent product here...

http://www.concelsys.com/voice_modem_software_call_recorder_logger_apr.htm

I think you are right that for a party to be able to use a recording in a court of law then notice must be given. From experience you are right that call handlers in commercial organisations sometimes decline to continue a call if notified. I have no idea if that is official policy or not....

I think you are also right about the propensity to "fail" to record when the content doesn't suit.

On balance I think its better for the customer not to give notice because the likelyhood of ever going to court is remote. For example Ombudsmen are not courts of law. It's better for a customer to have a detailed explanation of an issue, informed by a recording, than no detailed explanation. Turn the tables. If an organisation's call handler won't continue under notice, record that response. Record future calls without notice. If the organisation ever denies it declines to continue under notice you have the proof that you were lied to.

If I have a serious issue with an organisation I would always invest £10 in a Subject Access Request requiring the provison of all data held, including customer notes and call recordings. This is an official way of finding out exactly what is available and costs the organisation much more than £10 to fulfill.

Another thing you don't mention - the number of times an organisation claims to have posted an important letter which never arrives, statistically well in excess of claimed Royal Mail loss rates. Hard to prove, but on balance don't think it's a Royal Mail issue.

Thanks Huckster and Jalexa,

LOTS of useful info there. I am definitely going to start taking down more details now, something I always find is that I can never make out the name, it's as if they rush it. But I am going to start recording also, like Jalexa said, the chances of going to a court of a law are small but in the mean time it could make a difference.

It just really has got to the point now where almost every company I deal with there is a problem, either I'm incredibly unlucky or customer service in this country has disappeared. It's often a combination of lack of communication between colleagues, incompetence and sheer lack of caring for customer service. Also like you said Huckster, the customer service advisor I spoke to when I first raised my complaint over the phone, who was based in India was actually really nice and helpful. The one over here just didn't want to help out at all and was actually quite rude. I also know what you mean about the post, I have experienced that once or twice before, especially with solicitors in my experience, they claim to have sent out mail when in fact they haven't actually been doing anything. I didn't realise you can pay £10 to see your records - I shall certainly be using that in future!

If you spent less time on the telephone, and more time putting your pen to paper, and keeping records, then you wouldn't have so many problems!

It has been said time and time again here, that written correspondence is the way forward. Recorded telephone conversations tend to disappear, particularly when the company involved is in the wrong because of incorrectly trained staff.

You wouldn't buy a house on the telephone!

no I wouldn't buy a house on the telephone! But this is hardly the same thing... There are some purchases I do in person or in writing and there are some like simple broadband and TV I will do over the phone. I do this for the sake of speed, if I write in then what could take a few days could take 2 or more weeks. I won't be buying things by post but I will be backing up my telephone conversations with proof and asking for written quotations before I go ahead and buy.

I also happen to have the most comprehensive records any person can have with 3 filing cabinets, a hard disk packed full of scans of documents, copies of letters etc with a backup hard drive... that is how much I value records. I take notes with every conversation, but my issue is that a company can choose to ignore my notes and say it is their word against mine, hence why I shall now be taking extra measures. Also I don't visit this site often, so apologies if I have not seen time and time again your advice on written correspondence.