dan_english1210:

...Due to them saying that it is 50% each of our fault I was wondering if I should push for a 50%reduction in the bill and how this would all stand legally due to it being their fault for not billing me and also irresponsibly letting the bill to get to such a high amount. I have been using the service for the time they are billing me...

I'm not sure I see the logic in the 50/50 you propose if you have had 100% service. You have also benefited from the use of the saved charges over the 3 years. Are you proposing to share the savings 50/50?

Whatever, you do need to formalise the position, in writing as suggested. If you have any grievance about accuracy or "irresponsibility" raise a formal complaint strictly in accordance with the O2 complaints procedure.

Where I slightly depart from the previous advice is the reference to a possible outcome of legal action to downplay the potential consequencies of the issue. The main risk you face is a default record on your credit history (for 6 years). On this, mobile phone companies shoot first and ask questions later and if you are not smart enough you will find yourself fighting this on the backfoot when it should be the other way round.

I do not see obvious grounds why you should not (in principle) settle in full but on reasonable repayment terms at O2's cost. A pre-requisite is that you have received a fully itemised bill that you accept is accurate (not just a letter) and that you are guided by the final response to any formal complaint you submit.

Finally, don't get hooked by discussions on a contract renewal. £2000 over 3 years is indicative of either heavy use or poor contract value, but that was your choice initially and then from the expiry of the minimum contract term.

In the main, something like this is for you and O2 to negotiate and agree between yourselves. I agree that only going back 12 months does seem a reasonable solution (the 12 month rule applies to electricity and gas, I'm not sure about phones) with the amount being paid off over the next few months. Whether you decide to offer more will depend on your opinions and whether you want to keep the service going with a new contract (obviously they can't threaten to disconnect if you start using another provider). Personally, to make the negotiations easier, I would consider switching to a different network.

When negotiating with any of the phone companies, it's best to do it by an exchange of letters so that you have a copy of what you've suggested and offered. It is unlikely to be passed to any debt collectors while you are exchanging letters and, if it did (I recently had a bailiff's letter in similar circumstances) you can say that you are waiting for a reply to the most recent letter. You should keep a posting receipt (free from the post office) or use recorded delivery for corespondence. Your first letter should include details of the communication problems that you've already encountered when trying to resolve matters.

If things went to court and you attended, I cannot see O2 being awarded any more than the last 12 months worth of call costs as long as you've kept them up to date with any changes of address and as long as you've replied to any correspondence but this is difficult to predict. Phone companies have a responsibility to try and stop unmanageable bills mounting up and this usually means that they disconnect the service if bills are unpaid for a couple of months.

It is worth discussing the matter with someone from ofcom.

After speaking to an advisor it has become apparent that they had lost my account in an old billing system. Something which they have admitted is an internal error. Even trying to speak to an advisor about it proves difficult with customer service keeping me on hold for up to an hour or even giving up and hanging up the phone when I try and sort it out. They are currently suggesting that this problem is 50% their fault and 50% my fault. This is fair enough as i have not been checking that payments have been leaving my account. They have offered a reduction of 25% providing I pay a substantial amount of the bill (around half) and split the rest over a new contract which they seem more than happy to get me signed up to (seems strange after recieving no payment for 3 years!).


Due to them saying that it is 50% each of our fault I was wondering if I should push for a 50%reduction in the bill and how this would all stand legally due to it being their fault for not billing me and also irresponsibly letting the bill to get to such a high amount. I have been using the service for the time they are billing me. I was also wondering if the 12 month back billing rule would be something which applies to a situation such as this.

Any advice on this would be appreciated.