26 Mar 2012 - Update Highest Rated Pain Stories Highest Rated Gain Stories Vodafail Local Facebook Page
Dear visitor,

Since its inception Vodafail.com has made a significant contribution towards raising awareness of the problems and issues faced by Vodafone customers.

Vodafone Australia customers have had the opportunity to voice their concerns, their fears and their troubles from every corner of Australia and beyond our borders. You have gathered the courage to stand up for your rights as consumers and to make your voice heard.

Each and every person who shared their story should have a sense of pride in this achievement and the changes that have occurred since the start of Vodafail.com.

More recently, traffic to Vodafail.com has declined significantly. Having achieved the goal of raising awareness and promoting concrete action in early 2011, we have now reached the point of closing Vodafail to new complaints. The site will remain online for as long as possible as a reminder and an example of what is possible when we share our experiences.

It has been a privilege to run this initiative and I'm am forever grateful for the help and support I've received. In particular I would like to thank Melissa, David and Travis for their continued efforts over the past 15 months. I'm also thankful and humbled by the support of ACCAN, Choice magazine and a wide range of media outlets, blogs and websites.

You can still browse existing stories and find out how to file a complaint if you are experiencing problems.

Until next time,

Adam Brimo

Share Your Pain


Vodafail.com is no longer accepting complaints.
Over the past 6 months traffic to Vodafail has declined significantly. Therefore we have closed off Vodafail to new complaints. We think you will find more joy in posting on any one of these fine product / brand review sites.

You can also post directly on the Vodafone community forums.

Other People's Pain


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13335 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Pretty damn fail at 21 Jan 2011 07:39:55 AM
Am so angry about the constant fails to send simple text msgs, Unable to open a web page with max reception on the 3G network and with having to listen to a bloody computer with a female voice for half an hour while I try and ask a real person a simple question. I have never delt with such a hopless company before!

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13334 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very very fail at 21 Jan 2011 07:39:49 AM
I haven't been on a contract for a couple of years, So I decided to get my self a new I phone 4 I was really excited and couldn't Waite to get it and start using it.

I began to play with it and got the hang of how it all works for the first 3 to 4 weeks all was good with the 3G and apps download etc.

Then began the problems I started to switch the phone on and off to pick up 3G
and then I keep losing the signal and it was always displaying searching, I called vodafone and waited about 1 hr and 45min and then all they offered was for me to try a new sim which I did and it kept on going. So now I make sure my 3G is disabled at all times and I have a data phone that's useless to me at the moment every time I call vodafone all I get told is a heap of lies and to be honest I dont think we deserve to be treated like this. After all we are the ones that made Vodafone what it is and the least they can do is provide a good honest service to all its customers.

I'm hoping that Vodafone gets its back side kicked for this cause its been a real pain.
21 Jan 2011 07:43:41 AM: Virtually same story as myself! New nokia phone - but everything just doesnt work!

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13330 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Fail Failing at 21 Jan 2011 07:39:14 AM
Cant even get 3G in the middle of Sydney close to a phone tower. One bar reception. Shocking

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13329 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is very bad ! at 21 Jan 2011 07:39:03 AM
I've been recieving my texts as a group of messages all of the sudden .. some of them where sent days ago ! I dont understand why ! and as always customer service of vodafone saying everything seems to be fine ! I hate vodafone and cant wait for my contract to finsh ! I wish theycan give me an early release from my contract !

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13328 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is totally at 21 Jan 2011 07:38:54 AM
I was so frustrated by Vodafone that I have switched to Optus and am very happy now.

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13327 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Delayed SMS messages at 21 Jan 2011 07:38:38 AM
Weekly I will send texts to people who won't receive them until two days or so later. Pain in the ass if you are organising anything.

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13324 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Still deciding at 21 Jan 2011 07:37:00 AM
I can't get 3G reception in Newcastle. Even standing near the phone towers (Voda?) at Charlestown I still can't get reception.

Just signed up.

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13323 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Dropped Calls at 21 Jan 2011 07:36:47 AM
Important work calls drop out meaning I have to phone clients two or three times before I can finish a conversation.

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13318 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Poor at 21 Jan 2011 07:35:50 AM
Minor compared to others. I cannot access any bill details on the website. I can login successfully, but since I signed up in Dec 2010 my efforts are always blocked with an "internal error" and a suggestion to ring 1555 which is, of course, a complete waste of time. The real problem is I cannot check usage between bills. Vodafone ignored all email requests, and my one 1555 attempt that got through was futile: reset the web account, with no change. They did call after I complained to TIO and offered 2 months free and no charges over the cap, but no suggestion of when this obviously simple issue might be fixed. I was with 3 before, same mobile number, and never a problem

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13315 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is almost total at 21 Jan 2011 07:35:17 AM
1.I have been a Vodafone customer since June 2009, after switching from my employer's Telstra system due to work downturn. I arranged for a $29 a month prepaid account using my existing mobile phone, and for it to be automatically recharged from my credit card account every month. The automatic payment has not occured 75% of the time, and I have only been aware of this when "call failed" appeared on the mobile's screen. My wife and I were stuck in Europe due to the volcanic ash cloud and I couldn't get my account credited because I didn't have the right credit card with me to do it. When I have asked Vodafone why the system to automatically recharge hasn't worked, I have been given many different tales - system failure, credit balance was too low, it won't happen again, etc.
2. In June 2010 I took up a "special offer" through NRMA and chose to buy a $49 a month account (less 10% for NRMA members) which included a Nokia 97 mini. Howevere, the next day, I realised that I don't need a new phone or the extra services. I rang Vodafone to cancel my order. They said that was fine, but I had to return the phone in a special 'return' bag which they would send me. Despite many calls (most of which I give up on after waiting up to an hour) and a visit to the local Vodafone store, no 'return bag' arrived, so I sent the unopened package back to Vodafone. Then the billing started - $49 a month. I returned the bills indicating that I didn;t have a Vodafone supplied mobile. Another bill, then another then another - all returned annotated to say I didn't have a Vodafone supplied mobile. Then the debt collection agency wrote saying I owed Vodafone $1324 and unless I paid legal action would occur. I went yet again to the local Vodafone store where I was told that because I had cancelled my account I had to pay a cancellation fee ($900?)- but the store could not resolve the problem, it had to be done by phone. More calls and hours spent on hold. Eventually my solicitor told me to send a "Cease and Desist Notice" to Vodafone and to use this in any legal proceedings that Vodafone might try to bring against me. That worked. I have received no more bills or threats of debt recovery.
21 Jan 2011 07:43:36 AM: You should also check with the credit reference organsations. Vodafone may have stopped sending you bills but they may have declared the debt black and you will suffer as a result!

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13312 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 07:33:27 AM
I have experience problems with network coverage and drop outs and 3G network problems. I also have Vodafone wireless internet and that also drops out, when I signed up they said I will have good coverage at my home address but since, I've had it I have problems nearly daily. I only renewed my contract late last year.

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13309 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is dropped calls, delayed sms, reception issues and poor customer service at 21 Jan 2011 07:32:28 AM
Disgruntled 9 year verten of Vodafail! (mind you only the last say... 2 years has been terrible)
*my sms's are delayed just yesterday one was delayed 6 hours, NOT cool
*A bucket load of "call failed" at least 10 a day!, NOT cool
*Consistently getting bull*#@! reception, NOT cool
*And dont even start me with the customer service. OMG after on average 30 minutes on hold everytime i get someone who not only cannot speak english very well, they dont understand me and its obvious they are not in the great land down under due to the silence when they are not talking, crackly sounds and massive delays when they are talking! I tried the 'go to the bloody store and talk to someone there' tactic and wow they apparently cannot help you at all ... out of the 7 different stores i have been to all but one told me to " call 1555 customer service" the other one asked if i'd like to know i could get out of my contract and in his words 'sign up to a better provider".... hmm EPIC VODAFAIL!
21 Jan 2011 07:36:53 AM: oops veteran*

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13307 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Totally at 21 Jan 2011 07:31:38 AM
I had changed to Vodafone internet from another provider, they took all my details (at the shop) copy of my license checked that we had coverage in that area. All good. So for months I complained about having internet connection that was like using dial up. They checked to make sure there was no fault, and told me after I HAD TO CALL THEM BACK (they said "oh we were just about to call you) that there was no problems. So I kept calling for the next 3 months, same issue same outcome. I had had enough after a year and told them I wanted out of the contract as it wasn't good enough, the gentleman I spoke to agreed there was a problem and said he would cancel the contract. When I got another bill 2 months later I called back and asked why. I was told I hadn't cancelled my contract, after being on the phone for over an hour, I was finally put through to someone who could help and informed me it wasn't their problem and I'd have to pay out the contract....... BECAUSE THE HOME ADDRESS WAS DIFFERENT TO THE BILLING ADDRESS, even though I had changed my address with them, even though they took a photo copy of my license, even though they checked my new address on their system when I went in to see them......... I am still with them with my mobile, I have never had any problems with that (that's probably cause I have an old phone and can only use it as a phone, camera.

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13305 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is the worst telco in the southern hemisphere at 21 Jan 2011 07:30:35 AM
All our 3G dongles used for by our staff for remote access use Vodafone sims.
Reception is crap at the best of times.
The coverage map is a lie.
A LIE I tell you!!!
Don't believe anything a vodafone employee has to say as they either don't know and just make it up or they deliberately mislead in an attempt to turn the blame back on the customer.

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13303 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is everything at 21 Jan 2011 07:30:23 AM
I have not been recieving my text messages, voicemail is delayed and when calling customer service to try and fix this they are clueless and blame my handset.

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13298 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is a write off at 21 Jan 2011 07:29:33 AM
For about the last year, attempts to make calls in Dubbo only randomly work. I have full signal strength (you can see the tower from where I live), yet after dialling, nothing for over 30 seconds then 3 beeps and the phone goes back to "ready". If you keep trying, it gets out once in every 10 times.

Wrote to vodaphone twice or three times and was totally ignored. I had need for an emergency call and couldn't get out. It is not satisfactory.

I left and went to telstra which works every time.

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13297 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 07:29:29 AM
I have consistently faced dropped calls (Call Failed), data dropouts (need to restart the phone) and basically NO SERVICE for over 6 months now. I drive an 80km journey each way to work and have coverage for probably 15 minutes of it. I'm not in the bush, this is the F3 between Newcastle and the Central Coast. After growing tired of the 'network upgrade' story, I rang Customer support and left a message for them to call me back in 39 minutes. The automatic service did call me back, unfortunately I had three failed calls and gave up for the day. I tried again the following week and was escalated to the Network team.

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13295 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Coverage Maps False Advertising at 21 Jan 2011 07:29:01 AM
The coverage maps of the central coast are a complete falsehood. They constitute misrepresentation of the product offered.(i.e. phone services)
There is no coverage whatsoever in Patonga and environs and yet on their maps shows a good coverage.
If i advertised a product that didn't exist the advertising council and consumer affairs would crucify me!

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13294 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Poor Reception at 21 Jan 2011 07:28:50 AM
Since signing up with vodafone and switching from Optus, its been poor or no reception at my home. My friends always complain that you do not turn your phone on, or why is your phone off all the times.

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13291 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Poor Reception at 21 Jan 2011 07:28:27 AM
Since signing up with vodafone and switching from Optus, its been poor or no reception at my home. My friends always complain that you do not turn your phone on, or why is your phone off all the times.

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13289 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is EXTREMLY FAIL at 21 Jan 2011 07:28:15 AM

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13288 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 07:28:10 AM
Thankfully my contract is due to finish in two weeks, however since November 2010, I have had nothing but issues. Poor reception, delayed text messages or not being notified of voicemail messages and being billed for a service I do not even use. I since found out that as I am on the "old" $79.00 cap it excludes alot services and I have received large phone bills in the past three months, when for two years my bill has never been anymore than the $79.00. After spending 42 minutes on hold waiting for a Vodafone customer service representative I was told the plans had changed and I would be billed for additional services. I thought any changes to a legally binding contract all parties had to be made aware not just change the contract and expect the customer to pay!

Thankyou Vodafone for nothing, after 7 years it will be easy to change providers.

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13287 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Inner West Pain!! at 21 Jan 2011 07:27:55 AM
My phone coverage is Shiattt!! .. i can not walk in between rooms in my house whilst on the phone without cutting out .. Damn it - there only walls!! .. Running my own part time business - u need to talk to customers but u cant when you dont have network coverage!! Vodacrap!!

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13286 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Terrible at 21 Jan 2011 07:27:38 AM
Constant call drop-outs. I often have to call people back after my phone drops out, which is frustration & time consuming. This usually occurs 2-3 times per 10 min conversation. Usually once a day, I have to re-boot my iphone, as it freezes after call drop-out.
I will be going Telstra next!

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13284 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is pretty dam bad at 21 Jan 2011 07:26:53 AM
Reception? I dont even know what good reception is anymore. having 3 txt messages come in all at once, but have different sending time periods is rediculous.

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13283 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is EPIC FAIL at 21 Jan 2011 07:26:31 AM
- Calls dropping out all the time........CHECK
- Rubbish 3G reception.......CHECK
- Hours on hold to customer service who usually have no idea what I'm trying to say so they just hang up.........MASSIVE CHECK
-Constantly trying to get through to customer service sometimes to get a generated message...."we are experiencing technical difficulties, please call back later.....CHECK
-Costs on my bills that shouldn't be there, query them to get nowhere even though supposed "investigation" raised into those suspect costs.....CHECK
-Promises to get phone calls back from Vodafone re: queries only to never get a phone call back.....CHECK
- FED UP WITH VODAFONE'S POOR SERVICE ALL ROUND.......BIGGEST CHECK OF ALL

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13282 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 07:26:21 AM
As many of the other people on the forum I have been suffering issues with poor coverage and edlayed messages. While I have made do in the situation it is my partner that has suffered from this. The poor coverage has led to a number of important phone calls being missed. While voicemails were left they were not received for a number of days. There was not even a registration of a missed call for a full 24hrs after the call was released. The call was to notify him that his work related licence that he had been frantically trying to renew had not been processed and he was unable to work. During this time he continued to work with no knowledge that there was a problem. Consequently an $11k fine was narrowly missed on a technicality. As a young couple that is trying to get started in life it would have been debilitating.
I have a complaint lodged with the Telecommunications ombudsman (which I would reccomend all parties do) and the complaints unit has been most unhelpful. I work full time and am not able to answer my mobile in work hrs. A situation I would think would be very common. The call return details is an answering machine that is checked once a day so after phoning them 5 times to give a suitable time to call me back I have still not spoken to the complaints department regarding the dispute. I have reported this back to the Ombudsman and am awaiting a response and a resolution.
This site proves the need for an investigation by ACCC into Vodafone's service and customer relations.

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13281 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Epic fail at 21 Jan 2011 07:26:01 AM
Last week I upgraded my contract with Vodafone (24 months) I received a new iPhone 4. My old iPhone has been sooooo slow for the last 6 months. Prob due to the new OS software.

Anyway in the last week i have been on hold with Vodafone for over 3 hours trying to:

Upgrade
Activate my new sim card
Carry over my handset insurance

Yesterday I was on hold foe 60 mins alone...just trying to provide voda with my imei number of my new phone for insurance...i was transfered 7 times as nobody seemed to no how to update my records.

Im now thinking i made a BIG mistake in signing up again for another 2 years.

:(

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13280 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 07:25:59 AM
As many of the other people on the forum I have been suffering issues with poor coverage and edlayed messages. While I have made do in the situation it is my partner that has suffered from this. The poor coverage has led to a number of important phone calls being missed. While voicemails were left they were not received for a number of days. There was not even a registration of a missed call for a full 24hrs after the call was released. The call was to notify him that his work related licence that he had been frantically trying to renew had not been processed and he was unable to work. During this time he continued to work with no knowledge that there was a problem. Consequently an $11k fine was narrowly missed on a technicality. As a young couple that is trying to get started in life it would have been debilitating.
I have a complaint lodged with the Telecommunications ombudsman (which I would reccomend all parties do) and the complaints unit has been most unhelpful. I work full time and am not able to answer my mobile in work hrs. A situation I would think would be very common. The call return details is an answering machine that is checked once a day so after phoning them 5 times to give a suitable time to call me back I have still not spoken to the complaints department regarding the dispute. I have reported this back to the Ombudsman and am awaiting a response and a resolution.
This site proves the need for an investigation by ACCC into Vodafone's service and customer relations.

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13279 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very poor customer service at 21 Jan 2011 07:25:29 AM
Wanting to change my plan after 6 years and told I can not because nothing else will do. Cannot supply handset wanter... POOR Poor Poor.

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13278 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Medical Fail at 21 Jan 2011 07:25:21 AM
I applaud those business that send SMS reminders for appointments, and then allow confirmation of attendance via return SMS. Unfortuately I am on Vodafone, which means that when I respond that I will be attending an important medical appointment, and my SMS is obviously not received by my specialist office, and my appointment (that I have waited quite some time to get in the first place) is cancelled and I cant get in again! The TIO asks "have you lodged your complaint with the carrier?" Um No, I dont have the time to wait more than an hour to get through.
21 Jan 2011 07:30:03 AM: You should be able to notify the Ombudsman that your attempt at a complaint resolution has not been successful and they can still look at a complaint. That is what I did. It does refer it back to vodafone, but it will in either case. If they do not contact you within sufficient time the Ombudsman can take further action.
They do that to prevent unneccessary complaints when it wcould be resolved by talking to the providor. Ofcourse it doesnt account for Vodafone's service.
Keeping in mind each time a complaint is lodged Vodafone is charged approx $1200 and then $5000 if they fail to resolve it themselves.

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13277 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is always at 21 Jan 2011 07:25:06 AM
I don't like lara. It is a failed attempt at making the company come across as cool and edgy, when really its just another way from them stopping you talking to a real person. And when you do talk to a real person, they aren't able to help you. It sucks.

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13276 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is 100% at 21 Jan 2011 07:25:06 AM
Once more last month I was overcharged. I am 100% sure that I never used whatever they were charging me...also the stress about waiting 1 hour and getting nothing sorted.

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13274 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Pathetic at 21 Jan 2011 07:24:41 AM
I have been with vodafone for a while now and all i have had is problems. i even suggested to my dad to come on vodafone so it would be cheaper for the both of us to call. and nothing but problems. reception is pathetic, never ever ever have service.

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13269 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Too long to resolve at 21 Jan 2011 07:23:05 AM
Was on hold for 35 minutes the other day before I managed to speak to a dude for about 30 seconds before getting put back on hold. Total call duration 1hour 12 minutes. Total time spent talking to person approximately 12 minutes.

Was billed incorrectly for the first month, then recieved another bill dated for the same period. Now I'm no maths genius, but being charged for 3 months in the space of 2 is wrong, particularly when the bill does not match my deal, including incorrect dates, incorrect charges, incorrect contract amounts, etc etc.

It wouldn't be a HUGE problem if I could get through to VF and sort it out, but I'm not gonna spend 40 minutes on the phone every month trying to sort it out. And the online complaints form is farked at the moment too.

I'm sure it is a massive pain in the butt to get out of the contract but to be honest this was not the level of service I was expecting when I signed up to Vodafone. My partner has had good service for a long time but for me it's been a bit of a headache with the billing department.

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13268 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is 100% at 21 Jan 2011 07:22:47 AM
Have terrible reception in a lot of different places. The only place that I have reception at home for example is in the Lounge.

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13265 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is very at 21 Jan 2011 07:22:27 AM
I have the same issues as well late vmail and sms and also a heap of drop out when making calls also the 3g coverage is very poor I have been a customer of vodafone for about 10 years and its so disgusting. I wish I didnt sign up on a new contract but now I'm stuck and with all the legal binding of this contract it's to costly to pull out and sign up a new one thanks vodafone for a shitty service and I he u guys fall on your ass just like Onetel did.

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13263 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Poor Data / Phone Reception at 21 Jan 2011 07:22:17 AM
Reason I picked up vodafone for me and my wife was because at the time they were the only providers offering Android on HTC Desire HD. Immediately after signing a 24 month contract, Telstra introduced their plan on HTC Mozart, and I would have gone with Telstra if the timing was right. Now I feel Vodafone's plan of 3 GB of data is a joke, we don't get any reception, and the only way to use it is with Wi Fi through our Telstra Bigpond - what's the use. Add to this that phone reception is very poor and drops off regularly. Rubbish. Then there's the Premium Service that we didn't know about until after the first bill arrived. It seems by default we were paying for 19.. advertisers who send us text messages. We didn't even know about this, and after a couple of hours waiting for their help line from India, we were able to block this stupid service. Shame on you Vodafone - we should have been told and given the option to disable this stupid service on signing the contract, not hush it under the carpet. 23 months left, cannot wait.

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13261 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 07:22:06 AM
I've been having poor reception for a while now and the battery drains in 1 day. I believe that I rarely connect to the "local" tower as google maps shows me been 5km from my actual destination. When contacted vodafone said there were no issues with equipment in my area; got me to reboot my phone and discussed possible simcard issues. Now I see I'm not the only one.....

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13259 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is WORST SERVICE EVER at 21 Jan 2011 07:21:33 AM
Text messages are always delayed and I keep missing phone calls. I have a virtual business number that forwards call to my mobile, so when I miss phone calls I am potentially loosing business.
3G reception is incredibly poor, makes it totally useless for me to have spent money on an iphone - again I need to check my email constantly when I'm away from the office, yet most of the times I'm unable to do that.
I'm so frustrated, my husband is with Telstra and he has none of these problems!!

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13258 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Always at 21 Jan 2011 07:20:58 AM
Had a massive problem in my life once that some very confidential information was sent by mistake to my home.

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13256 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is MASSIVE at 21 Jan 2011 07:19:42 AM
I live in Netown, very close to the city, and I can't make phone calls in my own house. I am SOOOOO very angry. I am locked in to a stupid contract, and I can't even receive or make phone calls. I wait each day on my drive to work to see how many calls and missed text messages I have.
I can not wait to get away from the massive failure of a company

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13253 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 07:18:05 AM
CBD 3G reception in Sydney CBD drops out every 8-9 minutes for 3 minutes CONSISTANTLY all day. i use Gchat on my HTC desire and it disconnects ALL day and is bloody annoying.

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13252 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 07:17:23 AM
I have had dropped calls, calls to me going directly to voicemail while my phone was on and all bars showing. There have been 4 dropped calls in two days (I think I made 6 in total!). No access to web services. I have complained twice to Vodafone, and have been given a months free "coverage" but have explained to them that I now have one month's free "non-coverage" and want the issue resolved. Sick of talking to people who can't resolve this issue.

My mobile broadband has not been available for over a month.

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13250 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is EPIC at 21 Jan 2011 07:16:14 AM
I finished my plan and wanted to upgrade to the new iPhone (partly because I thought my connectivity problems were caused by my iPhone and not Vodafone!). I won't even go into the part where I was on the waiting list at 4 different stores for three months ... But finally Vodafone gave me a number I could call to get my new iPhone sorted out. I had to call the 1300 number to sort out delivery and was on hold for TWO HOURS.
Then, to top it off, I got my bill this month and I have to pay extra on top of my "infinite" cap, BECAUSE OF THE TWO HOUR CALL TO VODAFONE!!
Epic fail.

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13248 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Worst at 21 Jan 2011 07:14:58 AM
I joined Vodafone is December 2010. I live in south west and work in Parramatta CBD.I'm not able to get even 2 bars on 3G. I've got 150MB 3G data and has newer been able to use 3G internet on my phone.When I try to use 3G..it becomes GPRS. I can't even get incoming calls or make outgoing calls due to poor reception. Tried ringing customer service 6 times ....had to wait for over 30 mins ...so hung up. They promise they would call you but it newer happens.When I go to a store...they are not helpful as well.
The biggest mistake in my life was changing to Vodafone.

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13246 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is massive at 21 Jan 2011 07:14:35 AM
I missed out on seeing my long lost cousin one last time before he left because of Vodafone. We havent seen each other for 30 years and he recently came to Australia for a holiday. He sent me a text asking if we wanted to meet up at the weekend and I didnt receive it till 3 days later so I missed out on saying goodbye-I was so devastated!
My friends all think Im avoiding them, I sometimes wonder if Im going blind and not seeing the texts when I check the phone - what is going on over there at Vodafone?

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13244 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Always at 21 Jan 2011 07:11:44 AM
Bills are never right, charge for services you never use

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13241 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is TERRIBLE at 21 Jan 2011 07:10:45 AM
Took my blackberry in to get fixed, after a month (with no phone) vodaphone replaced it with a new one - that didn't turn on.

Took the new phone back to get it replaced - after SIX MONTHS (with no phone) and multiple phone calls and unplesant visits to the shop (where it would take hours before anyone seemed to have any idea what was happening with my phone) I was told that my second new phone had already been collected - the only problem was it hadn't been collected by me (I am pretty sure some kid working at vodaphone signed off on the collection papers). TWO MONTHS after this (still no phone) I finally speak to someone who tell me to go back to the shop to pick up a replacement phone (this is after numerous phone calls and visits to the vodaphone shop where they make me tell them my whole story and then say they will call me back and never do. All up I paid for my vodaphone phone for about 9 months with no phone and dealt with about 100 annoying, unhelpful kids.

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13240 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Completely at 21 Jan 2011 07:10:23 AM
Always having billing problems...charging for service you never use...my plan was changed withou even knowing

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13236 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is seriously at 21 Jan 2011 07:08:23 AM
COnstantly having calls missed or going straight to voice mail. text messages and voicemails taking over 1 week to arrive. on hold to vodaphone for an hour and a half and then being told its my handset and there is no problem with the phone. I have been give a few dollars credit on my phone account however was asked to please be patient as they are aware of the issue and it will be rectified. NOT HAPPY JAN!!

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13235 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is BAD at 21 Jan 2011 07:07:58 AM
I swapped from 3 to Vodafone about 4 months ago.
Shortly after swapping i was getting call drop outs and non 3G coverage, in Erskineville in Sydney and also at paddington.
When going to Port stephens for Holidays for a week i got 0 coverage i complained and told there were no issues with the area, it was frustrating as at the time i was waiting to here back from some job interviews, I had told the recruitment firms i would be on holidays but would have coverage.
II recently moved to Bathurst were thar is a weak vodafone signal, there is a vodafone store and even the rep at the store said it is patchy all over bathurst.

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13234 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Data network issue at 21 Jan 2011 07:07:55 AM
I am living in Wentworthville and working in city, its take 45-50 minute by train. So, only thing i can do is mobile browsing, believe or not but by Vodafone network I can only access 3-4 pages !!!!! yes !!!! then I stop to use mobile network and start to play mobile games. But this website wake me up to do something about it.....

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13231 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is what? who? when? how? at 21 Jan 2011 07:07:04 AM
Poor Service!
I am over missing calls left right & centre because I have no coverage. What is the use of having a mobile phone if only to look at & wish it would pick up a signal?
Fail Vodafone.

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13230 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 07:07:01 AM
I had a vodafone 3G USB stick, I bought the product on a $19 package. I then upgraded it to a $29 package to get more gigs of data. Later when I tried to downgrade they said the $19 was an introductory package and its not possible to downgrade, what a load of crap.
I then asked if I could pay the $100 for the USB stick that was included in the contract and cancel my contract. They said I had to pay the full remaining months at $29 to pay out my contract.

Aint going with them in the future...

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13229 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Deceptive,Dishonest and Indifferent at 21 Jan 2011 07:06:53 AM
Signed up in late December mainly to access mobile internet. Took 3 visits to voda stores before any staff even acknowledged my presence let alone served me (Should've seen the writing on the wall right there and then but Telstra and Optus staff were just as uncaring as voda!)One month into a 24 month contract I dont bother trying to use the net as it's excruciatingly slow. Quicker to drive to the local library. E-mail is so slow that it's much less hassle to access it once I arrive home, which defeats the purpose of getting a smartphone with vodaphone in the first place. Except for one noble exception vodaphone staff have been dismissive, abrasive or just plain rude.

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13228 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is VERY at 21 Jan 2011 07:06:39 AM
I cannot seem to have a call longer than a few minutes without it dropping out. This is in Sydney, not in a small country town but in a well populated suburb. The drop outs are all the time, even worse when I am talking to someone else on Vodafone! GRRRr

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13226 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Fail at 21 Jan 2011 07:06:28 AM
I sent back a Vodafone mobile broadband receiver to the Vodafone head office
when they were in Chatswood NSW. I requested a refund as the network coverage
was extremely poor. To date, I have received no refund, I called customer support and spoke to someone in India who told me they had no knowledge of my issue and to fax a letter off which I have done. This was over 6 months ago
and I have had no company rep call me. Once you have an issue they FAIL!

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13225 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Frustrating at 21 Jan 2011 07:04:52 AM
First of all, thank you for setting up this website!

I had heard that Vodafone is relatively poor in terms of national coverage. Yet, because they seemed to offer the best value for money and the fact that I live in central Sydney, I decided to at least give them a go. In June last year I went to a Crazy John's shop (only sells Vodafone deals) and enquired about Vodafone's coverage. I was shown a map (same map that is available on Vodafone's homepage), where it showed that there was 100% coverage of the area where I lived. Just in case, I asked what would happen if their map turned out to be "wrong" in terms of coverage. I was told that all I needed to do was to bring the phone back in store and it would be cancelled. As soon as I got near our house in Watsons Bay in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney the reception got worse and worse... eventually, there was NO reception at all. Disappointed I drove back to the shop but was told that the cancellation process was a bit complicated... They sent me home and asked me to call Vodafone's engineers from my landline and explain my situation to them and only then Crazy John's could refund me. I spoke to three or four different people and no one really had a desire to help out. In fact, they were adamant that I was wrong...For instance, one guy said "No, you must be wrong, our maps show that there is perfect reception where you are". I gave up, went back to the shop and told them that I was not keen on spending the rest of the day on hold with Vodafone's customer service or with their engineers who did not want to help out anyway. Eventually, we agreed that Crazy John's would make the calls for me. About two weeks later, I still had not heard anything and I checked with Crazy John's and was told that they had "forgotten" to make the call... They did make the call and Vodafone eventually sent out a satchel for me to return the phone to them in. In the instructions it said in bold text and capital letters: make sure you remove the battery before you return the phone. I had bought an iPhone and was a bit perplexed as getting the battery out is not that straightforward. I found some youtube videos on how to remove the battery but the whole process seemed a bit dodgy. By accident I happened to read the instruction booklet and in the small print I found that if you remove the battery you cannot return the phone. I phoned Vodafone again and asked them what I should do. I was told not to remove the battery after all. I went to Australia post the next day thinking that finally I could get this whole thing out of the way. They asked me if I had removed the battery from the phone that I was sending to Vodafone. I told them what I was told by Vodafone. Australia Post refused to accept the satchel as it is against their safety rules to send phones with batteries inside. I went back home, called Vodafone again but was told that I needed to use the satchel they had sent me if I wanted to cancel the contract. The next day I went to a (different) Australia Post office and I actually lied about the content of the satchel... It did not feel good, particularly as I had to put my signature on the paperwork. It was sent away to Vodafone and I was very relieved when, a few days later, I found out that Vodafone had received it. Then, about two weeks later, I received a bill for the full amount of a month's usage. I can see how things get wrong when everything is automated so I simply called them and asked what the bill was for. They apologised and were actually surprisingly helpful that time. They told me that I did not have to pay anything as it was cancelled and that they were going to send a new bill that stated that I owed them zero dollars. The next bill, however, showed a new amount which was even higher than the first one :-)...It took another two weeks before everything was sorted out.

This was a something that should have been a very simple process. I am convinced that a lot of people would have given up half way through, which I guess, is how Vodafone makes a fair bit of money at the end of the day. I spent so much time both on the phone, by e-mail and in the store that I have become completely turned off by Vodafone forever. I will never, ever go near Vodafone's products again and I will continue to recommend friends not to have anything to do with them.

1) They use false advertising by saying they have full coverage of areas where they clearly don't. This is a serious offence that ACCC should look into.

2) They advertise a simple cancellation process, which is nothing but an administrative headache, which you need to spend several hours on to get to the bottom with.

3) Some of their customer service reps were nice and helpful (including staff at Crazy John's) while others were completely uninterested in taking any accountability.

I find it amazing that Vodafone spends so much money on advertising and sponsorship (e.g. the Ashes) instead of spending it on a good product and customer services!? Word of mouth travels far.
21 Jan 2011 09:18:51 AM: I had an identical situation but my o2 phone was dead on arrival. Vodafone told me to call o2 (in Singapore???). I got the satchel, returned the phone to Vodafone (Tas) and broke the contract under the cooling off period as I was given the run around. A few days later receive a bill for $1100 which took over a month for them to correct. So frustrating...

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13223 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 07:02:53 AM
My ex accidentally paid a large sum of money off my account which stopped my direct debit because they account was in credit.

The first call I didn't actually know it was my ex, it was just a credit on my account that I had not paid. They told me there was nothing they could do, but the CSR seemed surprised that I'd be upset about someone else paying my account for me.

The second call was a few months later, and the ex and I had figured out why she'd been paying heaps off her account and it wasn't showing up, and why my account was now several hundred dollars in credit. Again I was told there was nothing they could do from my end, I would just have to wait until she'd reported it, it had been "investigated" and then money transferred out. At this stage my direct debit had been stopped for about 3 months. I actually had this call esculated to a "specialist" who told me basically the same thing. I asked them about what would happen when the money was transferred and my account was suddenly 3 months overdue and was assured they'd just automatically direct deposit the money.

They called me at some point to let me know that they'd sorted it out and the money was being transferred a day later. Again I was assured my account would be ok.

Three days later I got a text saying my account was very overdue, if I didn't pay immediately I would be disconnected. Once again I contacted them and was assured this would not happen and that the money would be direct deposited. At this point there was 4 months worth of bills outstanding, so I was not really very pleased at the prospect of having to pay it all one lump sum, but just wanted to get it sorted out.

Three days later my phone was disconnected. I called them again and was this time told that the direct debit option doesn't apply to overdue payments and they'd need to process it manually. I paid the overdue amount and went to move my service to another provider the same day. Ridiculous!

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13222 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is pretty badly at 21 Jan 2011 07:02:44 AM
I always thought it was my blackberry that was stuffing up... but i've slowly realised that it is vodafone.. as messages never arrive to me and after a certain period of time on the phone my phone cuts out. I was supposed to also be on a $99 cap and i have been getting phone bills for $150+... bit sick of it all. But have heard people complain about optus and i'm not willing to pay the extra to go telstra!!! bahhhhh! over vodafone.

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13218 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is extremely. at 21 Jan 2011 06:57:54 AM
My phone contract is all unlimited - email, internet, messages, calls and voicemails.
I received a phone bill just the other week for an EXTRA $300 on top of my $114 unlimited cap for internet usage. I phoned vodafone to ask them why I' am being charged this extra $300 saying that I' am on an unlimited deal and all they could do was take $20 off. When my contract clearly states UNLIMITED usage of internet GPRS usage.

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13217 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Enough to leave at 21 Jan 2011 06:57:42 AM
I ordered an iphone in October from them which still hasn't been received. Their customer service is so bad that in the 5 times I have rung I have been put on hold for over an hour - no joke - when you finally speak to someone they try to blame you then say someone will call to help and no one does. And they wont let me cancel the order. I feel so helpless as there is no other avenues of help to go down. Worst customer service ever and I have decided I will not accept the phone if it does turn up eventually. From the sounds of the coverage reports it probably a good idea.

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13213 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 06:56:29 AM
I was on an $80 monthly plan, and when Vodaphone didn't invoice me in the last months of 2009 I rang up to try and pay, but they kept saying that I must be in credit so there was no bill. However in January I was billed all at once for the previous 4 months. I had just been made redundant, so I was unable to address the accumulated bill until May when I got a new job. At this time the bill had accumulated to $1,000 so I call up to enter into a payment plan. No problem there until the debt recovery guy told me I would have to repay $1,800. I was told the additional $800 was my monthly plan invoices up until Sept 2010 (when the repayment schedule was to finish) and the paying out of the remainder of my contract.

So I paid off the $1,800 and transferred my number away from Vodafone.

Then the week before Christmas I was invoices $474. I called and asked what it was for and they said that this was paying out the contract. I said thats what the earlier $800 charge was and they said the $800 was mostly a 'penalty' and a 'fine' for not paying my original accumulated bill from the months they didn't invoice me.

They are a big company so you can't really argue with these indian debt collectors named darryl and steve so I just paid the $474 in Jan 2011. The end result is because they couldn't get their billing system functioning in 2009 I spent $2,300 and received no phone service in 2010.

I now pro-actively hate vodafone.

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13212 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is pathetic at 21 Jan 2011 06:56:01 AM
In January 2010 I bought a Nokia 2730 from Coles Broadway that was locked to Vodaphone.
In September I went to Vodaphone (Broadway) and spent about an hour with 'Lauren' (staff) with a request that she unlock the phone as it was now 6 months later. She did not know how even though she spend a long time on the phone to their customer support.
She told me that I would receive an email with an unlocking code within 10 days.
Three weeks later when I did not hear from Vodaphone or receive an email I again went to Vodaphone (Broadway) and spoke to Amid and Michele.
They were on the phone with their customer support for an inordinately long time (well in excess of 1hour) and in the end the result was that I was told I would receive an email from Vodafone with an unlocking code.
About ten days later I received by email the 'unlocking code' but when I tried to unlock it, it being a simple excercise to do, the attempt was repeated failure.
In frustration I went back to Vodafone (Broadway) and spoke to Danny. By now this is 11/12/10.
He spent nearly 2 hours on the phone to customer support - I told him that I was not going to leave him unless an until he unlocked the phone. I told him of the history of my attempts so far.
The result was that I was AGAIN promised that I would receive an email with the unlocking code.
Apparantly this is the proceedure.

Well, it is now 21st January 2011 and I am still waiting for this unlocking code.

I have stopped using the Vodafone sim card. I have put the phone in a drawer and purchased another phone/card from a more reputable service provider.

When I go back to South Africa I will terminate my Vodafone internet service.
Vodafone is a dirty word as far as I am concerned.

V.Vasseleou

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13211 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is pathetic at 21 Jan 2011 06:54:58 AM
In January 2010 I bought a Nokia 2730 from Coles Broadway that was locked to Vodaphone.
In September I went to Vodaphone (Broadway) and spent about an hour with 'Lauren' (staff) with a request that she unlock the phone as it was now 6 months later. She did not know how even though she spend a long time on the phone to their customer support.
She told me that I would receive an email with an unlocking code within 10 days.
Three weeks later when I did not hear from Vodaphone or receive an email I again went to Vodaphone (Broadway) and spoke to Amid and Michele.
They were on the phone with their customer support for an inordinately long time (well in excess of 1hour) and in the end the result was that I was told I would receive an email from Vodafone with an unlocking code.
About ten days later I received by email the 'unlocking code' but when I tried to unlock it, it being a simple excercise to do, the attempt was repeated failure.
In frustration I went back to Vodafone (Broadway) and spoke to Danny. By now this is 11/12/10.
He spent nearly 2 hours on the phone to customer support - I told him that I was not going to leave him unless an until he unlocked the phone. I told him of the history of my attempts so far.
The result was that I was AGAIN promised that I would receive an email with the unlocking code.
Apparantly this is the proceedure.

Well, it is now 21st January 2011 and I am still waiting for this unlocking code.

I have stopped using the Vodafone sim card. I have put the phone in a drawer and purchased another phone/card from a more reputable service provider.

When I go back to South Africa I will terminate my Vodafone internet service.
Vodafone is a dirty word as far as I am concerned.

V.Vasseleou
21 Jan 2011 07:01:06 AM: That sucks. If they are going to employ people at stores, make sure they know what they are talking about!!!!!!!!!!

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13210 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is 8-10 at 21 Jan 2011 06:54:45 AM
Later part of last year I had calls drop out many times during conversations. The connection to internet wasnt that great also. Pretty disappointing when your on a contract!!!!!!!
21 Jan 2011 06:55:39 AM: actually I should say 5-10
21 Jan 2011 06:58:44 AM: Vodafone are up there with Telstra as being the worst telcos in Australia

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13206 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Crap 3G network coverage at 21 Jan 2011 06:51:33 AM
This happens consistently, especially to me between Erskineville and Redfern inclusive. 3G always drops out which is unacceptable, as this is a city location, not the outback! A lot of the time, even in the CBD, it can take a very long time to use the internet, while other times it is fast.

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13205 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Ultimate Fail at 21 Jan 2011 06:50:46 AM
I've managed to get out of my mess but thought I should join your worthy effort regardless. I am still angered by the treatment I received at the hands of Vodafail. I had a prepaid cap with an unlocked phone. At the time I was a student and in a poor financial state, so having a prepaid account was beneficial for me. The idea being that when I used up all my credit, I could no longer send texts/make calls, thus controlling my spend. Except this didn't happen. I continued to use the phone, expecting like any normal prepaid user, for it to cut out once the credit ran out. Unfortunatly it kept going, putting me into a negative balance of about -$700. I didn't realise this until I recharged, only to find I still had a negative balance. I had to recharge AGAIN just to bring it up to a $0 balance. When I complained to vodafone they pulled the "there's something wrong with your Sim" crap. Willing to take it as a one-off problem with their system, I tried again but this time monitored the credit usage. When it got to $0, I sent another text and what do you know, another negative balance. When I again complained to vodafone, I was again brushed off. At that point I had to ask for another operator because I could not understand a single word the one I'd gotten (after a 55 min wait) was saying due to a heavily thick accent and a terrible quality VOIP line.

Throughout all of this I also experienced the delayed receipt of text messages problem. This made texting my partner (also on vodafone) extremely efficient, being that we both had texts delayed, in some cases up to 4 days. Again vodafail knew nothing of this.

After calling them every second or third day for 4 months, I gave up entirely and switched to Optus. I've had great success with them, particular their social media support team (via twitter), who have exemplary support, and for the most part less than an hour turn around time for problems.

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13204 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is no coverage at all at 21 Jan 2011 06:49:26 AM
Hi what a great site. Well i was in a huge mess with Voda and i have gladly and finally changed networks, but it took me 2 weeks, of constant calling customer service with the phone cutting out/speaking with numerous cal assisants explaing my problem everytime. So i have no reception, couldnt make calls ever, no one could contact, phone would be on but saying it was switched off, no internet at all, message failing and the list goes on. I will happliy sign any petition against these guys. OH P.S i am still waiting for the return post bag from that so i can return my phone to them that way i wont get charged. Have i received the bag yet??... NO.
eerrr

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13202 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is connection problem at 21 Jan 2011 06:48:14 AM
have to call twice to the same number to get connected

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13194 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Fix the problems Vodafone - It's a JOKE!! at 21 Jan 2011 06:43:52 AM
I live 3km from the Sydney CBD and have significant coverage issues. The phone is either in searching mode or 1 bar and have to be outside to receive and make calls and texts. It's ridiculous!!! Customer service is non existent. Even Vodafone stores that have to call Customer Service are on hold for extremely long periods of time. If stores can't get through for assistance what hope does the general public have in getting through. Fix the problems Vodafone.

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13191 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is CRAP at 21 Jan 2011 06:39:43 AM
ABSOLUTELY CRAP INTERNET RECEPTION, LARA YOU ARE A PAIN IN THE ASS. YOU CANT DIRECT ANYONE TO THE CORRECT DEPARTMENT. IF LUCKILY YOU GET TO ANY DEPT THAT YOU THINK COULD HELP YOU, THEY CANT EVEN SPEAK ENGLISH PROPERLY. HOLD TIME TO TALK TO SOMEONE IS FAR TOO LONG.
21 Jan 2011 07:04:37 AM: at least she speaks clear english lol

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13187 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is 100000000000000% FAIL!!!!! at 21 Jan 2011 06:36:51 AM
For the past year and a half I have had network coverage problems ie: calls dropping out; no reception (generally in the heart of the Sydney cbd and at Sydney airport; message and voicemail delays or not receiving messages at all; long waits for up to and over 1hr to customer support only to be hung up on and then have to call again and wait yet another hour; no 3g signal; takes up to 10 minutes+ to log onto any website including Vodafail and these are just some of the issues I have faced.

When I first received the phone I took it back to nokia on 4 different occasions because I thought it was the phone, however I continued to have these problems and now for the past 6 months I have tried periodically to contact Vodafail regarding my ongoing problems.

Recently I had, had enough and went in to 4 different Vodafail stores to get some help as I was getting nowhere trying to call. On all occasions I was told by Vodafail staff... "we can't help you, call customer support" and despite my protests about the poor service and not being able to get through to Vodafail, the Vodafail in store staff would walk off and talk to others; talk between themselves whilst I tried to voice my concerns; or completely ignore me and walk out into the store room.

When I realised I was not going to get any sort of response from the useless in store staff I resorted back to calling the Vodafail customer support line. On Tuesday 11th Jan 2011 I had to make 3 calls to Vodafail all for and waited approx 45-1hr each as each time before I had my call answered and each time I got in contact with a Vodafail rep the line would mysteriously drop out. When I finally got through I spoke with a so called "customer service rep" who was more like a rude cleaner who stated "I can't help you and won't help you because that is not part of my job, call us back tomorrow for the right department". I then demanded to be put through to the Manager.

The manager of customer support in India who I could barely understand with the accent and also because of the bad reception had to call me back twice because the call dropped out whilst I was making my complaint. When I finally got to speak with her she informed me that the Vodafail Cancellation team will be calling me back the next day and will be releasing me from my contract immediately due to all the problems I am facing and the poor service I have received.

I received a call 3 days later from a technical support person at 7pm. The technical support person then stated they would not help me and would not put me through to cancellations and stated I would have to do their investigations before Vodafail will let me talk to the cancellations dept. I did their investigations whilst also contacting the TIO for support. I was informed by the tech support team that I would receive a result by the 18th Jan. I did not hear back from them until the 20th of Jan 2011 informing me that their investigation had revealed I had poor signal coverage.

Finally I got to speak with the cancellations department and after having to call back twice due to bad reception and call drop out and yet and hour wait each time this is what finally happened.

The cancellations department then tried to sell me everything under the sun and give me offers to keep me as a customer... I informed that staff member that I do not want any of the offers and all I wanted was for Vodafail to released me from my contract as promised and also as Vodafail have been in breach of the contract for the past year and a half in the way of poor service as well as the above mentioned problems.

I was then informed that I would need to pay my next bill and a cancellation fee and send my phone back to Vodafail before I can be released from my contract. I then informed Vodafail that this is unacceptable and I would be taking Vodafail to the ACCC and TIO and I would not be paying any bills or cancellation fees. After trying to negotiate with yet another useless Vodafail staff member who I could barely understand and was continuously making mistakes and putting me on hold I asked to be put through to a manager.

I then negotiated with the cancellations manager and had my previous bill waived and my next bill waived. I then was then also told I had to send the phone back so they could waive the cancellation fee. I decided I would send the phone back, because it wasn't worth the pain of trying to keep it. No to mention it is the worse phone I have ever had.. (also suggested by useless Vodafail staff)

I am now currently waiting for this package so I can send my phone back and was assured as soon as they receive the phone I will be out of my contract and will receive a confirmation letter of this with nothing further to pay.

As a Vodafail customer of 12 years I feel very ripped off and completely unappreciated.
1. because there is no loyalty and during this whole process I was being fobbed off and passed around to different Vodafail staff to try and get me to just go away.
2. because I am loosing out.. I have not been compensated in any way for this time wasted out of my life and money wasted. Not to mention even though I have been paying for the phone for a year and a half I still need to send it back which leaves me with nothing but a big whole in my pocket and an empty wallet with nothing to show for it.

I know I'm not the only one having these problems.... and so to anyone else out there reading my story... the best advice I can give you is don't let them push you around and push them to do something about the problems your facing... don't stop until they release you from your contract. If after contacting Vodafail a few times you get nowhere contact the TIO and the ACCC immediately!!!

Good luck!!!

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13184 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is EXTREMELY at 21 Jan 2011 06:35:52 AM
i never EVER have full reception on my iphone and when i get 3 bars its still just as fail with how slow everything takes to load sooo stupid wish i didnt have another year or more left on my contract!!!!

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13183 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is No reception at 21 Jan 2011 06:35:43 AM
I had been a Vodafone pre paid customer for years. Then when i got married then need roaming on my phone and was advised that I had to sign up to a contract to do this. The day i signed up to the contract I have had nothing but problems... The roaming didn't not work in Tassie. And the train station I had been using for the last 10 years all of a sudden i could not make or receive calls or message yet my phone should full reception. Rang Vodafone and was told that there wasn't any service outages in the area... Then was stupidly told that I should go back to the train station and ring them from there on my mobile so they could look into... aaaahhhh the is NO RECEPTION....
If I wasn't locked into a contract I would be out of there

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13182 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Terrible network at 21 Jan 2011 06:34:54 AM
Dont get me started on vodafail's wireless broadband coverage. I had to use it a couple of times when I moved house and honestly 28.8k dialup would have been faster and more reliable. The way it works is you give vodafail $100 and they give you a usb device that you honestly may as well stick up your a** (it wont improve the reception but it wont make it any worse either..).

With regards to their mobile phone network, Ive never experienced anything like it. I was with Telstra for years and never had ANY issues. With vodafail Ive experienced continual dropouts, poor call quality & calls that wont connect (I tried 2 numbers the other day that have been around for years and got a message they werent connected! (later they were hmm..). Trying to get thru to vodafail support is a joke (I once got the option to leave my number and someone did actually call me back an hour later). Their wireless and mobile networks are archaic as is their support network. Welcome to the land of the dinosaurs....

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13180 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is big fail at 21 Jan 2011 06:32:39 AM
Vodaphone charged me for downloading games that I didn't download. When I called to enquire (called 3 times over a period of a week), they transferred me from person to person (all of whom struggled to completely understand what I was saying) and refused to provide a refund. Nonetheless, it was promised that once they worked out whether or not there was a problem (as if I was lying), they would call me back and credit my next bill. This was in September 2009. I have not heard from them since.

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13175 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is 100/10 at 21 Jan 2011 06:30:07 AM
no matter where i am i get bad reception i can only get full bars rarley even when im near a mobile phone tower

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13174 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is intermittent fail is the worst type of fail at 21 Jan 2011 06:30:00 AM
I've been a vodafone customer (3g mobile broadband only) for the last 3 years. I'm on my second 24 month contract now. I'm going to try and keep this succinct. I've had two main issues.

1) The intermittent failure of their online account system, making it difficult for me to check how much data I've used so I don't go over my 4GiB (then), or 6GiB (now) download quota. I documented situations where their website wouldn't load because of some internal network issue (I could load other websites just fine), and also explicit failures of their systems with errors from Apache's tomcat system being presented to me. The Vodafone Mobile Connect application for the Mac is extremely poorly implemented, recording download/upload for only a single session making it difficult to record total usage over a billing cycle. This culminated in my being charged $80 extra one month for going 300MiB over my quota. After at least 3 calls to them about the issues, I eventually got this charge reversed.

2) The second issue is more about network reliability. A bit of background first. Initially I used an expresscard HSDPA modem to connect using the Vodafone Mobile Connect software. As I found, this software is useless, and I eventually turned to the standard Apple interface for creating and using PPP connections. Anyway, during my first contract, I was plagued with disconnections, sometimes 5 times during an evening. This eventually got better, and the problem has now disappeared. The issue now is not disconnections, but simply dropouts. To me, it seems like it happens mostly in peak times, suggesting overloading of the router at the tower. I have a constant ping to google running while I'm connected so I can detect when these dropouts occur. When it happens, pings start to time out, and eventually some random amount of time (sometimes minutes) later, a huge succession of ping responses suddenly come back to me, and my connection becomes live again. Both of these issues are extremely annoying, because it stops me doing work at home that relies on having a working internet connection (e.g. remote ssh to my workplace)

The dropout issue still remains, and most evenings my internet connection is unreliable.

I have since signed up with Optus for an iPhone plan which comes with 2GiB of data quota. I'm very close to going down the path of cancelling my vodafone contract. The only thing stopping me is stories of hours on hold. I can confirm, along with everyone else, that Vodafone's customer support is lacking in many critical areas which I won't go into.

I hope this helps.

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13172 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Reception issues at 21 Jan 2011 06:28:02 AM
I just cannot believe how bad voda's service is. Can't get decent reception, phone drops out ALL THE TIME, can't use the 3G network, have to keep switching to the 2G network because it's all so overloaded sometimes on the 3G network I can't get service AT ALL to make or receive calls. Customer service is useless, it's just so so frustrating that a telco with such good plans is so crappy. What's the point in having all these awesome unlimited deals if you can't make calls or use the data you're given?!

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13169 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Poor Network Coverage at 21 Jan 2011 06:24:21 AM
We were just on holidays in Victoria - In Loch Sport & could only get coverage at the local pub or on a hill - Fellow Telstra users had coverage on the deck. I could cope with this but we had to go to Lilydale - a suburb of Melb for a wedding leaving our children with my mother in Lochsport. We had absolutely no coverage in Lilydale & had to get the message that our daughter had been stung by a jellyfish 3hours after the event through a friends Telstra mobile. NOT HAPPY AT ALL

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13168 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Billing nonsense at 21 Jan 2011 06:21:46 AM
I recently changed to the $45 infinite plan with vodafail and purchased a handset which is $37/mth. Today I got my first bill for the month, a total of $92. Ive managed to logon to the vodafail website (which I notice has actually been usable since all the recent bad publicity started) and for the life of me cant see where the extra $10 charge has come from. I can only assume its from voicemail retrieval but its pretty bad when you have to assume a charge is correct without any supporting billing documentation...I'll be moving my service back over to telstra come the end of my contract. These guys are just amateurs.

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13167 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 06:20:29 AM
My mobile internet have a very weak signal and was told i will have coverage around liverpool area. it disconnects every 2 minutes. how am i to use my internet? Im regretting.. I used to use optus. it was good. but i thought why not if i try vodaphone. argh!

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13162 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is No coverage at 21 Jan 2011 06:17:26 AM
I use my Mobile as a Home Phone being a Pensioner, so rely on it to have coverage. I repeatedly do no get coverage and my calls come up as Call Failure, and even walking around the garden holding it in the air doesn't help. It is concerning as when I am ill and need to ring a neighbour and it doesn't work, it does raise the stress levels somewhat. I do all that the site says, e.g. changing sim cards and realise that it is not my phone at fault, just the Vodaphone coverage.

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13157 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is pathetic at 21 Jan 2011 06:11:06 AM
havent been able to send or receive MMS for months, delayed sms, call drop outs. no service. just fed up with it. 55 minutes waiting to talk to customer service who after three return calls over 5 days still couldnt fix the problem.
Even the company I work work for are now getting out of their contract with Vodafone. my personal contract expires in one month. cant wait for that.
NEVER AGAIN VODAFDONE. This is appalling service. They have clearley failed to deliver their end of the contract.

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13154 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is reception & delayed voicemail at 21 Jan 2011 06:07:30 AM
having been with vodafone for over 15years its time to tick tock to my end of contract and go elsewhere! Actually may have been with them since they started! Too loyal and I've had enough! Reception no matter what phone Ive used has worsened as has retrieving my voicemail. customer service isnt any better, you ring and are held for an eternity then given suggestions that have no solution to your dilemma. Person to person customer service has gone downhill a million miles a minute as theyre all young..busy texting and chatting to friends while your standing there waiting to be noticed. Then its like you've interrupted their plans and are spoken to in a tone that deserves a slap! Reception is definately the worst.My husband is with Optus and he stands in the same spot I do and has full bars on his and I have drop out.(again regardless what phone Im using!) Friends with Telstra..same story, they have endless bars of reception ..I dont. Sick of it. Im done and Im leaving!
21 Jan 2011 06:13:55 AM: Vodafone havent been in australia for 15 years...
21 Jan 2011 06:19:07 AM: maybe? not sure but Ive been with them for as long as they've been here! Im pretty sure it was back in at least 1998!

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13153 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is EPIC FAIL UPDATE at 21 Jan 2011 06:05:14 AM
FYI My Complaint below - I lodged this complaint approx 10-12 days ago - I also refered the matter to the TIO - Now My Wife and I have been approved to leave our contracts with 18 months to go with no termination fees - I told V I was going to the TIO and they didnt care - Made me get a new sim / do a so called investigation - during this process they called and said you can leave your contract at no cost -

Date of complaint: 12/01/2011 9:02:34 AM
Complaint: ONLINE ENTRY BY COMPLAINANT

Complaint Type: A telephone service
The complainant is the account holder
Member Name: Vodafone
Date of complaint: quite some time
Disputed Amount:
$
COMP CLAIMS:
n short I am a disgruntled Vodafone customer after using the service for more than 6 years. After my relentless attempts to contact Vodafone customer support to resolve my issues (the usual dropped calls, no reception, no 3G and delayed voicemail & text messages)

everytime i ring wait for min of 45 min on hold then i expalinmy story - they transfer me between departments and each time im on hold any where up to 25 minutes.

Where I live in my local area I have NO coverage what so ever on my phone - at home my i-phone 3G sits in no service or searching. Any where I travel in my local arera nothing changes - Im a account manager and rely heavily on my phone - i can travel to a number of locations in newcastl;e and get NO COVERAGE - also i have a young family and expecting a baby - i can not go with out a phone
MEMBER'S RESPONSE:
My 1st call to vodafone being on hold for 1 hour - telling my story to customer service - they transfered me to techincal support - i waited 25 minutes to get to them and they had no idea why i was transferedc to them - so i had to explain my whole story again - They said to termoinate contract would cost $460 S I HAVE 8 MONTHS LEFT ON contract - Why should I pay for a service carrier to which im not getting any service for what Im paying for?? They toild me to go to a store and do a sim swap and credit 1 month bill - big deal $70... I attended a store swapped my sim and NOTHING Has chanGED - IT ALL STALL TATICS - they in struct me to check setting on my phone - turn it on / off - nothing has improved
RESOLUTION SOUGHT:
I can not go Any longer with out a phone - I want the provider to rescind my termination fee - allow me to change carriers ASAP and NOT PAY a termination fee. I want to port my phone number to the new carrier. At the time I signed this contract I paid $200 extra for the 32 gig 3g i-phone - I want to take this phone to my new carrier - Also I want vodafone to do the same for my wife who is A VODAFONE CUSTOMER in the exact same situation - wave her termination fees. I dont want to dealh vodafone


21 Jan 2011 06:15:31 AM: Apsolutely same problem here! They are getting worse to the extreme! Reception is my main problem as is retrieval of voice or sms's.They'l try and blame the phone or as you said.,.handball you to different departments and an hour +++ later..same boat you started in. TERRIBLE! I want OUT only I stupidly started another contract last august (before all this got worse) so Im counting down to OUT TIME! Id go to Optus or even Testra..as my husband has with his business and they have no issues and great customer service. They respond and your not on hold for over 1/2 hour. Goodluck
21 Jan 2011 07:21:43 AM: Escalate your complaints to the TIO - We are out of our contracts now free of charge....V will do a investigation into network - press hard you have no coverage and speak to management in contracts. you too will get out of your contracts !! Good Luck

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13151 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Extremely at 21 Jan 2011 06:04:51 AM
I have a phone that turns itself off, calls constantly drop out and some messages take over 12hrs to get to me. I went into the local dealer to have my phone repaired and I was told that because he had no loan phones, I would have to be without a phone, but I need it 24hrs for business, so that wasnt an option. I said I wanted to upgrade to a better phone, but he said I couldnt because I have a contract with them for the current phone I have. I now have to wait around 18 more painful months for the contract to finish before I can change to a much better phone company. There are even DAYS when the network goes down and when you call all you are told is pretty much, bad luck. I would never never never tell anyone to deal with Vodafone. Cant wait until I dont have to.

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13147 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is No coverage at 21 Jan 2011 05:57:47 AM
We have bought 2 phones from Voda i DEcember 2010.. 1 prepaid, and 1 on contract.
On their website it shows my suburb has full coverage.
We have ZERO coverage.
I have called them, and with the usual wait times.. (one day 2 hours on hold with no call back option.)
They have admitted fault by letting us out of the contract, although i am still trying to get the prepaid unlocked free of charge.
It is pure false advertising, their service does not work in my area.

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13143 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is EXTREME at 21 Jan 2011 05:53:26 AM
called vodafone to enquire about iphone 4 that had been orded and was put on hold for 40 mins then told we had not paid last months bill when we had a reciept for the payment. they then put us on hold again for 1 hour while chasing confirmation of payment. finaly they say yes payment has been recieved but the main reason i called was to find out how my iphone 4 order was going. guess what they hang up!!!. why is it that vodafone are happy to take our money and offer a premium service but all they can give you is some third world country to answer any questions and then at the best of times 1 5 calls may speak good english or if you are real lucky even understand what you are calling about. we are paying for a service not a penalty.
VODAFONE you are wearing my patience very thin and i am thinking of taking my family's 7 phones to another carrier you dont offer what you promise.

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13134 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Ordinary at best at 21 Jan 2011 05:49:14 AM
Lots of black spots where I get no reception, including the beach (a big wide open space right next to the Newcastle CBD). Delayed SMS and voicemail, up to a day. Very slow data speeds in most areas, I usually don't bother. Haven't had many calls dropped, but quite often I can't understand the user on the other end and vice versa. Hate calling customer service, they don't seem to give a rats. Can't wait to leave if I can't get out of my contract before it ends. I've complained through the facebook page as I'm not wasting MY time on hold for over an hour, I've had a response and am now waiting for more info. I don't know what they'll suggest next but I only have one option for me, I want out!!!
21 Jan 2011 06:08:14 AM: I feel your pain, how can any of the beaches around Newcastle have no service, I even have no service at Charlestown Square, how is that possible???? Feel the same as you, cant wait for my ordeal with vodafone to finish so I can leave them in my past!
21 Jan 2011 06:34:37 AM: Ring the TIO (1800 062 058) & lodge a complaint with them ~ thats what i did. I lodged a complaint with the TIO on Monday 17/01 & received a text from the vodafone resolutions team on Wednesday 19/01 informing me that "i have been released from my contract & i could port my number out from 19/01, also there is a letter with full details to follow." Good Luck

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13129 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 05:46:15 AM
I cannot wait for my contract to finish in June. Im absolutley disgusted with Vodafone's customer service and not to mention paying for a service im not quiet recieving. I have been a Vodafone customer for 12 years and still not getting customer satisfaction. Thanx for the longest relationship ive ever had but ur sooooo dumped :)

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13127 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is high fail at 21 Jan 2011 05:44:35 AM
- there is no coverage inside our appartment and we need to go out onto the street to take calls. Eventually we got a land line, even though none of our friends have a land line (therefor most numbers we call are mobiles- much more expensive from a land line) so that once in a while we could take calls in the comfort of our own home.
- I signed a 24 month contract with Vodafone and got a Nokia N8. After a month and a half the hand set froze and became impossible to use. I sent it off to be repaired through Vodafone for two weeks. Less than 24 hours after i picked it up, same problem. I went back to the shop where I'd purchased the phone but the sales assistant refused to acknowledge my frustration, stating simply that we should resend the phone to be fixed. Meanwhile I'm having to reload my personal data on the phone each time it comes back from repairs. Also my cap includes internet access and there's no such thing on the replacement phones Vodafone is lending me.

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13125 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 05:42:13 AM
My mobile won't work in my home office, but will work 10 metres away in my lounge room. VERY frustrating. When I get or make a call, I dare not walk around the house in case I get a dropped call.

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13124 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is EXTREME FAIL at 21 Jan 2011 05:42:09 AM
- Have been given 3 phones from them on the same plan because each time the hardware is faulty.
- I send messages and the people i send them to don't receive them.. VERY frequently.
- I can't get reception in my apartment near sydney CBD.
- Due to the hardware fails I am reduced to using a $49 nokia i bought from woolworths which doesn't have internet capability.. yet despite having no internet or email capability I am still charged $40 per month for the privelege of using it. (where i had a no usage month with telstra they called to find out what was happening and fixed my issue)
- my first phone bill was $800, due to an error in their billing system.
- Calling I do not get to speak to somebody who can help me and trying to resolve the issue I was hung up on 4 times.
- My plan is up in February and I'm going to optus.

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13121 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 05:38:33 AM
As well as constantly having to recharge my phone battery, not receiving calls at all, I have had 2 problems with 2 handsets. Firstly, the Sony Ericsson handset I have, on a 2 year contract is faulty (A common problem - it does not disconnect from numbers called, sometimes for 5 minutes and I am paying the bill) and Vodafone refuses to acknowledge responsibiity. if I send it back to Sony Ericsson they will not give me a replacement phone for weeks it will be gone. So I updated to an iPhone 3. I took out insurance with vodafone for the handset, had a problem with the Sim card holder. Vodafone tells me yes, they will fix it but there is a $150 excess on the Insurance. So I now have 2 handsets that are faulty!
What can I do to get a fair deal?

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13119 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very fail. 90% fail in fact. at 21 Jan 2011 05:36:59 AM
First of all, I hate Lara. I honestly pity the lady whose voice that is. She is the bane of my existence and I will rejoice the day she actually comprehends what I'm saying. I will have been with Vodafone for 10 years this year. The only reason I don't change now is because I figure that with such a long history I should be able to get top customer service from Vodafone. Alas, I still have to dance with Lara every time I need to sort out a problem and she never leads me to a real human or to the place I want to go. It's a labyrinth in there....

The recent network issues are also driving me insane. Approximately every 15-30 minutes a Network Settings window pops up on my iPhone screen (you know the one!). My network drops out and this delays voicemails, sms and generally fucks up my communication. This should not be happening on such a regular basis when I work in the SYDNEY CBD and live 10 minutes from the city. If I'm experiencing these issues I wonder how people in the suburbs or in the country manage.

This is ridiculous and after speaking to many other longtime Vodafone customers we're all experiencing the same problems. Vodafone, you obviously need to sort out these issues or at least start admitting to a problem here. You simply cannot keep pretending that everything is okay and training your staff to say that 'there is no problem'. There obviously is and you need to address it immediately.

I'd have far more patience with you if you just came out and said you had fucked up. None of this trying to pull the wool over our eyes, please. This is bullshit and bad customer service. We pay for your dinner dudes so you should try and keep us happy.
21 Jan 2011 07:30:11 AM: The length of time you stay with a provider does not mean a thing. The call center folk do not even have that information on hand, change providers.

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13118 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 21 Jan 2011 05:36:51 AM
poor coverage, poor service, drop outs, etc etc ...never again will i sign up with vodafone !

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13115 Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is Very at 21 Jan 2011 05:29:26 AM
I called re: leaking of info and after being on hold for 10 mins finally got through to someone who said that there had been no leak although I advised him that Mr Nigel Dews of Vodafone had been on the 7pm Project and said that the most likely thing that had happened was that someone had passed on their password to someone else, I was again put on hold "for only 2 mins" while he "discussed" it with his mamanger. During this time that ended up being a further 10 mins the phone cut out. I then spent another 20 mins trying to get back through to someone and again was put on hold to talk to a manager who assured me again that there had been no leak when I again mentioned that Mr Dews had been on TV admitting guilt without saying guilty she promised that someone would look further in to the matter and that I would have a call back. This was over a week ago now and still no call. Oh, and don't even get me started on waiting on hold to talk to technical support...all I want to do is have call waiting set up on my phone due to a new sim card and I call, am on hold for 30 mins and end up having to hang up as I can't wait on the phone all day with kids!!!! One more thing (seems to be a lot of them) During November 2010 my family and I went to Sussex Inlet NSW with my in-laws....the entire time we stayed in this particular house we had very little coverage, after someone injuring themselves we tried to call home to advise other family members what had happened and out of 4 mobiles, all with Vodafone, we spent over 2 hours calling, hanging up, calling, hanging up DUE TO NO NETWORK COVERAGE until finally only ONE of us managed to get through! Thanks for setting this site up! Job well done!

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