Since January 24th 2011 I have rang Vodafone 4 times regarding the sending of my mobile phone bill in the mail. Always get the same answer its in the mail.
Account is now overdue at no fault of mine. It also took them five & a half days to connect my mobile phone. I have requested to be released at no cost to me from my contract as this service is a disgrace but have not heard back from Vodaphone as yet.

I was trying to get my broadband internet reconnected after vodafone didnt debit my account for four months (thanks for the call/email.. anything!). I rang and got LARA the biggest waste of time. What happened to press 0 and we will transfer you to a customer service officer? Once I finally got the right word that Lara understood it kept asking for a mobile number.. it's mobile internet why the hell would I know the number? So if I hit random numbers it eventually hands up on me. Eventually I got through to some indian and was transferred twice before that person hung up on me. Then I tried again and the fourt person finally knew what the problem was.

i have been with vodafone for close to 8 years. it wasnt until last august (2010) that i started to have problems.

i recieved a new phone through an insurance claim. the phone arrived after waiting 8 weeks for it, not only did vodafone not offer me a loan fone they also continued to charge me my monthly bill after stipluating that because i was not able to use the phone i would not be charged. when i did finally recieve my new phone within 6 weeks the phone had to be repaired, then 3 weeks later repaired again, when i asked to see what was been done to repair my phone i was told "upgraded the software", something i do each month myself at home. finally at xmas my phone needed to be repaired for the 3rd time. instead of vodafone following their guidelines of replacing any phone that requires repairs more then 3 times or more then 2 repairs required within a 3 month period my phone was sent away again....no phone for 4 weeks, no loan phone offered, buils kept comming. then the day after i recieved my phone back condensation formed in the screen, i took it back to ask what it was and why i didnt just recieve a new phone i was told that all of the repairs were now classed as my fault for causeing them and that i would have to do another insurance claim or buy a new phone outright, even when i should have had the phone replaced over a month ago. i am once again without a phone.....but will still continue to be billed

as for LARA....billing enquiry doesnt sound like account update....

for nearly a year i have been trying to change my last name on my account yet in store and online and on the phone cant do it....hmmm...maybe because im not the person on my bill anymore i shouldnt have to pay for it???

Broadband coverage....MY ASS u have broad band coverage, my mobile broadband dies within 5 mins of been conected, then as soon as the slightest bit of cloud forms in the sky i loose all 3G netwrok and am back to gprs...which is slower then dial up....does anyone know how slow that is anymore...it means i wait 5 mins for one page to load and then as soon as it does i loose the connection...vodafones excuse..."ur situated in a delicate area that requires clear skies for the connection to be made" or and i love this one "the tower is been repaired...estimated time of repair...unkown". yet the bill continues to come and my service continues to be shit

call vodafone..lara get fucked im pressing 1...account information....transfering you now...
"hi you are speeking with Rakeesh, how may i help you?" hi i would like to talk to someone about my contract please. "certainly let me transfer you to the appropriate area"....BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP...bitch hang up on me
call back "hi your call is important to us so jus hang on and someone will be with you right away...ur estimated wait time is 38 to 45 minutes" ARE U FUCKIN SERIOUS????? I WAS JUS TALKING TO SOMEONE!

vodafone used to be a respected and well conected tellecommunications service, now its is worse then telstra..and trust me thats saying something. i need to get out of my contract and jus chill on prepaid for a while, but with no phone, a company that will try and screw you out of every single cent you have and doesnt want to listen to you, i dont see that happening anytime soon.

To the many other frustrated and fed up customers of Vodafone,

I would like to share my story in the event that it helps the cause.

Background: A Vodafone customer of 12 years, I was a bit dissapointed to encounter problems with my service having only moved from one major city to another (Sydney to Cairns). I cannot get any reception at all where I am now in Cairns (Kewarra Beach).

No Option: After letting it go a few months to see if it improved, with not even an iota of improvement, I decided I would finally call to enquire and possibly cancel the account if it could not be fixed. I clearly had no choice.

The Run Around: So I called Vodafone today. Went rhough several differnet voice prompts and still didn;t get to where I wanted. Finally, after being on hold forever I got through. The guy I spoke to (who I could barely understand of course!) told me that he would transfer me to "Connection Services" and if they said there was an issue and that there was no immediate action to rectify the problem then I would be waived the exit fee of $300 on my contract. He then transferred me to a lady in that section (again who I could barely understand!) who asked me some questions and did some checking.

The problem: Finally this lady came back to me and said yes it is an area that cannot acces any of the broadband services and it is a low GSM area. She then insisted she needed to transfer me to someone else.

The Pain: I advised this new guy that I was disappointed that after 12 years of Vodafone as a customer I unfortunately had no option but to cancel my account. He then advised me that I did indeed need to pay the cancellation fee. I protested, naturally, and explained what I had been told by the other departments and asked why I would pay an exit fee if I cannot use the phone?

The Pathetic Attempt to Justify: He said that on his little computer it said my area did not allow access to broadband services but I should still be able to make calls therefore the phone can be used. I told him that this was not the case, the phone did not get reception and I was unable to use it hence I would expect that Vodafone would waive the fee. The conversation then got more intense as he tried to tell me that because I ahd moved to an area where they had bad service that Vodafone could not help me. I asked how this was my fault? He said they cover 94% of the population and that there are just some areas they dont cover that well. I told him that Cairns was a major city and I would expect this response if I was living on the tip of Cape York! Again I asked how it is my fault that Vodafone cannot provied me service? He then went on to say that because I changed adresses that this was the problem and that all services are checked upon time of sign up to new contracts. He said they had only changed my new address with the first call I placed today. I told him that the local Vodafone Shop where I signed up for the new contract took my new details and updated it in the system. At no time did they inform me that I was in an area that had limited reception. No fault of mine that the change of address did not reach your records at Head Office; they certainly changed them in front of me and issued me with the paerwork.

The Audacity: He told me there was nothing they could do. It is not there fault that I am in a no coverage area. He said the best he could do was reduce the monthly fee. I was outraged, naturally, and asked why I would continue to pay for a phone I could not use? We then continued to go round and round in circles arguing and him trying to justify why it was not their fault. He then said the best he could do was half the exit fee to $150. By then there was just no way I was giving in so I told him this was ridiculous and I wanted to speak with a manager or their legal team. He said no and they would tell me the same thing he is telling me. I was further outraged. I said I would take the matter to the ombudsman and he said that is my choice.

The verdict: There is no way I am paying a fee. I only wish I could take them to court as this is the most ridiculous treatment I have ever recieed as a consumer. That's what 12 years of loyalty gets you does it!!! If I had known this was the way I would be treated i would've jumped ship years ago.

Thanks for giving me the chance to rant and vent!!! I only hope something comes of this and Vodafone is taught a lesson in customer service and consumer rights.

Kind regards,

James

Very generous Dropouts , late voicemail up to a week or so ,,incomprehensive text messages when checking account balance,poo r voice quality.Just about anything that go wrong DOES.

Billing problem for the past 6 months!

Vodafone, "let me put you on hold."
A few minutes later, "beep...beep...beep"
THREE VODAFUCKING TIMES!!!

Vodafone last month, "we'll give you $173 credit for overcharging you for the past 6 months"
Vodafone next bill arrived today, "lets start overcharging you again because you're fucking dumb client"

i recieved an offer to swap my Three mobile internet to Vodaphone - promising better prices, better service - etc etc etc. Their customer service was so bad and I spent so many calls trying to fix it and being sent from department to department without succes I cancelled my account within the first two weeks (which required far too long with their "cancellations" (ie. retentions) area and finally a contacting the TIO to get them to drop the charges for my first months "free service".

What I didn't realise until after all that was that even though I had been assured that when I "swapped over" they would take care of cancelling my internet account with Three - THEY DIDN'T!. Two months later (and not using my Three account, assuming it was cancelled) I have looked at my Three account and realised that they never cancelled it and had I actually ended up with Vodafail, I would have been charged for both.

So, if you are a Three customer that got that offer in December and swapped over, make sure you check your situation!

I have posted lengthy notes on here previously, the last one telling the long boring story of Vodafailure going on over the last month but I seriously thought I was rid of them when they agreed to cancel my account because they could not provide satisfactory wireless Internet service.

Today I received an email invoice again for this month (in advance) for my CANCELED service.

No ringing Lara this time, no discussions with our Commonwealth cousins, just straight to the TIO online complaints page. I hope I add to the numbers of complaints that bring down this revolting excuse for a telco.

Last august my mobile broadband contract with vodafone ended so i was paying as i went. Anyway my modem broke and they told me that i had to either purchase a new one (for $200) or i could cancel my plan (at no cost as contract had finished) and start a fresh one on the new bundles and get the free modem which I choose. So they cut my sim up in front of me and threw out my broken modem. So 6 months down the track I get a letter of demand from a debt collection agency saying that i owe $400. I was confused as I make direct debit payments every fortnight. ANYWAY long story short it turns out that they didnt actually cancel my old plan so I have been continuing to pay that one and the new one was sitting there building up with no payment. But instead of trying to fix it after numerous phonecalls last night I was put on hold and when the call centre person returned (after 25mins)they advised me that they had been speaking to the supervisor and that my case was considered fraud as I told them I only had one mobile broadbamd account. They said someone will contact me within 24 hours to disscuss it further. So because of THEIR mistake I am down money, have been referred to a debt agency AND accused of Fraud. Seriouly Vodafone. YOU ARE USELESS.

Dear Vodafail posters,

As a very recent ex-employee of Vodafone, I want to share my disgust with what has been created here.

RANT 1.

I totally understand people need a place to vent frustration. Heck, why not create a "customer-fail" website for Voda employees to vent about how John Doe bought a new phone and then moved to woop woop and now wants his money back. Or how Jane Doe bought the latest greatest gadget and wont let anyone show her how to use it, instead she demands a full refund and compensation for her "dramas". Both John and Jane will come into the store, rip shreds off whichever 17 year old girl they can find, demand to speak to the manager, who, in all of their power, can only do their best and refer them to higher power (customer care have the highest power). This then turns into a tirade of abuse as they REFUSE to take responsibility for their own problem and would rather post on a website, abuse innocent staff, and embarrass themselves with their own stupidity. If you are signing a contract, DO THE RESEARCH. Its pretty obvious their reception sucks, so DONT SIGN A CONTRACT. You have opportunity at every point to ask questions and get all the facts BEFORE signing, and once you DO sign its YOUR problem if you didnt do the research. I think you'll find most employees are fairly honest about reception in problem areas (much to HQ's disapproval).

RANT 2.

John and Jane Doe "cant" wait on hold for 30min. They're happy to wait 1hr at a restaurant on friday night, but to be made to wait on hold for a company with almost 2 million customers is apparently downright disgusting. Have you tried calling Telstra or Optus lately? Use the call back feature. Try resolving the problem YOURSELF. Have you tried turning it off and on? (this sounds stupid, but reconnecting to the network fixes 9/10 problems and is the first thing tech support will ask you to do, the second thing is a factory reset) If neither option will fix it, you dont have reception! How is complaining or abusing staff going to fix the issue? Still, they will clog the phone lines waiting on hold just to ask questions like is my bill due? How much data have i used? How long is left on my contract? Do you have iphone 4?

RANT 3

YES, THE CALL CENTRE IS IN INDIA. These are people too, and during my stint at Vodafone, I made friends with some of these people. Calling them pappadums, currymunchers, ragheads, curries, bombay bimbos, ching chongs (they're not even chinese...), and every usual australian slang insult is not only unnecessary and non-productive, but DOWNRIGHT DISGUSTING BEHAVIOUR. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES. They are trying to do their job as well as they can with as much power as they have been given. Do you really think they WANT to come to work every day just to rip you off, just to "steal" from you, just to be "greedy", and to cop such a massive amount of abuse each and every single day. You can see why the call centre is not in Australia. Noone here would take that crap for 2 seconds. GROW UP. What happened to decent behaviour and treating everyone fairly. This is Australia, we are not a backward racist nation.

RANT 3.

Retail staff are always young. 3 reasons... Firstly, you can thank Labour and unions for pushing award wages so high that it is too expensive to hire older people. Secondly, if Vodafone hired more experienced staff, they would have to pay more and charge you more. Hello Telstra. Thirdly, noone in their right mind would apply for a job at Vodafone just to come to work everyday and cop abuse from idiots who cant handle a problem sensibly. Give these staff a break. There is minimal training, and definitely not enough staff to cope with the amount of outright ABUSE they cop every day. Honestly, the sheer amount of abuse employees have to withstand regularly and i mean REGULARLY reduces staff to tears, people have to leave and go home because they are emotionally scarred, people have been physically threatened (myself included), sworn at, belittled, defamed, insulted, dragged through the dirt in front of other customers and colleagues. THESE ARE REAL PEOPLE WITH REAL EMOTIONS. Do you honestly think we WANT to NOT be able to help you? It has ruins relationships, lives, dignity, self esteem, people come out of it with temper or depression. Would you walk in to a car showroom and abuse the salesman because you didn't put oil in your car and it broke down? Give them a break i can guarantee they are ALL trying their DAMNED HARDEST to HELP YOU.

RANT 4.

Dont buy a phone if you cant use it. Dont buy the latest gadget if you have fat thumbs, or one arm, or are 90 years old and dont know how to turn it on (sorry if you are 80 and techno literate, i apologize, but the majority arent). Yes this sounds judgemental, but you need to be real. You dont buy a bicycle if you have no legs. Every phone has a working demo in every store. TRY BEFORE YOU BUY. You cant take it back. You cant take a car back because you dont know how to drive can you???

RANT 5.

We wont access our system when you call us on the phone. We wont access your details without your password. We wont cancel your friends sisters mothers account simply because she said you could. When you sign the contract, the salesman signs a section on behalf of Vodafone stating that we will do whatever we can to protect your privacy. This includes putting a password on your account. If you dont have your password or adequate ID to prove your identity, TOO BAD. Its not the staff members fault you forgot your password and cant prove who you are. You cant withdraw cash or hire a DVD either without these things so why should phone accounts be any different?

RANT 6.

Staff at stores have low-level access to customers accounts. They cant see credit card details, they cant bring up an invoice you forgot to keep for warranty from 18 months ago, they cant play god and ruin your life simply because they can see your phone account. They have policies to follow and this is to protect your privacy and also to protect you from staff who dont know what they are doing. Each department of Vodafone is trained different to handle different enquiries, noone is trained in all enquiries. This means that sometimes you cant get an answer from the young girl at the store. You have to call up. Please dont abuse her, because if she could help, she would. She is not trying to ruin your day, and instead is frustrated because she cant help you.

RANT 7.

Why should telco's be different to every other industry. Everyone assumes they should get more value out of every dollar with a telco. If i buy a toaster and it breaks i take it back and get it fixed. I dont demand a "loan toaster" while its gone, and if it takes a few weeks because the repair centre is located 3000km away I sigh and thank them for acting speedily and I await its return. If it breaks after the warranty finishes, I go and buy a new toaster. If I get 6 months down the track and realise its not the toaster I wanted I punch myself for being stupid and not doing more research before I started.

How come when its a phone everything changes? Warranty means nothing to customers. If its broken it should be fixed for free on the spot. GET REAL. There are billions of the phones in the world, and cramming a GPS, phone, music player and organiser in one cheap, mass produced device means that some will break. Thats what warranties are for. They take time to fix, and they ALWAYS will fix a warranty issue. If you crack the screen or drop it in the toilet IT IS NOT A WARRANTY ISSUE IT IS YOUR FAULT. If you decide you wanted a white one instead of black... sorry. You had your chance to decide. Can you take your car back to the dealer and swap it for the white one? If you crash it, can you demand a new one for free?

RANT 8.

Reception sucks. This is well known. So well known in fact that I wonder why you signed up with Vodafone in the first place? Now who's fault was that....

RANT 9.

Do you honestly want to get out of your contract?

Do you still think after reading this post that you have a good case and deserve to be treated more specially then someone more honest and decent then you? simply because you abused the staff more? Read on...

There is one way to do it, call Customer Care. NOONE ELSE HAS THE AUTHORITY TO DO THIS. Noone and i repeat NOONE in the store can cancel a contract on your behalf. Trust me I've tried.

There is one department in the whole company that has authority. They are called the "Win-back team" (or "Cancellation department" for laymen). To get to this department, call Customer Care and say "cancel contract". It is that easy. If you have a good reason, they will cancel it. If you dont, they wont. Dont argue with them. They are having a bad day too now that they've talked to you and heard about how you hate their guts and want them to die.

The next simple step is contact the TIO. You HAVE to contact Vodafone first before you can proceed with a complaint to the Ombudsman. Once it reaches this level, if you have a solid case, you will win. If you dont, you wont.

IT IS THAT EASY.

Why does it have to resolve to websites like this appearing? People refuse to take responsibility for their own problems. They come in and make demands like "this is YOUR problem, YOU fix it" or "I want out of my contract before I leave and I wont pay another cent because I refuse to contact Customer Care" or "I refuse to troubleshoot because I read in some forum that this phone is dodgy"

Take the appropriate steps, and CALM DOWN! If you have a real reason for getting out of your contract, they wont charge you any more money, so if it happens today, tomorrow or next week, what difference does it make?

CONCLUSION

Ok, i went a bit off topic a few times, and forgot alot of what I wanted to say, but the point is... grow up. Stop abusing innocent people. Stop whining because you forgot your ID and we should still be able to sign you up for a 2 year contract with just a bank card. Noone has all the answers, you have to find them yourself. Take responsibility for your own problems. Noone is here to wipe your bums, especially for a $20/hr wage.

If anything I have said here you feel to be untrue, please... feel free to comment.

Sincerely,


P.S. Thankyou to all those patient customers, the ones who understand that its not our fault. The ones that give us a chance to fix their problems. The ones who pay their bills on time every month. The ones that look for help, not for answers. You were a pleasure to serve and sometimes the only reason I went to work each day.

Thanks vodacrap ! not only can i not make or receive calls ? but who knows the amount of business i have lost with your inept telco shite company.
This is a total joke !!!
I feel like i'm being robbed every time a payment comes out of my account !!

This is the latest hit from Vodafone - released about a month ago. :)

When trying to view your usage details in "My Account" section on the website the following error shows up:

Sorry for the inconvenience
- An unexpected error has occurred. Please close your browser and try again later or call 1555 (a free call from a Vodafone mobile) or 1300 650 410 from another telephone service (standard charges apply) to complete your request.

So for the past month I have been "trying again later".

This is a capsized comedy... :)
(LOL "capsized" - "cap" and "sized").

I have been a 3 customer for over 5 years and although the service was never completely reliable, it was acceptable considering the cheap plans they offered. Since their merge with Vodafone I often find that I can't make calls, my phone goes offline (although still displaying a full signal)and needs to be turned off and on again to rectify itself. Often calls will drop out on around every 5 minutes making it impossilbe to call the 3/Vodafone "Customer Care" as they call it, and 13 number is NOT a standard call meaning I'm charged a small fortune for waiting on hold. I have also had numerous billing errors since the merge which can't be rectified as I can't get through to speak to someone. Surely all of these 'fails' are reason enough for vodafone to release customers from their contracts as they can't honor the terms of it!

Got a second month-to-month sim Nov because I was going over my mobile broadband data allowance. Unbeknownist to me (until it was waaaaay too late) it wasn't linked to my main account so even while I was religiously checking my usage, I managed to rack up $270 in excess usage fees ... and the account wasn't being paid as I just use my vodafone, I don't pay attention to the emails (have learned that lesson!) I didn't even find out until I went into the store about something else... what's stupid is I'm probably the only one so happy with their pocket wifi coverage I use up to 20 gb a month on it... it's their customer service & systems that let them down :( (@meinmelb on twitter)

my vodafail account has stopped notifying me of voicemails which has put me in a few awkward situations with work, friends and other issues.. costing me money aswell (for missed work)..
plus for days at a time i cannot use the vodaphone web broweser due to apparent high usage. but seriously.. days at a time?
FAIL! i pay good money for their service and i get screwed in return. i can't wait to change when my contract is up!!!

Ordered a mobile broadband in Nov 2010. Yhis was suppose to be a 2year contract at $39/month. Upon arrival of the modem, my laptop registered software problem and the modem would not work. After calling up their technical support numerous times, the best they could do was to tell me to go to the nearest shopfront to get the lastest updated software and download it into my laptop.

The software didn't work; so my problem is stalled. I decided to call them up to have my account terminated and was told that someone would call me back within 72hours to help me with my request. I waited for more than two weeks before I decided to send an email to complain about the return call they promised(that did not happen) and that I have been charged by them for services I could not use and problems they can't solve for me with they software.

Another 2 weeks passed and my complain email was ignored.

So just 2 hours ago, I decided to call them up to request for a cancellation of my account and a refund of the money they have charged me. But they kept offering new deals and new modem for me eventhough my problem was with their software and not with their device. Only this time, I spent more time being put on-hold than talking to someone. The operator kept putting me on hold while she needs to speak with the manager and finally I just told her to put the manager on to speak with me. The final outcome was that either I get a refund and be charged $160 for temination fee or they can waive the termination fee but I don't get my refund.

What a load of rubbish! I'll never deal with them in any way again and I'll tell as many people of how "great" and "fantastic" their services are!

Oh, and the last thing the manager told me was, "And there will be a last direct debit charge on the 15th of this month."
Well, go ahead, I've just called up my back to have their direct debit cancelled.

yay! just ported my number over to Telstra after being let out of my vodafail contract 7 months early due to all the issues i was having. :D happy days! First thing the guy in telstra shop said when i told him i was with vodaphone "oh im sorry!" lol.
So yeah, dont give up!! If you arnt getting service dont put up with i...t.
Also when trying to port my number we had to ring the vodafone call centre while in telstra shop to get my account number, after 7 minute wait and no one answering, i ended up walking to the vodafone shop in the same shopping centre and was standing there waiting for a good 10 minutes while 2 customers in front of me were complaining about having no coverage. one of them was on a $79 plan and let me tell you she wasnt happy !! Another one was in there after being on hold for 2 hours and getting the call back option and was never called back. the staff was just like nothing we can do you have to ring up. wow so helpful. Telstra staff were ALOT more helpful and took the time to sit down with me and explain everything about my new contract and showed me how to use my new phone. Ported my number within 2 minutes. and then she even took the time to get all the contacts off my vodafone sim and put them on the telstra one. VERY appreciative as last time i was in vodafone and they told me it was a sim issue they didnt save my contacts and it deleted them all. wasnt impressed!!!

Vodafone defaulted my account and I had no idea I had an outstanding bill. I was more then happy to pay it.

Personal details removed

7th Feb, 2011

To: Vodaphone Device Return

Bright Point Australia

Warehouse B

1 Garden Road

Melrose, NSW 2085.


Like many other people whose Vodaphone hand held devices have been causing them considerable inconvenience, I finally lost patience and decided to ditch your service and look for something a bit more reliable. So I went to a Vodaphone store at a Brisbane shopping centre and asked if I could pay my account and hand in the hand set.



The person there, while being very helpful, said they couldn't accept the device but all I had to do was ring 1300 650 410 and request that a satchel be sent to my house. I could then simply drop the device into the satchel, and then into the post box.


I rang the number and, after getting the usual run a round from that brainless bimbo answering machine, was switched thru to India where I spent the next hour or so trying to find out how to get the satchel. They were extremely reluctant to give out this sensitive information and several times during the long rambling discussion, I was asked who had given me the phone number and the information on how to request a satchel. I got the faint impression that, if they found out who it was, then that persons future career prospects at Vodaphone may not be too rosey.


The fellow at the other end of the line then attempted to steer me thru a complicated series of steps that may solve the problems I was having. But all to no avail. Eventually he conceded defeat and said he'd transfer me to Technical Support. However, during his attempt to do this, we got cut off.


After a suitable period of time had elapsed, I called the number again and after another skirmish with the bimbo talking robot, was switched thru to India where I asked the fellow on the other end if Vodaphone actually had a postal address in Australia.


Why do you want to know? he asked, rather pompously and suspiciously.


At this point I was becoming rather dangerously close to losing my temper and told him, in no un certain terms, that I wanted the address so I could send them a letter and it was none of his business anyway, as it was simply his job to be of service to his employers customers. This had the desired effect and he suddenly blurted out the address.

So, please find enclosed the mobile phone. Also could you email my last months account to me so I can pay it and that will be the end of our association. I'll send a copy of this letter to you by email if I can find an email address to send it to. I daren't risk another one hour chat on the phone with someone in India so I'll probably hopefully get it off your web site.

(Personal details removed)

Error establishing a database connection - yes folks ...its another FAIL when trying to check the balance on ones account.

1)I ENTERED INTO CONTRACT WITH VODAFONE ONH DEC 30,2010. THEN ON JAN 11, 2011 I RECEIVE A FIRST BILL. 30-12-2010 to 31-12-2010.MEANING.I HAVE BEEN BILLED FOR ONE MONTH ON MY ONE DAY OF USE.
2)ON MY SECOND MONTH BILL, I FOUND OUT THAT THEIR INTERNATIONAL CALL IS AROUND $2.00/MINUTE.WHICH IS TWICE THE PRICE WHEN I WAS WITH 3.
I REGRET SWITCHING FROM THREE TO VODAFONE.

We have renewed 4 new plans with Vodafone 3 months ago and the following happened:

All 4 plans were incorrected registered and despite spending over 4 hours with Vodafone, and on each occasion being reassured that they have been rectified, all 3 plans are still being overcharged;
Existing auto debit details did not roll over and I was threatened with a disconnect notice by SMS;
One of the new phone was both incoming and outgoing call barred and we found out that there were 3 months of payment in arrear when we first used the phone; we informed Vodafone calls were never made and no inovices were received either by mail, SMS or email while the plan detail were also incorrect. Vodafone denied our information and informed that invoices were sent to a Hotmail account; however that particular account is not attached to a Hotmail; SO THE VODAFONE STAFF MADE THE STORY UP!!!!;
We were informed that credit will be applied on the incorrect charges and late fee will be waived; as of today, they are still showing on our bill; We have been over-charged and the so called Help Desk is not helping at all!
And yes, calls have been dropped every now and then even in Sydney Metro

In short: Billing problem; dropped calls; incorrect advice/ promise by vodafone staff; on-hold for too long; overcharged; poor customer services and irresponsible directors!

Just contacted TIO again. Received Jan bill by email today. Amount owing and date payment due only. Again no billing details, even after Vodafone Tas and various workers in India,have promised me that full details would be supplied. They can do it after I complain each month, why can't I get the correct bill in the first place ? Hope TIO has better luck this time! Didn't have a problem prior to Oct, 2010.

I have tried unsuccessfully to contact vodafone for 6 weeks via email and telephone, they simply do not call me back. I contacted the tio and they told me to port my 7 numbers out and they would contact them on my behalf. After 14 days still nothing, the tio gave them another 48 hours, more like 100 when you take into consideration the weekend and my investigators sick day. Still nothing! It has now been classified as a level 3 complaint thus costing vodafone in excess of $20k simply in fines! They have to pay up not apply credits on this one and there is now a full blown investigation into their handling of my accounts! To say I am fed up is an understatement! Completely useless and incompetent behavior!! Let's hope the government gets involved and sends them back where they came from!!! Oh did I mention that I'm a Gold Dealer of their services!!! This is disgraceful conduct from a multi national company trading in the lucky country! The CEO has to be sacked immediately! They have also announced it will take from 4-6 months for them to be able to perform again! Are they serious!!!! Joining the dole queue on Monday!

I would like to bring to your notice the billing fraud committed by 3 on a daily basis. Since Vodafail bought 3 couple of months ago...3 is going the vodafail way.

I have had two connections from 3. One is a mobile phone service and the other is a mobile broadband service. Last month (24th Jan 2011) I decided to disconnect the mobile broadband phone service. I was charged an extra $119.25 ! They told me that I used extra data. I already have a 6GB limit which I am sure I have not used as I was in the process of moving houses. When I asked for a detailed data usage report they refused to give me. They used planned confusing words such as pro rata billing etc.

Yesterday I received another bill for my mobile phone which is coming up to $93.02. This includes $49 which is the monthly rental. The remainder is $44.02 which they say is from my old disconnected broadband service. They claim that the billing cycle is responsible for this. How come I get charged for the mobile broadband service when I have already disconnected and had been forcefully charged? The disputed amount from January bill is $80. And disputed amount for the February bill is $44.02. So the total bill amount dispute is $124.02.

The provider does not want to give a proper breakup of the data usage of the mobile broadband service where I have incurred an extra $80. And also practises evading tactics using confusing words like pro-rata and billing cycles etc when discussing the disputed amount ($44.02) for the February bill. The call centre gentleman who I spoke to had a name called Sadik and I think is based in India.

I am not new to the mobile phone service bills. This is the first time I have experienced this and only from 3.


Please understand that I am not a opportunist who is taking advantage. I have been cheated and all I ask is Justice to be served.

I am using their Prepaid Mobile Broadband services and I haven't been able to access their website all day. Both Firefox and Internet Explorer web browsers time out while trying to load their pages. I can't even top up my credit online and I dread having to make a phone call tomorrow morning. Interestingly I can access their website through a web proxy but it will not let me log into my account. This isn't the first time it's happened, I remember one Sunday afternoon making a phone call about the same problem and a few minutes later I was able to access their website. I have been with Vodafone for 8 months now and their Prepaid Mobile Broadband service has deteriorated over the last few months, from days of having no Internet access to very slow connections. I have had enough! I no longer have any faith in their service and I will be looking around for a more reliable service provider.

I'm so very disapointed in vodafone.
Late janurary, I continued making phone calls
and according to 1512, i was within my cap,
and all of a sudden it said i was $35 over my cap,
so of course i immediately stopped texting and
calling people, however my exclusive amount then magically
increase to $89, and now my current bill shows around $120.

today is the 4th of feb, and I've been evry careful with my phone,
havent called any premium numbers or anything of that sort,
but when i just checked my account balance, it says i have $142 dollars remaining out of my $150, but apparently i have a $35 dollar exclusive amount
which really seems impossible. I'm so frustrated and sick of this nonsense, vodafone needs to get back on track, I'm definately calling the TIO and trying to cancel my contract.

I have just bought vodafone iphone cap just a month ago & it gives me alot of problems like no reception,take plenty of time to open one website,no proper billing.for hrs my phone will go on no service that to be when i am very well in the city..i never get more than 1 reception tower whether i am at work in fyshiwick or at home in woden. When complaining about the same to their customer officer they said we have very good range sir...then why this f...phones on no service. No proper reply from them.

Just signed up in the last 2 mths,still no contract,billed in 3 weeks not 4,the amount was more than was agreed too.I notified them that this was wrong,nothing done,called them,still nothing done,emailed them I was'nt going to pay my account till it was sorted.Received following mths bill,$85 over agreed amount.Now I owe for 2 mths.They phoned me for a copy of what their rep had written down but failed to put on a contract that I still don't have.Then they suspended my account.Not bad for 2 mths ah.

Since July 2010, I have experienced everything from no data coverage in my suburb at the weekends to call dropouts, delayed text and voice messages. I have spent up to 2 hours on Saturdays and even working hours (almost every 3-4 weeks since) trying to explain the problems as they occur to Vodafone customer service teams. My company-issue mobile, my personal mobile, my iPad and mobile broadband are all with Vodafone. In fact, in early December, the security alarm system in our premises was triggered at 1am but the security company was unable to get through on my mobile - and - I didn't receive their voice message until 12noon. Surprisingly - and - fingers crossed, my issues seems to have improved since all the publicity about Vodafail.
Although, an incident that occurred this week has prompted me to post this.
My boss is who is also a Vodafone customer is currently overseas. He travels overseas on a monthly basis. This week, he received a text from Vodafone advising they have suspended his service. Account is up to date, ie: no outstanding invoices. When I enquired as to why service was suspended, I was told that there was an UNBILLED roaming charge amount of $3,000+ incurred in the current cycle and that this amount had to be paid before service would be re-activated. Notwithstanding the fact that my boss has been a long standing Vodafone customer, frequently incurs up to $6,000 in roaming charges AND account is always paid in full when due.

i have been in a battle with phone companies for the past two years. Finally, after releasing me from my contract "3" convinced me to go with Vodafone (as they did not have the phone in stock which they had promised me 3 months earlier), not knowing any better i agreed; this was my first mistake.

The first two bills they sent me were incorrect (overcharging me by $90 on both). i called customer "service" on numerous occasions to try and solve the problem but was told that there was nothing that they could do. as i did not pay the incorrect bills my service was promptly disconnected for two days with no explanation.

I live on Sydney's north shore (20 mins from the CBD) and i have NEVER ONCE had full reception in the 5 months that i have been with vodafone now. i consistently have "no service" in my house, and when i am out the reception and connection quality is shameful. Voicemails on average take 4 days to arrive to my account, and the internet connection is slower than the dial up i had in my house ten years ago.

IT IS A JOKE, i think that Lara should start looking for a new job, as Vodafone will not last with this kind of service!!!

A so-called overdue bill of $80.63 when i didn't get the first bill. Usually send it via sms for small amounts per month (i don't use this particular phone that much) and so put myself in credit of $40.00. The ocassional sms here and there over a few years and then bam...you're overdue! No sms like the past.

I was told because i didn't change my address when the bill was sent that that was the reason why i didn't receive it. My mail at that stage was being redirected by Australia Post!!! And, in that time had tried to change my address details at one of their shops, yet they have limited staff to suit the demands of the customer so the line was long and wasn't moving in a hurry. And when i tried to contact them by phone i waited for over 30 mins in my otherwise precious time and couldn't hold on any longer...my baby was hungry!!!

In essence, I paid them $95.00 so I am in credit slightly. All i know is that you do not treat a valued customer who pays her bills on time in the demeanor that they did...and I can assure you that the credit for that phone will not be utilised because i will be taking my business else where and when my contract runs out for my iphone they can stick that service where the sun doesn't shine.

Not happy Jan

I spoke with the cancellation department on 24/1/11 to get released from my plan and was told the only way this could happen is if there were issues with coverage in my area and was transferred to the technical department to arrange a line test and promised a call back on the 28/1/11. Monday 31/1/11 I called and requested a call back due to hold times. They called back 5 mins later and placed me on hold! After 20 more mins of holding decided that is why i requested the call back and hung up. 3/2/11 I called back to find out what was going on and tried and the line dropped out. I called back and spoke to Chantelle who could hear me and it dropped out. I then called back and got richard who later turned out to be rod. He wasn't able to hear me and I requested he called me back. He called me back and i explained what had happened about the line test and asked him to record these on the notes on my file. He then said he would introduce me to someone in the technical department and explain what had happened after 24mins of holding the person in technical had no clue what was happening as no notes were made. I then spoke to the supervisor who told me that the line test had been completed and there were no issues in my area. As a result I asked if he had placed the notes of drop outs and they had no records. She then acknowledged that there were issues with the coverage and that they would not release me from my contract as the systems will be upgraded some where between 14days and 12months! I have requested a copy of the notes on my account and had to be transferred back to customer service who advised it will cost $21 to get them. I said it does not cost $21 to copy past it into and e-mail and send to me. Now 2 hours on hold all they can offer is to raise this with the privacy department who will take 7 days to contact me and verify that this is my account before they can release the notes to me. Very unacceptable! Sorry vodafone after 6 years of loyalty I'm outta here.

Ok just posted b4, then finally got through to vodafone..this is how it went
Hello this is Keten, please what is your number...etc (time 6.04pm) after being on hold and asking to be called back (17minutes later)asked what is your problem, no network since 5.30 yesterday..neither has my son, who has a phone for safety walking from his school to my work..and im really angry.As this has happen more than is acceptable..What is my mobile number...where do i live Goldcoast, where, Goldcoast, can't find it, ok try Surfers Paradise, wait...what is suburb..told him...what is street...told him (time 6.12pm) still trying to find place...waiting waiting, comes back and says don't know why you have no network...on hold again...comes back says take battery out of phone wait 1 minute...turn back on...do this and finally coverage back...I ask why did this happen again...VodaFone has been updating and refreshing their network, and it freezes, so this what happens. (sorry about that)...
Well then I would like a credit for being witout service for 24hrs,yet I will still get charged. Ok can give me a credit to my account for $10. right I have that....um problem trying to do that put on hold(6.23pm) wait 6.28pm um having problem crediting your account...put on hold...comes back (6.35) ok have credit account, ok well my sons phone is doing what mine is no coverage etc...take battery out...do the whole thing...I get it going, right I would like to be credited for his account please...yes i have done this. no you dont have his number...i havent told you...yes I gave you credit $10, $5 for each account but put on my account...NO thats not what i wanted...$10 on mine and $10 on his. NO CHANCE!!!! and so i said well will this happen again...apparently so but was told..i know what to do NOW!!! MMMM gotta love vodafone SERVICE. Oh and apparently I was on hold so long 'cos his computer froze trying to credit my account!!!!!

I have been on hold for TWO AND A HALF HOURS after telling Lara that I wanted to speak to someone about a billing inquiry. I originally just wanted to have my last 2 bills wiped because of crappy service (calls dropping out, voicemails and texts coming late or not at all, cruddy internet reception and 'no service' in areas like Manuka, Civic, Kingston and in Sydney). How do i get to place my number on the 'call back' list because this is just ridiculous! I'm now at the point of just wanting to cancel my contract on iphone although I have about a year to go, however am worried I won't be able to port my number as I am waiting to hear back about job interviews.

Can someone direct me as to how I get vodafail to call me back, or should i just call again and say i want to talk to someone in complaints? Eeep!

I finally had success with breaking both mine and my partners contracts after 3 months of complaining around 3 times a week. They ended up running a coverage test in my area and it appears we are in a low service area (clearly) and we were able to get our plans cancelled, with no charge provided the phones are returned. I think I had called around 40 times and my partner maybe 10 times, sent around 20 emails and was on hold for hours and hours but with some persistence I managed to sort it out. I find the cancellation team were totally useless and the tech support were much more helpful. Even once I managaed to get my contract cancelled they did not want to cancel my partners since the coverage test was done on my account however we live at the same address! After 4 calls in the past 12 hours I got it sorted, FINALLY!. The main thing is, don't give up! Just keep calling and calling. Postcocde is 6167 which is a low service area as advised from Vodafone. Offered me 6 months half price contract to stay also.... I declined! Telstra here we come =) Goodluck!

i loved the visual voicemail, and the billing was ok, i also loved their lara , and the fact that you didnt have to hold for an operator, rather they would call back , !!! really clever, BUT in the past 6 weeks the network went to sh1t !

if only they invested in their network as much as their clever call centre software, people wouldnt have to call!!

Have more than one connection on my account. Had a password to gain entry to my section of the account. Now they require a PIN. Don't remember the PIN (from 10 yrs back - I have difficulty remembering from 5 mins ago!) Called support. Was told that it was due to the outage today. However, this situation has been ongoing for 2 months! Then was told to call 121 to get my account balance! So even that info was not right. The 1521 service is not available today which I can understand but wonder how long they will use the excuse of the cyclone effects! So frustrated. I don't have the option of cancelling my account, as I have overseas banking links on that number.

I have been unable to get my account balance or usage details from the Vodafone website for the last 2 days. I have tried numerous times at different times of the day, from several different PCs. They can't seem to do anything right. I have experienced bad reception, non functional website, bad customer service, delayed SMS, people unable to leave a voicemail message for me yesterday. I'm changing to Optus as soon as my contract is up, which is very soon fortunately.

They did an unauthorised direct debit on my account for $226 and sent my account into overdraft and left me with no money to even buy my lunch or get home today. Said it will take a week to refund the payment. All the other bills I have due now will also not be paid, awesome for my credit history!!!!!

I recently migrated to Vodafone (which I should not have but too late).
I was connected with 3 and migrated to Vodafone 3 days prior to the end of my billing cycle. Now Vodafone is billing me for that 3 days of use when 3 charged me full for the said billing cycle. Vodafone CSR says, they don't care about 3 customers and its billing. And I thought they own 3 and should be responsible for this whole migration process.

During the migration process, the Vodafone guy said it will be seamless, it will be just a transfer of contract! AHA again.... Total lie to customers. Shouldn't they be liable with their statements. It was an $20 extra charges for me. Now if they do this for all 3 customer migrated customers, imagine how much extra money they are getting considering that they own 3 anyway and is also charging on that side. ACCC should look at this.

I was originally on Vodafone and had the usual issues with poor coverage, slow internet speeds, poor Call Centre service. I then jumped over to Telstra and received horrible customer service and massive billing errors. I am now with Optus and whilst things were great at first, I am now getting coverage issues and have been overcharged AGAIN! Store staff at Vodafone and Optus were great, but issues like these have become predictable and almost expected with all providers.

I'm reasonable and understand things don't always go to plan. I treat staff with respect and don't vent my frustrations in public. But in all honesty Telecommunications Australia wide need a reality check! Telstra sure as hell is not the answer! Good coverage yes, but pay through the arse and get treated like dirt!

I have just finished my contract with 3 and want to cancel it already but nobody seems to answer my call. I was waiting for 30 minutes already when my workmate informed me about Vodafail (you see I was overseas for 3 months so wasn't really aware of this happening). Also, i have got another account this time with Vodafone itself which I will be retaining. Got no option cos I am just 6 months into the contract

where do i begin... I have been a VF customer for about 7 years. Started on the smaller plans and gradually made my way to the higher plans with the introduction of iPhone plan. I have had constant problems with my service ever since.. My plan is the $69/month but most of the time i make a few international calls which adds about $20 to my bill which is fine by me. this is constant. Then over the last 4 months my bills have been coming in at $500 for crap that i don't even understand. I try calling VF and i'm put on hold for AT LEAST 45 mins...... then i speak to someone who I can only guess is in India or some other offshore call centre. I explain my disgruntlement and the response is pretty much cryptic. I have no idea what the result is. the last time i complained they credited me $180 and the next bill my plan had increased to $79/month.... without my knowledge. Called again... another bloody 45 - 60 mins on hold... nothing is explained. THATS JUST THE BILLING. then the actual service is disgraceful. My phone indicates full coverage but it's flat as a pancake... nothing. I can't use my data download because i takes a forthnight to open a page, my calls just drop out, i get txt messages from people 4 days later (Within this time someonme could be dying, dead and buried without me knowing) and my GPS tells my i'm in the middle of the ocean??? then when i complain... i'm told it's my handset... i have a whinge to Apple, they replace my handset... the same shite happens again... Class Action here i come.
OPOWER

On top of my reception and Browsing issues... now i get text msgs while i am overseas saying they will suspend my account if i do not call them due to high usage as a result of $10/MB roaming data charges!!! which of course i Knew... i get back and ring up to be asked when i was going to pay etc which i responded .. when the bill is due i will pay it by BPAY.. all was ok and they said no problem account wont be suspended... WELL GUESS WHAT ??? It was suspended this morning!!!

Not only to me but also my father !! This is a joke !!... both our accounts are up to date but got suspended because we "spent" to much .. FAIL again !!

Got an sms regarding overdue bill and warning of restricted service if not paid immediately.

My account is supposed to be paid by direct debit.

There are funds in my account.

1555:
"I'm sorry this customer service droid has malfunctioned. Please hang up and try again."

myvodafone.com:
"We are unable to retrieve your plan details at this time.
Please try again in a little while."

Fail!

I cant seem to even access my account balance info... how am I supposed to know where I stand? They cant tell me what my account balance is, but I am sure that they will be able to tell me exactly how much I will be overcharged at the end of the month!

i've had coverage and network problems for about 7 months now, i've had my phone repaired and replaced. nothing helps and again i'm stuck in suburbia with no coverage and work hassling me over not answering my phone. i was billed back in december for using the gps on my phone in which i need coverage to use to the extent of $80! i know with no shadow of a doubt that i had no coverage during the day that i was billed for.
now i have to pay that to get out of my contract. Vodafone is crap and i'm sick of their excuses.

Hi, I am new to this but got issues with vodafone since i moved to them, story start with a Direct sales person called us to port our all three optus mobile to vodafone as business plan and will offer us iphone4 with $5 monthly repayment and $250 (each mobile) welcome credit as we advice them we are in contract-- all promises made to us what possible in this world. we got the phone and i told the person not to port untill i say to you as running business cant afford to lose business, but without information phone were disc (as they ported to vodafone) --- called optus but they said its disc as ported out--called sales person he said i dont know call Vodafone-- called them no reply-- called optus but they said its disc as ported out--was without service for almost 15 hrs-- then no credits were applied and i end up with getting huge bills-- finally called TIO-- who took action and got call from Vodafone and got some resolution to it-- but now THERE NETWORK IS PAIN IN A..S
everytime calls drops and phone freezes, cant use data as its dead slow..
my usage never updates so dont know what credit i left with for billing period..
I MADE DECESION THAT WILL GO BACK TO OPTUS OR OTHER PROVIDER ONCE OUT OF CONTRACT.

Apart from the call drop outs, delay in voicemail delivery and the frustration of spending numerous hours on hold, I have been dealing with outgoing email problems from my Iphone which was recommended by Vodafone to purchase in 2008. It started over 7 months ago I would receive emails from my host server but when ever I replied or sent an email from the Iphone it went into Cyber Space. It took a little while before I realised my emails were not being received. I am self employed and therefore rely heavily on what package Vodafone sales team sold to me. Vodafone firstly told me that it was my problem as no one else was experiencing these types of problems and I must have done something to cause this issue. After further waiting on the phone with Vodafone customer service representitives and being told it was not Vodafone but my host company problem, I then spent many hours with my host company trying to assist me without success. Vodafone finally admitted their fault, it was a major spam problem they had experienced causing the problem. The rep told me they were working on it and should not take to long before going back to normal. After waiting a few more weeks I went through the same old Vodafone frustrating contact process (hours and days on hold)and was told to use an alternative website to reply to my emails. This worked for about a 3 days then I started having the same problems again with their recommendations!! Please note, I have always paid my bill on time during this whole frustrating ordeal. All of my calls were naturally recorded by Vodafone, and all correspondence updated on my account, this showed a conversation I had with them stating they would contact me when this problem was rectified before the next billing cycle but they would inform me as their top international tech team were being flown into Australia to fix it. During Christmas they barred my out going calls, I was interstate on holidays and sat on the phone for 6 hours over 2 days trying to talk to someone from Vodafone. Finally spoke to a rep who understood my frustration and returned my phone to operational status as he was over the constant failure of Vodafone. Minor compensation has been offered along the way in the form of a $25 reduction in my bill!! I have not mentioned many other occassions I have been on the phone to Vodafone as this message would be longer then the Harry Potter novel. I spoke to a tech just recently who now said the problem only effects the Iphone so I should look at getting a Blackberry, when I mentioned considering it was Vodafone who told me to purchase 6 Iphones originally what could they offer given the inconvenience, his answer was "nothing as it is your choice". Ps my outgoing emails are still not operational even with all of their recommendations.



Regards



(Personal Details removed)

vodafone has put a $100 charge on my monthly bill and they cant even explain what the $100 is for.worst they suspended my account without notice because of that stupid $100 charge that they cant even explain.

4 months into my contract and I have had to call Vodafone to get my Invoice & statements for my mobil phone emailed to me, I get a sims message saying the bill is due,the date its due and the amount it also states in the sims that a copy of the invoice has been emailed to me........guess what...thats right no invoice..... how can I claim in on my tax if I cannot give my accountant a invoice.
Today I recieved 3 back-dated invoices,"all paid on time", no thanks to there system, AS FOR THE CURRENT INVOICE which must be paid by Feb 9th, "The accounts Dept has sent a copy to her supervisor and SHE,"the supervisor", will email it to me...........can anyone work that out......I can't.

I tried to call Vodaphone for an account matter and could not get through, so decided to try the call-back thing. It said it woudl call be back in one hour - FAIL! No call at all.

I actually went in to the Vodaphone shop at Bondi Junction that was quite full of customers, but they had one staff on and he was out the back. (There were two staff who had finished shift and were standing at the front of the store discussing what they were doing now that they had finished - too bad about all the customers there...) Customer service and retail shop security FAIL.

How does Vodaphone do business???

vodafone keep sending emails
when they do not have an account to rechage

Dear customer,

Unfortunately your Auto Recharge failed on this attempt. Please consider recharging your Prepaid account via alternate methods to avoid your call credit expiring.

For more details call Vodafone on 1555 during call centre hours from your mobile and speak to one of our Customer Care representatives.

Please do not reply to this email.

Best regards

www.vodafone.com.au

I've tried so hard to bite my tongue, and give Vodafone the benefit of the doubt.
I've given them chance after chance to follow through with the promises made.
I have an active TIO complaint in force, but with the help of one of the TIO resolution staff, we'd figured out a possible compromise, that I was more than happy with.
It's just a pity that follow up conversations regarding this resolution shows that absolutely nothing has been done, apart from more and more notes being added to my file by your CSR's.
The original complaint was placed on the 12th. by attempted phone call that failed, and by sending an email to Nigel Dews. (and then with the TIO).
I was contacted by one of your Mumbai associates on the 14th, 15th, 16th, and 20th.
They isolated my fault to my handset. And AGREED to replace my handset. He said the order had been placed and I should receive it within 5-7 working days.
That order mysteriously disappeared from the system.
Contacted by the TIO resolution team on the 25th.
Once again order placed on the 25th from your resolution staff member. I was told that the order would be received within 5 days.
Yet I call this morning on an unrelated matter, and asked about the progress, to be told that even though they can see that an order was in place, and there was a brief note saying it had been sent, there was no order number, no tracking number, and no real idea about how long it would take, if it had really been sent, or what the status was.
Once again, I was advised to wait an additional 5-10 working days, while the lady I spoke to said she would put a follow up on my account.
So now, I have 3 different follow ups scheduled. One in 2 weeks by the TIO resolution team, one by the lady from today, and one from the 14th, who said he'd contact me back to clarify if I got my phone and I was once again happy with the service.

Please.. can this be sorted once and for all. I'm losing clients, patience and my ever-dwindling sanity over this.
I need a phone that works. Yes, I have a home landline, but that doesn't help me when I'm at work. I'd be happy to stay with Vodafone, if they could deliver on their promises.

Vodafone drops out regularly in my house, futher their account balance sms message service appears to be switched off and the 1512 no. does not work due to 'technical problems.' Have rang customer care so much lately for various problems I can't stomach it anymore. The organisation is so bureaucratic it's people on the left side do not know what is happening on the right.

Vodafone did not send me a bill as according to the call center their computer said my address didn't exist, they had a mix of my old address and my new address, (funny how they sent me the phone??) I had also asked for email billing but when I phoned to query why I had not received one they didn't have my email address on record. My phone was disconnected for not paying a bill I didn't receive, then Vodafone wanted the whole amount (bill and Cancellation fee) within the month. I still have not paid the bill, I refuse to pay for their mistake. The bill has been sent to a debt collector, I am happy to pay for the phone calls but not for their stuff up!!

I had been with Vodafone prepaid in the past for years with no issues, i left for about 6 months then came back to a plan in late december, the issues since then have been never ending, reception for 1, i work in brisbane city, about 50% of the time i get vodafone reception, the rest i roam onto telstra, sometimes i just get no reception at all in the city, i live only 8km from brisbane city and often at home i get no reception at all, or its again under roaming, the issue being, when you roam, the charges are 90cents per minute out of my cap, not free vodafone to vodafone like it should be! this is why i went back to vodafone, so that my partner and i stopped getting big bills!

Next, I cant get my account balance through website, the vodafone access point, , the 1512 number, the only way was calling vodafone and waiting an hour, and as of yesterday they couldn't tell me what cap credit i had left and how much data i had either, first bill i knew would have 2 x monthly charges, but where i signed up for half price, they input it as $10 per month off, i now apparently have a recurring credit to make up the difference but my first bill was still not half price x 2 months! i am also incredibly underwhelmed at the speed of internet access vodafone have at the moment, i usually just wait till i get home as its less painful!

I live & work in the Frankston area and recently (last 6 weeks) about 50% of my calls (3G iPhone) have been dropping out. Previously I've had no difficulties with coverage/reception but this new development is making me think very hard about staying with Vodafone when I upgrade to an iPhone4 very soon. Have had billing difficulties in the past but this was some years ago and was resolved successfully.
Congratulations on this site,
Cheers, Dave R

Last night I lost both my phone and my wallet. Today I went into the store to get a sim swap to use in an old phone of mine. I've done it before, simple enough and only usually takes a few minutes in store. Not today!

I'm told that in response to (hyped up) claims of poor security and privacy leaks, the staff can't access my account anymore without my pin number or my ID. The problem is that my ID is in my stolen wallet and I'd forgotten my pin. The staff in the store who have always been very friendly and helpful are now utterly powerless to help me. They tried calling up customer care to help but still without my ID they couldn't legally prove that I was me. I couldn't even put a block on the account. So now I have to get new copies of my ID (not easy to do on the weekend), go back into store and start again all the while my phone is out there with whoever stole it and is in danger of racking up a big bill.

Oh and I had to wait in line for ages as well because everything the staff do with every customer now takes so much longer with their limited access to their computer system. I've always gone into the store because it was quicker and easier than calling up the customer care number but what's the point now if the stores are going to have long waits as well.

What was wrong with the old way anyway? These new security measures are ridiculous. Change them back.

I connected with Voda in OCT 2009 having worked for a local dealer in the past with no issues as far as reception is concerned. I connected on a $69 iPhone 3GS cap. Since approx OCT 2010 I have experienced a very significant drop in reception that is a result of moving suburbs. Now the suburb I am in is the same area that I previously worked as a Rep for. The degradation of the network was so severe that I was unable to even send a text from my house. So last week I called the CC and complained. They attempted to check the settings on my handset and agreed they were all fine, I then called back on a Saturday (last sat) and put in another complaint, they attempted to fix my issue again however were not able to so they opened an investigation. 5 days later they had not called me so this morning I called and asked on the status of the investigation. They concluded I was in a low coverage area and I could be released from my contract without penalty and would have to pay $150 to keep my handset (after bartering him down from $320). I am very happy with this as my account is in credit by $80 :). I went to telstra and am now the owner of an iPhone 4.
Throughout all this I was polite and calm and only asked that they see my point. I am happy with the Customer Service I received and feel they did actually try to fix the issue but honestly what can they REALLY do when its a network issue. Hope this all helps to all those wanting to leave, all up it took 10 days to be released from my contract on MY terms not thiers.

Calling the cancell my account.. the lying little c*nt at prepaid told me I'd wait "maximum 4 minutes" to speak to billing... I've been waiting 30 minutes!! that lying little f*cker!!

I don't care if they are Indian, Aussie or eskimos - if they lie to a customer they are scum!!!

Thanks vodafone for the great service - your employees are a bunch of liars!!! ..stealing our info off the net too... and giving it over to organised crime!!!

Got charged a dishonour fee on my last bill because a direct debit didn't go through. Rang up vodafone today and after being on hold for a miraculously short four minutes advised them that I had never actually activated direct debiting on my account and that my account on vodafone.com.au reflected that fact.

Quickly received an apology and a credit for the amount of the dishonour fee on my account.

Still can't overlook the fact that four days into my current billing period, my account usage graph has not been updated and is still reflecting I have spent none of my calls or data for the month, yet the call-by-call listing shows all usage for the month so far. Weird.

What a process! Churned to Telstra on 21st Dec 2010 and then waited for a final account to be sent to me as per usual by snail mail as well as email advisory. No joy until on the 13th of Jan 2011 a 72 hour final demand turns up demanding immediate payment or additional costs will be incurred.
Contacted the Vodafone internal collections (?) number (1300652952) and was told that this is the one and only form of final bill. Talk about dismal communications, this is a typical experience I have had with this company over the last 4 years. Never never never again Vodafone/3..............

I cannot register my Commonwealth Bank Credit Card (Master Card) with Vodafone apparently they don't have an agreement with them. How can they not have an arrangement with CBA one of the largest banks in Australia. At least 50% of Australia would have an account with CBA.

Lack of response from Vodafone on a billing issue after calling and visiting their store numerous times. I received a text message from Vodafone that I owed $988. After calling their call centre I was told it was because I had exceeded my data usage and their solution was to block my ability to use the internet. My point to them was how can my bill go from approx $80 per month to $400 - $600 per month with no change in usage pattern, they said due to privacy restrictions they could not tell me what websites I visited which would have contributed to such a huge increase in data. I ended up going into a store who confirmed that the last contract they had on file was from 2006 and that had no data coverage at all. I explained that I did sign a contract in 2008 and was placed on a data plan. As they had no record of this contract, I brought a copy in for them the following day. It turns out they have been over charging me since September 2008, and in addition have been charging for my nominated "Vodafone friend" who I was meant to be getting free calls and text messages to.

they havent done what they said they would with my account and have now barred my phone. have been transfered to prob every area and i cant get a bloody answer. i have been a customer for 10yrs plus and it doesnt matter. im going else where when my contract is up

I had an issue with a payment in Feb 2009. I made the payment online via credit card, noted the receipt number etc and it took 6 months for Vodafail to acknowledge / find the payment in their system. I called them several times, had assurances the problem would be fixed but nothing happened. Vodafail even suspended the usage of the 3 phones on the account. I called them numerous times, received verbal guarantees of returning my call and not once did that happen. It was only after I informed Vodafail that I had contacted the Telecommunications Onbudsman. Long story short, it took 6 months for them to finally credit the account and I am still waiting on them calling to inform me that the problem has been fixed... I only found out by seeing the credit on the account. Customer service... what a joke.

I've cancelled my account twice after 12 weeks of trying (not that I should have even had to cancel - my contract expired). I've requested some sort of confirmation number each time to confirm cancellation and was given one. Cue celebrations that I'm officially free of Vodafone forever!!! Then I get a bill. And another bill. Eventually I call - "you're account is still active. We have no notes on your account to show anything about a cancellation. Should I put you through to the cancellations department?' What would that achieve?

Tried to swap a business account to a private at a Vodafone store. They said they are not allowed to handle business accounts. Said even if he could, the system was down and he could not help anyone until it came back up in 20mins or so. He said I had to deal with it through a call centre. He admitted there were none in Oz. In other words, I am not allowed to do business with Vodafone in Australia, only India. I am trying and getting no where. Does Vodafone actually exist???

Even though I am within 300 metres of a cell I keep losing the network.
It is so bad now that even Vodafail can't get through to me so they send their monthly accounts to me via my Telstra Mobile phone which I have for country use since there is no coverage for Voda statewide.
I originally went to Voda because they had a good deal on iphones. All I can do with my iphone3g is to use to access the internet via my own in house wireless system and also to play games.

I cannot make calls that are longer than 30 seconds and if I send a text I might get a reply within 3 hours or more.

My contract finishes in July. I will go back to Telstra. It may cost more but at least I will get full coverage.

No in any more thanks to TIO. If you have made a few attempts to sort out the problem with Vodafail, I urge you to give the details of the problem to the TIO together with the steps you have tried to resolve the matter. This brought about a fairly speedy result for me with payments I made being credited. I would have left it at that, but then the news about their hopeless system security came out and I decided the best thing to do was to exit from contract, which they allowed [by this time they could hardly deny it]. The other thing that annoyed me was that the day before my monthly usage expired they took about 2G out of my usage figures. When I did manage to access these, it looked like I had 2G unused. BUT the next day they were put back and I was charged for excess usage. I can think of no reason other than deceitful and misleading conduct on their part for them to do this. I found this out when I visited a store, because as far as I knew I had plenty of usage left and could not work out what the extra charge was for. The store rep printed this out for me but then changed his mind and crossed out the relevant line before he gave it to me.

Call centre didn't know what a 'Tax invoice' was and then the pin I've had on my account for the last two years 'isn't the pin I have on my screen'. As usual, I just give up because it's all too hard...maybe I'll try again tomorrow.

I signed up to a $49 cap with vodafone in September 2010. Ever since then, the internet connect has been pretty poor. In early Jan of this year, it became almost non existent - It now takes on average 45 seconds to download the google home page and at times it wont even do that. Forget watching any videos on you tube - 'network error' and checking emails - 'unable to load conversation'. I'm pretty reliant on email for work and study and I'm sure I'm not alone. I cant get ADSL at my home so I was hoping to supplement my Telstra wireless bigpond account with the 1.5GB (+ 1GB bonus) data allowance per month by using my phone as a portable wifi hotspot - sounded like a great idea but now I'm lucky to get 3 or 4 MB per day. I called vodafail a few times but like most of you, I dont really have the time to wait on hold for 30 - 60 mins. at a time. I eventually got through and spoke to a man in a call centre who informed me that I should try switching the phone off and on again and see if that makes a difference or try the SIM in another handset - why would I need to try another handset? I have a brand new handset provided by vodafail. He told me that a 'team' of engineers would investigate the problem and get back to me in 4 -5 days....that was 5 days ago. Just sent a complaint to the TIO. I'm tired of being ripped off and I want out.... hello Telstra.

*constant drop out
*poor battery life
*billing issues
Sept/Oct 2010, i was charged $600 each month ($1200 total) for data

I moved to telstra, my contract with vodafail expires in march until then i will pay the monthly minimum

filthy with how i was ripped off, i thought i was the only one

Clean my SIM with my finger (Its quite well protected in my iphone I think).
Use 2G not 3G? 2 months free? Should be more than that.


Response (Tamra) 27/01/2011 08:10 AM
Hi XXXXXX,

Thank you for your email.

I advise there have been some issues with 3G accessibility in some areas in recent times.

Vodafone are currently upgrading and enhancing the network to resolve this issue, I can advise that last weekend we did launch our new 850 network in Sydney and surrounding suburbs. We plan to have all new network sites installed and running by the end of March.

I suggest that you do a manual reset by turning off your handset, take the sim card out, wipe the copper part of the sim with your fingers, place back in and then turn your phone back on. This will reconnect you to the network and every so often it is a good idea to clean your sim card. Also while work is being done on the network I recommend that you change the settings on your handset to the 2G network only. This will reduce call drop outs and improve coverage as it will stop the phone switching between the two networks 3G and 2G.

Vodafone endeavour to provide only the best service to our customers and we sincerely regret any inconvenience caused to you as a result of this issue.

Please be assured that our technicians treat issues such as this as a matter of urgency to ensure that the service is fully restored for all Vodafone customers as soon as possible.

As goodwill a offer I have placed 2 months free access on your account, you will see this credit on your next invoice.

Kind regards,

Tamra
Correspondence Team

Vodafone Pty Limited ABN 76 062 954 554
www.vodafone.com.au

This email is subject to the terms and conditions set out in Vodafone's SFOA which is available on www.vodafone.com.au

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Want to manage your mobile account, check out how much credit you've used, pay your bill, recharge and much, much more? Visit www.myvodafone.com.au

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Vodafone has been messing with my bills since November 2010. The created a second account for me when i signed a new contract. Credits were not transfered over and they were about 400 worth. I was on hold about 15 times in total over 8 hours on the phone to them. Plus I was promised insurance now find out I don't have this. I thought after speaking to 3 supervisors this was sorted on December 21st December. I got a bill on my old account for the credit which was sent to new account saying I owe them 219 plus bill on my new account of 98. I called got hung up on twice then someone called me back saying we transfered the credit to your othwer account so you owe us still. Tghe service constantly drops out not sure if it is the iphone4 but Vodafone has gone downhill badly in 2010. I have sent emails to their customer care and over having to call them every month to sort out their lack of billing skills. They try to twll me I have 2 phones same number. I can't wait untilk this contract is over so i can say goodbye to Vodafone forever.

This is my story I was on the $49 CAP last year and decided I needed a better plan due to being over billed $700 because of some people I knew at the time that used my phone and went over my cap one weekend without my knowledge. I called vodaphone paid the bill then asked them to put me on the unlimited cap because I thaught I could get more out of my dollar. It was all ok and I was told that my plan is now unlimited and I'm free to make as many calls and txts as I like and not have to worry anymore. My next bill was $1200! so I immediately called vodaphone to discuss the issue. Apparently the plan doesn't switch over untill the following month, even tho they failed to let me know or let me know and actually told me I was allready on unlimited. I spoke to a woman who basically assured me it was my fault and they would never do that (don't ask me how she knows what was said? I guess she must think I'll believe anything she says). The ordeal confused me terribly because she took $400 of the bill as a "gesture of kindness" and apologized to me. So I reluctantly paid it but here is the kicker! the following month I was charged $1100!!! I called vodaphone I complained and I was told that they cannot withdraw that bill because they had allready taken $400 of my last bill and that I've run out of "gestures of kindness" no word of a lie. I refused to pay the bill and I was called at work 3 weeks later from the collections department. The man basically said that if I don't pay at least $800 immediately over the phone hes barring my phone and if I hang up hes barring my phone. I told him I was at work and I can't pay for anything because I don't have anything to pay it with or the time. He ignored that and said goodbye hung up and my phone was barred immediately. I complained about that to vodaphone and it was the only complain they ever took seriously. What a nightmare I feel like I'm trapped with vodaphone they're going to send me broke.

Brodie Carey
(PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED)

I just rang vodafone to discuss an issue with my account and then also asked why Im not receiving messgaes until days after sent, or mine dont do thru, I just got very rude answer of "turn your phone off and back on".....Thats it? No more advice or help except that piece of useless help!

1. whenever I make a call, it often drops out.OFTEN.
2. There is no reception on the Rose Bay hill
3.I signed up to a new Apple iPhoneplan for $59pm for my son who is a uni student with that company in town in December 2010,Communications Direct-problems++--no iPhones available in OZ until Jan.
Big mistake but how was I to know?
4. When the phone arrived, it was faulty--no internet connectability.Big problems to get a new phone with calls to Vodafone, CommDirect etc.New phone arrives, seems new and Ok after 1 week, the speaker phone is not working.
5.Then I go onto my account at the Vodafone website and I see I am signed up for a $69 Business plan.Trying to reverse this.This is FRAUD.
6. I start getting scam text messages on my phone from a +353(Ireland) number--how did they get my number? In the 10 years I have been with Vodafail, I never got 1 scam message-now suddenly 3.
7. When we had the iPhone we held on for over two hours to Vodafail to verify the sim and start the phone.Unacceptable.
8. A few months ago, I had issues with my account and called Vodafail.I was put through to a call centre after a while-"Mohammad" answered.I could not understand a word he was saying.AND there was an almighty babbling and jabbering in the background, so I thought that HE couldnt hear ME so I raised my voice. Big Mistake-I got rudely spoken to.I cut off the call. I called 3 more times--same problem, different persons-Mustafa or Omar.So I asked was I talking to India? No came the reply;"Cairo" Well. Enough said.I refuse to deal with people in Cairo who cannot speak English properly AND who have access to my account AND address details as well as my passwords. How could and can I trust Vodafone to keep my details secure from the Middle East?

Vodafone Fails miserably and I hope they cop it from the ACCC or Dept of Fair Trading etc

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/revealed-how-vodafone-dealers-bend-the-rules-posing-as-customers-20110121-19yn3.html
In relation to this article, my details and account were also accessed by a Vodafone dealer without my consent which is called Bizfone located in Chatswood, not far from the Vodafone Head Office. (I have many notes on my account which prove this and I actually went to the police station in my local area because I was so concerned about my identity being stolen). Bizfone went into my account and barred one of my Vodafone services for no reason 3 times I found this out at a store as every time a dealer logs onto your account leaves their dealer code there.......every time I would call Vodafone customer service all they would do is make me change my password and this won't do anything anyways as the dealer has access to all my details, after continual complaining to Vodafone they finally put me onto the Director of the company and he states that it was an accident.........an accident hacking into my account and barring my service 3 times, how does that work ???? & Vodafone didn't do anything or care at all about this breach of privacy; once my contact is finished I'll never deal with Vodafone again I can really tell that customer privacy is not a priority for then as to the way they handled my complaint. Not only did one of their dealers access my account without my authorization but when I rang up the first time or second time they still didn't care enough to stop it or do anything about it.

I have been with vodafone for two months and forced to pay my first bill twice. i have fight for this billing problem for almost one month (from Christmas) and it ruined my holiday. I signed my contract ($69 -10 cap) on Nov. and vodafone charged me $125.69*2. I'm tired of calling or visiting their stores which were totally useless.
Already lodge the complaint to TIO, see how it works.

I haven't recharged my phone in about 2 months but was soon to get around to it. This morning at 2am to be exact, I received a text from SYS-ALERT telling me my account would be suspended if I didn't recharge by the end of the day. So, I go out and buy some credit, go to redeem it only to be told that it doesn't fit in with my 'plan'. Outraged, that I had just paid $20 for a non-refundable receipt I try to call customer service to get an enquiry as to what's going on. Yet again, only to find that I won't be able to get help until 8 tomorrow morning. That leaves me 20 bucks out of hand and with a suspended account. Unbelievable Vodafone, you truly fail and anger me. Get your act together!

Multiple problems. Phone calls drop out, I get the 3G symbol on my phone but surfing the web is such a painful experience. Slow or non responsive. But this is the part that is the worse.

Last November I requested exit my current Vodafail contract and sign up to a new 12 month contract for my wife and I so we could both get the iPhone. I wanted to pay off both fonts over 12 months, which they agreed.

My first bill came through for over $1K. I rang to dispute and the rep told me that this was an error and he would rectify. I checked my account on the Vodafail website about a week later and it still showed over $1K. I rang again and the 2nd rep said she didn't have any notes about this, but would process and change so I would only pay over 12 months.

Then in December while I was on the Gold Coast (with the worst mobile service I ever experience) the direct debit took place for over $1K.

When I came back to Sydney to do some post XMas shopping my credit card was declined. When I found put the direct debit went through, I immediately rang Vodafail.

The rep apologized etc and couldn't see why this wasn't amended from before XMas. This rep promise to fix and a refund would come through with 6 working days.

Six days later - no refund. Another call and I was told another 6 days.

Another 6 days - no refund. Another call an I was told that it's actually 10 working days. Ok fine.

Another 4 days no refund. Another call, more apologies and another 3 more days.

Another 3 more days and mo refund. Another and this supervisor said that because of the Queensland floods, there has been another 3 day delay because they have back offices in Queensland.

Another 4 days (today) and - surprise - no refund. Today's supervisor was puzzled at the Queensland flood reason given before - she said they have back offices in Queensland but none needed to deal with my problem.

Incredible. I'd say about 20-30 phone calls (with repeated constant dropped calls) and mistake and blunder one after the other and still no resolution in sight. I requested for the manager of today's supervisor to call me back.

Complaint to TIO about 7 days ago and now jut waiting.

This has been singlehandely the worst experience I've had with any Telco - and I've been a customer for maybe over 10 years now.

I was one of the first people to port my mobile number across to Vodafone many many years ago and have remained a loyal customer through numerous contracts for both personal and business use. I have just entered into an agreement for a Samsung Galaxy Tab to pick up my email on the go like everyone else.So far I have missed meetings,not returned calls to clients in a timely fashion because I didn't get their voicemails or follow up emails or text messages.My credibility has gone out the window.I can't be a successful person let alone a easily contactable parent or spouse or family member or friend or boss. Call 1555 Customer Service for a resolution if you have a spare half hour or so to go round in circles with the Lara IVR. BTW ,I have never ever posted a comment on any forum since the commercialisation of the internet, never been in a chat room or subscribed to any social networking site because I didn't believe it would do any good to have a whinge. All that is out the window now , please take this post and if it helps make this Company accountable for their performance to the people of Australia I will have done some good for today.

on Three:
Cancelled my mobile broadband account months ago, still being sent bills.
Called customer care to resolve this:
First rep: took 20 mins to get through to a representative, the said "I'll check for you" and then hung up on me.
Second rep: much faster response from an initial representative who seemed useful at first, but then I was transferred... another 20 min wait... I'm so sick of this song.
Third rep: talked for a bit to find out the details of the problem, then transferred me through to "priority care"... another long wait
Fourth rep: finally sorted everything out, but was extremely pushy for me to go on a new plan, and transfer me to sales: told him I didn't want anything more to do with 3 or Vodafone and if I heard another repeat of the hold music I might turn homicidal.

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/revealed-how-vodafone-dealers-bend-the-rules-posing-as-customers-20110121-19yn3.html
In relation to this article, my details and account were also accessed by a Vodafone dealer without my consent which is called Bizfone located in Chatswood, not far from the Vodafone Head Office. (I have many notes on my account which prove this and I actually went to the police station in my local area because I was so concerned about my identity being stolen). Bizfone went into my account and barred one of my Vodafone services for no reason 3 times I found this out at a store as every time a dealer logs onto your account leaves their dealer code there.......every time I would call Vodafone customer service all they would do is make me change my password and this won't do anything anyways as the dealer has access to all my details, after continual complaining to Vodafone they finally put me onto the Director of the company and he states that it was an accident.........an accident hacking into my account and barring my service 3 times, how does that work ???? & Vodafone didn't do anything or care at all about this breach of privacy; once my contact is finished I'll never deal with Vodafone again I can really tell that customer privacy is not a priority for then as to the way they handled my complaint. Not only did one of their dealers access my account without my authorization but when I rang up the first time or second time they still didn't care enough to stop it or do anything about it.

I've been with Vodafone since January 2007. Back then not so bad, then in late 2009-2010 started getting dropouts when I lived in the St George area of Sydney. I then moved to Newcastle, and god forbid mobiles should work here... Just about every time I am on a call it will drop out if I get reception at all. Lately it has been getting much worse, just yesterday I had NINE (9) dropouts. I've called Vodafone about it and they told me I needed to talk to their network team who would call me back but it's been over a week now and still no word, then about healf an hour ago I get a text from them saying that since the new billing period has started 5days ago I have racked up $144 worth of something that they won't tell me. I've checked my online account and that has gone up to $178 in a matter of seconds. Unless someone has discreetly stolen my phone while I have slept at night I fail to see how I could possibly use this much credit in 5days?? VODAFAIL...

Vodafone still can't get their billing right. My handset has been billed $1400 last month - we ended up paying $54...data was incorrect. And now this month the bill is $2077.00, yet again more time will be wasted trying to fix this yet again. The month to date is already heading the same way since 21st bill is already heading toward $200. Any other business would be ashamed of themselves, but they just don't get it. Fix the problem. Stuck in a contract for another 20 months - F#$@!!

I have been with Vodafone for the past 4 or so years for my business. In August this year we re-signed our contract for 10 staff phones for 2 years. About one month after we signed the contract, the network problems started to happen.

I live 10 minutes from the city, and my office is in the centre of Adelaide CBD. Every day on my way to work, as I would reach the city, reception would pretty much drop down to a single bar. Within my office it goes to 'no service'. I need to turn off 3G every time I'm in the CBD. If I forget to turn off 3G, IF I get service, then the call WILL drop out. Data is so slow it's practically unusable. I now leave my phone on 2G, as result I get GPRS data which is so slow it's not worth even using.

I have now gone out and bought a Telstra mobile / wifi unit, so that my iPhone now can use data when I'm not in the office or home, as Vodafone's data network is complete rubbish.

I spoke with my account rep at Vodafone about 2 months ago, and they promised network upgrades would have been completed that week. No change, no difference. When I travel to Sydney or Melbourne, it's equally as bad.

The only time my phone has ACTUALLY worked, was when I travelled to Japan and it was set to roaming, sadly I had better call quality and data talking to people in AUSTRALIA, using global roaming on a Japanese network.

At this point if I could exit Vodafone without an enormous penalty I would move to Telstra in a second.

I've figured out why I can't stand calling Vodafone. It just took me 8mins of actual conversation (not including voice prompts and security checks) with a lady JUST to change my email address and postal address. No lie! Repeating myself over and over because they can't understand my Australian accent and I can't understand theirs. It makes it so much harder to resolve an issue - even as simple as a change of details - when your call-staff are somewhat difficult to understand. Maybe I'm the only one who feels this, maybe not! But it's very frustrating!! I would go on my online account to update details, except I am unable to access it due to not knowing my password. Nor can I get access to any of the new passwords that Vodafone staff are sending me. VODAFONE FAIL.

I joined up to the Vodafone infinity $45 per month plan in November and immediately there were problems. The person in the store who set it up did not inform me that i would be paying one month in advance, and when i questioned him about this (as in, i had to prompt him to tell me about it), he said that my first bill would just be two bills in one). However, my first bill came within two weeks of signing up to the plan, and was an odd amount. I had signed up for direct debit, so i knew this amount would be taken out regardless of any complaints i made. I called customer care, and to my surprise i actually got through quite quickly. I spoke to someone who told me that the 'odd' amount was due to pro rated charges (sorry if that is spelt incorrectly), and that i should have been told that i would be paying one month in advance, and then one month at the end of the first cycle. I let this slide, and figured i probably just had somebody who was new that was setting up my account. Anyways, following this, i found that i could not access the android market and could not download anything as it would simply just say 'download queued'. After several phone calls to customer care, and endless nights spent googling to try and find the answer to correct this, i finally rang a motorola service centre who put me directly onto motorola. Motorola called and told me to do a factory re-set, which i did, and this did not fix the problem. I then had to go into the original vodafone store where i signed up, and had to replace the handset. After waiting around for about an hour, and having a different store clerk serve me, i found that the replacement handset still had the same problem. I told the store clerk, who spent about 5 minutes fiddling with the phone, only to find out that it was a simple setting in the phone that had to be changed. Thank goodness he knew what he was doing! So not only had customer care wasted my time and made me change numerous settings on the phone, they had no idea how to actually fix the handset they are selling. Following this, i had no further problems. For the last couple of days, i have noticed that the internet speed on my phone has decreased dramatically, and sometimes it just simply will not even connect to the internet during peak times (i.e. after 5pm when i finish work, 12pm-1pm during my lunch hour, and in the morning from about 8am to 9am when i am travelling to work). This morning, i had reception at about 6am to 7am, but as soon as 8am arrived, i have not been able to use anything on my phone that requires an internet connection. Hence, making my phone useless in terms of the android software. I called customer care, and asked for a call back. I did receive a call back within about 5 minutes which was quite good, however the representative i spoke to was no help. He first tried to convince me that it was the setting on the phone, and once i explained that i had done nothing to change the settings and it had been working 2 hours earlier, he quickly changed his story to 'over congestion of the network'. I then asked how Vodafone was going to compensate me for this, as i am basically paying for a service i cannot use, and i got some story about how the merger between 3 and vodafone has affected network status. I became increasingly frustrated with the lack of assistance being provided and i terminated the call. I am extremely disapointed with this, and have already started looking at optus plans to change to. My internet has since started working following the phone call, but a three hour outage is simply not acceptible. I am only on a 12 month contract, and am seriously considering changing to optus or telstra and simply paying out the contract. unfortunately, it seems that nobody can escape the wrath of vodafone and its epic fail of a service.

Sucessfully cancelled two contracts with Vodafone, or so I thought. Yesterday received a bill for $600 due to early exit fee on my wifes phone. Rang them to get it resolved. After 40 mins on hold (not too bad considering some of the times I have had to wait) they told me that is a routine charge until they get the handset back. I asked why I was charged on that account and not the other one I cancelled if it was routine (no response).

I then stated that I was told there would be no exit fee and I wanted it reversed. She said she couldn't do it. I asked to speak to someone who could. She refused to transfer me. I told her I was not getting off the phone until the charge was reversed. She said there was nothing she could do. I then asked for all my direct debits to be cancelled. She confirmed that they were. I asked for her name and employee ID and she hung up on me.

I then tried to call back and after another 40 mins on hold was told that their system was down due to an upgrade and I should ring back tomorrow. I then asked who I could talk to to make a complaint and was told that no complaints can be taken while the system is down. Looking forward to round 3 today... NOT.

My 1st Grudge with Vodaphone pretty much started when I signed up. I was living in Perth at the time and of course can get reception anywhere. Soon after I moved home to live with the Family in Albany and of course had RECEPTION SERVICE PROBLEMS, I was able to get coverage in town but drive 10mins away from the centre and away it went! This became an ongoing issue and really got on my nerves as I was having to use my families mobile phones to text who were of course with TELSTRA or OPTUS. Lucky I moved away eventually as I still had 23 months left on the contract!! My Newest GRUDGE has been recent. I have recently started a job which intales me to fly Internationally so in the last few months without even knowing my Bill has sky rocketed to massive $1500 with out me knowing. my phone recently got barred yesterday for not paying! Now I know When a Bill is overdue of course this is there procedure BUT on more then 3 occasions I Called (ON HOLD FOR OVER 30 mins each time!!) trying to sort this issue out. I had no contact from Vodaphone on any occasion to tell me my phone bill was incresing to this substanial amount when I had been at a minimal $80 a month for the last 16months. My payments have always been on time and never overdue! It would of been nice for them as a Company to see that there was a change in billing amount and call me or notify me of this problem!! (Like the Banks)
So now My phone is barred and have tried calling them 6x 2day to get the phone put back on and see what they can do with this amount that I had not been informed of! I finally got through (its now Midnight) after being told by a friend who also had similar problems to call COMPLAINTS and they unbarred my phone till 2moro where I then have to call again and speak to Collections!! So here I am now ANGRY more then ever and want to get out of my Vodaphone Contract!! Making sure I tell everyone never to sign with then again!!

3G signal kept droppipng out on wireless internet broadband even after moving around the house in a Melb sub close to city! Just changed to prepaid Telstra wireless internet account and can't believe it - internet finally working and it doesn't matter where I am in the house! Once my mobile account with Vodafone (or should I say vodafail) finishes I'll also be going across to Telstra!).....whilst the customer service people were nice to speak to on the phone at vodafone I had to wait in excess of 40 minutes on one occassion and another occasion the phone line cut out after 40 minutes ... fail!