Dear visitor,
Since its inception Vodafail.com has made a significant
contribution towards raising awareness of the problems and issues faced
by Vodafone customers.
Vodafone Australia customers have had the opportunity to voice their concerns, their fears and their troubles from every corner of Australia and beyond our borders.
You have gathered the courage to stand up for your rights as consumers and to make your voice heard.
Each and every person who shared their story should have a sense of pride in this achievement and the changes that have occurred since the start of Vodafail.com.
More recently, traffic to Vodafail.com has declined significantly.
Having achieved the goal of raising awareness and promoting concrete action in early 2011, we have now reached the point of closing Vodafail to new complaints.
The site will remain online for as long as possible as a
reminder and an example of what is possible when we share our experiences.
It has been a privilege to run this initiative
and I'm am forever grateful for the help and support I've received. In
particular I would like to thank Melissa, David and Travis for their
continued efforts over the past 15 months. I'm also thankful and humbled by the support of ACCAN, Choice magazine and a wide range of media outlets, blogs and websites.
You can still browse existing stories and find out how to file a complaint if you are experiencing problems.
Until next time,
Adam Brimo
Share Your Pain
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16453 Someone from SA thinks vodafone is epic at 29 Mar 2011 10:51:30 AM
when i first turned 18, i was going through a $49 recharge a week, so i went to look at plans, and i was advised that the best plan for me, is the $49 cap, as i would only be spending 1/4 of my current spend. now, being immature as i was, and salivating over getting a 5MP camera phone, i signed the contract, with the salesman telling me how muuch money i would save.
one thing led to another, and i very quickly ran up the bill, and i was paying it off using the $10,000 inheritence i got. eventually that ran out, and i was struggling to pay my bill, moving up to the $79 and even the $149(i think that was it) cap.
then my bill hit almost $8,000 yet this whole time, i was having to use 2G covergae, because i could never get a signal, and vodafone telling me "the infastructure in SA isnt that good" (i was always in the CBD or western suburbs)
anyways, i eventually cancelled my contract, and started paying off what i could, until 1 week, when i went to call them to tell them i couldnt afford the weekly payment, the number i was given for the debt collection agency was disconnected.
so i called vodafone customer service to discuss it, and i was told "not to worry about the debt"
2 years later, i get a bill telling me i have 7 days to pay $4,990, which is unrealistic in itself. also, by my records, i still owe $7,500.
i know the debt is my fault, but given the time frames, serivce i was provided (or lack thereof) i shouldnt have to pay.
after speaking with a lawyer, they are confident that, assuming my facts are correct, i would have no problem taking it to court, and doing well in my case
one thing led to another, and i very quickly ran up the bill, and i was paying it off using the $10,000 inheritence i got. eventually that ran out, and i was struggling to pay my bill, moving up to the $79 and even the $149(i think that was it) cap.
then my bill hit almost $8,000 yet this whole time, i was having to use 2G covergae, because i could never get a signal, and vodafone telling me "the infastructure in SA isnt that good" (i was always in the CBD or western suburbs)
anyways, i eventually cancelled my contract, and started paying off what i could, until 1 week, when i went to call them to tell them i couldnt afford the weekly payment, the number i was given for the debt collection agency was disconnected.
so i called vodafone customer service to discuss it, and i was told "not to worry about the debt"
2 years later, i get a bill telling me i have 7 days to pay $4,990, which is unrealistic in itself. also, by my records, i still owe $7,500.
i know the debt is my fault, but given the time frames, serivce i was provided (or lack thereof) i shouldnt have to pay.
after speaking with a lawyer, they are confident that, assuming my facts are correct, i would have no problem taking it to court, and doing well in my case
$500 is still a complete rip off but it's much better than the $7000 they were charged initially. If this has happened you have to go through the TIO, and the sooner the better. If they've signed you up on a cap, and they told you it would represent good value for you, and they told you that, given your current mobile use that you wouldn't go over the cap, and they were wrong, then say this to the TIO and they will make sure you do not have to pay.
Unfortunately Voda knows that some people will pay these enormous bills so it keeps charging them - very unfair, but it hasn't stopped them. Contact the TIO ASAP, explain you were told it would be $79/month (extra charges not mentioned or hidden in the fine print), and that you were then charged thousands. TIO will negotiate a fair payment.
im actually going to melbourne on thursday, would it look better for me to go into their office to discuss it in person? or will a phonecall suffice?
I would be so discusted with myself if I did that, I certainly would advertise the fact.
You must have known after the first bill that you were in trouble.
What else can I say ?????
You need help, is a mobile phone that important to you.
To the original poster - do not go to Vodafone, they will not listen - that's something that everyone can agree on. You MUST contact the TIO. You MUST tell them that Voda recommended the cap for you after you told them what your usage patterns were like (i.e. the large bills were THEIR fault). If you blame Voda you can get your money back - Voda are theives who prey on people like you who they think won't raise a fuss. All I can say is thank God for this website...
Don't waste your time on calling Voda - you can, but have fun because I've done the same thing and no one listens.
Call the TIO. Blame Voda completely and get your money back.
They are a completely unscupulous company - I don't know why people are so reluctant to play hard-ball with them. They sold you the bloody product, and that was reckless of them, so get the TIO on your side and get your money back.
http://www.tio.com.au/ComplaintForm/ComplaintFormS1.asp
......now the rest is up to you.
If you think you have a case go directly to the T.I.O. and not to a "Blood Sucker Lawyer". If you must go to a Lawyer make sure he is working for "No Win - No Fee". The first appointment is usually free with a Lawyer, then they also Charge you $$ Big Time.
i came to accept my complete and total screw up a long time ago. we are talking somthing that happened over 4 years ago (when i first turned 18) and vodafone taking advantage of my age, and lack of knowledge about pricing and billing etc etc. life is a learning curve, and boy....what a learning curve that was!
as for the "grow up" comment regarding my spend, i told the vodafone rep what my monthly spend was ($200p/m) and they advised me that the cap i should be going for, was the $49 cap. because it would save me $150 a month, i get a brand new phone, and i wouldnt need to worry about running out of credit.
so, i dont see how, you claim the bill is my fault, when i told them what my usage p/m was, and chose a cap that was extremely inadequate to my needs
I dont hold much hope that you will recoupe too many $$.
Now you want to "jump on the litagation bandwagon".
As In "Further to Above".
That could be good advice. Also try and join the Class Action.
Remember though that Vodafone is a very large world wide company.
They will defend the action to the end.
Lawyers will want their cut of any judgement.
"29 Mar 2011 11:56:26 PM: For the record, the call rate does not change whether you have exceeded your cap or not."
Yes, it certainly does. Pay $49, get $500 worth of calls. So a $10 call actualy costs $1. But as soon as you exceed the "cap" (it's not actually a "cap", it's a minimum, not a maximum price) then you'll pay $10 for the $10 phone call. Ten times as much, my friend. TEN TIMES AS MUCH. WAKE UP.
im going into their office when im in Melbourne on friday, because the vodafail line kept dropping out.
beautiful!
Yes, it certainly does. Pay $49, get $500 worth of calls. So a $10 call actualy costs $1. But as soon as you exceed the "cap" (it's not actually a "cap", it's a minimum, not a maximum price) then you'll pay $10 for the $10 phone call. Ten times as much, my friend. TEN TIMES AS MUCH. WAKE UP.
You are an idiot, calls are charged at 90cents per minute, whilst in the cap, and when out of the cap. Just because you pay $49 for $500 doesn't mean dividing it equally is the charge. Read a pamphlet, do some research.
"Just because you pay $49 for $500 doesn't mean dividing it equally is the charge"
True, but if Voda puts you on a plan that's unsuitable (i.e. you're not nearly using the "cap"), then the product could be deemed not "fit for purpose", which means the customer can go to consumer affairs and the contract would not be worth the paper it's written on.
So, assuming we're talking about a valid contract, then you can divide it equally to get a pretty accurate answer. As I said, the product isn't "fit for purpose" if the person uses the phone for 2 SMSs per month and they're on a $99 dollar contract - it doesn't make sense - that law is there to protect people from those sorts of cons... So the only way your argument holds is if you're assuming Vodafone cons people.. wait a minute.... ok, perhaps you're right then ;)
So what I'm trying to say is, hypothetically you find out that you've spent $600 calls but your cap only supports $200.... Why would you agree to move up to any plan other than one that gives you $600 credit? And especially thousands of dollars? The highest plans only go so high and it seems like you must have gone over even the highest plans, THEREFORE even if you were put on the HIGHEST plan at the beginning, you still would have spent well over your cap.
You say your usage was $200 per month. I'm not sure what the $49 cap contained 4 years ago but I'm sure it was either more than that or close to. I don't see how thousands of dollars could result from that? Obviously you were using FAR MORE than $200 if the $149 cap can't support your habits