topic Re: O2 Debt Collection issues in Pay Monthly

O2 Debt Collection issues

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:17:51 GMT

Hi,

Can anyone help with this?

Last year I ran up a large phone bill with O2 which I was unable to pay. It was passed to Wescot, a debt collection recovery agency, and I entered an agreement with them to pay £30 per month. I did this each month and didn't miss a payment. Last month I emailed them to see if they would accept a settlement figure for the oustanding balance and they came back to me with an offer after speaking to their client (O2). I was able to make the payment in full and did this. I was told my account with Wescot was now settled and would be closed and they would get O2 to update my credit file accordingly.

This week I emailed O2 to check my credit file had been updated and they have replied to say I still owe them in excess of £200. They say this is because the money I was paying to Wescot was for the device plan only, not the airtime plan which they are saying is separate. This is the first I know about this and at no point has it been pointed out that the two debts were separate. I would not have known anything about it had I not emailed O2 about my credit file. In all my time of paying Wescot £30 per month I have not had any correspondence from O2 about the outstanding airtime balanace.

Has anyone else experienced this before?

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

viridis — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:19:56 GMT

How far into the contract are you now, is it past the initial 24m

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

MI5 — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:20:27 GMT

Technically this is correct unless you gave notice to cancel your airtime part of the refresh contract, however, you would have thought this would have been done for you or at least you would have been told about it.

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

MI5 — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:20:43 GMT

I replied to this too @Toby

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

Toby — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:22:21 GMT

Hi @Anonymous,

Welcome to the community! I have created a page just for you and your post, so that you're likely to receive more advice from others. Please take a look at these replies and see if they help.

@MI5, I had to move one post at a time

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

MI5 — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:23:04 GMT

Sorry caught up now

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:29:52 GMT

Thank you!

From going through my emails it was a 24 month contract taken out in Feb 2014. I was disconnected around this time last year for not paying the bill and that is when it went to the debt collection agency. I was paying what I assumed was the overall total owed, I've not heard anything about the airtime plan being outstanding.

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

MI5 — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 16:46:41 GMT

I think the best you can hope for is asking CS for a goodwill gesture.
Unfortunately, legally, you still owe the money but based on you not having being fully informed, they may reduce what you owe.

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

Beenherebefore — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 17:07:29 GMT

This particular example and the lack of individual communications regarding Webmail closure truly highlights a major problem within the O2 organisation.

These errors are not one-off insignificant failures on O2's part.

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

Cleoriff — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 17:49:04 GMT

@Beenherebefore wrote:
This particular example and the lack of individual communications regarding Webmail closure truly highlights a major problem within the O2 organisation.

These errors are not one-off insignificant failures on O2's part.

I would agree. Appalling 'communications' from a so called telecomm giant....

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

MI5 — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 17:59:26 GMT

It's almost as if they wanted the customer to run up an additional unnecessary bill!

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 18:01:32 GMT

Thanks for the replies. I was really pleased to pay off the settlement figure for what I thought was my debt with O2. Now I'm really panicked and stressed about this outstanding amount which is £215. The settlement figure was £280.

I don't understand why they wouldn't have combined the two together from the very start and not be chasing me for this overdue airtime amount.

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

MI5 — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 18:04:02 GMT

O2 logic !

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

Beenherebefore — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 18:05:58 GMT

@Anonymous ......on here O2's systems are renowned for not working correctly, you're not the first to suffer the effects and no doubt you won't be the last.

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

viridis — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 21:52:40 GMT

So settlement was 280...
But you also been paying 30 a month since last year( maybe 300)
And you were on a device plan since Feb 2014? (another year+ of payments? 300?)

These figures seem high for a device plan that's half paid off?

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

viridis — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 21:55:00 GMT

My point being, you sure O2 didn't add in airtime to the debt

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

PhoneChanger — Thu, 25 Aug 2016 08:55:10 GMT

If the OP started their contract in Feb 2014, but was diconnected at around this time last year that would give around 6-7 months of payments missed. Depending on the handset and tariff they chose some have monthly handset payments of £25 per month, which would mean the OP had an outstanding device balance of £150 - £175.

Given the balance they have paid to Westcott of £300 this would point to airtime being included (assuming an average again of £25 per month (although many are lower)) would total the £300 area.

Then again, I don't know how Westcott operate, they could add charges, legal fee's, etc onto what the OP owes, which could have also brought this figure up?

Re: O2 Debt Collection issues

jonsie — Thu, 25 Aug 2016 09:09:07 GMT

Westcott always add fees...