@Filomena wrote:
Hi Guys
Since no one else is posting here, i will try to keep you all updated.
I've got advice from the legal guys, who said i need to make an action against Aerial Direct, not o2, since my complaint is due to the terms of the contract.
So in support of my claim, i wanted to obviously make a subject access request , since i am alleging i was missold my contract on the phone and needed recordings of the calls. but i was wary of sending my passport info and such via email or post, and needed to know if i could redact it to protect against identity fraud.
so i contacted o2, they didnt know much about it, but their email subjectaccess2@o2.com was very helpful. ( in my case i needed two calls - one from o2 and one from aerial, so i had to make two seperate subject access reqests)
however i ALSO contacted aerial direct for a subject access request, about redacting my ID .
here's the interesting bit. so when i originally submitted my complaint, they sent me an automatic letter saying they will investigate within 8 weeks and to email them if i have more info to submit.
but regarding my query on the call recordings, they said a manager will call me back. that manager is the one who is also in charge of complaints. he told me previously they would be sending me the call recording anyway (a month later, i have not got anything), now he said there was no need for me to provide id and just a phone bill is fine. he also said, i could not use the phone call to add to my complaint. i had to withdraw my complaint, wait to get the call details via subject access, then put in a new complaint, from which my 8 weeks to go to the ombudsman will restart. i said, represeentations were made to me on the phone which i based my transactional decisions on, and they turned out to be false. the man said, ok we can look at all that later, but i need to withdraw my complaint and wait to get the call.
no way in heck am i doing that. why am i gonna make the same complaint twice, over 16 weeks?? so i phoned citizens advice, who also put me in touch with trading standards, and the ICO - they basically said aerial sounded very dodgy and just to follow what is in writing regarding their procedure.
they also said, that as long as i can prove i am not a business customer, all my rights will be the same as for a personal customer regardless of what the contract is called. they pointed me to various regulations which were very helpful.
so now i am going to contact trading standards again as a follow up.
i havent had time to submit my SAR for the calls since i've been super busy but i am going to do it tomorrow.
conclusion - if you have been missold a business contract by aerial direct, do not be fooled. if you are a personal custimer, you will be treated as if you were one in the eyes of the law. secondly, aerial direct are dodgy as heck. keep it all in writing and refuse to deal with them on the phone.
i will continue to update as things progress
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So further to my post above, I didn't update in a while because before my subject access request to o2 was delivered (takes up to a month) and just before my 8 week complaint deadline to go to the ombudsman, the whole of England went into lockdown AND I caught covid-19 and was ill for 6 weeks and ended up in hospital.
So things were out until about mid May. Then I got my subject access request docs from o2 and aerial. Still having heard no update about my complaint from aerial direct
When I went though my account notes from aerial direct, you know the call I referred to above where I requested my call records and aerial said I had to withdraw my complaint in order to access the information, then reissue a new complaint after I got the call records ? Since I went ahead and requested my call records, as is my right under gdpr, aerial direct put in my notes "customer has requested to close her complaint" and they closed it! Immediately I rang them and said, no, I havrnt closed it, I was waiting for a response. And by the way, the manager who was dealing with my complaint told me there was no point in making a complaint nt anyway since in their internal procedure, everyone would agree I was wrong and so would the ombudsman, and they went ahead and closed my complaint with out my knowledge or permission???
They got back to me and offered to pay half the bill AND, I'd found out o2 had an offer on at the time I reneweed my contract which would have been very obviously more suitable for my usage which they hadn't offered me,so I sent them the info and they offered it going forwards to me
But thats no good because had I been offered it at the time I renewed, I would not have incurred the high bill.
Then they tried to blame these "unprecedented times" as a reason for me to accept their offer. Duh! If they had got back to me before 8 weeks was up, there would be no reason to consider unprecedented times. Instead, they couldn't be bothered to deal with my complaint so they closed it in secret without telling me hoping I'd forgotten
Then, aerial told me they were sending me an initial resolution letter,for me to consider then get back to them, then they would make me a final resolution deadlock letter.
However, the initial resolution letter contained the text saying it was a deadlock letter. Obviously this is a big deal since your deadline of 1 year to complain to the ombudsman starts to run from the date of the deadlock letter. So I called the ombudsman who said, its not at all normal to issue preliminary and a final deadlock letters and the year starts to run from the preliminary deadlock letter
So its with me at the moment, I need to get my calls transcribed. I haven't decided if to go back to aerial to discuss it then get a final deadlock letter, or if to go right to the ombudsman.
Although aerial can cancel my high bill and offer me the contract they should have done, only the ombudsman has the power to set aside my entire contract with aerial (so I can go back to o2 directly) and cancel my big bill and the ombudsman also can get you a goodwill payment to cover your time and effort.
So I'm thinking I'll probably summarise what I want to aerial, but expect to have to go to the ombudsman.
