Virgin- O2 migration nightmare account set up without permission

[Roywestmidlands]

After 3 weekends , 8 hours and finally being cut off after the last 2 hours on the phone, I am left with no choice but to air my laundry O2. I was given free a sim card with Virgin broadband over 4 years ago, I never used it, nor wanted it, but it came free to use as part of the package. Then in Sept 2023 I get a threatening letter to pay £24 or face being cut off and passing this to a debt collection agency. Now keep in mind that O2 set up an account at my address without my permission(illegal no?) , but when I called last year  to question it and make sure it was no scam(as I had the same number and account for 15 years always on direct debit), they said they had nothing with that account number on the threatening letter. Anyway O2 decided to send a letter to my credit company Experian, and now I have the first ever bad debt against my name. 3 weekends ago and after 4 hours I finally got someone to sort the account, they excepted responsibility and cleared the debt and cancelled the account(the one they set up without my permission), but I was told to call back to get them to send a letter to my credit company. I just spend 2 hours and passed around 4 people , given all the info, including passwords again every time, to be then cut off!  I have a bad debt from an account I never opened. Now O2 if you do not contact me to sort this, I will be forced to sue for illegally setting up a credit account in my name with no permission, and will be suing for deformation of character, and stress and anxiety around this account not even set up by myself.  I never complain, but this is almost criminal, if not criminal. 3 weekends and over 8 hours on the phone, and every time cut off. Anyone else have this issue, if so let me know how you got on in the end? 

[Oxonian]

@Roywestmidlands 

I am not quite sure what you want help with, but if it resolving your credit score, @MI5 has given guidance here :-

Solved: Fraud victim - O2 have not corrected my credit fil... - O2 Community

https://community.o2.co.uk/t5/Pay-Monthly/Fraud-victim-O2-have-not-corrected-my-credit-file/m-p/1590...

[madasaf1sh]

@Roywestmidlands 

Not this again, someone else who didn't understand what they signed up for with Oomph, nor with the migration.. 

Your sim card was active on the Virgin Mobile Platform, just because you didn't use it is not o2 or Virgins Fault, and it was delivered active, you even setup a direct debit for it at the time, for any additional payments, you failed to cancel it with Virgin and as such when the Virgin Mobile migration to o2 happened the mobile number was ported over... 

No permission was needed to setup the o2 account, as you will have been emailed by Virgin to say this was happening, and it was all over the press..  

You would have also received a discount on your Virgin Bill to cover the o2 charges...

Sorry but you owe the money, pay it, and then cancel the sim card... (lots of Oomph customers did this before the migration)

And any legal action will go nowhere, as there are no grounds the only thing is your ignorance on how Oomph worked...

[LRobertD]

How did this end? I have the same issue and being handed over to debt collectors. No one is able to link me to the account even though they sent a letter. Been told to go to a store but not sure why this is my problem.

did you get it sorted in the end and if so how? Been on hold to the payments team for over an hour…

[Enlli]

@LRobertD Guess this was an Oomph SIM through Virgin. If it was you should have had you Broadband Bill reduce by the equivalent of the SIM charge. If that's the case you are not out of pocket.