Agreed to renew contract with an O2 partner company, but having issues

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I was about to leave O2 due to no longer having a signal in my area when I got a call from an O2 partner company called airtime solutions who offered me a deal to stay with O2. The deal was a better price as I am out of contract and also to register me as a company and provide a free boostbox. I have the contract stating the price and the FREE boostbox!

The bills have been substantially over the agreed price which is one issue but now I have just had the full charge for the boostbox taken from my bank account?

I did email airtime solutions several weeks ago but haven't got any answer back regarding this yet and I know I'm going to have a hard time getting this money back into my account!!

I know I'll probably have to take this up with them, but wondered if anyone else has had this happen and can these companies say anything to make you sign the agreement?


Chris

[viridis]

Email them again and explain that is upsetting they have not responded to your previous email regarding the difference in agreed pricing and offer of boostbox, explain that as they have breached the terms of their contract and have failed to rectify the situation when notified by yourself you have no option but to cancel any remaining contract you have with them as per your statutory rights. You demand that any falsely billed or charged items are refunded back into your account in no less than 14 (fourteen) days and you require written confirmation that the account is now closed.
Also cc ofcom in the email as well as trading standards and o2. Do not blind cc, you want the cc's visible to get them to do something.

[Anonymous]

Hi and welcome.

I've not seen anything connected to them.

I would suggest continuing to pursue them as you are or if warranted cancel within a cooling off period.

Edit to add link http://www.directdebit.co.uk/DirectDebitExplained/Pages/DirectDebitGuarantee.aspx

[Anonymous]

If payment was taken by direct debit and was not part of the agreement you had them this becomes an unauthorised payment.

You are within your rights to ask your bank to reverse the transaction. All you need to do is contact your back and put through an indemnity claim.

Was payment taken by o2 or Airtime Solutions?

[Anonymous]

Hi,

Thanks Viridis for the wording! I'm not good with official wording like this.

The billing comes from O2 direct.

I've tried before with reversing payments and it's been hard or impossible as it's some kind of agreed open payment arrangement. But I will try. Guess it's pursue airtime solutions for their error or false claim.

On a positive note the boostbox works great and I now have full signal and 3G again!

Chris

[Anonymous]

Does beg the question (which has been asked before) as to why consumers can't have the boostbox.

[Anonymous]

Going briefly off topic here but BT are coming to the mobile market again soon and much of their plan is based around BT Homehubs providing a mobile signal in the dorm of a hotspot in a similar way to 5.5 million bt wifi hotspots now available. Much cheaper than building masts as traffic can be routed through fibre broadband.

Right. Back on topic again now

[viridis · Accepted solution]

If the billing comes from o2 then call customer services up on 202 and ask them to clarify the tariff you are on. If it is different in any way to the agreed contract with the other company ask if o2 can correct this, I would still be requesting the refund for the boostbox off airtime solutions either by them or, as said, by bank.
If o2 cannot offer the tariff you signed up for, then you should push for termination of the mis-sold contract by airtime solutions and after, contact o2 customer services again and see what they can offer you.