WIFI Hub bill

[Macanta]

I recently decided to terminate the contract on a mini WIFI hub that I had bought several years ago from O2. I couldn't find any way of doing so online and I therefore decided to cancel the direct debit. I knew a final bill would be sent out by email or post. The bill duly arrived and I rang O2 to make payment. What an absolute panto that turned out to be. I was asked for my mobile number (which was nothing to do with the WIFI hub). I gave the mobile number and was told there was no outstanding balance on it. I said I knew that - I had just explained (to the same person) it was nothing to do with the mobile phone, it was a mobile WIFI hub. I was then asked what was the last number I'd called from it? I again explained it was a mobile WIFI hub and not used for making calls. What was the number of the SIM? No idea - it's not on the SIM and I'd had the thing for years - all the packaging had long been disposed of and I didn't need the SIM number. I had an account number from the bill however which I offered several times but this didn't seem to be much help from the sound of er and um going on. So, I have all my details, account number, name, address, payment amount but still couldn't make a payment online. The person I was dealing with was clearly following a script for a mobile phone bill and was lost when there was no SIM number available. After 30 wasted minutes unable to pay the bill, I decided to send a cheque following the cheque payment instructions on the back of the bill. 6 weeks later the cheque had still not been cashed but I received a letter from a debt collection agency! I paid this online minutes after it popped through the letter box. I can't believe it went so far as a debt collection agency and yet was paid so easily to the debt collectors. O2 need to up their game. This was absolutely abysmal.

[pgn · Accepted solution]

O2's systems, when an account falls into arrears, are fully automated - the debt collection people get the details straight away, almost as soon as the default happens.

And despite the warnings, instructing a bank to cancel the direct debit before the account that gets paid via that DD instruction still happens, and as a result many fall into the exact same trap as you, @Macanta.

This is how it should be done: Guide: Cancelling Your Contract - your best approach now is to contact O2 via Social Media, links for O2 on Twitter, Facebook (and Instagram) are below, if you can handle any of those avenues - and ensure that is an end of it.  That Social Media team, at least, is not following a script. Good luck @Macanta.

[Macanta]

Thanks for this - I appreciate the response. I'm not sure it would have helped though as I would have read these instructions and dismissed them as being for a mobile phone and therefore not relevant. I mean, how can I request a PAC code for a device I can't call or text from? I remember when I rang and gave my mobile telephone number that the initial response was "I can't find this. Is it a new number?" I've had the number since 1997 and it's always been O2. This didn't inspire any confidence right off the bat.

Following the instructions on the O2 invoice along with sending a cheque and the tear off slip with the account details should have been the end of the matter. Clearly it wasn't.

Another issue with O2 is their website. If you have more than one device on different login accounts you can port them over to a single login account. That's what I had done with my WIFI device so that I could have my iPad SIM, mobile SIM and mini WIFI hub account all together. Unfortunately from the day I ported the WIFI hub over to my mobile phone login account I was unable to view it. Whenever I clicked on it, it just said "Access denied." I lost access to the device details from that moment. That was a few years ago and I rang at the time but they were unable to help.

I'm sure there's things I could have done better but finding the right advice is difficult with O2. Next time I'll go straight to an O2 shop before I do anything and ask their advice face to face.

Thanks again!

[pgn]

Calling into an O2 shop, MiFi SIM in hand, would certainly have been an option, @Macanta - there are ways to find out what number is assigned to a SIM, but chances are you would not have a phone that the MiFi SIM from 1997 would fit into anyway Guide: How do I find my own mobile number? 

Valid points on multi-service MyO2 accounts, not to mention CS who could not tie together the various active SIMs you have to determine which details belonged to your MiFi SIM. A learning exercise, I guess. Thanks for the update.