O2 Debt Collection issues

[Anonymous]

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?

[MI5]

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

[Anonymous]

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.

[MI5]

O2 logic !

[Beenherebefore]

@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.

[viridis]

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?

[viridis]

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

[PhoneChanger]

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?

[jonsie]

Westcott always add fees...