** LOST ** Vodafone refuse to help

[amunray]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Hi all I am back again

Unfortunately, Lee from Vodafone could not help me with my situation due to the 90 day timeframe given for me to pay off what I owe. I was and am still not in a position to pay the monthly amount requested.

My last contact with him was at the end of January but within a fortnight, Fredrickson were sending threatening letters to me for the full amount which included the cost of the iPhone.

I know I should have come back for advice sooner but I have never been in this kind of trouble before and because it is my fault I am in this mess, was embarrassed to come back and ask for help.

Yet, I don't know where else to turn for help. I genuinely want to try and pay off the calls/monthly plan arrears but realistically cannot give the amount I have been asked for per month. I just don't know what to do since they won't accept my repayment offer.

Thank you for listening, A.

[Vodafone Company Rep]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Hi A,

I'll follow this up with Fredrickson International,

As soon as I have an update, I'll let you know.

Kind regards,

Lee

Social Media Comms

Vodafone UK

[DirtySmurf]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

amunray

If Lee is unable to help this situation to a resolution that you are happy with,

I would suggest putting an offer in writing to Vodaphone, explain your financial situation and that your offer is the maximum you can realistically afford. If this is not acceptable then you have no further offers to make. Fredrickson International are a DCA and have no rights to enter your home or take possession of goods without your consent. You do not have to talk to them, deal with them or let them in. If they come knocking, tell them to leave.

I would refuse to deal with Fredrickson International and if Vodaphone will not work with you to pay this debt off in an affordable manner they will have to take you to court, where you can present your financial circumstances and offers of payment to a judge, who I dare say would not make you pay what you cannot afford.

[amunray]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Hi DirtySmurf

Apologies for the late reply.

Thank you for taking the time to give me this information and guidance with this situation. I will definitely write to Vodafone again and see if they will take any notice this time.

Do I need to write to Fredrickson also and let them know I will only deal with Vodafone?

Again, thank you for easing some of the worry for me.

A.

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Hi Lee

Thanks for doing that.

I look forward to your update on Fredrickson.

A.

[DirtySmurf]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Hi amunray.

You don't need to speak to or write to Fredrickson, I would certainly put in your letter to Vodaphone that you will not deal with Fredrickson International under any circumstances. They are a Debt Collection Agency and you do not owe them anything, and therefore will not speak to anyone apart from the creditor (Vodaphone) and all contact must be in writing.

Re-iterate your offer of payment and a date to start those payments if accepted - ask for payment details - your payments should be (a realistic monthly amount you can afford) and include a basic breakdown of your income and expenditure to show that what you can afford to pay. I would state in your letter that if your offer of payment is not acceptable please reply with your letter marked as Final Resolution, whereby you will have no futher contact with Vodaphone or anyone contacting you on their behalf until such time as a court summons is issued, whereby you are happy to attend to present your evidence of offer of payment and income/expenditure evidence to a judge.

I dare say they wont refuse your offer, they would be silly to I think.

[JaneNov]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

The letter then goes on to say "even at this late stage, we can still re-establish a full service and avoid further action being taken. The last bit totally contradicts what was said in the last telephone conversation I had with them.

The written word holds more power so if writing to Vodaphone again at least you have proof of what they said (written) than hearsay (verbal) especially since being contradictory.:tinysmile_hmm_t2:

Then again, did the letter have a window for you to reply with a decision or come to an agreement?

[amunray]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Afternoon all

Re: Vodafone refuse to help - original post: 13th January 2015.

Cannot believe I am back again after 2 1/2 years, I sincerely hope I can still get some advice from you; same issue but I am in serious trouble now as Lowells are taking me to court. I thought I should reply to my original thread so my everything is in one place. If this makes things confusing please let me know if I should start a new post elsewhere.

I initially searched the forums to try and see if I could deal with it without bothering you by following the advice given for others who had got to the County Court Claim stage including submitting an acknowledgement of service online (17 October) to defend all of the claim. A CPR 31.14 request to Lowells, the claimant as well as a letter to Lowells CEO Andrew Bartle (used template letter from here), asking for them to provide me with a copy of the Service Contract/Agreement relating to the alleged debt due to the fact mobiles are not regulated by the CCA 1974. I also sent Vodafone a SAR request with the £10 fee but unsurprisingly, have not heard anything back from them. All letters were sent by recorded delivery.

Then today, I received a letter from Lowell Solicitors in response to the CPR 31.14 request which I have uploaded for you along with the County Court Claim form.

I hope I can get some advice on what my next steps should be since they say my deadline is November 1st; I have to hold my hand up and ask for help as I now feel I am way out of my depth with all of this.

Thank you all in advance.

AmunRay

[slainte caragh]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

ok 1st important question: When did you take out the contract, and how long did you have it for?

How did you take it out? Shop? Phone? Internet?

There is incorrect information on the lowells letter but if it's gonna help at all I need to know exactly how long you had it.

Not a judging question (actually v important) why did you stop paying them?

[amunray]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Hello slainte, thank you for responding.

I wish I could find all the original paperwork but from memory, I took out an upgrade in July 2014 and I lost my job in September so two months, which is when I contacted Vodafone's webchat to let them know.

I took out the contract online.

I stopped paying them because they refused to accept minimum payments even though I explained my financial situation to them not just via their webchat but by letter and even tried getting help from the the Vodafone guy Lee who said he was unable to help due to a 90 day timeframe I had missed. Vodafone refused my repayment offer and then Fredrickeson got involved.

As Dirty Smurf advised back in 2015, if they refused my repayment offer they would just have to take me to court and a judge would make a decision based on my financial circumstances. It seems that is now the case.

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I will go and see if I can find any paperwork from Vodafone re the contract.

[slainte caragh]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

ok if you were in contract more than 14 days you were in contract, Vodafone don't legally have to take a smaller repayment plan (I worked for "the enemy" so am advising as per the contractual side not in favour of vodafone). You would still be liable for costs and if this was terminated for non payment, you would be liable for the lot (including handset price).

I would advise you to speak to Lowells, vodafone won't entertain you know, and see if you can arrange a payment plan.

[amunray]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Vodafone refused to 'entertain' me even at the very beginning so had no expectation of any help from them now anyway. So what about the county court claim that Lowells have initiated? I have already submitted an acknowledgement of service and they have said I have until tomorrow to submit a defence before a CCJ is entered against me.

I really do not want to speak to these people; can I not write to them? Either way, I can guarantee they will not accept what I can offer as I am unemployed and can only pay a minimum amount.

[amunray]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Morning all

Is there anyone else who can offer any additional advice or guidance please (no disrespect to slainte caragh but as today is the deadline for some kind of defence, I am desparate.

Sorry if I am posting in the wrong place [MENTION=6]Amethyst[/MENTION], [MENTION=42011]Nem[/MENTION]esis, [MENTION=63051]DirtySmurf[/MENTION]

[Amethyst]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Morning xxx Having a mooch back through your thread now

[Amethyst]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

Okay.

Your claim was issued 29th Sept. You acknowledged and your defence is due in, well, now pretty much... so best get on with that.

Firstly though - what happened in April 2015 - did you get another offer sent off to Vodafone ?

Did you ever get a full breakdown of the amount they were charging you?

Was there a handset credit agreement AND a service contract or just a service contract that included a phone?

[amunray]

Re: Vodafone refuse to help

*Desperate

Hi Amethyst

Sorry for the delay, just got back from a job interview. Thank you so much for getting back to me on this.

I did contact Vodafone again by letter offering what I could as well as the reasons I had been unable to pay and they did not respond so I called them mentioned the two letters. I was told that no one told me to write to them, that my contract had been cancelled and a final bill would be sent. They did not provide a full breakdown; but the final bill was for a total of £768.95 which they said includes £471.30 for cancellation prior to contract end date and a £4.17 late payment fee.

I am so sorry Amethyst, I just cannot remember if it was a handset credit agreement and a service contract or just a service contract that included a phone. I think I really need to see if I can find any paperwork; I got it online through a mobile phone shop; maybe I can check and see if I can find any emails.

I know I have been a complete idiot and now have less than two hours to try and avoid a CCJ - highly unlikely I now.


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*unlikely now.