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HELP..with O2

My girlfriend, being a donut, went to Egypt last month and left her roaming on. Just had a bill for £425!!!

Now, they have cut off her phone and said the minimum payment is half to get the phone back on. She has called them and explained she cant afford that, so suggested cancelling the remaining months of her contract (also requesting the tariff be lowered) and then billing her all together for the outstanding bills and the remaining months. She can then come to an agreement of a monthly payment to what she can afford to pay it off.

They have come back and said they can only lower the tariff to £42 per month!!

What would be the best thing for her to do? wait for the case to be sent to an outside debt collection agency and coming to an agreement with them (harming her credit score)?

02 have been really arsey about the whole thing (shock) and i dont really want her going without a phone. Usually get some sound advice on here.
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Comments

  • You say she came to an agreement with them, does that mean she agreed to £42 per month? If she did then I don't see how see can now say she doesn't agree.
    Never wait for it to be handed over to a debt colleciton agency as they have no reason to agree to lowering it. Only the orginal supplier has an interest in helping you work out the debt.
    I would make her go without a phone as a lesson. After all we managed it perfectly well 10 years ago.
  • Don't get done
    Get Dom
  • How long has she got to go on her contract?
  • You say she came to an agreement with them, does that mean she agreed to £42 per month? If she did then I don't see how see can now say she doesn't agree.
    Never wait for it to be handed over to a debt colleciton agency as they have no reason to agree to lowering it. Only the orginal supplier has an interest in helping you work out the debt.
    I would make her go without a phone as a lesson. After all we managed it perfectly well 10 years ago.
    no £42 is the lowest tarrif they will take it too. she hasnt agreed anything yet. in fact, they want her to pay it all now...which she cant do when the bill is £425

  • How long has she got to go on her contract?
    18 months. So all in all she owes over £1000. i said offer them £50 a month..takes her two years to pay off and seems an affordable amount.
  • Sadly I've never heard of anyone that's succeeded against O2 on this one. Even when they made an error last year, only half the people involved got their cash back. Beyond threatening to quit them at contract's end, and thus cost them in the long term, it's a tough one to fight through.
  • How much is her monthly tariff at the moment?
  • Some info here on how to complain/who to etc.

    http://consumers.ofcom.org.uk/tell-us/telecoms/

    I think 02 are with this ombudsman service

    http://www.ombudsman-services.org/communications.html
  • How much is her monthly tariff at the moment?
    think its around £48

    Thanks all for the advice. Think she is just gonna have to swallow it and come to some agreement which will unltimately affect her credit rating.
  • OK - what exactly is roaming and why does it cost so much?
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  • OK - what exactly is roaming and why does it cost so much?
    http://consumers.ofcom.org.uk/tell-us/telecoms/charges/roaming/

    ‘Roaming’ is simply mobile jargon for using your mobile phone while you’re abroad. When you do, different charges apply because you’re using the international network.



  • Can she give her iPhone back (I'm guessing that's the handset & why it's so expensive) and use a cheap handset to get the cost down?
  • i think she can sell the iphone4s back to them to pay off some of the bill, yes.
  • Hmmm. I had a similar issue with O2 a couple of years back - appx £250 roaming fees over a long weekend in NY.
    At the time they offered a one time only reversal under something they called "Bill Shock" I think.

    They were really good and credited me back whilst explaining about their overseas roaming bolt-ons.

    Maybe worth checking?!?
  • hmm cheers mate will check it out
  • Have you tried.....

    "why didnt you ring or text me when my bill went to double my usual monthly spend?"
    "it doesn't cost you anything to notify me in this way - you should have it set up automatically"

    The truth is, that they do have this service if you request it - but they are not going to stop you spending if they can help it, because they want the revenue.

    Was it data roaming, or just calls/texts ?
    I know that Voda sent you a text as soon as you get of the plane to remind you about data roaming charges......Do O2 do the same ?

    Try and shift some guilt - not something I usually advise, but when there has been a genuine error with no material loss of product or manhours then these big companies should be a bit flexible.
  • I know that Voda sent you a text as soon as you get of the plane to remind you about data roaming charges......Do O2 do the same ?
    I always get that message with O2 ... and they warn me when I reach 20 quid, 40 quid, etc so I know when enough is enough and can turn off roaming ... to be honest best thing to do when travelling overseas is always to turn off roaming ... you can live without it for a few days
  • Have you tried.....

    "why didnt you ring or text me when my bill went to double my usual monthly spend?"
    "it doesn't cost you anything to notify me in this way - you should have it set up automatically"
    They text me when abroad (I can't resist checking work emails) so if they didn't do that, defo worth pushing the point. I assume they do it in order to cover their backs in this situation.
  • Here we are mate.....
    saw it this morning about a lady with a bill for £2,250 for going guess where Egypt..... for 2 days data roaming.......
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01gxsfw/Dont_Get_Done_Get_Dom_Series_6_The_Dangers_of_Data_Roaming/
    AI thought they were saying that O2 had a data roaming charge of £50......
    Essentiall that you turn this off before you go abroad, abroad, other wise applications like 'facebook download'......

    hope it helps.
  • Here we are mate.....
    saw it this morning about a lady with a bill for £2,250 for going guess where Egypt..... for 2 days data roaming.......
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01gxsfw/Dont_Get_Done_Get_Dom_Series_6_The_Dangers_of_Data_Roaming/
    AI thought they were saying that O2 had a data roaming charge of £50.....maximuim tarriff, all sounded like a scam to me I will be leaving mine at home.
    Essentiall that you turn this off before you go abroad, abroad, other wise applications like 'facebook download'......

    hope it helps.
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  • I think there's an ongoing investigation into the validity and fairness of roaming data costs.
  • Also, can't believe there have been twenty three posts without Florida addict posting a picture of his girlfriend using a phone
  • Do I have this correct from the statements you have made?

    You think her current contract was £48 per month.
    She then ran up a £425 bill.
    You advised her to offer to pay back £50 a month.
    They offered to let change to a tarrif of £42 per month.
    So your problem is.....?
  • You can get around £230 for an iPhone 4 currently.

    However i would recommend you call them up and talk about bill shock and that they have a duty to protect you from this. Also mention as you feel this is unjust that you will be taking the case to OFCOM.

    They may well think twice before they try and charge you for ALL of the bill.
  • edited April 2012
    Do I have this correct from the statements you have made?

    You think her current contract was £48 per month.
    She then ran up a £425 bill.
    You advised her to offer to pay back £50 a month.
    They offered to let change to a tarrif of £42 per month.
    So your problem is.....?
    Whats with the attitude?
    The problem is the £425 bill. its clear other people have experianced the same type of roaming 'charges'. Is it right for her to accept the costs? is it right that if her tariff is being cancelled that it is only lowered by £6 a month? (other companies allow you to lower significantly)
  • Sorry I am probably being dense - did she make loads of phone calls and use the internet all the time when in Egypt or is it just connecting to something like the GPS system that monitors where you are?

    Anyway - deny settlement using the unfair contracts act as the reason.
  • edited April 2012
    she made a normal amount of calls and texts...and was aware that there would be a higher bill, but as the roaming was on, you are contstantly receiving updated data. On a handset like an iphone thats not good.
  • Gotcha - cheers.
  • just another con from rip off britain, just out of interest how much would say a eygptian pay in britain for similar usage?
  • According to O2's website, there is an automatic cap of 40/month on international data roaming, unless you have opted for a higher cap of 120/month. This applies anywhere in the world. They should also text you after you've reached 20 and 40 (apologies for the lack of a pound sign on this Austrian keyboard!)

    http://www.o2.co.uk/international/dataabroad_paymonthly

    So, there's a few possibilities here...

    1. O2 have made a mistake (most likely)
    2. The majority of the charges are for calls and texts, not data
    3. At some point, your girlfriend has 'opted out' of the automatic limit. Has she maybe been abroad before, reached the limit, and asked them to remove it?
    4. The Egyptian network did not notify O2 how much data had been used until too late.

    As long as it's not 2 or 3, I would say she has a very good case for getting the charges reduced to 40 for data (unless she was unlucky and straddled two billing months). If not, I would go to Ofcom.
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