Don’t get heavy with us, Vodafone
As the mobile giant braces itself for a mega fine from Ofcom, we report how it wants to charge this crane firm £53,000 – despite a year of woeful service
THREE directors of a company specialising in cranes and lifting equipment have been told they face a £53,000 penalty to break free from their Vodafone contract early – despite reporting a series of service problems to the provider over the past year.
The case is the latest in an ongoing saga that has seen countless Vodafone customers routinely let down by the mobile giant.
The Mail on Sunday has documented the company’s fall from grace over the past year and, as a result of its failures, the network is facing a large fine from communications regulator Ofcom. The fine could be imposed as early as this month.
RHC Lifting – based in Yate, Bristol – was set up in 2001 by Tony Morgan, 53, Phil Goodway, 45, and 50-year-old Andy Cayzer.
As the business expanded, the trio wanted to upgrade their mobile and landline phone system, comprising 26 mobile phones.
In the summer of 2015 they agreed a new five-year contract with Vodafone’s One Net service, designed to link the company’s fixed and mobile phone lines. But they say the system has been plagued with faults, including dropped calls, poor line quality and customers struggling to get through.
Tony says: ‘It was sold to us as a flexible and cost-effective solution. Vodafone’s sales team said there would be cost savings along with improved performance and flexibility.’
Sadly, reality has not lived up to the sales pitch. ‘Once the system was installed, Vodafone support disappeared and we were left struggling with a faulty phone system,’ says Tony.
‘We have had people call us that were trying to call someone else. Others rang, only to end up with the wrong person.
‘We have also suffered from call ghosting issues, where the phone at all extensions rings without anyone being there. Phone lines have gone dead part-way through a conversation while calls have been cut off when someone else rings in.
‘We even had customers unable to get through because the line went dead. Some wanted to know if we had gone bust.’
In addition to the flawed system, the company directors say they have been overcharged on bills by an estimated £5,000.
Vodafone asked the company to log all defects but it was still unable to find out the cause.
CAN’T BEAR TO STAY
THE directors want to move RHC Lifting to bigger premises because the business is expanding. But they cannot bear to take Vodafone’s One Net service with them.
Yet they resent paying the £53,000 required to ditch the contract. Tony says: ‘We do not want to take the system with us as it has been so problematic and we have no confidence in it.
‘We asked Vodafone if it was willing to draw a line under the disaster of the past 15 months. We offered to hand back its mobile phones, the One Net system and even allow it to keep our overpayment for mobile data, which we estimated at £5,000.
‘It refused, would not discuss the matter and wanted more than £53,000 from us to finish the contract early. Its final letter – the only one in 15 months – does not even acknowledge the problems we have had.’
Adding salt to the wound, a new customer account manager from Vodafone rang a few weeks ago and was ‘totally oblivious’ to the service issues.
Vodafone maintains it has worked
with the company to resolve any technical issues. It has moved RHC Lifting on to a different plan and refunded data charges of more than £4,000.
A spokeswoman says: ‘We are keen to continue to work with the company and would be happy to arrange for a Vodafone specialist to spend a number of days with them to identify whatever faults there may be on the system.
‘Closing the account early will lead to early termination fees which we are unable to waive.’
Phil Goodway says this is not good enough. He says: ‘If working with us to resolve issues is not replying to our emails or letters and us still having the same problems we had since last June, then I guess it is working with us. We have been
clear in our communications since last August that if the service did not improve and if faults were not fixed in a timely period, we would have to replace the system. Only now have they offered the assistance of a specialist.’
The company is in the process of moving its phone system to rival BT.
THE REGULATOR’S RULES
OFCOM, which monitors mobile, broadband and pay TV companies in the UK, provides information on the rights of business customers on its website. It has a list of ‘general conditions’ that providers should adhere to – such as giving a minimum level of information about the terms of contracts and offering at least one 12-month contract for each service, so businesses are not tied in for too long. Visit ofcom.org. uk/advice-for-businesses for more information.
Small businesses with fewer than ten employees have the right to take an unresolved complaint to an independent mediator, the Communications Ombudsman, just like individual consumers can.
For companies with more than ten staff, the provider and Ombudsman both decide on a case-by-case basis whether a complaint can go to mediation. If it cannot, the only alternative is legal action.
This could be pursued under the Consumer Rights Act, which states that goods should be of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose.
In RHC Lifting’s case, Vodafone has agreed to let the company refer its complaint to the Ombudsman, despite having more staff than would usually be accepted.