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Help! Cancelled service in Feb but virgin still charging

Rhondafaz
Tuning in

On 16th February this year I cancelled my virgin broadband and tv package and changed to business broadband only on the same date. I got confirmation via email of the new business broadband service that day.

I kept being charged for the tv package and domestic broadband for about 4 months afterwards and have called customer service twice and both times confirmed that these were cancelled on 16th Feb. Both times this was confirmed - the second lady was very helpful nd sent some bags to send back the equipment (which the 1st agent didn’t do) and told me I would get a bill but just to ignore it and a credit would be applied to my bank account as I was owed money from virgin. I sent back the equipment then someone rang to check I had done this I said yes - and asked her if the account had been sorted she said yes. 
now I have had communication from a debt collection agency for the outstanding amount!!! As I no longer have a domestic account I cannot contact t anyone via email nor get through the automated service to speak to some one!! I am very angry about this! What can I do? I have a clean credit record and need this sorting NOW! Can anyone help please? 

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions

Andrew-G
Alessandro Volta

A repeat instance of this.  Virgin Media should be ashamed but won't be because they don't care. 

Staff here can probably get this sorted, including the compensation you're due for (a) the poor service in trying to close the account and for continuing to bill for services not required, (b) for not sorting it out and lying about fixing things when contacted, for (c) blackmarking your credit history, and for (d) passing the debt on to the scummy debt collection agency.  By my reckoning that's four CISAS Tier 3 failure (deserving compensation of say £150 each), wouldn't you agree forum staff?  Here's the way I've concluded that.  A spoiled credit history lingers for six years, and will affect new credit agreements, credit card applications, future phone contracts, new mortgages or rental contracts, or even come up in pre-employment checks.  In addition to the settlement figures above, the resolution needs to include that the company correct your credit history. 

If you've already raised a formal complaint and been fobbed off, then you can ask for a deadlock letter and then take the matter to CISAS, the industry complaints adjudicator.  If you haven't got a formal complaint then you need to do that and get a deadlock letter before approaching CISAS.  It will be quicker and easier for you if forum staff can intervene and bypass the imbeciles of customer services and the equally useless complaints team, but they can't get involved once a matter is sent to CISAS, so maybe give them a couple of days to come up with an offer of settlement that covers all the points above, and is suitably generous.  Since VM will be charged case fees of about £400 is CISAS get involved, you shouldn't settle for less than you think is entirely reasonable.  If it goes to CISAS, data shows the vast majority of cases are found in the customer's favour, or VM immediately concede.

And finally, complain to Ofcom, and do it today.  They won't get involved in your complaint, but they monitor VM's performance on complaints and service standards, and by complaining you're helping add to the evidence that will hopefully result in a proper regulatory investigation.  I'd suggest you comment in the Ofcom complaint that this fiasco around the supposedly simple business of closing an account is a particularly serious breach of Ofcom General Condition C1.8, which requires that cancelling a contract is quick, simple and easy.

See where this Helpful Answer was posted

19 REPLIES 19

Andrew-G
Alessandro Volta

A repeat instance of this.  Virgin Media should be ashamed but won't be because they don't care. 

Staff here can probably get this sorted, including the compensation you're due for (a) the poor service in trying to close the account and for continuing to bill for services not required, (b) for not sorting it out and lying about fixing things when contacted, for (c) blackmarking your credit history, and for (d) passing the debt on to the scummy debt collection agency.  By my reckoning that's four CISAS Tier 3 failure (deserving compensation of say £150 each), wouldn't you agree forum staff?  Here's the way I've concluded that.  A spoiled credit history lingers for six years, and will affect new credit agreements, credit card applications, future phone contracts, new mortgages or rental contracts, or even come up in pre-employment checks.  In addition to the settlement figures above, the resolution needs to include that the company correct your credit history. 

If you've already raised a formal complaint and been fobbed off, then you can ask for a deadlock letter and then take the matter to CISAS, the industry complaints adjudicator.  If you haven't got a formal complaint then you need to do that and get a deadlock letter before approaching CISAS.  It will be quicker and easier for you if forum staff can intervene and bypass the imbeciles of customer services and the equally useless complaints team, but they can't get involved once a matter is sent to CISAS, so maybe give them a couple of days to come up with an offer of settlement that covers all the points above, and is suitably generous.  Since VM will be charged case fees of about £400 is CISAS get involved, you shouldn't settle for less than you think is entirely reasonable.  If it goes to CISAS, data shows the vast majority of cases are found in the customer's favour, or VM immediately concede.

And finally, complain to Ofcom, and do it today.  They won't get involved in your complaint, but they monitor VM's performance on complaints and service standards, and by complaining you're helping add to the evidence that will hopefully result in a proper regulatory investigation.  I'd suggest you comment in the Ofcom complaint that this fiasco around the supposedly simple business of closing an account is a particularly serious breach of Ofcom General Condition C1.8, which requires that cancelling a contract is quick, simple and easy.

Paul_DN
Forum Team
Forum Team

Hi Rhondafaz,

Thank you for reaching out to us in our community and welcome, we are sorry to hear your switch from Virgin Media home services to our Business account hasn't gone as it should and you have now been advised you have arrears showing which were advised removed.

So I can help further I will send you an invite into a private chat, once received please click on the purple envelope to accept.

Regards

Paul.

 

Hi Andrew

You were kind enough last June to reply to my query with Virgin media, and after speaking to them and another re assurance that I owed nothing, I was confident that the matter was sorted, the lady was lovely on the telephone! I was foolish enough not to ask for a confirmation email or letter!

However, the harassment continued,  and they still used Oriel Collections to pursue the alleged debt. I asked them for proof of debt as the burden is on them to do this, they sent me copies of bills but not for the relevant time that I had the service. 

I have checked my credit record and is it very bad due to this whole situation!

I think I now have to raise a formal complaint with Virgin Media in order to take the matter to CISAS, are you still able to help with this? I have a letter drafted to ask for a Subject Access order but of course there is no email address for them? should I go ahead with this? 

I await you reply. Thank you so much

 

Rhonda

 

 

 

Hi @Rhondafaz,


Thank you for your post and welcome back to our community forums. We're here to help.

I'm so sorry to hear of the ongoing balance related issues that you appear to be experiencing. So that we can assist you further with this, I'm going to send you a private message in a few moments. Please respond to this when you can and we'll go from there.

Thanks,
 


Zach - Forum Team
New around here? To find out more about the Community Forums, take a look at our FAQs!



@Rhondafaz wrote:

Hi Andrew

You were kind enough last June to reply to my query with Virgin media, and after speaking to them and another re assurance that I owed nothing, I was confident that the matter was sorted, the lady was lovely on the telephone! I was foolish enough not to ask for a confirmation email or letter!

However, the harassment continued,  and they still used Oriel Collections to pursue the alleged debt. I asked them for proof of debt as the burden is on them to do this, they sent me copies of bills but not for the relevant time that I had the service. 

I have checked my credit record and is it very bad due to this whole situation!

I think I now have to raise a formal complaint with Virgin Media in order to take the matter to CISAS, are you still able to help with this? I have a letter drafted to ask for a Subject Access order but of course there is no email address for them? should I go ahead with this? 

I await you reply. Thank you so much

Rhonda

 


I'm sorry VM have botched sorting this out - and given the issues before you may want to consider whether the latest offer by forum staff to sort this out is credible.  In terms of next steps, no harm in making a DSAR - VM say they delete call recordings after six months, so you may find there's only a partial record, but still worth asking.  Your previous forum post also acts as a record of sorts.

Go back to my last response to you, and the same applies in terms of formalising action, although since I wrote that CISAS have been replaced as the adjudicator by Ombudsman Services - the process remains the same.

If you do choose to allow forum staff another (utterly undeserved) opportunity to resolve it this time, then make sure that the settlement both sorts out the mess the company have made of your credit history, and the compensation they offer is very generous.  If in any doubt about the settlement they offer, then reject it, go down the formal route, reject any "complaint resolution" VM offer, and ask for a deadlock letter, with that get it in front of Ombudsman Services.  In addition to a competent professional investigating and offering an adjudication, that'll result in VM being charged hundreds of pounds by Ombudsman Services.  An adjudication is binding on VM if you accept it, if you don't feel that the outcome is acceptable, then you can still use the online small claims process to bring a claim through the courts. 

Thanks Virgin Media for letting me down ONCE MORE! No letter from you as promised to clear security - not even sure why you need it as you have my account number and address etc! Meanwhile more unwanted hassle from debt collectors for money I don’t owe! I NEED YOU TO CONTACT ME ASAP! 

Hi @Rhondafaz,

I do apologise for any inconvenience. If you need further assistance, please feel free to respond via private message where we can offer additional help.

Thanks,
 


Zach - Forum Team
New around here? To find out more about the Community Forums, take a look at our FAQs!


Still No letter from you as promised the week before last to clear security! I have been patient as you suggested - but in the meantime debt collectors are harassing me again! I NEED YOU TO CONTACT ME URGENTLY!!!! 

Hi @Rhondafaz 

Thanks for coming back to me. I am sorry you have not received the letter.

I will happily PM you to assist further.

Kind regards,

John_GS
Forum Team


Need a helpful hand to show you how to make a payment? Check out our guide - How to pay my Virgin Media bill