Best way to screw a deal out of a mobile phone company.
Discussion
I am usually quite good at this, but I seem to have lost my touch.
I have two phones with a major mobie operator that isn't oxygen, the colour of a fruit but has been round since the days mobiles began.
I have been with them since 1994 - quite happy with the deals I have screwed out of them in the past.
My wife decided it would be better if we got joint phones, so when upgrade time came I got myself a new phone and set up a deal where she got one too.
Fine and dandy, reasonable deal, quite happy.
Its coming up to a year and a half and after years with Nokia - I have one I hate now - i have decided to go down the I Phone route.
Don't mind paying for one of the latest gen phones, but want a decent deal.
So I called them.
The phones are upgradable in September - but i know they do early upgrades. Told them I was happy to wait for an I phone 4, but would like to stay with them and have two.
NO.
No, apparently our two phones have different upgrade dates. My wifes - which I bought new to go with my existing phone is up in September - mine November.
They say we can only upgrade them together if I pay a cancellation fee for the phone that runs out in November.
So its like this. I have a rolling contract with them and am a very good customer. (When I use the phone for work - there is sometimes a 500 quid bill on it. But generally we pay around 80 a month between us.)
I want to agree to another contract with them. I want to buy two phones off them, but because the upgrade dates are different - which is news to me - they want me to pay more to have the contract terminated so I can start afresh.
Basically I am asking them as part of the deal to drop this fee for cancellation.
I asked them what the incentive is to me as the customer not to just stay with them until both phones are out of contract and go elsewhere. They just kept reading from a script.
I think I was mis sold the contract. It was not explained to me at the time of purchase that the two contracts would not by synchonised (SP?) up - that renewal times would be staggered. I got both phones on the same company to make stuff like this easier.
I've probably not got a leg to stand on. But any advice on getting a decent deal on an upgrade would be appreciated.
Well - im with an operator that is a 'number' fairly large and i found out how to screw the best deals out of them
It will take some time so be patient .....
Ring in express interest in the upgrades - if their not good enough explain to them how loyal you are how you've etc see if that pushes them still no luck
ask to speak to the cancellations team - tell them you want your PAC code enabling you to transfer your number away from the network to another..... they will advise you it needs to be used in 30 days etc etc but that doesnt mean they will cancel your contract in the same number of days - keep the pac code handy.
Wait a few days - you'll most probably get a call someone from your current provider saying from a very specialist team and we have seen your a loyal customer and i'd like to offer you the best deal possible not available through our stores, online or anywhere else.....
I did this and pay £18 a month for 7000 texts, 600 minutes, 3000 same network to network minutes, free voicemail and free internet oh never forgetting the £300 handset they put in there ok its a 24month contract but i think its a pretty good deal.
It will take some time so be patient .....
Ring in express interest in the upgrades - if their not good enough explain to them how loyal you are how you've etc see if that pushes them still no luck
ask to speak to the cancellations team - tell them you want your PAC code enabling you to transfer your number away from the network to another..... they will advise you it needs to be used in 30 days etc etc but that doesnt mean they will cancel your contract in the same number of days - keep the pac code handy.
Wait a few days - you'll most probably get a call someone from your current provider saying from a very specialist team and we have seen your a loyal customer and i'd like to offer you the best deal possible not available through our stores, online or anywhere else.....
I did this and pay £18 a month for 7000 texts, 600 minutes, 3000 same network to network minutes, free voicemail and free internet oh never forgetting the £300 handset they put in there ok its a 24month contract but i think its a pretty good deal.
People being held to contracts unless prepared to buy out shocker...
I suspect there are a lot of "things" that we've been used to getting for "free", or being able to opt out of without penalty in the past that will dry up very rapidly. Phone companies give subsidies on handsets exactly because you are tied into a contract that they know will bag them £xx a month. If it becomes the norm that the contract can be exited with no penalty, how do they recoup the subsidy?
An option you have is to buy a sim free phone from Apple. I decided to go this route, even though I was eligible for an "upgrade". I don't want tying in to 18mth or 24mth contracts, and the new caps on data are, IMO, going to be a real money spinner for the phone companies (and nightmare for customers). Plus, I suspect there will be more and more "Simplicity" type deals coming out, hence flexibility is valuable.
I suspect there are a lot of "things" that we've been used to getting for "free", or being able to opt out of without penalty in the past that will dry up very rapidly. Phone companies give subsidies on handsets exactly because you are tied into a contract that they know will bag them £xx a month. If it becomes the norm that the contract can be exited with no penalty, how do they recoup the subsidy?
An option you have is to buy a sim free phone from Apple. I decided to go this route, even though I was eligible for an "upgrade". I don't want tying in to 18mth or 24mth contracts, and the new caps on data are, IMO, going to be a real money spinner for the phone companies (and nightmare for customers). Plus, I suspect there will be more and more "Simplicity" type deals coming out, hence flexibility is valuable.
Please don't take this personally.
It's the Iphone.
They think you are a lifestyling prick!
Hence you will pay anything to get it, then thank them for the priveledge and then twitter the results!
I recently upgraded to the X6 for nothing, got three moths early upgrade free and more money knocked off of my tariff. I expect had I asked for the Iphone I would have had to trombone the delivery driver!
It's the Iphone.
They think you are a lifestyling prick!
Hence you will pay anything to get it, then thank them for the priveledge and then twitter the results!
I recently upgraded to the X6 for nothing, got three moths early upgrade free and more money knocked off of my tariff. I expect had I asked for the Iphone I would have had to trombone the delivery driver!
The reason I want an I phone is that I am sick to death of Nokia.
I've alwqays had Nokias - I like the way they are easy to navigate round etc. But this latest one has been a pile of s
t. It crashes, won't multi task. The final sraw came when one rainy night I was making a call to get directions in a strange town and up agiainst a tight deadline, when it crashed, cutting off the person I was talking to and leaving me stranded untill I could get it unfrozen.
A lot of people I know have I Phones and love them - so it's a personal reccomendation thing. I am quite happy to pay for one. I don't expect it for free.
What I want changed is the fact that my two phones I have with them have different contract expiry dates. One Now, the other in November. I bought both phones together. One and upgrade the other a new contract. At the time it was not explained to me that the contracts had different end dates.
I want to continue my contract with them. I just want to upgrrade both phones to I phones. I am happy to pay for the I phones. I have been told I can only upgrade one of the phones. If I want both, I will have to terminate a contract with them, pay a penalty fee, then take out a new contract.
I want them to waive this cancellation fee on the grounds that I am a good customer of long standing, I have two contracts already which I want to extend and that when I set up the deal no one told me that to upgrade both phones at once would result in my having to pay a penalty.
I argued this, plus I argued about the unreliability of my Nokia phone.
Did they mis sell me the contract? I doubt it but its worth winging about it to them I guess.
I asked for cancellations - they told me there was no such department.
I got onto a manager and said how shocked I was that when a customer rings to renew I got treated like this. Because they seemed dumb, I asked them to have one of their legal services team call me to talk about the fact they had mis sold me a financial agreement.
That'll come to nowt, I was just being arsey at that point.
But it is interesting how their attitudes have changed. Upgrades were never a problem.
Perhaps i stnad a better chance approaching anothewr company as a new customer.
With regard to buying a phone of Apple. Is this just a plug and play job? I just wack my simcard in and away I go?
I've alwqays had Nokias - I like the way they are easy to navigate round etc. But this latest one has been a pile of s
t. It crashes, won't multi task. The final sraw came when one rainy night I was making a call to get directions in a strange town and up agiainst a tight deadline, when it crashed, cutting off the person I was talking to and leaving me stranded untill I could get it unfrozen.A lot of people I know have I Phones and love them - so it's a personal reccomendation thing. I am quite happy to pay for one. I don't expect it for free.
What I want changed is the fact that my two phones I have with them have different contract expiry dates. One Now, the other in November. I bought both phones together. One and upgrade the other a new contract. At the time it was not explained to me that the contracts had different end dates.
I want to continue my contract with them. I just want to upgrrade both phones to I phones. I am happy to pay for the I phones. I have been told I can only upgrade one of the phones. If I want both, I will have to terminate a contract with them, pay a penalty fee, then take out a new contract.
I want them to waive this cancellation fee on the grounds that I am a good customer of long standing, I have two contracts already which I want to extend and that when I set up the deal no one told me that to upgrade both phones at once would result in my having to pay a penalty.
I argued this, plus I argued about the unreliability of my Nokia phone.
Did they mis sell me the contract? I doubt it but its worth winging about it to them I guess.
I asked for cancellations - they told me there was no such department.
I got onto a manager and said how shocked I was that when a customer rings to renew I got treated like this. Because they seemed dumb, I asked them to have one of their legal services team call me to talk about the fact they had mis sold me a financial agreement.
That'll come to nowt, I was just being arsey at that point.
But it is interesting how their attitudes have changed. Upgrades were never a problem.
Perhaps i stnad a better chance approaching anothewr company as a new customer.
With regard to buying a phone of Apple. Is this just a plug and play job? I just wack my simcard in and away I go?
Shame its been parked here.....
However, I have an update.
Called the company to ask for the PAC Code. Overseas callcentre got all arsey saying I would have to pay for it and stuff.
So I got arsey spouting loads of crap about it being illegal to charge me under the law of the UK. Just kept quoting acts of parliament at them 1968 theft act 1979 CC act etc
Demanding to be put through to someone int he UK - which they couldn't do.
They put a senior guy on who wasn't much use until I asked him if he gave a damn that I was preparing to leave.
They do apparently give a damn, and he tells me he wants to make it his business that I stay with them.
I todl him the issue wasn't that I wanted an i phone for free - though after all this hassle I suggested it might be a nice gesture to do so. The problem is I have two contracts that are not synched up. When I want to upgrade I am not going to pay any extra to get the contracts synched up.
He told me that what I am saying "makes sense to him" so he is going to get back to me with a solution and hopefully a deal to keep me with them
We will have to see what transpires.
However, I have an update.
Called the company to ask for the PAC Code. Overseas callcentre got all arsey saying I would have to pay for it and stuff.
So I got arsey spouting loads of crap about it being illegal to charge me under the law of the UK. Just kept quoting acts of parliament at them 1968 theft act 1979 CC act etc
Demanding to be put through to someone int he UK - which they couldn't do.
They put a senior guy on who wasn't much use until I asked him if he gave a damn that I was preparing to leave.
They do apparently give a damn, and he tells me he wants to make it his business that I stay with them.
I todl him the issue wasn't that I wanted an i phone for free - though after all this hassle I suggested it might be a nice gesture to do so. The problem is I have two contracts that are not synched up. When I want to upgrade I am not going to pay any extra to get the contracts synched up.
He told me that what I am saying "makes sense to him" so he is going to get back to me with a solution and hopefully a deal to keep me with them
We will have to see what transpires.
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