Cancelling a Mobile Phone Contract
Cancelling a Mobile Phone Contract
Author
Discussion

ajh38

Original Poster:

902 posts

181 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
I was wondering if any of you had experience of this. I quite frankly went for the network that offered the best deal but am now experiencing a bout of you get what you pay for.

My signal is terrible and on 4 of the last 8 days I haven't had coverage at all. I'm not in a remote area and have previously had good coverage with another provider. In my contract it does state that there will be occasions out of their control where you won't receive coverage. I would say that my lack of coverage is excessive. Does the Supply of Goods and Services Act cover this?

Thanks in advance,

Andrew

Vaud

60,003 posts

186 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
ajh38 said:
I was wondering if any of you had experience of this. I quite frankly went for the network that offered the best deal but am now experiencing a bout of you get what you pay for.

My signal is terrible and on 4 of the last 8 days I haven't had coverage at all. I'm not in a remote area and have previously had good coverage with another provider. In my contract it does state that there will be occasions out of their control where you won't receive coverage. I would say that my lack of coverage is excessive. Does the Supply of Goods and Services Act cover this?

Thanks in advance,

Andrew
What does their network map show as coverage for your area?

ajh38

Original Poster:

902 posts

181 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
At my work address where I am now it says "3G calls text and data, very good." Indoor and Outdoor. I have no coverage whatsoever here.

FuryExocet

3,011 posts

212 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
Tried for months with Vodafone and hit a brick wall each time. I ended up buying out of NY contract, which was around 7 months left.
I had very poor signal everywhere and jumped through all their hoops,thinking it would help me get out for free and in the end, they pointed me to their T&C's where it states they provide a 2g service and anything extra is a bonus (obviously worded differently)

Vaud

60,003 posts

186 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all

1/ Did you buy it online/by phone within your cooling off period?

2/ Could the phone just be faulty? Anyone else on the same n/w that you could try in the same location?

ajh38

Original Poster:

902 posts

181 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
It's not the phone, it's just the 3 network I think. Their customer service is awful too.

Rick101

7,191 posts

181 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
Not much you can do regards your current situation.

For future, try giffgaff. Loads slate it but it really is simple, cheap and best of all no contract.

ajh38

Original Poster:

902 posts

181 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
Bought it face to face. I enquired and at the time was informed that my area had good coverage.

kiethton

14,668 posts

211 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
How far into the contract are you?

Any case on the phone?

juliann

400 posts

267 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
Have you considered asking them if they will let you have a home signal booster - they may give you one free ?

I have O2's version as I have no normal coverage at all and it gives me 3G throughout my house (3' granite walls) and garden

Edited by juliann on Wednesday 26th March 17:42

sebhaque

6,536 posts

212 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
I'm on 3 as well and raised a similar fuss when I couldn't get signal in my house. They sent me a signal booster.

Not the best coverage when out and about though. I'd be interested in the technicalities as to why O2 etc are able to send their signal fairies through walls, and 3 can't.

Durzel

13,029 posts

199 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
My experience of 3 has been pretty dire so far.

Signed up for The One plan recently at £20 a month (missed out on the £15 a month offer - damn!). First bill I get is over £28. From some cursory reading I gather that the first bill is always a bit higher because you pay pro rata for the days til the next billing cycle.

Fair enough I think, except on closer examination I've been charged around £3 for those extra days with the main line rental showing as £25 per month. It even says online that my next bill will be £25.

Ring up 3 and basically get nowhere trying to explain my problem. You'd think buying it online would sidestep oddities like this, but no. Spoke to three different people in their Indian call centre, none of whom seemed to understand what I was actually saying - "I understand my first bill will be higher, but it's still too high", etc.

Exasperated I try the sales number - which of course is manned by people in the UK. Get through to a Scottish guy who just fobs me off saying that he can't do anything because he "doesn't have access to the support systems".

Three made a bit of big deal some years ago about how having an outsourced call centre wasn't a big deal, yet they have a UK based sales force and a foreign support team - so what's the deal there? Why not offload the whole thing abroad if it works so well? It seems disingenuous to me to point out publicly how their systems work and maintain a UK based sales team.

So here I am basically with no idea whether I'll get charged the correct amount next month or not, and with near zero confidence that I can get it sorted if it still isn't right. The only non "reading off cue cards" support I'm likely to get elsewhere is by signing up to Twitter or the like and making a scene on their page, and I don't have nor do I wish to have a Twitter account. There's not even a community forum you can fall back on.

Not impressed so far frown

Edited by Durzel on Wednesday 26th March 18:23

Eclassy

1,201 posts

153 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
Having been a 'victim' of OVIVO (the free network) suddenly shutting up shop last week, I have just joined 3 but on a monthly rolling contract so I can move without penalty if their service is sub standard. Its been very good so far.

Enjoying unlimited 4G too. Not to rub it in but I got 25mbps down on my last speed test.

Andehh

7,622 posts

237 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
How long have you had it? I'm pretty sure you have 2 weeks of cooling off even when in store. Was when I got a phone from carphone warehouse a few years ago.

Russ T Bolt

1,779 posts

314 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
Eclassy said:
Having been a 'victim' of OVIVO (the free network) suddenly shutting up shop last week, I have just joined 3 but on a monthly rolling contract so I can move without penalty if their service is sub standard. Its been very good so far.

Enjoying unlimited 4G too. Not to rub it in but I got 25mbps down on my last speed test.
I got 56.22mbps
But that wasn't on 3. Given my experiences over the last 4 years, I wouldnt touch them with a barge pole.

ReaderScars

6,087 posts

207 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
Rick101 said:
Not much you can do regards your current situation.

For future, try giffgaff. Loads slate it but it really is simple, cheap and best of all no contract.
I left giffgaff for 3. I'll never go back. They just haven't got the ability to run an MVNO properly.

Burrito

1,705 posts

251 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
ReaderScars said:
Rick101 said:
Not much you can do regards your current situation.

For future, try giffgaff. Loads slate it but it really is simple, cheap and best of all no contract.
I left giffgaff for 3. I'll never go back. They just haven't got the ability to run an MVNO properly.
Same here. Although it was the O2 network's 3G being down for about 9 weeks, along with calls dropping out both at home and work that was the final straw.

So far (6 months) performance from 3 has been fine.

Jakg

4,068 posts

199 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
You'll struggle to cancel on grounds of poor coverage - but the sooner you report this, the better.

If it's a problem with signal at home, they'll probably offer a 3 Home Signal Femtocell device.

You don't get a 14 day cooling off period if bought in store.

Paulm4

366 posts

188 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
quotequote all
I've been with 3 for the last year and where I live and work (all over Scottish Highland and Islands) their signal and data coverage is by far the best. My work O2 phone is awful and I had to get and O2 boostbox for my house despite their website stating that I should have coverage.

I was with 3 when they first launched and they were appalling then, never had a signal and video calling wan't an option 'cos no-one else had a 3G mobile!

Tomo1971

1,177 posts

188 months

Thursday 27th March 2014
quotequote all
sebhaque said:
. I'd be interested in the technicalities as to why O2 etc are able to send their signal fairies through walls, and 3 can't.
Three UK only have a 3G (and 4G in some areas but that only does data, not voice) signal that is at 2100Mhz

O2 have 2G on 900Mhz and some on 1800Mhz
O2 have 3G on 2100Mhz and some on 900Mhz
O2 have 4G on 800Mhz (data only)

The lower the frequency the further the signal can travel and by the laws of physics, the lower the better it is at penetrating walls in buildings etc.

Three are improving all the time and their offering of unlimited data on the one plan offsets for many the lack of coverage in some areas.

If you prefer coverage over faster/more data then Three isn't the network for you.

Personally, unless you in the deepest depths of the Highlands or maybe the Lakes, EE is probably the best overall network to be on.

As the Tmobile part of the EE network share the sites with Three, they will have the same coverage as Three.
Plus, they will then have Oranges 3G sites (although most have been taken into the MBNL agreement but some will still remain)
Plus, they have Tmobiles and Oranges 2G at 1800Mhz Signal a lot of which is 2.5G or EDGE capable
Plus, they have the most 4G coverage using LTE at 1800Mhz.