VM called to say that they had been undercharging

telram · 18-03-2010, 13:24

HI

Has anyone else had a phonecall from VM saying that they had been undercharging by £25 per month for two years!!! I have 4 V+ boxes scattered around the house and recieved a discount of £25 per month. Now they say that this should have ended in 2007 but they were going to be good and not look to recover this but that they ahd already increased my March bill by £25. The guy also said as a favour he was putting me on a new package which meant that I would only pay £16 per month more!! Obvioulsy I made my feelings known and said I wished to take the option of cancelling, the reponse was fine but it will cost you £60!! I have been with NTL/Virgin for 10 years now and have the TV/Phone/Broadband packages and this is how they treat you. Customer service eh!! Does anyone have any ideas?
Cheers.

18-03-2010, 13:27

how will it cost £60? if they really have been undercharging you its right that they do not claw it back but they have let you know now and if its right then the new package sounds reasonable.Do you think Sky will be cheaper or you gonna make do with freeview?

telram · 18-03-2010, 13:34

The £60 is because I replaced a V+ box 9 months ago!! It was the arrogant way that I was told and that they had already increased my March bill before they informed me. I have nothing to prove that the discount was limited or otherwise. I just wanted to know if VM were calling everyone who recieved a bulk discount or just me? My feelings at the moment are even if VM are cheaper than Sky I will move anyway. My current spend with VM is averaging at £98pcm so whilst not huge is still a significant amount to me and if this increases to £114 its getting a bit silly.

18-03-2010, 13:38

It is a lot of money but 4 V+ boxes are a lot of boxes. Are you on the VIP pack?

There are no lifetime discounts now I beleive but do not quote me on that but if you have been undercharged for 2 years then thats a bonus lol

BenMcr · 18-03-2010, 13:40

Some of the older ntl billing systems would allow discounts to remain on an account even when it was no longer valid or the customer did not qualify.

When the accounts were migrated to current billing system a lot of these discounts stayed on as it was easier to migrate as is and resolve it later.

So there is a team within Virgin that go through and find account errors and fix them

18-03-2010, 13:43

so 2 years is a bonus then

BenMcr · 18-03-2010, 13:44

Definately

telram · 18-03-2010, 13:46

I know 4 V+ boxes are excessive but thats my fault for having grown up kids at home. If they are right and the offer was limited I suppose I ahve no where to go (besides Sky) its just the way it was done. Asked to speak to a supervisor and was told that if all I wanted to do was complain they would not call as there was no point. Beat that if you can!!

Spectato · 18-03-2010, 13:48

If they have been under-charging you by said amount, then you're already £600 up on the deal, if you want to be philosophical about the situation.
Try and cut back on your services (think about what you actually need) and save some money somewhere.

**Rob** · 18-03-2010, 15:03

Virgin Media are entitled to change the charges they make to you. However, they must give notice. How much notice Virgin Media should give of any change in charges is a bit less clear using terminology such as "will do our best to give a months notice" Section H3. I'd be citing that as a minimum expectation and thus refusing the March increase as legitimate.

VM's terms and conditions (Section J5) state that you have 30 days right to cancel and specifically state that J3, cancellation charges for early termination of a minimum service period would not apply.

BenMcr · 18-03-2010, 16:08

I think you would be in for quite a long argument if you try to use that clause for this situation if there wasn't a price increase happening at the same time

18-03-2010, 16:11

easy argument to end with a "take me to court" VM will have to hold up their end of the contract same way as they can force a customer

**Rob** · 18-03-2010, 17:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by BenMcr

I think you would be in for quite a long argument if you try to use that clause for this situation if there wasn't a price increase happening at the same time

If VM have been consistently charging one price for a service, and wish to change that price, then they should give proper notice. Their Ts & Cs say so. There is no grounds for them to argue unless they want to be in breach of their own contractural terms.

BenMcr · 18-03-2010, 17:50

Not going to get into an argument about it, was just pointing out that VM are likely to.

If they accept the get out clase then fantastic and everyone is happy

AntiSilence · 18-03-2010, 17:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by telram

I know 4 V+ boxes are excessive but thats my fault for having grown up kids at home.

Do they contribute to the bill since they're causing the monthly fee to be so high?