Three - a little annoying

IanH
IanH Forum Participant Posts: 4,708
1000 Comments
edited July 2016 in General Chat #1

I have a mobile phone contract with Three Mobile. The signal is pretty reliable and I like their 'feel at home' offer. But I do find them a little annoying at times.

I took out a new phone contract three years ago - 'All you can eat' data and a lot of calls. Excellent, I thought.

Then I found that you couldn't use the phone as a personal hotspot, without paying extra. Drat!

Then I read that Three were including mobile hotspot in their packages, so I rang them to confirm. "That's only for new customers" I was told. Drat!

Then I read that they were including calls to 0800 number......but only for new customers.

When my contract ended, I moved to a sim-only deal with them and I now get the 0800 calls and 4Gb of personal hotspot a month. Great!

Using the hotspot on holiday tends to burn through the allowance though, and I was pleased to see that they were now giving up to 30Gb of hotspot with 'all you can eat' data packages.......but when I enquired I was told - only for new customers!

No matter, my 12 month sim contract is up for renewal now, and I see that they are doing an offer of half price rental on sims and phones for the first 6 months! Great, I'll have that please!

You guessed it - that's only for new customers!

Do Three not care at all about their existing customers??

Comments

  • Wherenext
    Wherenext Club Member Posts: 10,607 ✭✭✭
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    edited July 2016 #2

    Just replace 3 with the names of any one of dozens of other companies and the same practices will ensue. There are one or two who will reward existing customers over new, such as Nationwide, but they are in the minority.

    The companies could save themselves a fortune if they offered a gradated benefit for remaining a client but choose not to. Short sighted (I wonder if Specsavers are one of them?Undecided)

  • DEBSC
    DEBSC Forum Participant Posts: 1,362
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    edited July 2016 #3

    Phone companies! You have just hit a raw nerve Ian. My 89 year old Dad is with Talk Talk, very long story short - his phone out of order, explained that he is not long out of hospital and phone is our lifeline, as my brother and I not able to visit every
    day. Chap kept saying that my Dad would have to report it! No his phone is out of order! Told highest priority 24 to 48 hours due to his age/ illness. A week later I phoned again as still not working, to be told someone had closed the reported fault file down
    and nothing had been done! They promised it would be repaired but insisted that I give them my mobile phone number to contact me. I told them I was not available on a mobile number and offered my home number. I was then told they couldn't ring me on a landline!
    After I exploded saying they are a large phone company but they wouldn't/couldnt use a landline they finally relented and took my number. Phone now fixed, so glad I am not with them and never will be.

  • Rubytuesday
    Rubytuesday Forum Participant Posts: 952
    edited July 2016 #4

    I bought a phone on vodophone 2yr contract for my grandson kept having trouble with them putting spottify on and charging £10 mth without telling me after very many mths of agro on the phone to them they finally refunded me , only for them to put it back
    on again the following mth

    Then when I rang to remind them I would not be renewing would not except 2 mths notice only 1 so rang every week to confirm no renewal confirming over and over I will be cancelling contract when it ends , ask for the phone to be cleared and wanted codes
     ect still having agro  

  • richardandros
    richardandros Club Member Posts: 2,681 ✭✭✭
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    edited July 2016 #5

    I have had Ian's experience a couple of times. Once with my mobile provider and the second with my ISP.  I rang each of them and told them I wanted to cancel my contract and when asked why, I explained that I was unhappy that I was not getting the deal they
    were offering to new customers.  During a bit of haggling during which I stressed that I really was going to go elsewhere, they relented and gave me a better deal.  Probably not the full blown deal they were offering new customers - but at least a compromise.

  • redface
    redface Forum Participant Posts: 1,701
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    edited July 2016 #6

    Along similar lines I have walked away from £25 credit refund due under a vodaphone pre payment plan. If you don't use the pre paid aspect you lose it!  Have gone elsewhere but expect more battles in 12 months time.

  • jennyc
    jennyc Forum Participant Posts: 957
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    edited July 2016 #7

    We have frequently found that taking the 'thinking of leaving' option when ringing phone companys, unlocks their inability to offer new customer deals.

  • Pippah45
    Pippah45 Forum Participant Posts: 2,452
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    edited July 2016 #8

    Talk Talk get my vote for the WORST I have dealt with on phones with nPower on electricity! 

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,667 ✭✭✭
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    edited July 2016 #9

    The think I get irritated with is the texts you get as soon as you pass from one country to another, in Europe, telling you the cost of calls or letting you know it's a feel at home country.  I know it's only being helpful, but we've started betting on which
    of us gets the text through first!

    David 

  • redface
    redface Forum Participant Posts: 1,701
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    edited July 2016 #10

    David - I went to Bermuda and and my phone welcomed me to Jamaica! 

    How the heck do they ever get things right?