***** - no contract

Good Morning,

I hope this email finds you well. My name is Lerato Seduma and I have been a customer of MTN's for many years. In April of 2021 I received an OTP on my number regarding a new contract. On the same evening I called MTN customer care and enquired about it and they told me as long as the person doesn't have the OTP, no new contract can be opened. I openly stated that I was not trying to purchase a phone because I took out a 3 year contract the previous year (May 2020). The following day I received an SMS telling me about my new balance as I had taken out a contract for an iPhone 12. I called MTN customer Care and informed them that it was not me. I additionally went to the Cresta MTN branch to sort this out. I was told to do an affidavit at a police station and get a certified copy of my ID and send it to the ***** department which they did on my behalf at the Cresta branch. I was informed at the Cresta branch that the contract was taken out at the Tembisa branch and the person was assisted by a consultant named Lindiwe. Since then I have had to send the required documents multiple times, I have had to beg for feedback and after posting on social media I was told that the investigation was closed as no ***** was detected. I asked if they have cameras in the store as I was 4 months pregnant with twins at the time. I have received no feedback regarding any camera footage of the store. They stated that someone used my ID copy. I then asked about the biometric system that they have in store that I have used before so our fingerprints are not the same. Also please note this was during lock down and I resided in Diepkloof, Soweto at the time. This is information I have given time and time again. They are constantly closing the line that I use. I am currently in areas of almost R50000 for a phone I do not have. They refuse to tell me what else I can do. They do not have direct contact to the ***** department so I am constantly having to call their call centre to get information which they themselves don't have and have to refer back to the ***** department and then get back to me.

This process has been stressful and very unfair. For 2 years I have been dealing with this issue and I haven't stopped paying for the contract that I actually took. Their investigation was terrible and the most feedback I have gotten is that the case has been closed and the comments on the case are that they need more clarity, but I haven't been outright told exactly what that means. I need assistance. This whole issue has put a huge damper on my credit score as well. MTN needs to do a thorough investigation on this issue, look at the footage of the person who took out the phone, and compare the picture on the ID copy. If I was indeed in the store at the time that the contract was actioned then it should be seen in the footage.

Please see below the reference numbers I have received after my many calls over the past 2 years:

SR: *** SR: ***

I managed to open a case with SAPs on the 27th January 2023 after it took me a while to get the relevant documents from MTN as well as the correct information from SAPS as to where I needed to open the case.

On Saturday 28th January 2023, I travelled to the store where they claimed I received the phone which is the MTN store at mall of Tembisa. I spoke to a consultant named Jeanette Pooe. I explained the situation and asked to see the original contract so we could compare signatures. I was informed that there is no contract on their system attached to the number, only my ID copy. I then asked if there is a physical copy and she said no there isn't. She then sent an email to the former manager to investigate, which I am still awaiting a response on. With no contract, how was the contract given out? All it took was a visit to the store and a check on the system but MTN claims there is no sign of *****. I ask for your assistance with this as it is standing in the way of me being able to do things as I am allegedly in arrears.