Unprofessional Service and unfairly treated

Background and Timeline of Events 12 July 2025 App**** for two iPhone 16 Plus 128GB Black devices on Telkom Flexon 6 contracts via Eran at iStore. Initial application failed, but Eran continued assisting. 15 July 2025 Eran confirmed both contracts were approved and requested R500 admin fee. 16 July 2025 Only one phone ***) was activated. Second (***) was approved but inactive. First phone sent to Johannesburg with daughter-in-law for my son. 20 July 2025 Eran confirmed second phone was activated and would be sent to Cresta Mall iStore. 24 July 2025 Son collected second phone from Cresta. I had visited Hemmingway’s iStore more than seven times without being informed of the transfer. 30 July 2025 Received email from Eran stating both contracts were cancelled by Telkom. She reprocessed applications, which were approved again. Completed debit order mandate; new SIMs sent to sons. 7 August 2025 Sons received new SIMs *** and ***), but they were not eSIMs. The original contracts had eSIMs, which were essential. Kerry advised via WhatsApp to request SIM swaps at Telkom. However, this was not done because I was being billed for four contracts instead of two, and I immediately notified iStore. At that point, I did not know which numbers were active or correct, and I was trying to avoid further confusion or activation errors. As a result, the physical SIMs are still sealed and unused. Billing Concerns 6 August 2025 Received Telkom bill showing charges for all four contracts — incorrect. Only two should be active. Correct monthly fee is R919 per contract, plus pro-rata charges: • One billed from 16 July • One billed from 20 July Forwarded bill to Eran, who promised to escalate. Issue remains unresolved. Original eSIMs *** and ***) still in use. Sons have no data; I’ve continued sending data to their original numbers. Theft Incident and Escalation 20 September 2025 One phone — an iPhone 16 Pro worth over R24,000 — was ****** on campus during a break-in at the university locker rooms. The phone was only two months old. A total of nine phones were ******, and the university has refused to take responsibility. 21 September 2025 A case was opened with the police. On the same day — Sunday, 21 September — Kerry from iStore checked whether insurance was in place. She confirmed that it was and told me exactly what she needed to proceed. I sent her a photo of the box from my son so they could identify the correct device to block, and I also sent her the case number as per her instructions. Kerry confirmed with iStore before sending me a message — which I still have — confirming that the process was underway. This shows that iStore staff believed the insurance was active and were acting accordingly. 24 September 2025 Spoke to Kerry in person. 26 September 2025 Spoke to Cole. Reconfirmed both phones were insured. Cole can verify this. Insurance was shown as active when Telkom cancelled original applications. Eran confirmed this during reprocessing. I can state this under oath. 29 September 2025 Received WhatsApp from Kerry — no formal resolution or guidance. iStore Response (Received 30 September 2025) Good day Jolene, thank you for your continued patience while we investigated your concerns further with iStore Insure. After a full review, we can confirm the following: At the time of your purchase, insurance was selected, and emails were sent to you by iStore Insure to complete the opt-in and activate cover. iStore Insure has confirmed that multiple communications were sent. However, no action was taken to finalise the policy, and as a result, no premium was collected, and no cover came into effect. Unfortunately, we are unable to activate insurance retroactively after the loss of the device, which means a claim cannot be processed. We do understand that you feel you did not receive these communications, and we recognise the disappointment this outcome brings. Please be assured that our team has escalated this matter fully with iStore Insure to ensure accuracy before providing you with this confirmation. We sincerely regret the frustration this has caused you. While we cannot assist with an insurance claim for the ****** device, we hope this provides clarity on the situation. The store confirmed that you are in direct contact with Telkom regarding the billing and a credit memo has been raised. iStore has no authority with Telkom billing. Thank you for your understanding. Should you need further information on this, please let me know. My Response to iStore I was never informed that further action was required to activate the insurance, and I did not receive any of the emails they claim were sent. I was in regular contact with iStore staff — both in person and via email — and at no point did anyone follow up to ensure the policy was finalized. Due to Telkom’s billing error, the debit orders did not go off, which delayed the entire process and prevented me from resolving the account and confirming the insurance status. It was only after the incident on 20 September, when the phone was ******, that I was made aware the insurance had not been activated — something I had no reason to question until then. I would not have followed Kerry’s instructions regarding what was needed for the insurance if I had been told the phones were not covered. I am not a careless person — I was explicitly told the insurance was active, and I acted accordingly. To now be told that no policy was in place, after months of communication and follow-up, is not only misleading — it’s deeply unfair. I have been misled from the very beginning of this application process. The emotional and financial toll this has taken has been unbearable. I trusted the information provided to me by iStore staff, and I made decisions based on that trust. I am now left with a ****** phone, no support, and no accountability from either iStore or Telkom. To date, no one has told me what happens now. Not a single person has asked, “How can we assist you?” or offered any support to help resolve this or provide a solution — even temporarily — such as assisting with another phone. Instead, I’ve been left to absorb the full impact of this situation alone. It feels as though I’ve been shown the finger and told, “This is your problem.” Request for Action I am now formally requesting: 1. A corrected and updated statement showing the contracts under my name. 2. A detailed report confirming the insurance status and timeline. 3. Written feedback explaining why no one followed up before the theft occurred. 4. Confirmation of whether the insurance will be honoured based on what was communicated to me. 5. Guidance on whether I should cancel both contracts, and whether my son should return the phone that was not ****** to Cresta Mall iStore. 6. The contact number for the insurance company, specifically to speak with Elle, who I believe is handling this matter. 7. Contact details for someone higher up at iStore to whom I can send this report and my CGSO reference number.