Complaints

Dear Vodacom Customer Service,

I am writing to formally lodge a complaint regarding the unacceptable service my mother received today, 26 February, at your Vodacom store in Springs Mall.

At approximately 2:00 PM, my mother visited the store to purchase a Samsung S25 Ultra. However, instead of processing her original request, a sales consultant persuaded her to take a different phone, a vivo, claiming it was a better option. Trusting the representative’s advice, she proceeded with the purchase. However, upon returning home and reviewing the device’s features, we realized that it did not meet our expectations and was not the phone she initially wanted.

Key Issues with This Transaction:

1. Same-Day Return Rejected:

She returned to the store around 4:00 PM—within two hours of purchase—with the phone untouched, unused, and still in its original packaging, requesting to exchange it for the Samsung S25 Ultra, which she originally wanted.

Shockingly, she was informed that the phone could not be returned, despite the fact that the device had not been used at all.

2. ********* Contract Handling & Misleading Sales Tactics:

She is an elderly woman, and the sales representative took advantage of that by persuading her into accepting a phone she did not initially want.

Instead of respecting her choice, they pushed a phone on her that she never intended to buy. If they had simply given her what she requested, this issue would not exist.

The contract was never read or properly explained to her before finalizing the purchase.

She was only provided with the contract when she returned to the store to lay a complaint.

She never signed the contract before receiving the phone.

The confirmation SMS regarding the contract was only sent after we had already raised concerns about the purchase.

3. Management’s Dismissive Attitude:

When we returned to the store, we spoke to the manager, Jody, who refused to assist us in resolving the issue.

Instead of acknowledging that the contract was not properly handled and that my mother was misled, she insisted that nothing could be done.

4. Financial Implications & Request for Immediate Cancellation:

My mother would not have taken the phone if she had been properly informed that she could not return it.

Given the circumstances, we demand the immediate cancellation of this contract, as it was completed under misleading and unfair conditions.

Our budget does not allow us to take on an unnecessary financial burden for a phone we do not want and were misled into taking.

This experience has been highly disappointing, and the refusal to assist with a valid, same-day return request is completely unacceptable and *********.

We demand an urgent intervention from Vodacom to cancel this contract immediately. If this issue is not resolved within 24 hours, we will escalate the matter to consumer protection authorities, legal advisors, and the relevant ombudsman.

Please confirm receipt of this email and provide a resolution urgently.

Today, we went to another Vodacom store, and they advised us that the contract is still on "Future Open" and can be canceled. However, when we returned to the original store, they said they couldn't assist us.

We then called Vodacom at ***, and they confirmed that the store should be able to cancel the contract since it is on "Future Open" and is actually an upgrade.

Despite this, when we got back to the store, they still refused to assist us. As a result, we left the phone at the store because we are done talking. We have asked politely for the contract to be canceled.

We will not be making any further payments.

I wonder if Samsung knows that when people try to buy a Samsung phone at voda store , you recommend a Vivo phone instead.

The contract number is ***. We have been on contract with Vodacom for the fourth time now and have generally received good service. However, we are unsure of what went wrong with the service this time.

Additionally, we would appreciate having staff in the store who are experienced in assisting elderly customers. It would also be helpful to have someone available in-store to handle cancellations, as we sign contracts in-store but are required to call Vodacom for cancellations. Given the high cost of living, making these calls incurs additional expenses that we cannot always afford.

After four phone contracts, being treated this way is truly disappointing.

For further communication, my mother's contact number is ***, and mine is ***.

Thank you—I would highly appreciate your assistance.

Account holder : Girly Motaung Number in question: ***

Sincerely,

Thapelo Motaung

On Thu, 27 Feb 2025, 12:05 thapelo innocent, <***> wrote:

Dear Vodacom Customer Service,

I am writing to formally lodge a complaint regarding the unacceptable service my mother received today, 26 February, at your Vodacom store in Springs Mall.

At approximately 2:00 PM, my mother visited the store to purchase a Samsung S25 Ultra. However, instead of processing her original request, a sales consultant persuaded her to take a different phone, a vivo, claiming it was a better option. Trusting the representative’s advice, she proceeded with the purchase. However, upon returning home and reviewing the device’s features, we realized that it did not meet our expectations and was not the phone she initially wanted.

Key Issues with This Transaction:

1. Same-Day Return Rejected:

She returned to the store around 4:00 PM—within two hours of purchase—with the phone untouched, unused, and still in its original packaging, requesting to exchange it for the Samsung S25 Ultra, which she originally wanted.

Shockingly, she was informed that the phone could not be returned, despite the fact that the device had not been used at all.

2. ********* Contract Handling & Misleading Sales Tactics:

She is an elderly woman, and the sales representative took advantage of that by persuading her into accepting a phone she did not initially want.

Instead of respecting her choice, they pushed a phone on her that she never intended to buy. If they had simply given her what she requested, this issue would not exist.

The contract was never read or properly explained to her before finalizing the purchase.

She was only provided with the contract when she returned to the store to lay a complaint.

She never signed the contract before receiving the phone.

The confirmation SMS regarding the contract was only sent after we had already raised concerns about the purchase.

3. Management’s Dismissive Attitude:

When we returned to the store, we spoke to the manager, Jody, who refused to assist us in resolving the issue.

Instead of acknowledging that the contract was not properly handled and that my mother was misled, she insisted that nothing could be done.

4. Financial Implications & Request for Immediate Cancellation:

My mother would not have taken the phone if she had been properly informed that she could not return it.

Given the circumstances, we demand the immediate cancellation of this contract, as it was completed under misleading and unfair conditions.

Our budget does not allow us to take on an unnecessary financial burden for a phone we do not want and were misled into taking.

This experience has been highly disappointing, and the refusal to assist with a valid, same-day return request is completely unacceptable and *********.

We demand an urgent intervention from Vodacom to cancel this contract immediately. If this issue is not resolved within 24 hours, we will escalate the matter to consumer protection authorities, legal advisors, and the relevant ombudsman.

Please confirm receipt of this email and provide a resolution urgently.

Today, we went to another Vodacom store, and they advised us that the contract is still on "Future Open" and can be canceled. However, when we returned to the original store, they said they couldn't assist us.

We then called Vodacom at ***, and they confirmed that the store should be able to cancel the contract since it is on "Future Open" and is actually an upgrade.

Despite this, when we got back to the store, they still refused to assist us. As a result, we left the phone at the store because we are done talking. We have asked politely for the contract to be canceled.

We will not be making any further payments.

I wonder if Samsung knows that when people try to buy a Samsung phone at voda store , you recommend a Vivo phone instead.

The contract number is ***. We have been on contract with Vodacom for the fourth time now and have generally received good service. However, we are unsure of what went wrong with the service this time.

Additionally, we would appreciate having staff in the store who are experienced in assisting elderly customers. It would also be helpful to have someone available in-store to handle cancellations, as we sign contracts in-store but are required to call Vodacom for cancellations. Given the high cost of living, making these calls incurs additional expenses that we cannot always afford.

After four phone contracts, being treated this way is truly disappointing.

For further communication, my mother's contact number is ***, and mine is ***.

Thank you—I would highly appreciate your assistance.

Account holder : Girly Motaung Number in question: ***

Sincerely,

Thapelo Motaung