Disgusted with SHOCKING service at Vodacom Tygervalley

After receiving notification from Vodacom that my contract was up for renewal, I went into the store on 14th Oct to upgrade my contract from a Smart M to a Smart More Data 2GB contract. I was informed that the contract would only be effective by the 1st of the following month from 1 Nov.

I was then informed that because I was apparently doing the upgrade early (even though Vodacom informed me I was due for an upgrade) I would need to pay in an amount to account for this ‘early’ upgrade. Given that I was already at the store, and the amount was not too significant, I moved forward. As an aside upon leaving the store the phone froze, so I rebooted it – it then started doing updates and I started to get notification SMS’s informing me that I was incurring out of bundle data. I then purchased a 250 MB once-off data bundle to accommodate the potential data requirements for the balance of the month.

Around a week later I call Vodacom call centre on 111 to query my next expected bills, which according to the Vodacom app were to be MUCH higher than normal. They mention to me that the new contract kicked in at the middle of the month already, and it looks like I’m going to be billed twice incorrectly, and instructed me to take this up with the branch who mistakenly made the contract effective from the 15th Oct.

I return to the branch, and speak to a consultant explaining the issue, he then gives me a Vodacom number to phone (for accounts) mentioning they have made the error, not the branch. I phone the number (at my cost) and am told there’s nothing they could do on their side, it’s an issue to be taken up with the branch. Luckily I made the call while still at the shopping centre so I could go straight back in to the Vodacom branch to tell them what I was just told. I sat at a terminal while a few of the consultants went to a backroom to find out how to sort it out... I was then told that either Donovan or Leroy would phone me to let me know when it’s sorted (nobody phones me as promised). After that deadline was missed, I then phone the branch, and I’m told Donovan and Leroy are on leave. I remained concerned that a potentially HUGE bill was to be processed on my account – and mentioned this concern to another staff member that I spoke with over the phone (my cost again).

No issues initially as far as billing was concerned as those bills were for earlier dates. On 13th Nov, however, I receive my next invoice to go off on my account at end of November for October’s usage. This bill is totally incorrect – it shows a bill reflecting a full month Smart More Data 2GB contract (which was not in effect), it includes a 10GB promo (which was not in effect), It shows pro-rata charges for the new handset and Smart More data in addition to this (not in effect)...all WRONG! And it reflects the Out-of-bundle data charge I endured from the new phone updating right after I got my hands on it (as annoying as out of bundle part is, that’s not my major gripe).

What’s worse, If I look at my bill thus far for the following month, it shows an amount of R599 for promotional 10GB of data (so as things stand, I’m going to be charged for the 10GB of “free” data for the next month it seems too!)

What makes matter even WORSE, I try and bring all of this to the attention of Donovan initially – explaining that I’m back and it’s still unresolved. He disappears to the back - I then have a lady come over to me (Chanel Williams), she explains that she made the error that made the contract kick in early, so she said she will pay in an amount of R220 to “fix” this. I tried to explain that it doesn’t “fix” anything, as the bill should’ve been for the old Smart M, not the new Smart More data, and that the handset billed for should have been the old one, not the new one etc. etc. So that whole bill was wrong. I mentioned that this should’ve been resolved a while back – I highlight how nobody initially phoned me as promised and so on. Then she let ME have it – saying she phoned me MULTIPLE times, and I was not available – Absolute NONSENSE! I acknowledge it’s possible I may have missed a call (I am in the odd meeting etc.) … But that’s beside the point! I ask her assuming she did call me, whether she left me a message. She says “NO”, then has the cheek to tell me I didn’t take it upon myself to phone back the number when I missed HER call…. Unbelievable! I request her name, - she’s now LIVID, at ME…!!?? She gets a pen, writes her name down, and almost threatens me to take matters further. She then stomps away to the back of the store and begins to frantically be busy on a call with someone... I then ask another consultant where the manager is and I provide her with a rather brief overview of the issue, and tell her how her staff member is giving me a mouthful etc.– She mentioned she’d forward this on to customer billing to look into it and get back to me...

I’m left GOBSMACKED by what I’ve had to endure in doing what should be a SIMPLE upgrade. If there was a way that I could get out of this contract and take my services elsewhere I most certainly would. But, I’ve stupidly locked myself into this type of customer service for another 24 months!

Extremely disappointed!