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DB
Daniel B

1 reviews | Active since Nov 2015

05 May 2026, 09:01

Long-Term Loyal Customer Treated Like a Stranger – No Upgrade, Incorrect Credit Listing, No Answers

I am beyond frustrated with the level of service I’ve received from Vodacom over the past two weeks.

I was contacted and encouraged to upgrade my device as my contract is due. Naturally, I went into the store to proceed — only to be told that my upgrade was declined. No explanation. No guidance. Nothing. Just “it’s declined.”

This makes absolutely no sense. I have been a loyal Vodacom customer for over a decade, I have multiple accounts, I do not owe a cent, and I pay consistently and on time. Yet suddenly, I am treated as if I am a risk — and no one can explain why.

I then contacted the upgrades department. They also could not give me any reason for the decline. I was told my case would be escalated — which clearly never happened. I had to follow up myself, repeatedly, with no progress.

I was then passed to accounts. They told me they could not assist either. So effectively, no department within Vodacom can explain why I am being denied an upgrade. How is that even possible?

To make matters worse, today I received my ClearScore report and discovered that Vodacom has listed me as having missed a payment in March, which is completely false. I have proof of payment. I paid on time, as I always do.

When I called Vodacom about this, I was told they “don’t know why” this has happened and that I must contact TransUnion myself to fix it.

So let me get this straight:

You decline my upgrade with no explanation You fail to escalate or resolve the issue despite multiple calls You incorrectly list me as a non-payer, damaging my credit record And then you tell me to go and fix your mistake myself

This is completely unacceptable.

After more than a decade of loyalty, this is how I am treated — with zero transparency, zero accountability, and zero support. Not one person in your call centre has been able to answer two very simple questions:

Why was my upgrade declined? Why have you incorrectly listed me as a non-payer?

This is not just poor service — this is damaging to my reputation and financial standing.

I expect urgent answers, a full correction of my credit record, and accountability from Vodacom.

Right now, it feels like no one knows what is going on inside your organisation — and worse, no one is taking responsibility.

0
Replies (5)
Vodacom
Vodacom's reply05 May 2026, 10:01
Official
Dear Customer, 
 
Thank you for making us aware of your complaint. 
 
Kindly be advised that a consultant will make contact with you in due course to assist with your query. 
 
***Please note*** Beware of phishing ****s. 
 
Vodacom will not contact you via Whatsapp to request your personal details 
 
Regards, 
Vodacom Consumer Website Team 

DB
Daniel B's update12 May 2026, 11:05
Reviewer Update
Thank you for the generic response, but today is now the 12th of May — a full week later — and I still have not received a single phone call, explanation, update, or resolution from Vodacom.

This is exactly the problem.

Nobody follows through.

I have now spent more than two weeks trying to get answers regarding:

  • Why my upgrade was declined despite being a long-standing customer with multiple accounts and a perfect payment history
  • Why Vodacom incorrectly listed me as a non-payer with TransUnion/ClearScore despite my account being fully paid and up to date

Not one person has been able to give me a straight answer. What concerns me most is that this is no longer just about poor customer service — this is now affecting my credit profile and reputation. I find it unbelievable that Vodacom can:
  • Contact customers to encourage upgrades
  • Decline them without explanation
  • Incorrectly report payment behaviour
  • Fail to escalate matters properly
  • Then disappear after promising contact “in due course”

What exactly is “in due course”? Because from a customer perspective, it appears nobody actually takes ownership of these issues. I have proof of payment. I have a long-standing history with Vodacom.

I have spent hours on calls being transferred between departments that all say they “cannot help.” This experience has been deeply disappointing and honestly quite shocking for a company of this size.

I would appreciate immediate intervention from somebody who can actually investigate and provide real answers instead of automated responses and empty promises.
DB
Daniel B's update14 May 2026, 13:32
Reviewer Update
I did receive a very friendly and professional call from a lady at Vodacom on Tuesday afternoon regarding my complaint, and I genuinely appreciated the time she took to go through the issues with me properly.

She advised that she would escalate the matter further and get back to me by end of business yesterday (Wednesday). Unfortunately, I have not heard back yet.

The difficulty I now face is that I have no direct way of contacting her again, and based on my experience over the past few weeks, the general call centre channels have unfortunately not been effective in resolving these matters.

At this stage, I would sincerely appreciate a follow-up call regarding:
  • The unexplained upgrade decline on my account
  • The incorrect non-payment listing reflected on my credit profile despite payment being made on time and proof of payment being available

I am simply trying to understand what is going on and to get these matters resolved properly.
Thank you in advance — I look forward to hearing back from someone today.
DB
Daniel B's update21 May 2026, 09:19
Reviewer Update
It is now the 21st of May, and I still have not received any meaningful feedback or resolution from Vodacom regarding my complaint.

This situation has now been dragging on for weeks.

I originally raised concerns after being encouraged to upgrade my device, only to be declined with absolutely no explanation — despite having multiple Vodacom accounts, over a decade of history with the company, and a consistent on-time payment record.

I then discovered that Vodacom had incorrectly reflected me as a non-payer on my credit profile for March, despite the account being fully paid on time and proof of payment being available.

After numerous calls between departments, nobody could explain:
  • Why my upgrade was declined
  • Why incorrect information was submitted against my credit profile

On the 12th of May, I publicly followed up because nobody had contacted me.
A consultant finally called me on the 12th of May in the afternoon, and was professional and understanding. She advised that she would escalate the matter and get back to me by the end of that week.

I never heard from her again.

I then posted another follow-up message on the 14th of May requesting assistance and explaining that I had no way to contact her directly.

Again — silence.

Today is the 21st of May.
No follow-up.
No answers.
No accountability.
No resolution.

What is most concerning is not just the upgrade issue anymore — it is the complete lack of transparency and communication from Vodacom while my credit profile and reputation are potentially being affected.

I find it unbelievable that a customer with a long-standing history and clean payment record can be treated this way while nobody inside the organisation seems capable of taking ownership of the matter.

At this point, I am formally requesting:
  • A full explanation for the upgrade decline
  • Written confirmation regarding the incorrect payment listing
  • Immediate correction of any negative credit reporting submitted in error
  • Contact from somebody with actual authority to resolve this matter properly

This experience has been exhausting, disappointing, and honestly damaging to my trust in Vodacom as a service provider.
DB
Daniel B's update22 May 2026, 15:32
Reviewer Update
I have now received a follow-up call from Nafisa at Vodacom regarding my ongoing complaint.
While I appreciate her professionalism during the call, I must state clearly that this matter has still not been resolved.

I was informed that Vodacom’s “CAD” department has determined that I allegedly do not meet affordability requirements for an upgrade.

This makes absolutely no sense to me.

I have been a Vodacom customer for well over a decade, I have multiple active accounts, a long and stable payment history, and I pay my accounts consistently and on time. I do not have affordability issues, which is exactly why this entire situation is so confusing and concerning.

What makes this even more troubling is that this comes shortly after Vodacom incorrectly reflected on my credit profile that I missed a payment in March — despite the account being paid on time and proof of payment being available.

So naturally, this raises a serious concern from my side:
Has Vodacom’s own incorrect reporting negatively affected my profile and scoring, which is now being used against me during the affordability assessment process?

Because if that is the case, then this situation becomes far more serious than a simple upgrade decline.

So from my perspective, the sequence of events is extremely difficult to understand:
  • I am suddenly declined for an upgrade without proper explanation
  • I then discover incorrect payment information reflected against my credit profile
  • Nobody can clearly explain how or why this happened
  • The matter gets escalated repeatedly without resolution
  • And now I receive an SMS saying the case has been “closed” while the core issues still remain unresolved

At this point, I honestly feel stuck between three very frustrating options:
  1. Move my business away from Vodacom entirely after many years of loyalty, which is a major inconvenience considering the number of accounts and services involved.
  2. Escalate the matter formally through the Ombudsman and credit dispute channels, which will take more time, energy, and unnecessary stress just to try and get basic answers and corrections.
  3. Simply accept the situation, despite feeling that I have been treated unfairly and without transparency.

None of these options feel acceptable for a long-standing customer who has supported Vodacom faithfully for years.

I am not asking for special treatment. I am asking for transparency, accountability, and a proper explanation.

If Vodacom genuinely believes I have affordability concerns, then I would appreciate a clear explanation as to how that conclusion was reached given my account conduct and payment history over many years.

And more importantly, I still require proper clarity and resolution regarding the incorrect missed-payment reflection linked to my profile.

Vodacom’s handling of this entire matter has been disgracefully poor, lacking even the most basic levels of accountability, transparency, and customer care that any long-standing customer should reasonably expect.