Pathetic Customer Service by Vodacom

To whom it may concern,

I would like to formally lodge a complaint against the Vodacom franchise in Canal Walk for the appalling service I’ve received as well as the massive inconvenience it’s caused in my life. A phone was sold to me (with falsified information) on the 12th of July 2022 at Vodacom Shop Century City. I was assisted by Nabeel Barnes (consultant). My Mother and sister spoke to Ashley the supposed Huawei specialist and advised him of what they were looking for in terms of wanting a double deal (contract phone) - they highlighted the fact that they wanted a phone with a 6 gig ram but had no particular phone in mind at that point. Ashley recommended the Huawei Y70 Plus. Ashley advised the phone has a 4 gig ram, however you can expand the ram by adding a plus 2 gig ram to make a 6 gig ram, he also advised with constant use of the phone the battery should last on average for about 2 days before needing to charge the phone as this was a concern brought to the attention of Ashley by my sister, as she makes use of her phone for work purposes, he also advised that the phone takes immaculate pictures. Needless to say, when we got home what Ashley advised was not our reality. The phone needed to be charged everyday, the phone ram could not be increased to 6 gig ram, it takes long to open files and one of the phones LCD light flickers and the camera quality is that of a Mobicel phone. We then went to Vodacom in Vangate Mall for assistance and were informed that this particular phone does not have the function of adding the 2 extra gigs as Ashley advised, which means he ****.

I returned to the Canal Walk branch on the 17th of July 2022 with the devices and all paperwork and I requested to speak to a Manager - no Manager was on duty not even an assistant Manager. I find this alarming, like how does a store run without a superior? I spoke to Nabeel Barnes the consultant who previously assisted me with the activation of the contract phone days before. I advised him that I would like to cancel my contract phone due to the fact that we were misinformed about the devices. Nabeel advised that I would need to do a OBF. Please note, an OBF as per policy wording on a document issued by him that I signed states the following: "Out-of-Box failure - An Out of Box Failure is defined as, new handset/data card/modem that is found to be technically faulty within 7 calendar days of the purchase. The OBF requirements are defined by the applicable manufactures. Vodacom will operate in accordance to such requirements and specifications and devices for devices originally purchases through the Vodacom warehouse." I took issue to the OBF process, as a technical fault needs to be established first and then they would consider giving me a new device. I wanted to cancel my phone contract period. I was advised by Nabeel this was not possible - he could not refer me to any policy wording that states that my request to cancel was not possible. He then phoned someone by the name of Mansoor Barnes who works for Vodacom as well to get a second opinion and Mansoor also referred us to the OBF process. Nabeel also called Morne Speelman the manager who also referred us to the OBF process - I told Morne that I was not interested in the OBF process I just wanted to cancel, Morne advised that this was not possible. I asked of Morne to refer me to the policy wording that states I am not able to cancel, he advised that he was not able to do that as he was at home, he would forward it to me the following day as he would be on duty – he never sent anything! My initial reason for wanting to cancel was because we were misinformed about the devices and that made me loose trust in Vodacom as they **** about the devices that they sold me. My understanding, according to the contract I signed was that I was able to cancel within the 7 day cooling off period without any reason, why was I not afforded that opportunity? I made it my duty to come in before the cooling off period as I was disappointed and just did not want to deal with Vodacom, as their integrity was now questionable. Nabeel could not assist, as he was not knowledgeable and had no authority to make decisions, and that’s what lead me to leave the store and come back, when someone who had some sort of power, would be there.

Upon returning to the store, the next day, I was met by Keanan, another person without power, yet deemed a ‘2ic’. This guy could not give us answers and **** straight to our faces without blinking, I was starting to think that that’s Vodacoms mission statement “we tell lies to get sales”. Keanan again reiterated this OBF process that was not applicable in this instance, and also told us that’s the only option again. When asked where the manager was , we were informed that he was sick, even though he had told me that he would be in the next day. When asking Keanan to refer us to the part where it states that we have to do this process, he could not refer us to anything in writing. While at the store, we got on the phone with Vodacom’s Head office, they informed that the cancellation must be done in store, yet the store kept on refusing. When we eventually put the Vodacom agent on speaker phone with Keanan, he changed his tune as well saying that’s Vodacom’s process but the franchise might have their own process. Bare in mind, the agreement I signed states ’Vodadom’ not franchise, so whatever the terms are for the franchise, it needed to be stated in the document I signed, that was not the case. We asked Keanan for their head office number, Keanan gave us a slip with their email address and informed that his not allowed to give the number. How shocking. He was back and forth with a Colleen Wilson, but we could not speak to her directly, because as the clients we were not allowed to. We then Googled the Tygervalley Vodacom dealers branch number, and spoke to a very nice lady by the name of Bernadette who gave us the franchise’s head offices number without any hesitation. When I asked Keanan why she could give the number but he couldn’t he just shrugged his shoulders and said nothing. Keanan **** to us numerous times on that day, and when caught out he just said ‘I don’t know what to say’ or shrugged and stayed quiet. He should not be a 2ic. He should be re-trained, he should operate with integrity. He and the rest of Vodacom’s staff has done so much brand damage, it’s actually disgusting. When we got thru to Head office,(we asked Keanan to put us thru, but he said his not allowed to, we had to use our own airtime finished, even though he told me that they get free minutes to phone, how unhelpful) Colleen informed me that I can’t cancel again, and also referred me to the OBF process, again I informed her that I just want to cancel, again I was told it’s not an option. We got through to a very helpful lady by the name of Jenna Lotteriet, we asked her to get us someone who has power, because nobody we were speaking to seemed like they had any and were just pushing their own agendas, not taking into account the clients need. She escalated the matter to the operations Director Natalie Daniels, till this day, we have yet to receive any feedback from her as well. That is even more pathetic, because it means that the people who have the power, don’t care about their customers, yet again it’s only the sale that counts, no after care work. We don’t even have any reference numbers for the calls that were made and were never cc’d into any correspondence, I truly feel you guys are running a circus at a cost of my time, my effort , my money, my petrol and peace of mind.

Again I left the store without any resolve. Pathetic, as that was the second day in a row. Nobody cares, nobody takes accountability yet I am the one inconvenienced. The next day after a back and forth with Colleen, who lacks customer service skills and empathy, I decided to return to the store for a THIRD time, and succumbed to this dismal OBF process that they sang a song about. Only because I felt I had no other choice, and nobody was actually taking into account what I as the client wanted.

Tell me why is it that, I followed a protocol that was outlined in a contractual agreement between myself and Vodacom, yet it was not honored? I am told by an agent who works for Vodacom that, the franchise’s do this OBF process as a means to take the liability off them due to it affecting their profits. If the device gets sent back to the supplier, they don’t incur costs. If this is accurate, this is bad business practice as this means they are dismissing the terms of a binding contract between themselves and the client for profit and personal gain, putting the clients needs last and causing a great inconvenience to the client. It shouldn’t be so hard to cancel a contract, why was it? Also, by the lack of response from the higher ups at Vodacom, it makes me know that they aren’t really a client centric company. Nobody follows up, nobody gives reference numbers, nobody can give you answers and nobody even apologizes. You’re working with PEOPLE, you’re supposed to care about your clients and your brand, throughout this whole process, not once did anyone even apologize for the inconvenienced caused, that is truly pathetic.

The ideal outcome for me would be proof that this contract is cancelled, as I want nothing to do with your company ever again. Should my account be debited, you can be assured that this will now become a legal matter, as I’ve spent enough time and effort on a company that simply does not care. I want my petrol reimbursed , I want my airtime reimbursed as I would not have incurred these costs if the correct process was followed. I also want your staff to be trained on your processes and policies and proof thereof. I also want your staff to know that lying to get a sale compromises their integrity personally and professionally and its never ok, never! I want a written apology from all the people included in this transaction gone wrong. I am absolutely disgusted and appalled at the type of service I’ve received and I don’t even know how you will begin to make up for it.

Disgruntled and Disappointed, Fabian Leibrandt