Vodacom and Mondo

I called *** on Black Friday, 29 November at 15:50, to upgrade my cell phone contract with Vodacom. I chose a deal and didn't think about it again until 19 December when Mondo, a third-party contracted by Vodacom, contacted me to say I was eligible for an upgrade. I said that I had upgraded but the call centre staff member said that it hadn't gone through so she would endeavour to get me a similar deal. I was always under the impression that this staff member of Mondo was upgrading my existing cell phone contract and not starting a new one. She forgot to get my ID number so had to call me back. In that second call I asked if I could just stay on my existing contract, i.e. not upgrade at all, as I was quite happy with my existing phone and deal but the lady said if I wasn't on a contract with Vodacom I would be charged out of bundle call rates that are more expensive. In this second call I made it very clear that I was under the impression that I was doing an upgrade, why would I say this if I thought it was a new contract. I received the device on 24 December, and with it being Christmas, and having a young family and such a busy period, I never got to even switch on the device. On 9 January I received my statement from Vodacom and on there it was now showing three numbers and a bill for R631.87. My normal bill is never more than R300, my budget for my cell phone. I panicked and called Vodacom who said I needed to call Mondo and take up the matter with them. I called Mondo and they said I needed to open an investigation so they could listen to the call recordings as I said I had never asked for a new contract, but an upgrade. Multiple calls later, Mondo have rejected my claims, closed the investigation saying that in the calls I was told it was a new contract. I was told to go to a Vodacom store. I went to a Vodacom store on 27 January to be told by the staff there that they can't help me, so I called Mondo from the Vodacom store and they said they couldn't help me and I needed to call the after sales department. I called the after sales department and they said I needed to request that the device be returned and I needed to call the cancellations department for that to happen. I called the cancellations department and they said as I was out of the 14 days they couldn't recall the device. I explained the situation to them and they said I needed to call Mondo again. I called Mondo again to be told the same thing (I am more than frustrated by now). I asked Mondo how many days was I allowed before I could express my dissatisfaction, and Sayuri Padayachee, from Mondo, said 14 working days. I contacted them on 9 January which was ten working days following me receiving the device, expressing the fact that I only wanted an upgrade and not a new contract. They opened an investigation, number 41543, which took me out of the 14 working days. Sayuri Padayachee said that they would look into the matter further for me and I am now awaiting feedback. Given how Mondo have conducted themselves this far I don't hold out much hope even though I have a very strong case against them.

I believe I have a very strong case for several reasons. Why did the call centre lady from Mondo call me on 19 December and say I was due for an upgrade if she started a new contract for me? Why was my upgrade not processed that I did on Black Friday, I wouldn't have been in this mess if that had gone through? And I DID contact Mondo within 14 working days of receiving the device to express my dissatisfaction. If I had known how unwilling they would be to see reason I would have requested that the device be recalled on the 9th of January.

The most unpleasant experience and biggest waste of my time. I want this new contract cancelled, and I should not have to pay any cancellation fees as I did not request a new contract, the device collected, and if that does not happen I will not upgrade my current line (that I've always wanted upgrading!!!) and will move to another service provider.