Vodacom does not value their existing customers

My issue with Vodacom is that they have no appreciation of their existing customers.

I have been a loyal Vodacom customer (on contract) with the same number for more than 20 years now. I have never missed a payment (or ever been late with a payment).

I have always upgraded to their highest packages. I am currently on the Red VIP package. The fixed amount is about R2000 per month. However, the data bundle included is 5GB, which I always exceed. So my monthly billable amount is closer to R3000 per month.

Last week it occurred to me that I am due for an upgrade probably. To my shock I learnt that I could have upgraded 10 months ago on 15 July 2017. Which means that for almost a year I paid Vodacom on time when in fact I could have upgraded. Now, I accept this is my fault as it is my responsibility to have been more pro-active regarding my upgrade. But a courtesy call / SMS from Vodacom to inform me I was due for an upgrade would certainly have been most welcome.

So I went to my closest Vodacom store (Menlyn Pretoria), and requested an upgrade. The package I opted for was the Red VIP Plus package which included 20GB of data (plus a special of an extra 5GB of data for 24 months). The monthly package for this plan is R2188 per month.

I was so pleased to hear this because it would mean that I will probably save R800 per month as I would not need to buy extra data every month.

However, the agent instructed me to submit my 3 month bank statements again for a credit check, even though: * the monthly amount was only R188 more expensive than my current monthly billable amount * my actual monthly billable amount was currently closer to R3000 (with extra data charges) * I have never missed a payment to Vodacom * I have never been late on a payment to Vodacom * I was a loyal Vodacom customer for 20 years * I have an exemplary credit record

Despite all this - I was required to be approved by Vodacom. I already knew something was wrong. Therefore I was not surprised that Vodacom did not approve my upgrade.

My theory is that they do not want to upgrade a customer who is currently paying excess data charges every month to a plan where that monthly charges will disappear.

After being a loyal customer for 20 years, they did not even phone me to inform me that my upgrade request was denied. I had to constantly follow up to get this information. If they took the trouble to engage with me, I could have supp**** more information. (I have multiple bank accounts and could have submitted supplementary information if they requested).

When I offered to do this, I could not even engage with any person responsible for this decision. The decision was final and I could not even be told why my upgrade was denied.

The only conclusion I can reach is that Vodacom simly does not appreciate or want my business.

Therefore, I have decided to explore the options other mobile operators are offering. If after 20 years of being a loyal customer to a business does not even earn a courtesy call, then I would like to move to a mobile operator who will appreciate my business for the next twenty years.

So the value from just my business now lost to Vodacom (without taking into account the effect of inflation) = 20 years x 12 months x R2188 per month = R525,120

What do I hope to accomplish with this post: 1) Possibly prompt you to consider if you are appreciate as a customer by Vodacom 2) Hopefully a representative of Vodacom will explain to whomever at Vodacom is in charge of contract renewals, the discounted value now lost by Vodacom from one loyal customer so that they can understand the implications of their whimsy decisions.