Vodacom incorrectly blacklisted device

On Friday, the second of October, my iPhone XS Max stopped receiving network signal. After sending the phone in to iStore they advised that the phone is blacklisted.

With this being my work phone, I immediately contacted my service provider, MTN to ask to remove the blacklist, as I am clearly the owner of the device. MTN assisted me but told me that the blacklist request was sent by Vodacom.

I then contacted Vodacom, who told me to send an email to their blacklisting department. I heard back the following day, that their accounts department submitted the blacklist request as the original owner of the device (I bought it second-hand) failed to pay their account placing it in arrears. After going back and forth between myself and Lungie Kubeka from the Collections Risk department, I am now sitting with a R20,000 brick which I cannot use.

Lungie refused to assist me in any way, including what I should say to the original owner of the device should I get hold of him. His words: "A phone call from the account holder will suffice."

Not only does Vodacom expect no one to sell their phones on the second-hand market, they also expect people that buy phones from the second hand market to keep in touch with the seller, even after a year.

This is by far the most pathetic support I received from any company. I bought the phone cash a year ago, insured it for R400, been using it for a year, yet they refuse to remove the blacklist, even after sending a copy of my ID, clearly indicating I am in fact not the owner of the arrears account.

I will never do business with Vodacom in my life, and I implore people to follow my example.