VODACOM Insurance - NO SERVICE! Stay Away!

This a review of Vodacom Insurance division. Not Vodacom as a company. As part of my review I am posting the correspondence I have sent to Vodacom Insurance.

"Good day! As the “new” Insurance provider since 1st February 2019 (without any notification from Vodacom to their customers) (why did Vodacom ever change from Cellsure?), you have been delivering the worst Customer Service I have EVER encountered in all the years I have been a Vodacom customer. This thing or tendency NOT to be able to answer customer phone calls even within 30 minutes or not even within a 24 hour timeframe is unacceptable. There is NO feedback on claims submitted to you or any enquiries made on claims.

My cellphone was ****** on 28 February 2019 and my forms submitted on 1st March 2019. I had to call you several times on Monday morning, 4th March 2019, and after being put on hold for over 1 hour collectively, I could finally speak to a consultant with whom I spent about 20 minutes on the phone. She had no knowledge of the claim (which indicates that the e-mails I sent were never read) and had to go and search for it. I even had to assist her with the date in finding the three, yes, THREE e-mails I sent through to submit the claim. When it was finally captured on the claims system, I was told to visit a Vodacom Shop to finalize the claiming procedure. When I visited the Vodacom Shop in the Middelburg Mall at about 10:00am, I was told by the consultant that my cellphone was under-insured by Vodacom Insurance and that I would have to pay in an extra amount, above and beyond the excess amount for the claim. I queried this because I received a quotation from Vodacom Insurance, which I accepted and sent back (using the form which was sent to me) on 19th January 2019 with the inception date indicated as 1st February 2019. I was told to wait for the Quotation which would be sent through within the next hour (as indicated by the Vodacom Insurance consultant) to clarify the situation. They would contact me when they have received the quotation.

I went home and found the Insurance Form which I completed on 19th January 2019 for my cellphone. I noticed that I had indicated Premium Band 3 (R63.00) as my Insurance option. I was however informed by the Vodacom Shop consultant that my phone was only insured for Premium Band 2. That meant that Vodacom Insurance NEVER captured and/or updated my new upgrade phone policy as requested.

(As a matter of clarity, I should add that when I received my Statement from Vodacom on 8th February 2019, I noticed that my insurance premium was somewhat lower than the quote I accepted. I called Vodacom Insurance on the ********** number provided and spent several periods of between 22 minutes to 24 minutes on hold listening to a voice telling me that I was a valued customer and that my call would be answered. Unfortunately I never got to speak to anyone because no-one answered the calls. After 3 days of trying to get hold of someone, unsuccessfully, I decided to wait for my next Statement to see if the insurance premium had been changed or not. Unfortunately, my cellphone was ****** before I could get that chance)

Yesterday morning, 5th March 2019, at 09:00am I went back to the Vodacom Shop, as I have not heard anything from them since the previous day, and was told that NO quotation had been sent through since the 4th (as was promised by the consultant) and I also handed the consultant at the Vodacom Shop a copy of the Insurance Form submitted on the 19th January 2019. I was told that they have been trying to contact you since the previous afternoon but with no success. There was still no answer. I phoned Vodacom Insurance myself from the Vodacom Shop and spent the next 32 minutes on hold with no success of reaching anyone. I submitted a complaint to you yesterday, 5th March 2019 at 14:45pm via e-mail for which I still need to receive feedback. I have still not received any Quotation and there has been NO feedback on my query about the incorrect Premium Band Insurance either. I tried contacting you again yesterday afternoon and was put on hold from 16:34pm up until 17:00pm, when I hung up and wondered why I ever took out a cellphone contract with Vodacom... there is NO accountability from this company to its customers!

Vodacom Insurance claim that they finalize claims within 48 hours (after receiving all relevant information). This is a bogus and false statement. Failing to respond to my request I will be submitting this letter and all other previous correspondence to the appropriate Ombudsman for clarification. I shall also post a complaint on the HelloPeter website for public display. This type of customer service is NOT acceptable. "

On the day of sending them this email, I gave Vodacom Insurance 24 hours, since me first complaint, to get back to me on this claim and sort out the problems as mentioned. And guess what???? Yes, you've guessed it... Still have not received ANY feedback whatsoever! No quotation, no phone call, no sms and no e-mail. As I'm writing this 2nd review, I am still without my cellphone (total 8 days) and without any hope of getting a new one soon if the current service provided by Vodacom Insurance continues in this fashion.

So hey, if you need or want good customer service and support from a company, go to Vodacom Insurance. NO WAIT! They don't give ANY service!

Then on Wednesday, 6th March 2019, I received this response to my review.

"Official business reply 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

6 Mar 2019, 16:10 18 hours ago"

This was my response today, 7th March 2019, when I have yet to be contacted by any consultant.

"7 Mar 2019, 10:02 a few seconds ago

Aaaaaah, Thank you for another new day of NO SERVICE! And so the "bull...." continues. Promises yesterday. NO SERVICE today! But wait, there's more... If you call now on this Special Vodacom Insurance offer, we'll even throw in.......... more BAD SERVICE! No consultant call. No quote. No answering of phone calls. No feedback. No response. No service. No accountability. So call Now!.... Get the best deal ever! Wait. I can't call now. I don't have a phone. It was ****** by some poor soul a week ago. Remember?! I guess I'm losing out on the Vodacom Insurance Special offer. Looks like I'm stuck with the NO SERVICE deal!"

Let's wait and see what the response will be to this 2nd review!