VODACOM *****S money from their clients

<p>It is with utter disgust that we have discovered that Vodacom delete a cell number and recycle it for re-issuing even if there is a positive credit balance on the cell number. A friend of ours left SA on Sunday 19th June 2016 and his last call was from OR Tambo airport just before he boarded. He subsequentrly switched his phone off while overseas (He had a positive balance of around R300 or so in his cellular account - this was a pre-paid number 079) and when he arrived back in SA on Wed 21st Dec 2016 his number no longer worked. He went to 3 different VodaShops and no body was able to assist him and eventually he bought a new pre-paid number 076.</p> <p>After many phone calls to the Customer Care, we discovered that the number will be deleted if inactive for 6 months, yet if there is a positive balance - this should not be allowed. At least the positive credit should be paid back to the rightful person that used to be the owner of said number and be reimbursed or credited to the new number he had to purchase. Our friend still has his simcard that was his original 079 number but upon requesting the Solution Department to investigate and find out the exact credit balance and transfer this to the new 076 number, I have been told that the records no longer exist. Does Vodacom want to tell me that they do not keep backups of their database??????? Then they must go back to their backups, find the reocrds of the original 079 simcard and pay back the money that is not theirs to keep.</p> <p>I thought we had a very good consumer protection law and if gift vouchers have to be honoured for 3 years, so Vodacom should not be allowed to pocket the money from their customers positive balance on their cellphone account after 6 months.</p> <p>I do have a reference number as I have insisted that our friend be credited or paid back the money that was in his account on his previous cell phone number.</p> <p>I really am disgusted with Vodacom to simply delete and recycle a cell number even with a positive balance and this was not a few cents.</p> <p>I have been told by the Customer Care Centre that it is policy to recycle inactive numbers immediately after 6 months and that if there was still money on the account you loose this - Vodacom simply pocket that. WHAT *******</p> <p>I do hope I get a response and a person that can assist and make sure that the money owed to our friend is credited to his now new cell number.</p> <p> </p>