MOBILE PHONE CHARGES REMAIN A RIP-OFF

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Claire Thompson signed up with O2 and was hit with a £1,000 bill for using the internet, on a computer that was switched off. She took out a wireless internet deal for her 11-year-old daughter Natalie. She explained, "She was only ever on the computer for an hour or so a day, straight after she came home from school, so I didn't imagine it would be that expensive. The first bill was fine, £17.58, but then the second one was for £400. I panicked and cancelled the contract but 10 days later they sent me another bill for £600. I knew something was wrong because I'd cancelled the contract and we hadn't even had the computer switched on during that time."

Claire went through the itemised bill and found she was being charged for dozens of times when the computer was not in use. She said, "The times just didn't match up. Apparently Natalie had been logging on at five to six in the morning. There were other times when she was still at school and the computer was at home. And then they were asking for £600 for a time when the computer had been turned off completely. Something had gone wrong and when I rang customer services they said they'd had lots of complaints. They offered to halve it although they still want more than £500."

Customer service advisers told Claire there was probably a technical fault and suggested she take O2 to court to get the debt wiped out. After intervention by The People, O2 wiped out Claire's debt. An O2 spokesman said, "We are prepared to waive the charges in this instance as a gesture of goodwill. But we would advise that customers pick a service appropriate to their usage." And maybe O2 should ensure their "service" doesn't rip people off. (Source: Sunday People, Feb/07)

Patients are being banned from using mobiles in hospitals to force them to pay for expensive bedside phones. There are no safety reasons why mobile phones cannot be used but Health Service authorities have prohibited their use after signing deals with private telephone providers.

These companies, which have installed bedside entertainment systems under the Government's 'Patient Power' policy, have made millions by charging up to 75p a minute for incoming calls from mobiles and 49p from landlines.

A Health Department spokesman said, "We recognise that patients and staff should be able to use mobile phones more freely where it is appropriate to do so subject to medical and privacy considerations. Each trust should undertake its own local risk assessment and prepare their own guidelines on mobile phone use." (Source: Mail on Sunday, Nov/06)

A survey of the UK's major network providers found that a quarter of call centre staff get basic questions about the services they offer, such as tariffs and handset enquiries, wrong and were not able to answer four questions correctly. Staff stumbled over questions such as when the peak hours are and the rate of peak call costs. Vodafone staff finished bottom of the table, with half of staff failing to correctly answer four questions.

The research from comparison service onecompare.com found that dissatisfaction with mobile phone providers' customer service was high. Nearly 40% of phone users, representing around 8m people, were unhappy with the level of service they had received. Common complaints included a lack of knowledge of products and services, being kept on hold for too long, poor phone manner and a lack of efficiency.

Overall, provider Three finished bottom of the satisfaction table, followed by Orange. T-Mobile and Virgin customers were the happiest with the service they received. Onecompare director Anthony Ball said, "Customer acquisition continues to take priority but mobile companies, even the ones that have come out top in our report, have neglected the basics and dismissed the importance of good customer services."

He added, "The report simply highlights the inadequacies of most mobile phone networks across all investigated areas." The report added that a third of mobile users have suffered a lost or stolen phone. Three and Orange were the most efficient at replacing them but Vodafone and 02 dragged their feet. (Source: Mail on Sunday, Jan/06)

Phone users will continue to be ripped off to the tune of around £10 a month after watchdogs backed away from demands to cut the cost of calling a mobile. Ofcom announced it has decided against demanding reductions in 'termination' charges, the inflated amount mobile phone companies can charge for handling calls from rival networks or landlines. Under the current rules, mobile operators are allowed to levy a 'termination charge' of around 6p a minute for the privilege.

That is on top of the normal charge for the length of conversation made by the customer's own network. Experts estimate that consumers are being ripped off by up to £200m a year by the practice. It means the average phone user is being overcharged by up to £10 a month because the cost is so high. Bill Mieran, chairman of consumer group the Tele-communications Users' Association, said, "Consumers are still paying far too much for these charges. It would be extremely disappointing if the regulator does not do anything. Customers deserve a better deal from mobile operators."

The last time the regulator ordered call charges to be reduced, there was a long battle with the operators, who refused to accept the cuts and insisted the decision be referred to the Competition Commission. After the commission backed the regulator, they sought a High Court judicial review to block the move. Experts think this may also be a factor in the decision to delay further cuts Ofcom is also embroiled in a separate but parallel dispute with 3G operator '3' over whether it should be covered by price controls. (Source: Mail on Sunday)

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