HAVING signed up for a year’s contract for a USB ‘dongle’ modem, Carol Nichols, 70, was looking forward to finally keeping in closer contact with her family via her computer.But when the pensioner returned home she discovered she did not have Vodafone reception in her isolated valley and it therefore didn’t work.
However, this did not mean she could simply return it and get her money back.
When she returned to the Vodafone shop in Ronda, she was told ‘nothing could be done’ because her bank account had already been debited.
“They told me to ring the company and send a fax to get it all sorted out,” she explained.
“So I cancelled the direct debit and called customer services again,” said the pensioner, who moved to the village of Jimera de Liber from Gibraltar 12 years ago.
But even after sending the documents three times to the main office in Malaga she is still being chased for the money.
Worse than that Vodafone has now called in a debt collection company to chase her for the, so far, outstanding 144 euros.
“It is totally unfair and now I am extremely worried about my credit rating.
On top of that I might be forced to pay the whole year.”
When contacted by the Olive Press, an operator at Vodafone said: “There is no record of her documents.
She needs to pay the outstanding amount in order to cancel the debt, and then ask for a refund.”
Vodafone are now investigating the case.
http://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2011/12/03/vodafone-dongle-disaster-in-spain/
