In January I signed a two-year broadband deal with Vodafone at £58 a month. There was a lot of publicity about in-contract price rises, and so I was reassured by a highlighted red box on the contract summary stating that the monthly cost at the end of my minimum term would be £58 – ie, no price rise for 24 months. The covering email pointed out that the contract summary is “an important document that … will form part of your contract if you choose to buy from us”. Two months later, Vodafone informed me the charge would be £66.35 a month. I complained, but it had started taking the money. I suspect I won’t be the only customer affected, in which case Vodafone could be making millions from breaking its contract terms.
SR, Kibworth, Leicestershire
There is no ambiguity in your contract. A box highlighted in scarlet on the first page blares the promise that you will still be paying £58 a month at the end of two years. The cover letter makes it clear that the terms are binding if you sign. On you, but not on Vodafone, it seems. In response to your complaints, the company blamed an error on the contract and insisted on its right to raise the charges. All it would offer was the chance to exit the agreement early and without the usual termination charge. It instructed you to bin the new hub if you do this.
Vodafone’s response to me was laconic. It told me what I already knew – it had offered you a right to terminate without penalty. When pressed, it blithely admitted “an error in part of the contract summary”. The most prominent part, that is. It apologised for the confusion.
This is not good enough. Contract law does allow traders to refuse to sell an item, or a service, at the price advertised, if they discover, at the point of purchase, that there was a mistake, but you were two months into your contract when the error came to light. I consulted consumer lawyer Gary Rycroft, partner with Joseph A Jones, who thinks the contract terms are enforceable. “In contract law, things get more complicated if the business has made an ‘honest mistake’ but it would need to prove how the mistake came about,” he says. ‘‘This ‘honest mistake’ is so minor to Vodafone but major to the customer that Vodafone should be forced to honour the deal.”
When I sent this opinion to Vodafone it focused the corporate mind wonderfully. You have now been refunded the price increase for the last two months, and offered a £14 a month discount until next April. This means you’ll be paying £52.35. The idea is that the £5.75 saving on the original monthly sum will protect you from any price rises next year.
Anyone else in an unresolved dispute with a provider can complain to the Communication and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme.
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