I recently realised that mobile network Three (now Vodafone Three) has been taking payments from my Halifax bank account for almost 15 years after my contract with them ended.
The company has refused to refund me about £1,250 in unauthorised payments and instead pointed me towards something called loyaltypenaltyclaim.com.
Why should I have to contact them? Please help.
S.A., London.
You explained how you had taken out a two-year contract with Three, paying £41 a month for a dongle, which ended in 2010.
A dongle is a USB stick which the user can plug into a computer and get access to mobile broadband.
Denied: Mobile phone company Three has refused to refund a reader about £1,250 in unauthorised payments
A few months ago, on scrutinising your Halifax bank statements, you spotted a payment of £8.50 you didn’t recognise.
On looking over older documents, you discovered that four months after the dongle contract stopped, small amounts started being taken again by Three, beginning with just £3.10, then £7.50, then around £8.50 every month for over a decade.
Furious that the provider had been taking money for around 15 years without permission, you contacted its customer service department. It told you it agreed the account had been inactive since 2010 and showed no usage.
It was then odd that the call handler directed you to loyaltypenaltyclaim.com regarding your complaint.
You thought this was a claims management firm, but it is the website of a class-action lawsuit against mobile companies – Vodafone, Three (now merged to become Vodafone Three), O2 and EE – alleging they overcharged millions of customers by continuing to bill for mobile handsets after initial contracts ended when they should have only been charging for usage.
These firms have effectively been accused of penalising loyalty – hence the lawsuit’s name. The case is due to come to court, though no date is set.
If it succeeds, eligible customers (those on contracts between October 2015 and March 2025) may receive a payout of £104 each on average.
Affected customers do not need to sign up to the class action to be included (though they can choose to opt out).
Also, you were not technically a continuing customer – which you repeatedly reminded the company once the erroneous payments came to light. And a £104 payout is not going to make up for your £1,250 losses.
After many approaches by you to Vodafone Three, it eventually offered you a £100 refund in late September, which you rejected as derisory. Instead, you decided to make a direct debit indemnity claim with Halifax.
As with a credit or debit card chargeback, the bank repays the customer making the claim, then asks the company involved whether it wishes to dispute it. A benefit of this scheme is that there is no time limit for making a claim.
Under the guarantee, it is the bank that normally repays customers within ten days of being informed. If it finds the firm has done nothing wrong, the money is taken back.
When you contacted Halifax, you also requested reimbursement of overdraft charges as you argued you would not have gone into the red if the funds had not been taken. The whole claim was refused so you came to me.
I felt you were entitled to full reimbursement so first asked Vodafone Three why it had taken these payments, and urged it to refund you. The provider then dialled up its enquiries.
A few days later its investigation found no usage on the account, although it had few details due to a systems switch in 2016.
The new system did not show your account as cancelled. Other than that, there was no explanation for why it took the money. I am pleased to report that it agreed to return the 15 years of erroneous debits.
This was arranged via the direct debit guarantee scheme on the second attempt, with Halifax refunding the money and then recouping it from Vodafone Three. Halifax also paid you £40 as an apology for not acting on your initial claim.
Vodafone Three said you should not have been directed to loyaltypenaltyclaim.com and this error is being investigated by customer services. Because you were in the right, Halifax also refunded your £200 overdraft charges.
A spokesman for Vodafone Three says: ‘We’re sorry for the inconvenience this has caused to the customer. We are glad we have been able to sort the issue and refund them.’
You thought the company’s response fell short but are relieved to have £1,450 back in your account for Christmas.
Your experience is a lesson to readers that it is vital to go over bank statements regularly so erroneous payments can be stopped in their tracks.
Can’t get a refund for useless e-vouchers
I save monthly with Park Christmas Savings club and use the accumulated pot to buy vouchers online.
This year I chose to spend my £500 savings on Love2shop e-vouchers, as I can exchange them for other retailers’ e-gift vouchers.
I decided to convert £200 to a voucher with a company called Urban – thinking it was the clothes store Urban Outfitters.
It turned out to be something to do with having spa treatments in your own home.
It wasn’t what I wanted, but I decided I could make use of them, only to find the company doesn’t cover the area where I live.
It refused a refund and told me to go to Love2shop. But Love2shop told me to go back to Urban. Please help.
J.T., Staffordshire.
Many people turn to savings clubs to help them budget for Christmas throughout the year.
You have used Park Christmas for many years, this year putting aside £85 each month to save relatively painlessly for your festive treats.
But you ended up on the verge of needing a calming massage after your failed efforts to get back £200 in vouchers that you could not use.
I thought the responses of both companies were on the Grinchy side, considering it was clear you couldn’t use Urban’s vouchers.
I contacted Urban, being the retailer you (reluctantly) intended to use, and I’m happy to say between it and Love2shop, it quickly found some festive cheer and arranged your refund.
- Write to Sally Hamilton at Sally Sorts It, Money Mail, Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT or email sally@dailymail.co.uk ¿ include phone number, address and a note addressed to the offending organisation giving them permission to talk to Sally Hamilton. Please do not send original documents as we cannot take responsibility for them. No legal responsibility can be accepted by the Daily Mail for answers given.