Before Orange goes any further into the data card business, it needs to address functionality and support issues with its products. This is the third different data card I've tested from Orange and all have been problematic. The customer support regarding these issues is the worst I have ever encountered in any company, large or small.
Orange on your laptop? Think again!
The Orange card, experienced problems at installation. If there was any suggestion of another Fusion card having ever been installed on this computer, it wouldn't work at all. There were no error messages given, instead, when you inserted the Orange card it would sometimes find the right drivers and sometimes report the card as unknown although it would always identify it as a Fusion card. The only solution was to go to Add/Remove Software in Control Panel and remove any entries for 3G cards. Even this only partially solved the problem as this still leaves entries in the registry. Expecting a user to go to the registry and clean that up is patently absurd.
The Orange card performed poorly in these tests and despite trying to get a resolution from technical support during the tests, we were unable to get any connection to Exchange or run the VPN at all. Initially the problems looked like a DNS issue but eventually we were able to find the Exchange server, just unable to log in.
In a post test interview with Orange we were told that we had inadvertently been directed to their consumer not business technical support. They have no experience of the card and couldn't do anything on the day to help us.
Orange admits that there is a problem with anyone trying to use Outlook Web Access if they are not using HTTPS. This problem has been around for a little while but is not on their web pages and should have been easy for any of the technical support teams, consumer or business, to find.
The problem of getting a connection to the VPN is still under investigation. We have ruled out latency as the cause. We have also tried different Orange networks as it appears that depending on what you ask Orange for when you buy the card, depends on whether you are placed on their VPN supporting network. This is something that users buying their own card in order to connect to a business network need to take into account.
During the tests were couldn't find any wireless LAN hotspots. It turned out that this card does not support wireless LAN and you need to enable the built-in wireless LAN card on your laptop, assuming your laptop has one. Then you need to configure the Orange software to find a hotspot. However, it was only when we gained access to a data card specialist who asked us to tell him exactly which version of the card and the serial number off the back that we were able to confirm this.
Having had problems testing Orange in the past, we took particular care to outline what we were doing and how when working with Orange to secure their equipment for the test. To then come across all these problems was a real shock and there was a point where we considered removing the card from the test.
The Orange card performed poorly in these tests and despite trying to get a resolution from technical support during the tests, we were unable to get any connection to Exchange or run the VPN at all. Initially the problems looked like a DNS issue but eventually we were able to find the Exchange server, just unable to log in.
In a post test interview with Orange we were told that we had inadvertently been directed to their consumer not business technical support. They have no experience of the card and couldn't do anything on the day to help us.
Orange admits that there is a problem with anyone trying to use Outlook Web Access if they are not using HTTPS. This problem has been around for a little while but is not on their web pages and should have been easy for any of the technical support teams, consumer or business, to find.
The problem of getting a connection to the VPN is still under investigation. We have ruled out latency as the cause. We have also tried different Orange networks as it appears that depending on what you ask Orange for when you buy the card, depends on whether you are placed on their VPN supporting network. This is something that users buying their own card in order to connect to a business network need to take into account.
During the tests were couldn't find any wireless LAN hotspots. It turned out that this card does not support wireless LAN and you need to enable the built-in wireless LAN card on your laptop, assuming your laptop has one. Then you need to configure the Orange software to find a hotspot. However, it was only when we gained access to a data card specialist who asked us to tell him exactly which version of the card and the serial number off the back that we were able to confirm this.
Having had problems testing Orange in the past, we took particular care to outline what we were doing and how when working with Orange to secure their equipment for the test. To then come across all these problems was a real shock and there was a point where we considered removing the card from the test.
Advantages Er.....................
Disadvantages Don't expect any competent service from Orange
Here's a note of an e-mail my wife sent to Orange having treid to add a user and a handset onto our Business Tariff.
I think the problem is that you cannot complain to a manager at Orange, always just a "supervisor", so the management has no idea how appalling the service is.
Naturally, we have had no call back from Orange, even though we spend a lot of money per month with them , on 3G Mobile Office charges ( a really bad product, clunky and unreliable) , roaming charges (outrageously expensive) and normal calls. We will be changing service provider once our current stationery is used up. Are any operators particularly good?
"I have just received extremely poor customer service and I would like a manager to phone me back urgently on the above number or 07971 584569.
I phoned on Friday to order another phone to share our service plan - account number 1850530. I ordered a Samsung D900, for which I was told there was no charge. I also ordered a package of 120 texts which I was told was £4.00. I was given the reference TB02044210 and was told it would be delivered today between 9 and 5.
I have waited in, specially, all day today but no phone. I telephoned 345 at just after 4pm. After being on hold I asked if the phone was still likely to come to day. I was on hold again and the operator came back, after speaking to sales, and said there was no record of my reference number and it was not a current reference number anyway and there was no record against our postcode! I then asked to be put through to sales so that I could try and order the phone again. I was on hold for another 10 minutes and eventually the operator came back and said there had been a mistake and they had found the reference number but the phone had not been dispatched because there was a charge of £99.00. I was also told that 120 texts cost £8.00 not £4.00. I was then put through to sales so that I could discuss this. By this time I had been on the call for more than 45 minutes. The sales man said that the reference was correct but that there was a charge of £99.00 with a note "awaiting cheque"? I was never told there was a charge, I specifically said when I originally ordered the phone, that I did not want to pay for a phone and was told that the D900 was available free of charge. The sales man said that he did not know why it said "awaiting cheque" as you do not take cheques. I said that I wanted to complain and asked to speak to a manager. I was then cut off and despite waiting have received no call back. I do not wish to be on hold indefinitely and would ask a manager to ring me straight back.
I have wasted the whole of today waiting for a delivery which nobody had the courtesy to tell me was not coming and I would have thought, after I was cut off (unless it was deliberate) that someone would, again, have the courtesy to call me back. Nothing. If I do not receive an immediate response I shall complain to your Managing Director directly"
Worst service I've EVER received from any company - EVER!
Disadvantages Don't expect any competent service from Orange
Here's a note of an e-mail my wife sent to Orange having treid to add a user and a handset onto our Business Tariff.
I think the problem is that you cannot complain to a manager at Orange, always just a "supervisor", so the management has no idea how appalling the service is.
Naturally, we have had no call back from Orange, even though we spend a lot of money per month with them , on 3G Mobile Office charges ( a really bad product, clunky and unreliable) , roaming charges (outrageously expensive) and normal calls. We will be changing service provider once our current stationery is used up. Are any operators particularly good?
"I have just received extremely poor customer service and I would like a manager to phone me back urgently on the above number or 07971 584569.
I phoned on Friday to order another phone to share our service plan - account number 1850530. I ordered a Samsung D900, for which I was told there was no charge. I also ordered a package of 120 texts which I was told was £4.00. I was given the reference TB02044210 and was told it would be delivered today between 9 and 5.
I have waited in, specially, all day today but no phone. I telephoned 345 at just after 4pm. After being on hold I asked if the phone was still likely to come to day. I was on hold again and the operator came back, after speaking to sales, and said there was no record of my reference number and it was not a current reference number anyway and there was no record against our postcode! I then asked to be put through to sales so that I could try and order the phone again. I was on hold for another 10 minutes and eventually the operator came back and said there had been a mistake and they had found the reference number but the phone had not been dispatched because there was a charge of £99.00. I was also told that 120 texts cost £8.00 not £4.00. I was then put through to sales so that I could discuss this. By this time I had been on the call for more than 45 minutes. The sales man said that the reference was correct but that there was a charge of £99.00 with a note "awaiting cheque"? I was never told there was a charge, I specifically said when I originally ordered the phone, that I did not want to pay for a phone and was told that the D900 was available free of charge. The sales man said that he did not know why it said "awaiting cheque" as you do not take cheques. I said that I wanted to complain and asked to speak to a manager. I was then cut off and despite waiting have received no call back. I do not wish to be on hold indefinitely and would ask a manager to ring me straight back.
I have wasted the whole of today waiting for a delivery which nobody had the courtesy to tell me was not coming and I would have thought, after I was cut off (unless it was deliberate) that someone would, again, have the courtesy to call me back. Nothing. If I do not receive an immediate response I shall complain to your Managing Director directly"
Worst service I've EVER received from any company - EVER!
Don't Join Orange
I would not recommend Orange to anyone. Their Customer service is absolutely abysmal. As I type this, with one hand, the other one is holding a phone that has been on 'hold' for ONE HOUR and 14 minutes, with no indication of when I might get answered. Contract customers can call "free" on 150 so you have the choice of frying your brain for an hour or so; or if you have to call from a landline because of a problem with your phone you can call them on their mobile rate 07973 number and thereby increase their profits. This terrible experience is not unusual; the recorded voice on the customer service line always says they are "currently receiving a very high number of calls" whatever time of day I call. Don't, don't, don't join Orange whatever you do; if you ever have to call customer services you will regret it. I have to give one star because it won't let me give none.
String and Yoghurt pots would be better.
Orange custmer services are TERRIBLE. Waiting times are disgraceful. False promises are the norm. You will be told the problem will be rectified immediately and you will be phoning back the next day to sort it out again.
If you want a laugh, try getting a Port Authoristaion Code (PAC) from them to take your number to a new network. OFFCOM rules say this MUST happen in 2 days. I've been waiting a month. Every time I am told it will be sent in post that day, but it never is. I've been told it'll be texted to me in 10 mins - Guess what? I'm still waiting.
AVOID AT ALL COSTS - two yoghurt pots and a bit of string is better, less stressful and cheaper! Summary: Terrible Customer Services and sky high prices
If you want a laugh, try getting a Port Authoristaion Code (PAC) from them to take your number to a new network. OFFCOM rules say this MUST happen in 2 days. I've been waiting a month. Every time I am told it will be sent in post that day, but it never is. I've been told it'll be texted to me in 10 mins - Guess what? I'm still waiting.
AVOID AT ALL COSTS - two yoghurt pots and a bit of string is better, less stressful and cheaper! Summary: Terrible Customer Services and sky high prices
Pay As You Go...
Orange, What a mistake I made there!!! I changed my network to pay as you go .. Just talk. I thought great Just pay for calls and sms messages. Well not only do I feel robbed But often at a crucial moment I have run out of credit, I frantically scratch off my new top up card and dial the top up number ...only to hear...Sorry this services is temporarily unavailable!!! arghhhhhhhh!!!
not again!!! I send sms messages ....they arrive a few days later??? and I receive sms messages hours or days after they have been sent. On a few occasions my phone has gone crazy, throws my messages out and robs my credit!!!
What more can I say other than either sort out your network please orange ... Or can I afford another mobile phone???
not again!!! I send sms messages ....they arrive a few days later??? and I receive sms messages hours or days after they have been sent. On a few occasions my phone has gone crazy, throws my messages out and robs my credit!!!
What more can I say other than either sort out your network please orange ... Or can I afford another mobile phone???
Problems with P800 and Customer service. AGAIN!
Last week, Orange replaced my P800 (that I've had since Feb) as it kept switching off randomly. The replacement arrived, and since then, I have a poor signal, meaning I can't make calls in places I've made calls during the last 5 years. At least twice a day I get the 10 second restart error (which is a pain), my contacts gave me not enough memory errors forcing a format of the internal drive, and this morning it crashed writing a text message.
I called Orange and complained, I managed to get through to the most snottyest bloke who ran the diognistic test, then proceeded to tell me the symptoms are typical of a P800. I expressed my concern he was expecting me to use a phone I considered to be of poor quality, but he wasn't interested, just telling me he'll pass the details onto a technicial bloke and they'll perhaps get back to me over the weekend.
I insisted he looked again at all the problems I'm having and asked to speak to his supervisor, he refused to put me through and asked me 'Do you always ask for a supervisor if you can't get your own way'
Anyone heard such a rediculous story???
If this is how their customer services are I wouldn't reccomend them to anyone.
Tom
I called Orange and complained, I managed to get through to the most snottyest bloke who ran the diognistic test, then proceeded to tell me the symptoms are typical of a P800. I expressed my concern he was expecting me to use a phone I considered to be of poor quality, but he wasn't interested, just telling me he'll pass the details onto a technicial bloke and they'll perhaps get back to me over the weekend.
I insisted he looked again at all the problems I'm having and asked to speak to his supervisor, he refused to put me through and asked me 'Do you always ask for a supervisor if you can't get your own way'
Anyone heard such a rediculous story???
If this is how their customer services are I wouldn't reccomend them to anyone.
Tom
The SUN SAYS NO!!!!! To Orange!
Never Use Orange!
A battle of 6 months to get a problem with a phone resolved, the day of the last useless phone call was capped nicely with a full page newspaper add by Orange claiming to be the top of the polls for customer service. I sent letter, none were replied to, phone calls were never returned, and the problem was never resolved. The serice does provide the best charges for roaming in Europe, but now 121 have come close and the level of customer service is better with them.
Never, ever, ever use Orange
Never, ever, ever use Orange
How Rude!
I think the person who sounds like they could be an Orange employee could do with a change of job!
Calling customers whingers because they have a complaint about a service is not polite and tends to validate the views expressed on this blog rather than persuade people that Orange staff are polite and helpful it rather suggests the oposite.
As for everyone being overbilled, I am sure you are right. That does NOT however make the practice acceptable. If that is your attitude you really should get out of that job. I just hope it is not that attitude of the Orange Company as well as your own.
Calling customers whingers because they have a complaint about a service is not polite and tends to validate the views expressed on this blog rather than persuade people that Orange staff are polite and helpful it rather suggests the oposite.
As for everyone being overbilled, I am sure you are right. That does NOT however make the practice acceptable. If that is your attitude you really should get out of that job. I just hope it is not that attitude of the Orange Company as well as your own.
I'm sick of complaining Orange customers
If the customer doesn't like it then they are welcome to go else where. I have to listen to complaints all day everyday and I am SICK of it! So what if they have no coverage. They should have checked that first before signing up with Orange. They signed the contracts now they have to pay, that is all there is to it! Everyone gets overbilled. That's life, so get used to it! People coming in the shop all day, "my phone bill is too big", "you have over billed me", "why can't I get a signal" "you didn't tell me you were changing the contract" on and on and on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
They are all whingers and I wish they would just **** OFF!!
They are all whingers and I wish they would just **** OFF!!
Demonstration outside the Orange Shop in Scarborough
Someone just called me to ask if we could all get together outside the Orange shop in Scarborough on the weekend of the leaflet distribution with a few banners/placards and such, just to let people know what we are doing. We would all be getting together anyway for the leaflet distribution and we do need somewhere central to meet. I am thinking about it and will talk to Sam. He is dealing with the legal side. It may be that we would have to apply for a licence from the council and inform the police before doing anything that could be considered a demonstration. The other thing to consider would be the other traders. It would not be fair to interrupt their business because of Orange. With the amount of people turning up, it could cause a problem. Anyway Sam will know where we stand legally and I will let you all know in good time!
Amazing how many people are willing to give their time and resources free of charge to stick it up orange. So far, that's a lawyer, a printer, 3 business people and a whole host of ordinary people who have just had enough of Orange. So much so that they are actually doing something about it.
Well done everyone and many many thanks for all the support.
I am sure that once the leaflets are out then perhaps they will stop ignoring the people they have treated so badly. If not then the campaign will continue until they do listen.
Leaflet distributors
Many thanks for the offers to distribute the leaflets free of charge. There will be tea, coffee, sandwiches and cakes for everyone. Also transport to and from the meeting point for all those who cannot find there own way there. So if you need picking up then let me know!
I will post the dates for distribution on the blog as soon as I have the leaflets from the printers. I have the proofs already, after a few little tweaks here and there we will be good to go!
We are all really looking forward to this.
I will post the dates for distribution on the blog as soon as I have the leaflets from the printers. I have the proofs already, after a few little tweaks here and there we will be good to go!
We are all really looking forward to this.
Our New Leaflet
Thanks to our sponsor, we have an order for 20,000 of these on the way to the printers as I am typing. This generous donation was made by someone else with a story to tell about their dealings with Orange Mobile.Having taken out a business contract with Orange covering more than 15 phones he was assured that calls between the phones on that contract would be free. So taking Orange at their word, his company used the phones as per the agreement. At the end of the month, his company was invoiced for more that £3000/phone! Orange said they would sort it out. They persued his company for the money, knowing full well that the company did not actually owe the money.
Eventually his business suffered severe problems with its credit rating and could no longer maintain credit with some of its suppliers. Orange sold that "debt" to a bunch of thugs thinly disguised as debt collectors, effectivly washing their hands of the matter. That business went bust costing the jobs of more than 30 people. Orange never appologised and have refused to discuss this travasty. The original contracts with Orange and the bills are still available for viewing if anyone else is in similar dificulties with Orange. It is quite obvious that the bills are impossible under the contracts but that did not stop Orange destroying a business and the livelyhoods of more that 30 people.
Stranded
Once again my reliable old phone has been let down by a crappy network. Why can't they get it right?Now I will have to get another contract while I still have 12 months left on my useless Orange contract..........
£40/month and I am missing meetings and losing business as customers are telling me my phone is switched off when it isn't. They are all sweetness and light before you get trapped into their contracts but try getting any service from them.. No chance! Don't use Orange they really suck!
Advertising for this blog
If the owner of this blog is willing then I would like to offer my services.
I can have say, 10,000 -20,000 leaflets printed advertising the blog and asking people to participate. Then have them delivered around your local area to generate more local trafic. Let me know what you think. There would be no charge. I have been ripped off by Orange as well so I know what it's like. Let me know ASAP. I can't wait to get started!
I can have say, 10,000 -20,000 leaflets printed advertising the blog and asking people to participate. Then have them delivered around your local area to generate more local trafic. Let me know what you think. There would be no charge. I have been ripped off by Orange as well so I know what it's like. Let me know ASAP. I can't wait to get started!
That Manageress
If I were you you I would make sure that Manager didn't work again. Send a copy of this blog and the address along with her name and photo to all the employment agencies and businesses in the Thompson local. It wouldn't cost much you could do it by email! Or would that be too cruel? SHe might just have been having a bad day! (Not)
Orange does it again!!!!!
A FATHER from Robin Hood's Bay who claimed his teenage daughter was badly treated by mobile phone company Orange has praised the Whitby Gazette for sorting the problem out.
Dad Cliff Southcombe told the Gazette: "I don't think we would have got anything done if it hadn't been for the Whitby Gazette."
The trouble for Mr Southcombe's 16-year-old daughter Laura, a student at Whitby Community College, began when Orange persuaded her to upgrade her mobile phone because she was a loyal customer. They sent her a new phone and assured Mr Southcombe, who signed the original contract with the firm due to Laura's age, it would not cost her any more than the £30 a month she had been paying for almost a year.
But then she found she was overdrawn on her bank account because Orange had taken £214 from it. When Mr Southcombe contacted them they admitted they had made a mistake and refunded £150. That still left £64 and when Laura herself tried to find out the reason for the charge she was so rudely treated she was reduced to tears.
Further attempts by Mr Southcombe to sort out the problem failed and the charge went up to £94. Despite his phone calls and letters to the firm he could get no reply and Orange then cut off Laura's phone and threatened to hand over the alleged debt to a credit agency.
The charge went up to more than £100 and it was at that stage, that Mr Southcombe contacted the Whitby Gazette.
A phone call to Orange from a Gazette reporter brought a swift response. A spokesman for Orange said they had investigated Mr Southcombe's case and admitted that due to a clerical error he was incorrectly charged an upgrade fee and full reimbursement would be made.
Some days later, Mr Southcombe was able to tell the Gazette that the matter had finally been settled.
He said: "They have completely written off the so-called debt and re-instated her original contract so this month her bill was only £26.
"We had tried everything, letters and lengthy phone calls – one Sunday afternoon I sat for two hours trying to get through without success, and we were getting nowhere.
"We're happy about it now and we want to say a big thank you to the Whitby Gazette."
The Gazette ran the story about Laura and her dad's trouble with the firm last month.
19 January 2007
Trying again.....
BEWARE! AVOID THIS SHOP AT ALL COSTS!!!Trying to return faulty goods to the Orange shop in Scarborough is likley to be a bit of a problem if you paid by any kind of card.
While trying to return a blue tooth head set I was asked to place my card in the machine and enter my pin number. This I did. The next thing I know my card is rendered useless and I have to wait for the bank to re activate my card, which will take days!!!!
Then they have the nerve to tell me that despite the fact that they sold me faulty goods, messed up my card and left me with no way to access any money, they refused to allow the refund in cash!!!!
When I question this and refuse to accept this answer the manager tells me she will call the police!!!
You are asking yourself, "what did he do"? Shout and Swear? raise his fists?
No. I did none of those things. I did not even raise my voice.
I simply refused to accept the decision of the manager.
That in her opinion is reason to call the police!! Just disagree with her and that's what you get!!!
This is how the manager at the Orange shop in Scarborough deals with a complaint.
In the end I left the shop and left the head set. I want nothing further to do with that shop or the horrible woman who Orange have put there to manage and look after the customers.
My disgust with her behaviour lead me to write this blogg in the hope that it will warn others away from doing business with the Orange Shop in Scarborough. At least until she is removed as manager.
(Update)
Well I finally got the refund! It was touch and go there for a while, but the staff were far more competent than the manager. At first the till tried to refuse the card and I thought they would mess up the new card as well. But a quick thinking shop assistant decided to use another terminal and it was accepted!
While trying to return a blue tooth head set I was asked to place my card in the machine and enter my pin number. This I did. The next thing I know my card is rendered useless and I have to wait for the bank to re activate my card, which will take days!!!!
Then they have the nerve to tell me that despite the fact that they sold me faulty goods, messed up my card and left me with no way to access any money, they refused to allow the refund in cash!!!!
When I question this and refuse to accept this answer the manager tells me she will call the police!!!
You are asking yourself, "what did he do"? Shout and Swear? raise his fists?
No. I did none of those things. I did not even raise my voice.
I simply refused to accept the decision of the manager.
That in her opinion is reason to call the police!! Just disagree with her and that's what you get!!!
This is how the manager at the Orange shop in Scarborough deals with a complaint.
- They sell faulty goods
- They destroy a bank card leaving you with no access to your account
- They refuse to refund you, using the fact that your card no longer works as the excuse for not refunding you.
- They will not give you cash, despite accepting cash as a method of payment and the fact that the reason you have no card to accept the refund is their machine invalidated your card!!!!!
- When you complain, they threaten to call the police!!!
In the end I left the shop and left the head set. I want nothing further to do with that shop or the horrible woman who Orange have put there to manage and look after the customers.
My disgust with her behaviour lead me to write this blogg in the hope that it will warn others away from doing business with the Orange Shop in Scarborough. At least until she is removed as manager.
SO BE WARNED!
- I HAVE LOST £39.99
- BEEN THREATENED WITH POLICE ACTION
- BEEN INSULTED
(Update)
Well I finally got the refund! It was touch and go there for a while, but the staff were far more competent than the manager. At first the till tried to refuse the card and I thought they would mess up the new card as well. But a quick thinking shop assistant decided to use another terminal and it was accepted!
This limited success does not however excuse the ignorant management of the shop or the inherent unfairness of the refund policy of Orange.
In this day and age when people swap banks and credit cards as often as we do, to take advantage of better interest rates, or just to get better service, it is unacceptable to allow Orange to refuse a refund on the basis that the card used to purchase the item is no longer in use. This is especially irritating when the card is no longer available due to the incompetence of Orange itself!!!
The attitude taken by Orange is arrogant. Although I have the refund I still feel angry about the way I was treated and threatened for simply trying to politely exercise my rights as a consumer.
Why should the consumer suffer for the incompetence of the retailer?
Why should the consumer be left without access to their bank account?
Why should it be the consumer who has to take time off to sort out the mess created by the retailer?
Why should the consumer have to tolerate insults from the retailer when the retailer is at fault.
They act as if it is the fault of the customer for buying faulty goods.
Well anyway I have forwarded the address of this blog to the home address of one of the directors of Orange. Not that I believe anything will be done but I really hope that manageress gets the sack!
13 months at £60/month.......
I am with Orange on pay monthly. I have a 18 month contract, which I have 13 months left of. I moved to orange because it was the best network to be with regarding the signal as it was stronger. All was great, the on 12th January the signal goes down by four Bars inside. We had full signal prior to this. I rang Orange, they said the mast in our area was being worked on and it would be back up and running by the 24th, sooooo I took their excuse and waited patiently. Come 25th January, still no signal !! So, I rang them up again, to be told a mast four miles away was now being worked on, and that would be up by the 4th Feb!!!!!! I'm telling her that it wasn't fair as I was unable to make and recieve calls or text messages. Even with a bar or two when lucky I couldn't do anything with my nokia N73. Soooooo, the lady on the phone said I was able to claim as I was unable to use my phone. Anyway, come the 5th Feb, I was getting rather fed up !!!! So I rang again !!!! Told them that I was still having a problem, they then said the works are going on longer than they should be. Then a week later I rang again, only to have a right cow on the phone telling me there was never a problem with the signal and it is how it has always been !!!! I lost my rag. She continued to talk over me, also stating I was not eligable for compensation. I rung again day befor yesterday, spoke to a lovely chap, he went through the usual things again, trying different things with my handset and not getting anywhere. He agreed that there was a problem with the Mast !!!! Finally I thought we were getting somewhere, he said he was off to have a word with his superviser, he came back saying his superviser was having none of it!!!!!! OH MY GOD!!!!! Anyway, he kindly wrote a detailed email to the tech support, and said he would ring me back once they replied. Still waiting.
I am going to ring again on monday with a list of numbers of peope who are too experiencing problems. The thing that is annoying me here, is they are quick enough to take my money, yet not quick enough to help me. It is so frustrating. I have two phones on my account both having problems, yet I pay £60 a month for nothing. I am so mad, I hate orange but I am stuck with them.I am contacting Trading Standards on Monday and the North Wales Feret, I have had enough !!!!!!!
I am going to ring again on monday with a list of numbers of peope who are too experiencing problems. The thing that is annoying me here, is they are quick enough to take my money, yet not quick enough to help me. It is so frustrating. I have two phones on my account both having problems, yet I pay £60 a month for nothing. I am so mad, I hate orange but I am stuck with them.I am contacting Trading Standards on Monday and the North Wales Feret, I have had enough !!!!!!!
Orange threatened my elderly mother...
When we moved my mother into sheltered acomodation it was so we would feel that she was being looked after and we would be told by the warden if there was any problems. We also got her a mobile phone so she could call us or the warden from where ever she was in the bungalow. Also we would be able to call her knowing she would not have to stop what she was doing and try and get to the living room etc.When she got her second bill from Orange it was for over £400! She was on a tariff which allowed her 400 mins/month!
When she called Orange to ask them about it they refussed to discuss it and told her it must be paid on time or they would take action to recover the monies. When she told them she couldn't pay as she didn't have the money they threatened her with baliffs. Thye made her so afraid that she stopped going out, stopped using the phone and kept the curtains closed. When the warden asked if she was ok, she begged him not to tell anyone she was in and not to call her family.
Luckily the warden did call me and I managed to get the full story out of her.
It turned out she did not owe £400 and still had 300+ minuets to roll over to the next month.
Needless to say we will be cancelling the contract with Orange and I sincerly hope they try to get the money for the remainder of the contract, I really hope they do.
They are scum! They knew full well how old my mother was but they still used thise tactics to get her to pay money she didn't even owe.
The answer is never use Orange. Tell your friends not to use Orange, because if you do use them then you are putting money into the pockets of a bunch of cowardly thugs who get their kicks bullying old ladies.
Re: Jones-v-Orange Chester County Court
Re: Jones-v-Orange Chester County Court
Having posted the thread below people have come forward and contacted us having experienced similar problems and are now using the County Court Judgement ruling as a Precedence to attempt to squash orange into refunding them their monies!
Good luck to everyone - there is help out there if you use it!
Good luck to everyone - there is help out there if you use it!
Orange slamed in court for over billing
Jones -v- Orange 25.01.06 Chester County Court Case No.5CH05633
For all your members who have posted complaints and problems with Orange's Mobile Office Card. We experienced all of their problems - card not working to its potential, no network coverage and massive overbilling! After 14 months of getting nowhere with Orange we took them to Court last week and gained Judgement against them for refund of costs, excessive bill payments and damages. We obtained some copies of our itemised internet useage - which they initially said they couldn't provide until we said then prove we've used it then- and found the bills were duplicating anything from 2 to 36 tines per page you viewed - hence the overinflated costs for megabyte useage. We at one stage had only used 18.3 megabytes and Orange billed us in excess of 144 megabytes - a massive £300 plus overbilling!Our card was initially purchased Aug '04. No need to ask if we still have a contract with them!
The one question that Orange would never answer : Are there any other people experiencing the same problems as us with this Card?
Keep at them and quote the above Court case - they will have to refund you! We even got awarded damages for poor service and poor product! We are willing to provide statement and evidence for anyone who requires it. Though Orange should settle with you if you quote the above Court Case!
Regards and luck to all!
More users with useless networking from Orange
Today's rant about the inability to use my Orange mobile phone because of persistent "no network coverage" appears to have struck a chord with some of our readers.
Jonathan held up his hands to say he wasn't responsible for the network congestion: "In reference to your article asking Orange users to get off the phone, it can't be me who's clogging up the network because Orange seem to delight in cutting me off half way through my conversation with the excuse 'Network Busy'. I know [it was busy] - I was using it, but obviously some other customer is more important to Orange than I am."
At least Jonathan can get on. I haven't been able to use the phone all day and it's now 3.30pm (GMT) and still no joy. Still, it appears we are not alone.
Nick wrote: "Me too! With my £200 a month bill its enough to make me think of moving to one of the so-called 'inferior networks'. Please try and find out what their excuse is for four to five months of continuous appalling network performance (I'm in central London)."
Tom chipped in: "Too bloody right. Orange are getting worse and worse... and what's more they really don't like their customers very much. Also, with all the problems Vizzavi are having why isn't anyone talking about the orange.net portal's crapness as well?"
Then there's this from Stephen in Edinburgh: "Just to let you know it's not just Orange, but Vodafone is just as bad. Not that you'll feel much better for it but I guess I just needed to get that of my chest!"
Oh, and someone calling themselves "John" (I've changed the name to protect identity) wrote to say: "I've been using my Orange phone all morning - it ain't a problem with the whole network, just either your area or your phone."
Orange putting my daughter in danger
We bought my daughter a mobile phone from Orange so she could contact us in an emergency.(She is diabetic and also has epilepsy). We were very careful to tell them that it was essential to have as much coverage as possible so the danger to our daughter would be minimised. For 2 weeks everything was fine. The phone seemed to work and apart from the over billing and the problems with the Direct debits being taken out 3 times in one month, at least the phone its self was working.
Then, one night she hikes out of Scarborough with her telescope. To cut a long story short, she fell ill and tried to call for help but the phone had been locked. She was found by a passing motorist the next morning and he drove her to hospital. She is recovered now, but it was touch and go for weeks. We complained to Orange and they said the phone had been locked for non-payment. We checked with the bank and they had once again taken out the direct debit twice in one month, leaving us overdrawn and facing bank charges. They have never apologised and refuse to cancel the contract so we can find a reliable provider. We cannot afford to have 2 mobile phone bills, one of which is unusable. They still owe us 2 months of line rental which they have taken prematurely, and have not paid the bank charges they forced on us.
We are disgusted with this company and want nothing more to do with them. If I could afford a solicitor to get us out of the nightmare contract then I would, but we cannot afford one.
Stay away from this company. They lie and they cheat just to get you to sign up then they don't care about you at all. I told them what had happened to my daughter and they suggested she stay home instead of "gallivanting around the countryside", that made my husband so angry he actually swore at them down the phone!
I don't know if anyone will read this, but if you do then PLEASE stay away from Orange Mobile. They are really horrible people and so rude!
Then, one night she hikes out of Scarborough with her telescope. To cut a long story short, she fell ill and tried to call for help but the phone had been locked. She was found by a passing motorist the next morning and he drove her to hospital. She is recovered now, but it was touch and go for weeks. We complained to Orange and they said the phone had been locked for non-payment. We checked with the bank and they had once again taken out the direct debit twice in one month, leaving us overdrawn and facing bank charges. They have never apologised and refuse to cancel the contract so we can find a reliable provider. We cannot afford to have 2 mobile phone bills, one of which is unusable. They still owe us 2 months of line rental which they have taken prematurely, and have not paid the bank charges they forced on us.
We are disgusted with this company and want nothing more to do with them. If I could afford a solicitor to get us out of the nightmare contract then I would, but we cannot afford one.
Stay away from this company. They lie and they cheat just to get you to sign up then they don't care about you at all. I told them what had happened to my daughter and they suggested she stay home instead of "gallivanting around the countryside", that made my husband so angry he actually swore at them down the phone!
I don't know if anyone will read this, but if you do then PLEASE stay away from Orange Mobile. They are really horrible people and so rude!
!2 months to 18 months without telling me!
When i upgraded my phone last January i signed a new contract for 12 months. I did this in an Orange store. I wanted to take up their existing customers get same deals as new customers offer but they are saying i signed up for an 18 month contract.
I have been to the store who 'promised' to find my original paperwork but haven't either phoned me to say they found it or sent me copies, the store won't return my calls (i don't live near the store anymore so can't really go back again). I've also called 150 Customer Services (who say the stores are nothing to do with them and they can't help).
Any ideas about how i can sort out my contract, who do i complain to if the store won't speak to me and its 'nothing to do with' customer services? I don't even want to stay with Orange anymore.
I have been to the store who 'promised' to find my original paperwork but haven't either phoned me to say they found it or sent me copies, the store won't return my calls (i don't live near the store anymore so can't really go back again). I've also called 150 Customer Services (who say the stores are nothing to do with them and they can't help).
Any ideas about how i can sort out my contract, who do i complain to if the store won't speak to me and its 'nothing to do with' customer services? I don't even want to stay with Orange anymore.
Just afew of the coments from Orange users
My contract expired on 6th january this year and Orange are trying to tell me that I still need to give them 30 days notice. This is untrue. I spoke to my solicitor last night and was informed that they're trying it on! I have cancelled my direct debit with this unprofessional organisation and will reccommend to my friends and colleagues that they do the same. I have been an Orange custome for a number of years but would never go back to them, even if they offered free calls! There is enough competition out there to expect a decent service and that is exactly what I have not been getting from Orange!
These people are blaggers of the highest (lowest?) order and seem to have the beaurocratic bible stuffed up their A***s!
Bad company, please avoid!
kaya007 at 17th Jan 2007, 11:54AM
I'm back again. My contract with orange has now been cancelled. Just to tell you how petty this company is i sent an email to Orange CEO Sanjiv Ahuja complaining about the company. I didn't get any response but my email address was blacklisted. When i sent a reply to the email customer services sent me, it bounced back with a 553 error - "Sorry, your email address has been blacklisted" LOL (luckily i used a yahoo address so i don't care)
so anyone who needs Sanjiv Ahuja's email address let me know i'll be plastering it all over the web...
naijaman at 15th Jan 2007, 02:00PM
Not a good experience with these guys at all. I would not do business with again. I have been with T-Mobile before and left them amicably, but not this shower.
Firstly, their staff seem to be amongst the most militant bunch of doofuses I have ever dealt with, they are ALL TO QUICK to get on the defensive even when dealing with civil requests.
Secondly they agreed a contract with me, said I could send the phone back if I did't like it, so I did (on my own expense which is fair enough) then when I asked for a different phone (no higher spec) they said the contract offer had expired, none of this was I told if I sent my phone back. SO I cancelled then they have, I believe ripped me off with my final bill, saying I have sent 150 text messages in 11 days, (my usual monthly total being exactly that) I asked for proof of this and they said I would have to pay for it!!! I am not going to pay any further money so I just took the hit.
Also the usual problems about taking 20 mins to get through to someone, and CONTINUOUSLY being passed down the line.
Just started with Vodafone and hoping for a better service now - too early to tell though.
The Peoples Princess at 14th Jan 2007, 01:52PM
where do i start. i've been with orange for about 5 years now and i'll advise everyone to stay away from them. i'm currently in the process of cancelling my account with them. i'm on a 12 month contract which is renewed in january. in november, an orange customer agent called me offering a new contract giving me free unlimited evening calls (starting from 7pm -7am) in addition to my existing 200 minutes. i was quite surprised as i wasn't aware orange had such a deal. i should have asked for written confirmation as you should never trust what any of their agents say. i agreed to the offer but was surprised to discover on my next bill that i was charged for calls made after 7pm. when i called to complain i was told that the agent who called me made a mistake and the free evening calls actually started at 8pm and ends at midnight. after speaking to a supervisor they agreed to refund the cost of all calls made between 7pm and 8pm. i complained that i would not have agreed to the deal if i knew it wasn't 7pm to 7am. (with hindsight i should have cancelled it then)
the following month i noticed that calls made after 8pm were deducted from the 200 anytime minutes talktime instead of been 'free calls'. when i complained i was told that in the terms of conditions of the offer, the evening free calls only kick in after the 200 anytime minutes have been used up. i'm very unhappy at the moment and this is just the final straw. i can never trust them and i would never believe anything any of their operators say.
kamd at 23rd Oct 2006, 06:37PM
Sorry there is a error in my message about Orange, when i cancelled my cpntract they told me the live box was faulty and NOT the BT line. But I had been told for 4 weeks previous that it was my BTline.
Burnt_Toast at 23rd Oct 2006, 10:56AM
I recently saw and advert in the national press for Orange, a mobile contract £35 a month, unlimited texts, 550 mins of calls, a free phone and (what attracted me most) free broadband.
What a mistake I made!
Firstly I have to say Orange were efficent at sending me the mobile handset, I got it the day after I called to set up the contract. I was happy with the phone, but it was just over a week later, when i received Oranges' "livebox modem" when the problems strarted.
I have a reasonable knowledge of computers, I got the livebox and set it up as instructed.
I tried to connect to the internet, but I got an error message. I tried a few times more, but still no joy.
So I rang up the Orange broadband customer support line. I explained the problem I was encountering, and they said they would run through the set up to make sure, I had the correct wires going inot the correct places.
I was told that the way I had my livebox set up was correct, and the only reason why it would not connect was because they could be a fault with my BT line. They told me they would do a line test to see what the problem was and for me to ring back in 2 hours.
I rung back and the results were "no fault found". I tried to connect for a few more days and still could not connect to the internet. I then was told I had to have another line test, and for me to ring back in two hours; I rang back two hours later (it was now 10pm)and I was told they would have to do ANOTHER line test and for me to ring back in 2 hours (or the results wouls disappear from their system). So I said "you want me to ring back at midnight? I have up be up for work at 4.30am! Do think it is a reasonable request?" "ok sir" they replied phone tomorrow it will be ok, so why did they tell me the bullsh*t about the system will lose the results of the line test after 2 hours.
(Thats 1 of many lies they told me!)
After another week or so I rung to see what was the status was of my BT line. Another line test was needed, and I had to ring back in 2 hours. By now I was sick of ringing back to get line test results. Why should I phone THEM back? Why cant they ring ME!? Thats not possible sir, thats bullsh*t You work for one of the uk's biggest telecommunication companies but you cant make any outgoing calls!! By now I was getting pretty hacked off.
I rang back the next day, and I was told they had found a fault on my BT line (at last I thought, they have found the problem!), I wa told within 24 hours the fault would be fixed and I would be able to connect ot the internet. I tried to connect after 24 hours, and suprise, suprise, it did not work. I kept on insisting that they send me another livebox and this would then determine whether the modem was at fault, but they were insistant it was my BT line and not the modem.
I rang back AGAIN and was told they had found another fault on my BT line and I was to call back in 5 working days and it would definatley be fixed.
Five working days went by, and it still did not work. So I rung orange and told them that I wanted to cancel my mobile contract. I was told that you can only cancel the contract after 14 days, and it now been 28 days. (Yes 28 days without the internet!!).
I said you have not kept your side of the contract (free broadband) so b*llocks to your 14 day rule, they agreed eventually.
I was then put through to a broadband support supervisor, asking me why I was cancelling. I told him what problems I had encountered and he said after looking at all my line test results, they showed that it was a livebox modem fault and a line fault! So who was lying? him? or the rest of the broadband support team? This made me even more angry.
The next day they sent me a bag to return the mobile phone, which I did.
My first bill, which I received shortly before I cancelled was for 2 months line rental (1 month in advance). So when I cancelled obvisouly I didnt owe al the money they were asking.
Next came the dilema of trying to settle what money was owed to orange and what money I was in credit by.
Virtually every time I rang Orange what ever time of day, whatever day of the week, they are always experiencing high call volume! Then when you get put through to somebody, and ask to be transferd to a different department you are put on hold for ages (I know all their songs they play off by heart now!) and then get told you have been put through to the wrong person, and then put on hold again!
After about another 6 phone calls, I have been promised a cheque for £22 in the next week (seeing is believing!)
I'm still waiting for a bag to return my (useless) livebox modem.
All in all an completey incompetent organisation who's customer service is the worst I have ever had the misfortune to experience.
Burnt_Toast at 20th Oct 2006, 09:22PM
Well...I wrote to the one of the directors at her home address obtained from Companies House and that was over a fortnight ago. Guess what? No reply. Nothing. Nada. And it was a polite letter. The culture of a company is set from the top. Since she can't be bothered to respond, it is hardly surprising that their service is so full of s**t.
Londonman at 20th Oct 2006, 08:31AM
DIRECT DEBIT sharp practice! Orange seem to have developed a way to take more money off their customers by not setting up DD in time to catch the first payment, and then levying at least non-direct debit charge.
SUMMARY BILL sharp practice! Same thing here, even if you have said you don't want a summary bill, Orange are quite happy to relieve their customers of this small sum of money at every opportunity.
WRITING INSTEAD OF PHONING! Here's their customer services address at Bristol:
Customer Services – "Correspondence"
P O Box 10
Patchway
BRISTOL
BS32 4BQ
I urge anyone who has experienced the same kind of difficulties with incorrect DD or Summary Bill charges to write to them. I got £11.40 off my next bill and my daughter got a £10 credited off hers. It took some persistence to get this address, which doesn't seem to be give on their website. I only got it by phoning their Bristol Office and badgering the telephonist to give me the postal address. Best of luck!
peeved_of_nuneaton at 11th Oct 2006, 10:38AM
OK, let's start with the "We are currently receiving a very high number of calls..." message when you phone them. It's not because people are calling to say WELL DONE is it! It's because they offer a terrible customer service.. in fact a terrible service full stop. I was quite excited when we, as a family, moved to Orange but that was quickly shattered when my wife took a "free" upgrade and was then charged £150 for it. To keep it short, it was our fault, obviously, as she was mistook the phrase "it's free" for "that'll be £150 charged to your next bill". After lots of calls and a chap in India telling me how the British banking system works and that I should cancel the direct debit to avoid the amount going out..... Know what, like Orange, I can't be bothered with this. They are pointless, and totally useless. I have had an endless string of cut off calls, rude people and brick walls when I try to complain. Don't go near them, don't use them.
These people are blaggers of the highest (lowest?) order and seem to have the beaurocratic bible stuffed up their A***s!
Bad company, please avoid!
kaya007 at 17th Jan 2007, 11:54AM
I'm back again. My contract with orange has now been cancelled. Just to tell you how petty this company is i sent an email to Orange CEO Sanjiv Ahuja complaining about the company. I didn't get any response but my email address was blacklisted. When i sent a reply to the email customer services sent me, it bounced back with a 553 error - "Sorry, your email address has been blacklisted" LOL (luckily i used a yahoo address so i don't care)
so anyone who needs Sanjiv Ahuja's email address let me know i'll be plastering it all over the web...
naijaman at 15th Jan 2007, 02:00PM
Not a good experience with these guys at all. I would not do business with again. I have been with T-Mobile before and left them amicably, but not this shower.
Firstly, their staff seem to be amongst the most militant bunch of doofuses I have ever dealt with, they are ALL TO QUICK to get on the defensive even when dealing with civil requests.
Secondly they agreed a contract with me, said I could send the phone back if I did't like it, so I did (on my own expense which is fair enough) then when I asked for a different phone (no higher spec) they said the contract offer had expired, none of this was I told if I sent my phone back. SO I cancelled then they have, I believe ripped me off with my final bill, saying I have sent 150 text messages in 11 days, (my usual monthly total being exactly that) I asked for proof of this and they said I would have to pay for it!!! I am not going to pay any further money so I just took the hit.
Also the usual problems about taking 20 mins to get through to someone, and CONTINUOUSLY being passed down the line.
Just started with Vodafone and hoping for a better service now - too early to tell though.
The Peoples Princess at 14th Jan 2007, 01:52PM
where do i start. i've been with orange for about 5 years now and i'll advise everyone to stay away from them. i'm currently in the process of cancelling my account with them. i'm on a 12 month contract which is renewed in january. in november, an orange customer agent called me offering a new contract giving me free unlimited evening calls (starting from 7pm -7am) in addition to my existing 200 minutes. i was quite surprised as i wasn't aware orange had such a deal. i should have asked for written confirmation as you should never trust what any of their agents say. i agreed to the offer but was surprised to discover on my next bill that i was charged for calls made after 7pm. when i called to complain i was told that the agent who called me made a mistake and the free evening calls actually started at 8pm and ends at midnight. after speaking to a supervisor they agreed to refund the cost of all calls made between 7pm and 8pm. i complained that i would not have agreed to the deal if i knew it wasn't 7pm to 7am. (with hindsight i should have cancelled it then)
the following month i noticed that calls made after 8pm were deducted from the 200 anytime minutes talktime instead of been 'free calls'. when i complained i was told that in the terms of conditions of the offer, the evening free calls only kick in after the 200 anytime minutes have been used up. i'm very unhappy at the moment and this is just the final straw. i can never trust them and i would never believe anything any of their operators say.
kamd at 23rd Oct 2006, 06:37PM
Sorry there is a error in my message about Orange, when i cancelled my cpntract they told me the live box was faulty and NOT the BT line. But I had been told for 4 weeks previous that it was my BTline.
Burnt_Toast at 23rd Oct 2006, 10:56AM
I recently saw and advert in the national press for Orange, a mobile contract £35 a month, unlimited texts, 550 mins of calls, a free phone and (what attracted me most) free broadband.
What a mistake I made!
Firstly I have to say Orange were efficent at sending me the mobile handset, I got it the day after I called to set up the contract. I was happy with the phone, but it was just over a week later, when i received Oranges' "livebox modem" when the problems strarted.
I have a reasonable knowledge of computers, I got the livebox and set it up as instructed.
I tried to connect to the internet, but I got an error message. I tried a few times more, but still no joy.
So I rang up the Orange broadband customer support line. I explained the problem I was encountering, and they said they would run through the set up to make sure, I had the correct wires going inot the correct places.
I was told that the way I had my livebox set up was correct, and the only reason why it would not connect was because they could be a fault with my BT line. They told me they would do a line test to see what the problem was and for me to ring back in 2 hours.
I rung back and the results were "no fault found". I tried to connect for a few more days and still could not connect to the internet. I then was told I had to have another line test, and for me to ring back in two hours; I rang back two hours later (it was now 10pm)and I was told they would have to do ANOTHER line test and for me to ring back in 2 hours (or the results wouls disappear from their system). So I said "you want me to ring back at midnight? I have up be up for work at 4.30am! Do think it is a reasonable request?" "ok sir" they replied phone tomorrow it will be ok, so why did they tell me the bullsh*t about the system will lose the results of the line test after 2 hours.
(Thats 1 of many lies they told me!)
After another week or so I rung to see what was the status was of my BT line. Another line test was needed, and I had to ring back in 2 hours. By now I was sick of ringing back to get line test results. Why should I phone THEM back? Why cant they ring ME!? Thats not possible sir, thats bullsh*t You work for one of the uk's biggest telecommunication companies but you cant make any outgoing calls!! By now I was getting pretty hacked off.
I rang back the next day, and I was told they had found a fault on my BT line (at last I thought, they have found the problem!), I wa told within 24 hours the fault would be fixed and I would be able to connect ot the internet. I tried to connect after 24 hours, and suprise, suprise, it did not work. I kept on insisting that they send me another livebox and this would then determine whether the modem was at fault, but they were insistant it was my BT line and not the modem.
I rang back AGAIN and was told they had found another fault on my BT line and I was to call back in 5 working days and it would definatley be fixed.
Five working days went by, and it still did not work. So I rung orange and told them that I wanted to cancel my mobile contract. I was told that you can only cancel the contract after 14 days, and it now been 28 days. (Yes 28 days without the internet!!).
I said you have not kept your side of the contract (free broadband) so b*llocks to your 14 day rule, they agreed eventually.
I was then put through to a broadband support supervisor, asking me why I was cancelling. I told him what problems I had encountered and he said after looking at all my line test results, they showed that it was a livebox modem fault and a line fault! So who was lying? him? or the rest of the broadband support team? This made me even more angry.
The next day they sent me a bag to return the mobile phone, which I did.
My first bill, which I received shortly before I cancelled was for 2 months line rental (1 month in advance). So when I cancelled obvisouly I didnt owe al the money they were asking.
Next came the dilema of trying to settle what money was owed to orange and what money I was in credit by.
Virtually every time I rang Orange what ever time of day, whatever day of the week, they are always experiencing high call volume! Then when you get put through to somebody, and ask to be transferd to a different department you are put on hold for ages (I know all their songs they play off by heart now!) and then get told you have been put through to the wrong person, and then put on hold again!
After about another 6 phone calls, I have been promised a cheque for £22 in the next week (seeing is believing!)
I'm still waiting for a bag to return my (useless) livebox modem.
All in all an completey incompetent organisation who's customer service is the worst I have ever had the misfortune to experience.
Burnt_Toast at 20th Oct 2006, 09:22PM
Well...I wrote to the one of the directors at her home address obtained from Companies House and that was over a fortnight ago. Guess what? No reply. Nothing. Nada. And it was a polite letter. The culture of a company is set from the top. Since she can't be bothered to respond, it is hardly surprising that their service is so full of s**t.
Londonman at 20th Oct 2006, 08:31AM
DIRECT DEBIT sharp practice! Orange seem to have developed a way to take more money off their customers by not setting up DD in time to catch the first payment, and then levying at least non-direct debit charge.
SUMMARY BILL sharp practice! Same thing here, even if you have said you don't want a summary bill, Orange are quite happy to relieve their customers of this small sum of money at every opportunity.
WRITING INSTEAD OF PHONING! Here's their customer services address at Bristol:
Customer Services – "Correspondence"
P O Box 10
Patchway
BRISTOL
BS32 4BQ
I urge anyone who has experienced the same kind of difficulties with incorrect DD or Summary Bill charges to write to them. I got £11.40 off my next bill and my daughter got a £10 credited off hers. It took some persistence to get this address, which doesn't seem to be give on their website. I only got it by phoning their Bristol Office and badgering the telephonist to give me the postal address. Best of luck!
peeved_of_nuneaton at 11th Oct 2006, 10:38AM
OK, let's start with the "We are currently receiving a very high number of calls..." message when you phone them. It's not because people are calling to say WELL DONE is it! It's because they offer a terrible customer service.. in fact a terrible service full stop. I was quite excited when we, as a family, moved to Orange but that was quickly shattered when my wife took a "free" upgrade and was then charged £150 for it. To keep it short, it was our fault, obviously, as she was mistook the phrase "it's free" for "that'll be £150 charged to your next bill". After lots of calls and a chap in India telling me how the British banking system works and that I should cancel the direct debit to avoid the amount going out..... Know what, like Orange, I can't be bothered with this. They are pointless, and totally useless. I have had an endless string of cut off calls, rude people and brick walls when I try to complain. Don't go near them, don't use them.
Orange broadband as bad as the mobile service
Yeah: I am now a reluctant Orange customer, since they took over Wanadoo. Now, Wanadoo were not great, but since Orange took over the service has become sheer unaldulterated shite. I can't keep a connection for more than about ten seconds, - this is being typed off line, - and so they said 'use the plastic box', (I'm broadband) so I tried. For an hour I tried. My local computer shop engineer, who is a shit hot software engineer and an old college buddy from Computer /IT studies tried, another buddy who fixes things for big IT groups tried.
Result? It's fucking Orange, - what do you expect, - shit. No connection, Live box either doesn't work or Orange don't recognise their own equipment.
I first tried Orange in about 1986 as a mobile phone supplier. Three days into ownership, my phone stopped working while I was stuck in a traffic jam on the M5. Having an urgent appointment ahead of me, I needed to phone. Nothing. So eventually I reached the Mway services, pulled off and phoned on a land line to tell the Client that I was horrendously delayed, and still had about 150 miles to travel. We postponed the meeting. I then tried to phone Orange from a call box. They only had a mobile contact number, so I was paying the high tariff. I got nowhere with them, cheated to get out of the services, and went home. Where I again tried to phone them. When I reached the point of having spent £64 without ever having spoken to anything but a fucking robot messaging service, I sent the phone back and told them to go fuck. I have never paid them and never will.Publish
Get out of Orange. Somehow, anyhow, get out of Orange.
Result? It's fucking Orange, - what do you expect, - shit. No connection, Live box either doesn't work or Orange don't recognise their own equipment.
I first tried Orange in about 1986 as a mobile phone supplier. Three days into ownership, my phone stopped working while I was stuck in a traffic jam on the M5. Having an urgent appointment ahead of me, I needed to phone. Nothing. So eventually I reached the Mway services, pulled off and phoned on a land line to tell the Client that I was horrendously delayed, and still had about 150 miles to travel. We postponed the meeting. I then tried to phone Orange from a call box. They only had a mobile contact number, so I was paying the high tariff. I got nowhere with them, cheated to get out of the services, and went home. Where I again tried to phone them. When I reached the point of having spent £64 without ever having spoken to anything but a fucking robot messaging service, I sent the phone back and told them to go fuck. I have never paid them and never will.Publish
Get out of Orange. Somehow, anyhow, get out of Orange.
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February 27th, 2007 at 8:23 pm
Orange = Incredibly difficult to deal with - they keep getting my billing wrong and then blocking the phone for unpaid bills - eventually I get them to re-set the phone and unblock it - admitting their mistake. Then about 1 month later they do the same again. This is my wife’s phone and she needs case of breakdown (you know the kind of thing) …. but get this …. when you try to ring customer services (from the handset = 150 free call) …. guess what … you can’t cause your blocked … probably having broken down in some dire wilderness of a place miles from anywhere (they block with no warning - so beware) - anyway - nice one Orange … absolute Cr@p service