Scarborough Orange Shop Sucks

Orange Billing, WRONG AGAIN!!!!!

2008-03-19T10:37:00.001Z

hey you will never guess who this is but yer laura i have a bit on your front page im the girl who got a bill for over £200 for a phone upgrade, just wanted to send a post to say that, that happend 2 years ago and im now getting hassled again by them, after the whitby paper helped me they "cut off" my sim card and did not send me a letter for months, all of a sudden i started getting letter after letter from them now telling me i need to pay them £164 for a contracted they have cut off, after a year of hastle my dad payed the off a £150 and told them to leave us alone they are still not happy and have now sent our name to a dept collector. iv sent a letter to watchdog but it looks like im stuck in this again im now 18, skint and seem to be working for nothing as orange steal money off me.

Orange mobile? Not really!

2007-04-19T17:22:00.000Z

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!

2007-04-19T17:15:00.000Z

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.

2007-04-04T11:21:00.000Z

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!

Don't Join Orange

2007-04-04T11:14:00.000Z

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.

2007-04-04T11:12:00.000Z

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

Pay As You Go...

2007-04-04T11:06:00.001Z

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???

Problems with P800 and Customer service. AGAIN!

2007-04-03T11:15:00.000Z

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

Orange billing... Wrong AGAIN!!!

2007-04-01T15:27:00.000Z

Paul Says:
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

The SUN SAYS NO!!!!! To Orange!

2007-04-01T14:51:00.000Z

That is a headline I would like to see for real!
If only someone like Rooney could get screwed by Orange then perhaps the SUN would take notice for real!

They really are the worst customer service people ever! Bunch of monkeys.

Go get em SUN!!!

Never Use Orange!

2007-04-01T11:55:00.000Z

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

How Rude!

2007-04-01T11:35:00.000Z

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.

I'm sick of complaining Orange customers

2007-03-28T20:08:00.000Z

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!!

Demonstration outside the Orange Shop in Scarborough

2007-03-27T16:49:00.000Z

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

2007-03-27T16:30:00.000Z

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.

Our New Leaflet

2007-03-17T22:52:00.000Z

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

2007-03-16T09:43:00.000Z

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

2007-03-16T08:51:00.000Z

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!

That Manageress

2007-03-16T08:15:00.000Z

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!!!!!

2007-03-15T19:42:00.000Z

Phone bill mix-up sorted by Gazette
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.....

2007-03-15T11:47:00.000Z

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.

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!!!

When I still refused to leave and told her to call the police if she felt she could justify the call. She would not. Knowing full well I had done nothing except demand, (in a restrained and polite manner) a refund. She once again retreated behind the company policy rubbish.

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

All because I made the mistake of buying goods from the Orange Shop in Scarborough.

(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.......

2007-03-14T19:53:00.000Z

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 !!!!!!!

Orange threatened my elderly mother...

2007-03-12T14:02:00.000Z

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

2007-03-11T01:44:00.000Z

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!

Orange slamed in court for over billing

2007-03-11T01:36:00.001Z

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!