Returns complaint

[coatezy]

I’m hoping someone at EE can help get this resolved, as I’ve now spent several hours on calls trying to sort out what should have been a fairly straightforward issue.

On 18 September, I contacted EE as I was on rolling 30-day SIM plans for my phone and Apple Watch and was shopping around to see what EE could offer me.

During that conversation, I was offered a reduced price on my mobile SIM, a free Apple Watch plan, and a Samsung Galaxy Tab A11 with a 5GB data plan.

I was also upsold an additional 30-day rolling SIM after explaining that my current mobile number receives a lot of cold calls. I was told I could transfer my existing number onto this SIM, get a new number for my main SIM, and that the additional SIM could be set to expire after 30 days and become pay as you go so I could retain the old number.

I questioned the price of the 30-day rolling SIM and the plan at the time because it was considerably more than I needed, with unlimited calls, 50GB of data, etc. I was told this was the cheapest option available. I have since discovered that this was not the case.

The first tablet arrived on 19 September. I opened it on 21 September after receiving some screen protectors and immediately noticed a scratch on the screen.

On 22 September, I called 150 to report the damage. I was told I needed to complete a returns form and that I would be contacted within 72 hours. I completed the form as requested.

By 26 September I still hadn’t heard anything, so I called 150 again. I was then told that returning the tablet would also cancel the associated SIM and that I would need to call again afterwards to reorder everything. I explained that the tablet and SIM had been sold as part of an offer and I wanted to make sure I wouldn’t lose that offer.

The agent therefore set up another contract with the same offer and arranged for a replacement tablet and SIM to be sent. That call lasted 53 minutes.

Unfortunately, the replacement tablet is also faulty. The backlight isn’t working correctly, so I completed another returns form.

Separately, I tried to arrange the number transfer for the additional SIM I’d been sold. I spent approximately an hour speaking to an adviser through the EE app, but they couldn’t understand what I was trying to achieve despite this being exactly what I’d been told was possible when the SIM was sold to me. After going around in circles, I gave up and submitted a return request for that SIM as well, as I now believe it was mis-sold.

By 29 September, I still hadn’t been contacted about any of the returns. I called again and was simply told to wait. That call lasted another 24 minutes.

On 30 September, having still heard nothing, I called again. The person who answered said they would transfer me to the billing team, who would be able to get everything sorted.

Unfortunately, the billing team couldn’t resolve any of it. They completed some more forms and told me they couldn’t cancel the SIM. They also explained that the upgrades team, who had transferred me to them, could have cancelled it and could also have completed the same forms. By this point it was after 9pm, so they couldn’t transfer me back. That call lasted just over an hour.

I’m now approaching the end of my 14-day cooling-off period with:

• Two tablets each with contacts, one damaged on arrival and one faulty
• Multiple return requests that haven’t been actioned
• An additional SIM that I believe was mis-sold and that I’ve already asked to return
• Several hours spent on calls and messaging trying to resolve these issues
• No clear route to somebody who can actually take ownership and sort this out

I have made repeated attempts to return the affected products within the cooling-off period, and I do not want delays within EE’s returns process to affect my rights.

More importantly, I am now approaching the end of the cooling-off period for the entire package of services I agreed to on 18 September. If EE cannot get these issues resolved before that period expires, I want to exercise my right to cancel everything I agreed to on 18 September, not just the tablets and additional SIM. That includes the changes to my main mobile plan, Apple Watch plan, tablet/data plans and additional SIM.

At this point, I need someone who can take ownership of the whole issue rather than passing me between departments.

Please can someone:

1. Confirm in writing that my requests to return the tablets and additional SIM were made within the relevant cooling-off period and that my cancellation rights will be honoured.
2. Arrange the return of both tablets,  new replacement arranged, and confirm what is happening with both associated data plans/contracts .
3. Cancel the additional 30-day SIM that I believe was mis-sold, without any cancellation charge.
4. Confirm exactly which contracts and services will remain active once this has been resolved, along with their agreed monthly costs.
5. Confirm that, if these issues cannot be resolved, I can cancel all of the services and contract changes agreed on 18 September within my cooling-off period, rather than only the tablet and additional SIM.
6. Treat this as a formal complaint and consider appropriate compensation for the significant amount of time I have spent trying to resolve these issues through EE customer service.

I would much rather get this sorted and remain with EE, but the experience so far has been extremely frustrating. If EE cannot resolve it promptly, I want to cancel everything agreed on 18 September within my cooling-off period and move to another provider.

Most importantly, I need to speak to someone who has the authority to actually resolve this from start to finish rather than sending me through another cycle of calls, forms and departments.

Please confirm that this has been logged as a formal complaint and provide me with the complaint reference.

[XRaySpeX]

No, we can't! This public user discussion forum is not the correct platform for raising complaints upon or escalating issues with EE. This user discussion forum can have no access to your specific account. You need to raise this with CS.

You can make a formal complaint to EE & if you don't get satisfaction after 6 weeks or come to a deadlock you can take it to EE's ADR provider. See Complaints code of practice and here is the Complaints Form .

[coatezy]

Thanks for your reply, @XRaySpeX. I’m aware that this is a public discussion forum and I’m also aware of the complaints process.

Unfortunately, the complaints form has a 500-character limit and my full complaint is around 6,200 characters. As there’s quite a lot of context and I want to make sure I cover everything properly, I thought it made sense to post the full details here so I can link to them from the complaints form.

I’ve also asked for guidance on where or how I can send the full complaint directly to EE so that someone can review the whole situation.