Vodafone customer slams the company after being refused a mortgage over debt she ‘didn’t owe’
The magazine editor was also denied a new car over the £2,000 debt
A FUMING Vodafone customer has slammed the company after she was refused a mortgage because of debt she didn't even owe.
The phone giant has been fined £4.6 million for breaking customer rules - the biggest ever fine given to a telecoms firm.
The regulator, Ofcom, said that Vodafone had misled pay-as-you-go customers, charging them for top-up credit but not providing a service.
It also found that Vodafone had broken rules on handling customer complaints.
A Vodafone customer has hit out at the firm after her life was life was "ruined" because of default debt taken out against her for money she didn't even owe.
Sarah Davis, 26, says she was denied a mortgage and lost her dream home because Vodafone claimed that she owed them £2,000 for an end of contract fee - despite the fact she was still paying her £60 a month contract.
The magazine editor, from Chelmsford, Essex, had taken out a contract in 2014 with Vodafone after she was promised a £250 trade-in price for her old iPhone 5.
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She told the Sun Online : "I had a £60-a-month contract but they told me I owed £385 around a year after I got the phone.
"When I finally got through to someone to find out why I was being charged so much, they told me they couldn't tell me and refused to send me a bill.
"I caved in and paid for it but they then tried to say I hadn't even though it was on my bank statement.
"I had taken proof into my local store and emailed head office so they cut my phone off completely."
But Sarah, who was still paying her £60 direct debit for the contract, received a letter last week saying she owed £2,000 for an end of contract bill.
She has now been left heartbroken after Vodafone took out a default debt against her - meaning she lost her dream home and was refused a car.
WHEN DID THE PROBLEMS HAPPEN?
Vodafone broke a number of rules to do with the way it topped up credit for pay-as-you-go customers and dealt with complaints. The problems with pay-as-you-go customers happened between December 2013 and April 2015. The complaints handing issues date back to January 2014 to November last year. Ofcom then investigated the problems earlier this year.
She fumed: "We found the home we wanted but when we went to get a mortgage, our broker told us we had been refused one because I had debt against me.
"I was also refused a Range Rover on finance because of the debt I had.
"The stupid thing is, my boyfriend had to get me a new sim and he got me a Vodafone one even though I told him not to. It was only a £25 a week contract but they sent me a bill for £306 last week and I had to pay it because I didn't want anymore debt.
"It's a joke because they still owe me the £250 I was promised for trading in my old phone.
"The annoying thing is that I have a good job, I earn ok money but it didn't matter when I was trying to get the house and car because of this debt.
"Vodafone has literally ruined my life."
A Vodafone spokesperson said: "We’re very sorry to hear about Ms Davis’s issue and we will be investigating it as a matter of urgency."
Have you been denied a mortgage or car because of Vodafone debt against you? Call on 0207 782 4383 or email [email protected]