Chippenham man receives £9,000 phone bill (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Chippenham man receives £9,000 phone bill

11:55am Monday 21st January 2008

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CONFUSED Sanbu Sandu was left stumped after he received a two-month mobile phone bill for more than £9,000.

Mr Sandu, 40, from Ladyfield Road, Chippenham, was even more puzzled when he realised the £9,639.87 charge was for free, unlimited Internet access.

He had taken out the Vodafone pay monthly contract so that his son Marian could contact his friends in Romania where the family originate.

The problem arose when Mr Sandu received a welcome letter to his new contract that stated he was entitled to unlimited free text messages and Internet access.

However, in the small print of his contract, it states he can only use 120mgs of data.

After taking the bill to the Chippenham Citizens Advice Bureau, Mr Sandu has since had the fee waived by the mobile phone giant.

He said: "I made doubly sure the Internet access was free because that is the only reason I wanted a phone.

"My son used it to contact his friends back home and we didn't use it apart from that.

"When the bill arrived I was completely shocked and thought there must have been a mistake.

"After contacting the shop I brought the phone in, I was told although the Internet access is unlimited you cannot exceed a certain amount of data usage.

"This was never made clear to me and I was furious that this was allowed to happen.

"I don't think it is fair that they can advertise as having free unlimited Internet access when it is clearly not unlimited.

"I am glad they have stepped down as they were in the wrong."

In a letter to Mr Sandu, Vodafone has said it will waive the fee as a gesture of goodwill but does make clear in the small print of the contract about the maximum data usage.

A spokesperson from Vodafone said: "In view of the potentially misleading information regarding data usage, we have erased the credit of the account.

"We have cleared the balance as a gesture of goodwill."

Sandi Sorell at the citizens advice bureau said: "This was a clear case of misleading data and one I am glad we were able to help with.

" This kind of thing is very distressing to a person but I would advice them to always seek advice if they are in doubt about a payment.

" We can offer all types of advice and people should be aware of all their rights as consumers.

"This case highlights the positive outcome when people question what they believe to be an unfair decision."

Mr Sandu has since vowed to never have a phone again and son Marian will now have to use Internet cafes.

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