Chorus UPC cancelled, now they need the box?

SoulReaperDan1

Hi guys, I got was with chorus for 2 years, and cancelled my service in july by writing to them, the Direct debit was cancelled by them and all was good. I then promptly moved out. I got a call today by a third party (probably a delivery company or something) saying 'Hi, we're here to pick up some equipment you have from chorus.' I replied, 'Eh, no, I moved out of that house months ago, and if you are referring to the chorus digibox it's probably in a tip somewhere'. To which she said, 'Oh, okay well you are on our list here and in order to remove your name from our list you should ring up chorus with your acc. number and sort it out with them'.

When I cancelled I asked them exactly what I had to do, and all she said was inform them in writing with 30 days notice, she said NOTHING about wanting the box back, but I see in their pdf contract small print there will be 'additional charges' if the box isn't returned to them.
My question is, what will they try and charge me? And am I at all entitled to refuse to pay as she didn't tell me they needed the box?

Del2005

SoulReaperDan1 wrote: »

Hi guys, I got was with chorus for 2 years, and cancelled my service in july by writing to them, the Direct debit was cancelled by them and all was good. I then promptly moved out. I got a call today by a third party (probably a delivery company or something) saying 'Hi, we're here to pick up some equipment you have from chorus.' I replied, 'Eh, no, I moved out of that house months ago, and if you are referring to the chorus digibox it's probably in a tip somewhere'. To which she said, 'Oh, okay well you are on our list here and in order to remove your name from our list you should ring up chorus with your acc. number and sort it out with them'.

When I cancelled I asked them exactly what I had to do, and all she said was inform them in writing with 30 days notice, she said NOTHING about wanting the box back, but I see in their pdf contract small print there will be 'additional charges' if the box isn't returned to them.
My question is, what will they try and charge me? And am I at all entitled to refuse to pay as she didn't tell me they needed the box?

Best bet is to play dumb and only say what was told to you over the phone. If they don't train their call centre people correctly that's their fault.

I doubt you can refuse to pay as I'm sure somewhere in the T&Cs from when you signed up said you have to pay us for the box if they don't get if back. Your best bet is to stick to what was said to you over the phone when you rang up and asked what to do to cancel. If they keep asking for it keep going on about their customer service staff training not being good enough as they didn't tell you to keep the box.

Hope that helps.

Paulw

SoulReaperDan1 wrote: »

My question is, what will they try and charge me? And am I at all entitled to refuse to pay as she didn't tell me they needed the box?

It's in their T&Cs that the equipment is theirs. They are able to charge you for the replacement of the box (not sure on the cost of that). The fact that they didn't specifically tell you at the time is irrelevant. You are still liable for that cost, and responsible for the items.

The_Conductor

If they do cause trouble- I've a spare box/remote sitting in the living room (in Lucan village) that you're welcome to, if you're willing to collect it.

steprime

I had the exact same issue as you only with irish broadband.
I called them up and stated that I had moved out of the address their equipment was located and would not be able to authorise a collection.
I then stated that I when I called up, that I specifically requested what I needed to cancel the contract. Then I told them that as a support centre they would have to log the details of the call on their system and I asked them to check the details of my call.....that is where they got a little...distant.

I informed them that they did not clarify what was required to close the account fully and that it was their fault - never heard back from them

nava

SoulReaperDan1 wrote: »

Hi guys, I got was with chorus for 2 years, and cancelled my service in july by writing to them, the Direct debit was cancelled by them and all was good. I then promptly moved out. I got a call today by a third party (probably a delivery company or something) saying 'Hi, we're here to pick up some equipment you have from chorus.' I replied, 'Eh, no, I moved out of that house months ago, and if you are referring to the chorus digibox it's probably in a tip somewhere'. To which she said, 'Oh, okay well you are on our list here and in order to remove your name from our list you should ring up chorus with your acc. number and sort it out with them'.

When I cancelled I asked them exactly what I had to do, and all she said was inform them in writing with 30 days notice, she said NOTHING about wanting the box back, but I see in their pdf contract small print there will be 'additional charges' if the box isn't returned to them.
My question is, what will they try and charge me? And am I at all entitled to refuse to pay as she didn't tell me they needed the box?

You could also say that when you called last time you said to them if they wanted the box back they must collect it before x number of days as you were moving out, s it wasn't collected you send it for recycling as per the WEEE in the local facility.

They won't be able to prove if it's true or not you said that to them

Paulw

nava wrote: »

They won't be able to prove if it's true or not you said that to them

Aren't all calls recorded "for training purposes"?

SoulReaperDan1

Those were all pretty nice tips thanks guys. I rang them today though anyways and after hearing horror stories of upc's terrible customer service I was ready to have a lengthy argument with them. After being transferred to the wrong place and put on hold for 30 mins (!) I explained things honestly.

She asked me what type of box I had, I said I had no idea just whatever was given to me. And she said 'well it doesn't seem to be a something-or-other decoder, if it had been there would have been a €150 non-returnal fee, but as it's an older model, I shall place a note on your account saying you don't have access to it and you needn't worry about it anymore.'

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