Carphone Warehouse lifeline

colm_mcm

Just realised I've been paying €13.75 a month for the last 6 or 7 years for insurance on a phone I got rid of 5 or 6 years ago.
I know this is epically stupid, but where do I stand here, is the insurance term infinite and do I have any chance of a refund?

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colm_mcm wrote: »

Just realised I've been paying €13.75 a month for the last 6 or 7 years for insurance on a phone I got rid of 5 or 6 years ago.
I know this is epically stupid, but where do I stand here, is the insurance term infinite and do I have any chance of a refund?

For a start cancel your policy. I'm not sure you've any comeback. It's up to you to know what you're paying.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

I think you would find it hard to prove you did not have possession of the phone all that time.

colm_mcm

Just wondering if the insurance is generally set to renew every month and not for a finite time and not transferred from one phone to the next.


FWIW I think the phone was an LG Chocolate

UnknownSpecies

colm_mcm wrote: »

Just wondering if the insurance is generally set to renew every month and not for a finite time and not transferred from one phone to the next.


FWIW I think the phone was an LG Chocolate

I used to work for Carphone so can weigh in here. Yes the insurance will continue infinitely as long as you don't cancel it. The insurance has no fixed term, you could have cancelled it whenever you felt like it. If you bought a new phone with Carphone, you could have transferred it over to the new phone but not if you bought it anywhere else. The contract you signed when you originally took out the policy will pretty much prevent you from getting any money back since it states all that I've already mentioned. There's no way you can prove you were ripped off, although I understand your frustration myself.

Esel

Never bought phone insurance. Never lost/borked/robbed of a phone either.

Have probably bled a good few bob on similar open-ended bills though...

JimsAlterEgo

you could try arguign the original Term & Conditions were not fair, as in a phone insurnace policy should be allowed infitely roll over without intervention.

Rubberchikken

if it were me, i'd just cancel the insurance and forget the whole thing. lesson learnt.

boardzz

You could obviously well afford it if you didn't notice the money been taken every month

Sam Mac

boardzz wrote: »

You could obviously well afford it if you didn't notice the money been taken every month

+1 - you seriously did not notice the transaction even once within the *six year* period?

Bepolite

Is the phone lost - why not make a claim

slimjimmc

@Bepolite: You know full well that making a false insurance claim is fraudulent.

Bepolite

slimjimmc wrote: »

@Bepolite: You know full well that making a false insurance claim is fraudulent.

I wasnt for one second suggesting the OP do that. If the insurance covers loss and it's lost - claim. Don;t clim it's stolen, don't chuck it down the stairs but at €12.75 I'd assume it's pretty comprehensive cover and covers simple loss. I'm also assuming the OP hasn;t sold the phone on, becuase that would indeed be fraud.

slimjimmc

"on a phone I got rid of 5 or 6 years ago" is pretty clear..

keithclancy

colm_mcm wrote: »

Just realised I've been paying €13.75 a month for the last 6 or 7 years for insurance on a phone I got rid of 5 or 6 years ago.
I know this is epically stupid, but where do I stand here, is the insurance term infinite and do I have any chance of a refund?

Same happened to me, got most of the money back.

Ring them

Esel

Yeah, a friend I mentioned this to said that your provider should be able to verify that you have not been using that phone for the last x years. They are not an expert in this area, though...

djdunny

OP I would go to store, get the guys in store to check your transaction history, if you got another phoen with them then you can say that the policy wasnt transferred. They may not refund 5 years work but they would def refund a year (i used to work there and have experience with cases like this). If you didnt get your phone with them you could ask very nicely if you can provide proof that you got a phone else where would they offer a refund. Def worth a shot.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

djdunny wrote: »

OP I would go to store, get the guys in store to check your transaction history, if you got another phoen with them then you can say that the policy wasnt transferred. They may not refund 5 years work but they would def refund a year (i used to work there and have experience with cases like this). If you didnt get your phone with them you could ask very nicely if you can provide proof that you got a phone else where would they offer a refund. Def worth a shot.

Like earlier suggestions, that is wrong on many fronts but principally moral ones. It is wrong to suggest lieing that somebody messed up in their job. No refund is due. The OP took his eye off the ball. Indeed he didn't even know the ball was in play for years. His error. His loss. His lesson learned.

D3PO

Esel wrote: »

your provider should be able to verify that you have not been using that phone for the last x years.

Why would that have any relevence ? If I can prove my car is off the road should my car insurance company repay my previum .....

Weather you use the phone or not is irrelevent. The fact is the phone was insured, how or if it was in use is none of the insurance providers concern.

If you leave your policy in place and you dont need it your at fault end of story no refund due.

JimsAlterEgo

D3PO wrote: »

Why would that have any relevence ? If I can prove my car is off the road should my car insurance company repay my previum .....

Weather you use the phone or not is irrelevent. The fact is the phone was insured, how or if it was in use is none of the insurance providers concern.

If you leave your policy in place and you dont need it your at fault end of story no refund due.

Insurance companies send reneewals every year.

D3PO

JimsAlterEgo wrote: »

Insurance companies send reneewals every year.

There is no legal obligation for them to do so. Insurance companies send renewals when a term policy is due to expire.

In a rolling contract as phone insurance is there is no renewal as there is no term.

slimjimmc

@djdunny : Do not suggest making false claims that are likely to be fraudulent.
Posters - lawful suggestions only please.

djdunny

slimjimmc wrote: »

@djdunny : Do not suggest making false claims that are likely to be fraudulent.
Posters - lawful suggestions only please.

Hi can you tell me what part of my post suggested making a fraudulent claim?? Maybe you have mistaken what I had written. Basically when I worked in CPW we dealt with this kind of issue all the time. People would have a policy taken out with CPW but then buy a phone a year later in a network store. They then return to cpw a few months later realising they have been paying a premium for a phone that was no longer in use and thus looking for a refund. which we would then request from the lifeline dept.

Maybe i have explained it a bit clearer this time. Let me know if it needs further clarification.


Regards
Dunny

brianblaze

Used to work there.

Get proof of when you upgraded and stopped using that phone from your network, they should then reimburse you. That's the way it used to work years ago.

That much cash though.... They'll make it difficult. (13.75 x 12 x 6 = 990)

The onus was on you to inform them etc. if you bought a phone since in Carphone though, the onus was on them!)

brianblaze

Antonella Full Gang wrote: »

Like earlier suggestions, that is wrong on many fronts but principally moral ones. It is wrong to suggest lieing that somebody messed up in their job.

Incorrect. The system used in Carphone (PIE) will try transfer the insurance to a new handset and would have to be manually over-ridden by the sales rep to prevent it.

slimjimmc

Apologies Dunny, I did indeed mistake your post.

colm_mcm

Quick update on this. Gave proof of upgrade, got full refund. Happy days.

UnknownSpecies

colm_mcm wrote: »

Quick update on this. Gave proof of upgrade, got full refund. Happy days.

Sound enough of em! Always worth asking.