Eir gives me ridiculous charges on phone bill

machaseh

So a couple of weeks ago, suddenly I could not do anything with my mobile phone anymore. Went to eir shop, they put in a new sim, nothing worked, so they connected me to eir support.

Apparently I suddenly have a super high (3 digit) phone bill and they closed off my connection until I pay a minimum amount. They say it's due to data.

Yet when I log into My Eir I do not see a breakdown of how much data I actually used or how this is possible. The man on the phone could not tell me either, only that I need to pay the amount and he put me on an unlimited data plan.

What are my rights according to irish consumer law? I want to know how it is possible that I am suddenly charged more than a hundred quid for what is normally only a couple of tenners in the month. I wouldnt want to have this silly debt affecting my credit rating.

I'd like to receive at least a bill in pdf breaking down when and how so much data was consumed.

Dav010

Can’t you check your data usage on your phone?

kirving

Eir cut me off when I was in China, until I had paid them €200+, despite being a loyal customer for a decade, and having had paid a similarly sized bill weeks previously.

I couldn't pay online, and couldn't call them with no phone, and they wouldn't talk to someone at home to pay it for me.

After all that, they couldn't give me an accurate itemised bill, so I couldn't claim expenses from work.

con747

From the Comreg website, "Disputed Charges,
If you receive your bill and you believe that it is incorrect you should raise this immediately with your service provider as a complaint. Please ask your service provider if they provide a complaint reference number for your reference as some service providers allocate individual complaint reference numbers. Please allow your service provider 10 working days to resolve the billing issue, if the matter is not resolved in a reasonable timeframe please contact ComReg with all the details of your billing complaint and we can review and escalate your complaint if appropriate directly with your service provider on your behalf."

machaseh

con747 wrote: »

From the Comreg website, "Disputed Charges,
If you receive your bill and you believe that it is incorrect you should raise this immediately with your service provider as a complaint. Please ask your service provider if they provide a complaint reference number for your reference as some service providers allocate individual complaint reference numbers. Please allow your service provider 10 working days to resolve the billing issue, if the matter is not resolved in a reasonable timeframe please contact ComReg with all the details of your billing complaint and we can review and escalate your complaint if appropriate directly with your service provider on your behalf."

That seems good.

So apparently more than 200 quid has gone to Mobile Data, according to the more detailed bill that I can see now. But I still don't see how much data was used and at what time and how on earth this could be possible.


Should I pay the bill first and then start a complaint procedure? I do not want to run into arrears, debt collectors, bad credit etc.

AngryLips

Dav010 wrote: »

Can’t you check your data usage on your phone?

This. Before you go making a fuss - check if you're not in the wrong first. Still, it is unusual to get run up a high bill without being warned about it first by your network. Network's are required by Comreg to notify customers of excessive usage during a billing period - this is normally done via SMS, did you get an SMS warning about your usage for the time in question?

machaseh

AngryLips wrote: »

This. Before you go making a fuss - check if you're not in the wrong first. Still, it is unusual to get run up a high bill without being warned about it first by your network. Network's are required by Comreg to notify customers of excessive usage during a billing period - this is normally done via SMS, did you get an SMS warning about your usage for the time in question?

I did get an SMS that I reached my data limit, but I had no idea that the bill would suddenly explode to 200+ euros. I had calculated in about 10-20 euros extra at most. I failed to get an SMS saying 'your extra data charges are now 50 euros or higher ' or anything of the sort. Only 90% and 100% of data limit and that was that.

If I had known this beforehand, I'd just have gotten a data top up at the store or something or even get a lyca mobile sim for the time being (as I have right now which has also cost me about 30 euros by now as I still dont have any connection with eir).

I mean I can't just turn off my internet the moment I get that message on saturday evening and right before I'm heading off on vacation.

I suppose there's little chance I'll get any money back and will have to pay the bill then? Bye bye 200+ quid...

Dav010

machaseh wrote: »

I did get an SMS that I reached my data limit, but I had no idea that the bill would suddenly explode to 200+ euros. I had calculated in about 10-20 euros extra at most. I failed to get an SMS saying 'your extra data charges are now 50 euros or higher ' or anything of the sort. Only 90% and 100% of data limit and that was that.

If I had known this beforehand, I'd just have gotten a data top up at the store or something or even get a lyca mobile sim for the time being (as I have right now which has also cost me about 30 euros by now as I still dont have any connection with eir).

I mean I can't just turn off my internet the moment I get that message on saturday evening and right before I'm heading off on vacation.

I suppose there's little chance I'll get any money back and will have to pay the bill then? Bye bye 200+ quid...

First thing you need to do, as in all cases where you have an issue with a service provider, is read the agreement/contract you signed up to. If they have not acted in accordance with the terms and considerations, then contact comreg with your complaint, outlining how they breached the contract.

But, if you used the extra data (check your phone) and they did text you, twice, when you reached your limit, and you have been correctly charged what is usually a very high rate for data exceeding your plan, then you will have to suck it up and be more careful next time.

And yes, if you want to avoid charges when you receive that text regarding your limit, you turn off the internet. All those apps on phones with notifications, location markers, updates etc run even when you are not browsing.

is_that_so

machaseh wrote: »

I did get an SMS that I reached my data limit, but I had no idea that the bill would suddenly explode to 200+ euros. I had calculated in about 10-20 euros extra at most. I failed to get an SMS saying 'your extra data charges are now 50 euros or higher ' or anything of the sort. Only 90% and 100% of data limit and that was that.

If I had known this beforehand, I'd just have gotten a data top up at the store or something or even get a lyca mobile sim for the time being (as I have right now which has also cost me about 30 euros by now as I still dont have any connection with eir).

I mean I can't just turn off my internet the moment I get that message on saturday evening and right before I'm heading off on vacation.

I suppose there's little chance I'll get any money back and will have to pay the bill then? Bye bye 200+ quid...

Yeah you do turn it off. I got caught to the tune of €75 about a decade ago with Vodafone and learned my lesson. I called Eir before I headed to foreign climes and was informed of the horrendous per MB charge. I ended up buying a phone over there. I have since upgraded to a sim-free phone.

machaseh

Dav010 wrote: »

First thing you need to do, as in all cases where you have an issue with a service provider, is read the agreement/contract you signed up to. If they have not acted in accordance with the terms and considerations, then contact comreg with your complaint, outlining how they breached the contract.

But, if you used the extra data (check your phone) and they did text you, twice, when you reached your limit, and you have been correctly charged what is usually a very high rate for data exceeding your plan, then you will have to suck it up and be more careful next time.

And yes, if you want to avoid charges when you receive that text regarding your limit, you turn off the internet. All those apps on phones with notifications, location markers, updates etc run even when you are not browsing.

I see. I got proper f*cked over then. That's too bad, I could have done a lot more fun things with that money than paying eir. I will still be making a complaint but I'll pay that bill first then.

I'd like to drink away my sorrows in the pub tonight but won't have any money for that left hah.

Dav010

machaseh wrote: »

I see. I got proper f*cked over then. That's too bad, I could have done a lot more fun things with that money than paying eir. I will still be making a complaint but I'll pay that bill first then.

I'd like to drink away my sorrows in the pub tonight but won't have any money for that left hah.

You didn’t get “f*cked over” if they are charging you as per the agreed terms of your contract and your phone confirms data usage. They text you twice about your data usage, what are you complaining about?

AngryLips

machaseh wrote: »

I did get an SMS that I reached my data limit, but I had no idea that the bill would suddenly explode to 200+ euros. I had calculated in about 10-20 euros extra at most. I failed to get an SMS saying 'your extra data charges are now 50 euros or higher ' or anything of the sort. Only 90% and 100% of data limit and that was that.

If I had known this beforehand, I'd just have gotten a data top up at the store or something or even get a lyca mobile sim for the time being (as I have right now which has also cost me about 30 euros by now as I still dont have any connection with eir).

I mean I can't just turn off my internet the moment I get that message on saturday evening and right before I'm heading off on vacation.

I suppose there's little chance I'll get any money back and will have to pay the bill then? Bye bye 200+ quid...

To be honest, the best you can hope for is an appeal to leniency. Don't be a dick and they might give you a credit for billshock.

antix80

For the past 20 years I've been on prepay. I've seen too many people being hit with stupid bills (including scams by mobile phone companies) to risk a high bill phone and having my number held hostage.

Eg. 10c per megabyte over your data allowance.
Data sold as unlimited with 5GB cap and per megabyte charges thereafter .
€2 premium texts. Dozens of them.
Data roaming abroad (€8 per megabyte with Three in countries like Mexico)
Phones stolen and used to call premium rate numbers abroad.
Prepay International call charges being as low as 5c when bill pay cost €2 a minute.

My favourite had to be Vodafone. Scenario: Fly abroad, register to the network abroad and switch off your phone, voicemail is enabled . Now for every missed call that automatically hits your voicemail you're charged €2 to "receive" the call, and €2 to "divert" it to your voicemail. Thankfully they stopped perpetrating this scam.

I usually buy a half-decent dual sim phone outright and send a text topup once a month.

[Deleted User]

so.

you were informed you were running out of data.

ignored that because you had stuff to do that needed data.

then went abroad, presumably still using data.

you were the last person left in the country who didn't know that this is an expensive idea.

you know now.

machaseh

Deleted User wrote: »

so.

you were informed you were running out of data.

ignored that because you had stuff to do that needed data.

then went abroad, presumably still using data.

you were the last person left in the country who didn't know that this is an expensive idea.

you know now.

No when I went abroad I inserted a local sim.

Dav010

antix80 wrote: »

For the past 20 years I've been on prepay. I've seen too many people being hit with stupid bills (including scams by mobile phone companies) to risk a high bill phone and having my number held hostage.

Eg. 10c per megabyte over your data allowance.
Data sold as unlimited with 5GB cap and per megabyte charges thereafter .
€2 premium texts. Dozens of them.
Data roaming abroad (€8 per megabyte with Three in countries like Mexico)
Phones stolen and used to call premium rate numbers abroad.
Prepay International call charges being as low as 5c when bill pay cost €2 a minute.

My favourite had to be Vodafone. Scenario: Fly abroad, register to the network abroad and switch off your phone, voicemail is enabled . Now for every missed call that automatically hits your voicemail you're charged €2 to "receive" the call, and €2 to "divert" it to your voicemail. Thankfully they stopped perpetrating this scam.

I usually buy a half-decent dual sim phone outright and send a text topup once a month.

Wouldn’t all those charges have been viewable on the providers website/in your agreement, before you signed up to it?

JMMCapital

Every time I top up the phone the credits gone in less than a day their data plans are useless, must sign up to a new network with unlimited data any recommendation folks?

antix80

Dav010 wrote: »

Wouldn’t all those charges have been viewable on the providers website/in your agreement, before you signed up to it?

Oh, absolutely.. But it's only when people receive 3, 4 or even 5 figure bills on their €30 a month plan that they realise the mobile phone companies gouged them.

(I think phone companies got better at cutting people off after a few hundred euros, but i wouldn't depend on it.. As I said, €8 per Megabyte for data abroad.. The typical phone user cannot comprehend this)

It's like paying €100 for a hotel room and being charged €5000 for the minibar.

Dav010

antix80 wrote: »

Oh, absolutely.. But it's only when people receive 3, 4 or even 5 figure bills on their €30 a month plan that they realise the mobile phone companies gouged them.

It's like paying €100 for a hotel room and being charged €5000 for the minibar.

But if there is a price list for the minibar, as there is in hotels, then only you are responsible for the bill if you drink the contents.

If the data charges are there to see and you use data, then who is too blame?

antix80

Dav010 wrote: »

But if there is a price list for the minibar, as there is in hotels, then only you are responsible for the bill if you drink the contents.

If the data charges are there to see and you use data, then who is too blame?

Sure they're on the website..

Chances are, in the shop most ppl just see "€29 a month*. All you can eat data*. Of course you can use your phone abroad**."

**T&cs apply.

The problem is when you're given 15GB of data for €15, then another gig doesn't cost an extra €1. It costs an extra €100. And you used 20.

Dav010

antix80 wrote: »

Sure they're on the website..

**T&cs apply

If you agree to those rates, t&cs, I’m struggling to see who else is responsible for fees incurred by data usage.

machaseh

antix80 wrote: »

Sure they're on the website..

Chances are, in the shop most ppl just see "€29 a month*. All you can eat data*. Of course you can use your phone abroad**."

**T&cs apply.

The problem is when you're given 15GB of data for €15, then another gig doesn't cost an extra €1. It costs an extra €100. And you used 20.

This. I am not sure yet (currently chatting with the super slow customer service), but it seems as if I went only a couple GBs over my data limit. It does not feel proportionate to ask 200+ quid for this. Especially because 15 GB of data can be purchased for 15 euros at most competitors such as Lycamobile, and even eir itself then offered me an UNLIMITED*** data plan for a LOWER amount that I am paying monthly now. So charging 200+ quid for slightly going over your data limit seems preposterous.

Also yes, it is probably somewhere in the T&C, but we still have consumer protection laws. Because what if they put in the T&C that I need to sell my soul to Satan if I go 1 MB over my data limit, or that suddenly it costs 1 million euros per MB or something. Clearly T&Cs are important but not the be all end all of our consumer protection system.

machaseh

Also, because they shut off my sim card, I am not even able to call eir. I have only 2 euros left on my temporary lyca sim card that I purchased for the mean while (due to travels etc. in between), I am stuck using the super slow chat service at work.

Dav010

machaseh wrote: »

This. I am not sure yet (currently chatting with the super slow customer service), but it seems as if I went only a couple GBs over my data limit. It does not feel proportionate to ask 200+ quid for this. Especially because 15 GB of data can be purchased for 15 euros at most competitors such as Lycamobile, and even eir itself then offered me an UNLIMITED*** data plan for a LOWER amount that I am paying monthly now. So charging 200+ quid for slightly going over your data limit seems preposterous.

Also yes, it is probably somewhere in the T&C, but we still have consumer protection laws. Because what if they put in the T&C that I need to sell my soul to Satan if I go 1 MB over my data limit, or that suddenly it costs 1 million euros per MB or something. Clearly T&Cs are important but not the be all end all of our consumer protection system.

I appreciate you are annoyed, and as often happens on boards, an op latches on to a post which tells them what they want to hear, but what other operators charge is not relevant to the predicament you find yourself in, nor indeed is the fact that they put to on an unlimited plan after you had run up the bill.

What is relevant is that the charges are online, you agreed to them when you signed up and you used the data (I am assuming you did use that data as you haven’t stated that you didn’t, or that your phone confirmed you didn’t).

Charging for extra data isn’t unfair, they texted you twice to let you know you had reached your limit, and the charges, though high, are not unlawful. You didn’t agree to sell your soul, but you did agree to the charges. It’s time to accept your responsibility.

Consumer legislation does not control pricing.

From Comreg website:

We also advise you to carefully read the terms and conditions of your contracts and to be aware of the particular limits or thresholds that apply before purchasing.

machaseh

Dav010 wrote: »

I appreciate you are annoyed, and as often happens on boards, an op latches on to a post which tells them what they want to hear, but what other operators charge is not relevant to the predicament you find yourself in, nor indeed is the fact that they put to on an unlimited plan after you had run up the bill.

What is relevant is that the charges are online, you agreed to them when you signed up and you used the data (I am assuming you did use that data as you haven’t stated that you didn’t, or that your phone confirmed you didn’t).

Charging for extra data isn’t unfair, they texted you twice to let you know you had reached your limit, and the charges, though high, are not unlawful. You didn’t agree to sell your soul, but you did agree to the charges. It’s time to accept your responsibility.

Consumer legislation does not control pricing.

From Comreg website:

We also advise you to carefully read the terms and conditions of your contracts and to be aware of the particular limits or thresholds that apply before purchasing.

Yes this is true and I have already set up direct debit to pay this unfortunate sum. In my language we call this 'leergeld' (learning money you need to pay for your mistakes). But still I do not think it's fair to charge hundreds of euros for something that can be purchased for a tenner literally anywhere.

It's like dining at a restaurant, and then you order a beer, and when the bill comes that pint was 100 quid. And then they say 'but it's right there in the miniature letters at the bottom of the menu'.

Hence I am still trying to get my complaint filed with eir and that organisation, I am on hold on the phone as we speak. Chat support wont issue internal case reference numbers or escalate to supervisors.

Dav010

machaseh wrote: »

Yes this is true and I have already set up direct debit to pay this unfortunate sum. In my language we call this 'leergeld' (learning money you need to pay for your mistakes). But still I do not think it's fair to charge hundreds of euros for something that can be purchased for a tenner literally anywhere.

It's like dining at a restaurant, and then you order a beer, and when the bill comes that pint was 100 quid. And then they say 'but it's right there in the miniature letters at the bottom of the menu'.

Hence I am still trying to get my complaint filed with eir and that organisation, I am on hold on the phone as we speak. Chat support wont issue internal case reference numbers or escalate to supervisors.

I suppose the obvious question may be, why didn’t you go with the competitor who charges the lesser rate? As an adult, it is taken for granted that you have the capacity, both in your own interest and legally, to make consumer decisions and enter contracts. If you buy a €100 beer when the price is displayed on the menu, you are responsible, not the restaurant.

I do understand your frustration though, on checking out of a hotel after a wedding a few years ago, the bill was double that quoted, turned out I had ordered and signed for a round of 6 measures of a very expensive whiskey. My fault, not the hotels.

machaseh

Dav010 wrote: »

I suppose the obvious question may be, why didn’t you go with the competitor who charges the lesser rate? As an adult, it is taken for granted that you have the capacity, both in your own interest and legally, to make consumer decisions and enter contracts. If you buy a €100 beer when the price is displayed on the menu, you are responsible, not the restaurant.

I do understand your frustration though, on checking out of a hotel after a wedding a few years ago, the bill was double that quoted, turned out I had ordered and signed for a round of 6 measures of a very expensive whiskey. My fault, not the hotels.

The thing is is that its not easily visible how much going over your data limit will cost. Yes, X cents per MB. But it's impossible on my phone to easily see how many MBs I am already past the limit.

I did know about horror stories concerning foreign country roaming, so what I always have done is just shut off roaming and mobile internet when I am outside the EU to avoid issues like that. Yet I was unaware of horror stories of going ever so slightly over the data limit.

As for ordering 6 yamazaki or whatever that super expensive japanese whiskey is called while black out drunk; that is a different story. You drank so much that you were no longer in control over your actions and did something dumb. Trust me I have done way dumber things when drunk.

machaseh

UPDATE: Eir support verbally told me on the phone that they will resolve the bill issue and I received an internal case reference number. Yet eir support is notorious, so I am not going to cheer until I have my phone connection back up and running.

Dav010

machaseh wrote: »

The thing is is that its not easily visible how much going over your data limit will cost. Yes, X cents per MB. But it's impossible on my phone to easily see how many MBs I am already past the limit.
k.

It is easy. When you get the first text at 80% of limit, you go to their site, the charges are there. You then go to the data usage on your phone and take that as your marker.

machaseh

Dav010 wrote: »

It is easy. When you get the first text at 80% of limit, you go to their site, the charges are there. You then go to the data usage on your phone and take that as your marker.

Did go there and nothing was shown there. Through My Eir I can still not see how much GB I actually used up. Customer service representative also couldnt.

I did go slightly over my data limit but the amount charged seems excessive. If they would charge me say 30 quid extra, I'd be like alright here you are, better luck next time. But this is just absurd.

ma88

Similar story in my case, was in a visit to uk, on the way back on the ferry - did got charged roaming mobile data-9.75MB @ 60 euro- Vodafone.
Now has been told they cannot guarantee coverage when you're travelling at sea, but there is a €6.15 per MB if so! WTF??!
Did somebody else met this issue?!
Thanks.