Please clarify data usage charges

[Oilman]

I've got a 750mb data allowance on my iPhone contract. I only had 500mb on my last contract but my old phone did not seem to be so data heavy. I used to use just over 500mb and regularly got charged and extra £5 per month for exceeding that.

It seems every month I seem to now average just over 750mb with the iPhone and get warned then charged an extra £5 each month.

Can it be clarified why when you pay £5 for the next 750/500mb of data it does not carry on to the next month when often I've only used a small amount of the extra data I've paid for?

Surely it's only fair to carry forward data you have paid for?

[Oilman]

This is not contract data allowance, this is additional data purchased above agreed limits.

I'm allowed 750mb and then get a message I'm close to using my allowance of 750mb and the next 750mb will be charged at £5.

The message states the next 750mb used and there is no reference to time constraints.

The way I see it is you are paying for an additional 750mb, not paying extra for <100mb to get past for a few days for it to be reset at the start if a new month.

Can someone clarify if this is correct as per legal requirement or wording of contract?

[Retired-Wayne]

Hi Oilman

Thanks for your posts here.

You cannot carry over data from month to month. When you go over your allowance you will be charged for an additional 500MB.

Details of this can be found on our terms and conditions found here

Terms and Conditions

Thanks

Wayne

eForum Team

[Oilman]

The link does not work.

It just tells me there is an unexpected error when I click on it.

[Retired-Trev]

Hi Oilman

I’m sorry about the link, but I’ve re-linked the data help pages for you, which clearly show that any usage outside your set allowance, are charged at £5 for up to 500Mb of extra usage in a given month.

As already stated, we do not roll over any monthly allowances for data, calls or texts, and this is clearly shown in the terms and conditions.

Let me know if you’ve any further questions.

Regards

Trev

eForum Team

[Oilman]

Thanks for the links and response.

However, I'm still not getting this "in any given month" part when purchasing additional data.

I fully understand that contract limits no longer carry forward. I'm not actually saying otherwise.

On the data terms and conditions it says if you go over your data allowance you will be charged £5 for each additional 500MB. Again there is no reference to timescale at all.

Here is an example of what I mean.

I have 750MB allowance and often go over usually days before the end of my billing month.

For arguement sake, I go over the allowance on the 28th of the month and get charged £5 for the next 3 days where I might only use 50-100MB of the 500MB.

So I've paid £5 for 3 days usage which is more expensive than prepay tariffs for data. Then the same happens the following month as the reset 750MB is not quite enough.

Surely when you pay for the 500MB you either get what you have specifically paid for, or be given a month from time of charge to use it?

I think that is a very fair thing to expect rather than getting charged £5 extra nearly every month and getting very little in return for it.

I'm reading on my phone and honestly can't see the part in the terms and conditions or the data information pages where is says additional data or services purchased will be reset at the start of a fresh month.

It's not as per your contract limits, so surely should be treated differently?

[Retired-Dave]

Hi Oilman,

You are correct that the additional data pack is not part of the contracted agreement, however there is no requirement that this therefore be allowed to carry over. It is a business decision that this will be subject to the same expiry conditions as the standard allowance.

There are ways to avoid incurring some data charges, for example:

 - Switching off location and GPS services when not in use

 - Increase polling time intervals for emails/updates/ notifications

 - Connect to WiFi where possible

 - Save large downloads and updates for WiFi

Dave

eForum Team

[Oilman]

I've no interest in trying to cut my data usage as that's why payi good money for a smart phone.

I'm also willing to pay data charges if they are fair but what I'm reading really is unfair on the customer.

Given that there is no wording on any part of the contract to say additional data will be reset at each month, I think Vodafone's business decision is very suspect and wording of purchasing data misleading.

Everywhere simply states that you are paying £5 for the next 500MB. That's what it says on the terms of data usage and that's what it says on the reminders Vodafone send out.

Nowhere does it actually say anything remotely different, leaving Vodafone's practice of resetting it without consent or informing your customers this is the case, deceptive.

Effectively you are buying a top up on top of your contractual agreement. I don't hear of any prepay customers losing their credit as they never used it within 3 days before the month is out.

I know we are only talking £5 a month here but it seems Vodafone really are taking advantage of their customers on this one to line their own pockets.

The way it would add up for me is I'd likely only have to buy additional data every 3-4 months and not every month by a small margin saving myself probably £50-£60 over my contract.

Can this question be escalated and the legality of this practice looked at?

I honestly can't see how Vodafone can change circumstances to suit themselves when it's clearly not stated in the contract.

I look forward to a response and may even ask the question of consumer direct and, or trading standards to get the legal requirement verified.

[Retired-Dave]

Hi Oilman,

The intention wasn't to purely advise how to cut data usage, but how to cut the costs and the unnecessary usage, so that if the issue boiled down to just a few Megs over each month, that small amount could be removed from the billable usage and possibly saved you the excess cost. Whilst this wouldn’t have addressed the main point of your query, it may have served to help you or others avoid the excess data charge on occasion so I thought it worth mentioning.

The details on our mobile internet allowances, listed on the data pack information page, states that each month, if you exceed the limit the charges are £5 for another 500MB after that. This does imply that a new excess data bundle is required on each occasion and therefore that spare excess amounts are not carried over.

This is a standard industry practice, the same as paying a workman for "every hour or part thereof" for household repairs and treats this bundle the same as all allowances on the account - each runs until the end of the monthly cycle only. At no point have we stated that this bundle would be handled any differently to this.

We do feed back any comments from customers regarding the services and packages we offer, as that is how we can gauge what customers are looking for, and your comments have been passed on accordingly.

Dave

eForum Team

[mrdeejay]

There is cleary only one winner in this and that is Three with their "All You CAn Eat Data" even on 30 day sim only and pay as you go.

Most customers with smartphones are going to suffer as Vodafone have reduced several of their data parts of plans today.  500mb now goes down to 250mb and also if you go over your inital allownace it's now £5 for 250 mb where as it was before £5 for 500 mb.

Looks like Vodafone are going down hill and wanting to rip customers off on data charges.

Everyone now wants smartphones so Vodafone has seen this coming and are now charging customers for the privlage of using their smartphones as what they are designed for.

I agree with the above if you buy a smartphone you should be able to use it as was designed.  It's very much the same as T-Mobiles stance if you want to download use WiFi.  Ridiculous really.  This has to get sorted!