Footbox.tv complaint

[stunley]

Hello.

I've just gotten a another text from something called footbox.tv, which I never signed up for (I don't even like football). I previously received one on 02/07/19 and contacted vodafone (via chat) on 04/07/19 and talked to D******* who said he would block any additional comm's from this company/scam (I used the chat to send a copy of the conversation to my email but it didn't arrive!). I've also noticed a £4 additional charge on my Vodafone bill for 'Footbox.tv'.

How can I be charged for a service I never signed up for and have no interest in? Why am I still receiving texts?

I've ordered a giff-gaff card and the next step will be ending my contract.

[Andy]

Hi @stunley I can understand your frustration if you have found that you have been charged again. I would advise replying to the message with the word STOP unless there are any other instructions in the message to unsubscribe. Is there a contact number for the company in the message who you can call to raise a complaint? You can also raise this to PSA who is the regulator for goods and services charged to a phone bill here.

If you still need us to follow this up please contact us on Facebook and Twitter.

[Despairing-Dad]

Im currently looking at £20  that has erroneously appeared on my bill today for my younger sons phone.

A suggestion for the Vodafone management - make customers fully aware of the premium barring service (now installed) and if not in place, could you not check with the actual  Account Payer first before permitting these types of high charges ?  Surely it cant be that difficult when I have to double authenticate every other financial service today and to allow someone charging weekly ... ???.

[Mark]

Thanks for your feedback @Despairing-Dad we're always happy to receive this and will use it when looking to improve our products going forward 😊

[callumm20]

Can someone from Vodafone explain to me why they seem to have partnered with a company, Footbox, which employs shady at the least, definitely immmoral and possibly illegal techniques to dupe people into subscription - paid for through their Vodafone account.

I had a long and protracted conversation yesterday with someone at Vodafone, who explained that because I mistakenly, and unknowingly, pressed on a mobile advert, I am automatically sugned up to a subscription costing me £4 a month. The only communications I have had are texts, which I had asumed were scams and automatically deleted. I asked for proof of a contract between myself and Footbox (which I have absolutely no idea what services they offer, and have no interest) which allowed them to deduct monies from my account. I believe that without this contract, Vodafone are complicit in what, some would say is theft.

In fairness, the outshot was that Vodafone have reimbursed the £16 charge and have confirmed that future bills will not include this. However, I have received a text from Footbox this morning saying that I am a subscriber. I have searched for a website to contact them - I am not confident that the 65101 yexy numbers is either a paid for text service or a scam.

[callumm20]

Can someone from Vodafone explain to me why they seem to have partnered with a company, Footbox, which employs shady at the least, definitely immmoral and possibly illegal techniques to dupe people into subscription - paid for through their Vodafone account.

I had a long and protracted conversation yesterday with someone at Vodafone, who explained that because I mistakenly, and unknowingly, pressed on a mobile advert, I am automatically sugned up to a subscription costing me £4 a month. The only communications I have had are texts, which I had asumed were scams and automatically deleted. I asked for proof of a contract between myself and Footbox (which I have absolutely no idea what services they offer, and have no interest) which allowed them to deduct monies from my account. I believe that without this contract, Vodafone are complicit in what, some would say is theft.

In fairness, the outshot was that Vodafone have reimbursed the £16 charge and have confirmed that future bills will not include this. However, I have received a text from Footbox this morning saying that I am a subscriber. I have searched for a website to contact them - I am not confident that the 65101 text number is either a paid for text service or a scam.

[Broker-Man]

You might want to look at this article:

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-7520411/Vodafone-customer-charged-MobPair-never-si...

[Tash]

@callumm20 I'm glad to hear we were able to take a closer look into this for you.

This is a third party company so we'd be unable to control your subscription with them. If you contact them directly you'll be able to cancel your subscription to ensure you receive no further messages and charges.

You can find some more information on a similar thread here.

[callumm20]

Thank you for your reply. 

My question was actually centred on why Vodafone partner with a company which is clearly not ethical and as some would say, illegal. Vodafone will not be partnering them out of generosity, they will be making revenue out if this relationship.  Can you explain why Vodafone have a relationship with this company?

[callumm20]

In addition, just reading an article in the Mail, in which it states;

A spokesperson for Vodafone said: ‘Vodafone, together with all other Mobile Network Operators, insist that aggregators and merchants use a two-step purchase process that adheres to the Phone-paid Services Code of Practise and ensures a customer gives their prior consent before signing up to a subscription-based service."

This definitely did not happen in my case, and I have asked Vodafone to prove it did, before "stealing" money from my account on behalf of others.