Upgrade - received a used/refurbished phone loose in a white box with no accessories

[anobeithiol]

I have been a Vodafone customer for a long time (much longer than I care to remember). Yesterday I arranged an upgrade to the 512GB Huawei P30 Pro which I have been waiting to come back into stock. Excited today I sign for the delivery and then get ready for my new device.  To my astonishment what is in the package is not great. Yes, its the P30 Pro which is a positive. Its in a plain white box with no accesories in a small bag with another little bag containing a leflet and a sim removal tool. I knew something was amiss when the box rattled. The handset is literally loose in the box. 

What has followed is about 3 hours of phone calls passed from pillar to post and treated like I am just making this up. I took lots of pictures when it arrived. 

I apparently have a replacment swap arriving tomorrow. If its not a new factory sealed handset I'm off. You will lose a £200 a month customer to another network.  I have three lines plus a tablet with data. 

Really really unimpressed Vodafone 😞

Hopefully somoene is reading this who give a bit more of a **** about customers than some of the advisers I have crossed swords with today. Barely even an apology apart from 'oh it must have been a packing error. '

[BandOfBrothers]

I have seen posts in the past here Vodafone has re boxed a new phone in plain wrapping @anobeithiol  why is beyond me !!

Sometimes it can be because a person has chosen a nearly new phone to help keep costs down.

Nearly new is a phone returned to Vodafone by someone who has decided not to keep it in the Network 14 day cooling off period.

However it's reasonable that the Vodafone own box holds the phone secure especially while in transit and has all the accessories and leaflets it should come with if it was in a Huawei box.

Please do let the phone be delivered again and re check it and if it's the same then you can drop it into a Vodafone Highstreet Store if that's more convenient than awaiting for a courier to pick it up.

Personally I prefer to pick up my phones from a store so I can check it's right and there is no damage  / boots up etc and if it does not then normally it's a straight swap in the store. No waiting around for delivery.

If a person wants a store to supply a phone from their own pool of stock then the new contract or upgrade has to be taken out directly in the store.

i.e a person would usually have to cancel the contract / upgrade and then process the new contract  / upgrade directly in the store.

All the best.

[AnnS]

Hi @anobeithiol 

As far as is known Vodafone purchase phones in bulk and rebox before despatch, just because the phone is in a plain box does not mean you have been sent a returned or nearly new device.  There should have been some earphones and charger in the box.

The manual is provided online here: https://consumer.huawei.com/en/support/phones/p30-pro/ 

[anobeithiol]

With respect guys I know a phone that is not new when I see one. Its not in a retail box. It does not have the front and back protectors on. Its in a non-huawei box and in a bag. Im pretty sure you would not accept this as a customer either, especially on a premium device. 

Its going back and if my replacment isnt a new retail boxed handset I shall be departing Vodafone today. 

[BandOfBrothers]

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@anobeithiol wrote:

With respect guys I know a phone that is not new when I see one. Its not in a retail box. It does not have the front and back protectors on. Its in a non-huawei box and in a bag. Im pretty sure you would not accept this as a customer either, especially on a premium device. 

Its going back and if my replacment isnt a new retail boxed handset I shall be departing Vodafone today. 

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Totally agree that I wouldn't accept a phone that looks to have been sent back under the cooling off period. It should be in pristine condition with in transit covers on it if that's how the manufacturer sends it out which is more common on today's phones.

Like I said its beyond me why a network would feel the need to re box a new phone from the original packaging to a plain box !

If I'm signing upto a new phone I want a new phone.

Please let us know how you get on with this.

[anobeithiol]

Interesting that somoene from Customer Relations has just contacted me.

They were pretty useless also and getting someone else to call me back later. When I said that this would be classed as "passing off" under the sale of goods act 1979 they changed tune. Little did they know I used to work for trading standards many moons ago 🙂 🙂 

On a posiitive note a replacment device is being delviered later by DPD. Lets hope its NEW and not used.

[hrym]

If nothing else, it looks bad.   There certainly have been instances, partiuclarly with in-demand devices, of their being supplied in bulk and Vodafone boxing them themselves.   However, at the very least, it should be a branded (even if Vodafone) box and with a label that indicates the  contents (with IMEI etc, as normal).   At the very least, that suggests a pride in the brand - a plain box with loose contents does exactly the opposite.

[anobeithiol]

Quick update. ..  Guess what?  Another refurbished phone has been delivered. .  Not impressed. Formal complaint lodged. Still cant believe they are passing off a refurb phone as brand new.  I am getting Huawei to check the IMEI for me. Really really not happy 

[BandOfBrothers]

Not good at all !!

[anobeithiol]

OMG being passed from passed pillar to post ... anyone on here have a decent contact at Vodafone? help