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]

There are only the contact options in Contact-us  it the Vodafone Social Media Teams via Contact-us-for-account-specific-queries. 

What are you wanting to do at this stage ?

[anobeithiol]

It just gets better and better. Maybe Jeremy Beagle will jump out in a minute. . . 

Apparently logistics cannot in any way promise that if they send a replacement 'NEW' phone, I wont receive another refurbished handset. . .. .. . . WT*?? 

They have however finally agreed that the definition of 'NEW' is a sealed unit in the original manufactuer sealed box will all the original accessories, and not a plain white box with IMEI blanked out with a marker pen and a white sticker over the top. . . .  They also agree that 'NEW' phones arrive with screen and back protectors on and not in a small bag rattling in the box that is too big... 

Its now gone to escalations and apparently internal investogations and I am now being promised a delivery on Sunday between 10.00 and 12.00. You couldnt make some of this up guys. . .  

Tune in on Sunday after 12.00 for the next episode of "All I want from Vodafone is what I ordered. .  part three" 

[BandOfBrothers]

Hopefully that'll be the end of it.

If not consider upgrading in a Vodafone Highstreet Store if convenient @anobeithiol 

[Anonymous]

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@anobeithiol wrote:

It just gets better and better. Maybe Jeremy Beagle will jump out in a minute. . . 

Apparently logistics cannot in any way promise that if they send a replacement 'NEW' phone, I wont receive another refurbished handset. . .. .. . . WT*?? 

They have however finally agreed that the definition of 'NEW' is a sealed unit in the original manufactuer sealed box will all the original accessories, and not a plain white box with IMEI blanked out with a marker pen and a white sticker over the top. . . .  They also agree that 'NEW' phones arrive with screen and back protectors on and not in a small bag rattling in the box that is too big... 

Its now gone to escalations and apparently internal investogations and I am now being promised a delivery on Sunday between 10.00 and 12.00. You couldnt make some of this up guys. . .  

Tune in on Sunday after 12.00 for the next episode of "All I want from Vodafone is what I ordered. .  part three" 

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As an erstwhile customer myself and having many years of experience on this forum,  I have to say that all this sounds like a load of bollards to me.  But you never know, so good luck !!

[anobeithiol]

Just to update everyone... after three deliveries of refurbished handsets I eventually took delivery of a new sealed phone. Also was suitably compensated for my time and effort. 

[hrym]

Excellent news.

[carolclarke123 · Accepted solution]

Hi i am sitting in the same situation as you. I have been a customer for 16 years. To cut a long story short i got a cracking deal on the 30th November for a NEW phone. But due to it being a black Friday deal, I never received my phone until the 7th January.. when I got the phone I felt it wasn't great. I couldn't connect it to my car, people were complaining saying I sounded muffled. I realised the speaker was on the wrong place etc etc it was like the phone was built upside down. Anyway I contacted Vodafone and they sent me the packaging to return the phone and assured me that once they receive the phone they would send me out a NEW phone within a few days. I contact them a week later to be told I'm not getting a new phone as they still don't have them in stock. During the call it came out that the NEW phone I had received in January was actually a refurbished phone....they maybe forgot to tell me that eh. So during a pandemic of a very contagious virus they decide to send me a phone that someone else has had.. realised it was upside down..then I end up with it. SUERLY ITS ILLEGAL TO SELL SOMEONE SOMETHING AS NEW WHEN IT ITS NOT NEW...ITS USED AND BROKEN?????

[BandOfBrothers]

Any business selling something that is nearly new or refurbished would be required to list it as so @anobeithiol 

I wish you all the best with this. 

[anobeithiol]

Mine was eventually (third time lucky) changed to a new factory sealed model. Was told it was a stocking error at the warehouse.