WATCHIT

[mikejenks]

In recent times I find I am paying £3 a week to something called Watchit 03308085223. I did not sign up, I don't watch videos, this is a scam, it is THEFT and Vodafone are complicit in the theft. Any other victims out there?

[da1es]

somehow i accumulated £36 worth of Watchit bills before noticing, as soon as i did though, i contacted Watchit who immediately cancelled the subscription, and are in the process of refunding my £36, all done very politely and no quibbles, not what i was expecting. i did get an email though saying i must have responded to their texts in the first place to subscribe which is just absurd, any issues id just ring direct

[Tonefar1]

I have just discovered I have had £3 a week taken from my account for watchit, a service I have never signed up for. Vodafone claim they have no proof I ever signed up for the service or ever used the service. They claim they have nothing from Watchit to show i authorised the service. Vodafone have nothing from me authorising them to take money from my account on behalf of Watchit. However they claim they have acted lawfully and are not liable or able to refund the payments. Sounds fraudulent to me!

[muggles708]

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@Tonefar1 wrote:

I have just discovered I have had £3 a week taken from my account for watchit, a service I have never signed up for. Vodafone claim they have no proof I ever signed up for the service or ever used the service. They claim they have nothing from Watchit to show i authorised the service. Vodafone have nothing from me authorising them to take money from my account on behalf of Watchit. However they claim they have acted lawfully and are not liable or able to refund the payments. Sounds fraudulent to me!

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Probably best to put it to the test. Send Vodafone a 'letter before action' demanding a full refund. If they don't respond, take legal action through Moneyclaim Online. In court they will have to prove they took the money lawfully.

Regardless of anything else, Vodafone are negligent in allowing these scams to continue on their network.

See https://payforitsucks.co.uk for details of how to proceed.

Paul

[Adam]

@Tonefar1 I appreciate your concern here and if I was in your position I would be asking the same questions. What you've advised he is a charge to bill service which you have opted in for, I'm not saying you intended to do this on purpose. As it's a charge to bill service, we're simply charged by the 3rd party company and in turn are billing you for this. We can put a bar on your account which stops charge to bill service if you'd like. 

[muggles708]

@Adam

It's rather disingenuous to deny  any responsibility for allowing these scams. Vodafone are a member of the Payforit management group. As such they share responsibility for this system and have a duty to ensure that it is not being abused.

Payforit is extremely vulnerable to fraud, where the consumer's consent is "spoofed" by malicious code embedded in web pages. The regulator has already fined companies for doing this, so Vodfone cn hardly claim to be ignorant of these abuses. It is unsafe for Vodafone to be handing over their customers money to these companies without there being evidence of consent. I believe it is negligent in law for Vodafone to ignore the evidence that companies like those below are systematically defrauding customers.

Vodafone profit from Payforit, and now need to take some responsibility for the abuses of it. EE have set a good example by introducing two factor authorisation with PIN for Payforit subscriptions. This defeats the exploits used by these scam companies and has virtually eliminated complaints of Payforit fraud on their network. Maybe Vodafone could look at doing the same to protect its customers?

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[Likatze]

I agree with it.... I contacted Vodafone today and they told me to contact Watchit direct to stop subscription... I couldnt believe in what I was listening on the phone.. and they wanted ,e to call another 0330 number which cost per minute to cancel the subscription... I went today for the first time on watchit online and they dont have my records when I apply to retrieve forgotten password... all they had was my phone and Vodafone as operator.. its seems that they are working together.

hen they said that they can't refund my money and that all the future charges from that number will be added in my future invoice stopping today 2nd July.  I told them that it wasn't a fair customer care, I have been a victim and its fair for them to stop all future charges from 15th - 15th July which will be my next bill...

So far all charges from May-June bill were in total £15.00

Watchit 03308085223 13 Jun 2019 £3.00

Watchit 03308085223 05 Jun 2019 £3.00

Watchit 03308085223 29 May 2019 £3.00

Watchit 03308085223 22 May 2019 £3.00

Watchit 03308085223 15 May 2019 £3.00

I find it so disrespectful to customers like me, some I fell sorry as they have been a victim and doesn’t know how to deal with this scam.  They asked me to call another 0330 number to complain and stop the subscription with them, I told them why I would call another 0330 number to cancel something that I never subscribed and that I would have to pay per minute, its not logical or rational!

I would like Vodafone to stop this charges immediately and to refund charges since May when it started.

[Tonefar1]

Vodafone are fully aware of the way these scammer companies entrap your customers without them even knowing. Saying you can bar these companies after they and Vodafone have taken money without my permission is a bit like shutting the gates once the horse has bolted.  When you know numerous Vodafone customers have been scammed you could prevent it by barring premium services at the start of a contract unless the customer Opts In. But why would you when you make money from it?

The simple fact is you have taken money from my account that I never authorised Vodafone to do and without seeking consent.

It's fine though. Over 24yrs I have probably paid your company between £15k/£20k and for the sake of refunding the money Vodafone were complicit in scamming me, I am soon to be an ex-customer. On top of that changing to Affordable Mobiles for my S9 upgrade is going to save me £25 A month for an improved contract. When my 2nd contract ends in July you will be losing that one as well.

[Gemma]

@Tonefar1 - I’m sorry you feel this way about us and understand you’re frustrated with the charges from this company. I’d advise to please follow the steps from @AnnS at the top of this page. She’s advised how you can report the company. If you need help with anything else, then please let me know. 

[muggles708]

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@Gemma wrote:

@Tonefar1 - I’m sorry you feel this way about us and understand you’re frustrated with the charges from this company. I’d advise to please follow the steps from @AnnS at the top of this page. She’s advised how you can report the company. If you need help with anything else, then please let me know. 

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@Gemma

I wish Vodafone would stop misrepresenting the PSA to customers. This is not the first time.

Customers could be advised that if they don't get a refund from the "service provider" and Vodafone is unwilling to help, they are on their own! Vodafone should be ashamed of this, but it is true. Consumers should be advised to use the Small Claims procedure to recover their funds. PSA will not do it!

[muggles708]

@Gemma

Actually, the Payforit rules say that Vodafone are required to adjudicate in disputes between customers and sellers (but only AFTER the customer has tried to resolve the issue themselves). Vodafone chould not be advising you to escalate your dispute to PSA, they should be advising you to escalate it to Vodafone!

Why aren't Vodafone meeting their obligations here? An answer would be good rather than just ignoring the question!