Strange title for a post I know but I wanted to share my experience of Vodafone Customer Care. I've been part of this forum for many years now and am brand loyal.
Vodafone, for me, for many reasons is my network of choice however over the years we've seen cuts being made to the customer service that make my heart sink every time I need to contact them.
So I thought, I'd share my current nightmare.
Switching from a physical SIM to an eSIM
Shouldn't be difficult so here goes.
I got my new iPhone last Friday and one of the things I was looking forward to was utilising the eSIM functionality as I want to be able to use my work sim in the same handset.
- I request to switch to eSIM via My Vodafone on Friday night
- No QR code lands but the physical SIM stops working
- I'm not really bothered as I'm tired so go to sleep
- Wake up Saturday morning, there's a QR code in my inbox
- QR code doesn't work, further investigation shows I have been sent a generic blank QR code. A URL but no unique codes that would link to my account
- I have no service
- I try to send a message to Vodafone via Twitter (Saturday AM, got a reply Monday AM)
- Decide to try Live Chat
Saturday morning - Live Chat
- I ask for the chat to be sent to me - it never happened
- Explain the situation to a very helpful live chat agent
- Long delays between the responses - strange as it was early in the UK so wouldn't have expected the demand
- Eventually validated with my account details and PIN
- Asked for either a new QR code to be sent or my physical sim re-activated
- Kept referring me to the website for more information on eSIM
- Explained that you'd sent me a blank QR code, that was obviously the issue
- Lots of questions later, he started talking about an Apple Watch
- When I challenged on this, he didn't acknowledge he'd made a mistake
- I was then directed to My Vodafone to request a sim swap again (I knew it'd insist on a text message validation but was told I had to do this)
- I did this, hit the brick wall
- Agent then said "your sim will be active in two to twenty-four hours"
- I challenged and said, what have you done specifically? He couldn't answer
- I ask to be escalated to a manager, he argues with me before eventually doing so
- After being connected to another great guy (the manager), we go through the scenario again
- He asks me a whole host of additional security questions (last bill amount, sort code, last interaction with Vodafone) and says he will send a request to get my physical sim re-activated
- I ask if he is able to place an order as sending request makes me think he's filling out a form for another team to action
- He confirms he can't and he's doing exactly that. Sending a request to a team who do have system access to place my order
- He reassures me that he'll follow up to make sure its been done.
This interaction took almost 2 hours end to end and when I disconnected. I still had no working service. Although he made good on his promise and the sim started working again about 30 mins later.
I then bottle it for the remainder of the weekend, as I can't cope with losing another two hours if it went wrong. However on Sunday night, I thought let's try it again
- I request the QR code via My Vodafone
- I get the 'in progress' message
- I don't lose service on the sim (I did instantly the first time)
- Nothing lands before going to sleep so expected to wake up to no service and a QR code
- Woke up to working service and no QR code
- Notice whilst I'm working that the Twitter team have replied to the Saturday reach out
- Decide at 12:45 to try my luck
Monday afternoon - Social Media (Twitter)
- Explain that I need help with eSim and ask specifically if this is something they can help with. Asked if they have direct account access because Live Chat teams don't.
- They confirm they do and they can help (fabulous - right?)
- Explain the situation, it went wrong the first time. Bit of a nightmare to resolve. Tried again, no QR code sent. Can they look and see what's going on?
- 40 mins later we're doing DPA. They also send a one time text.
- I respond with the information at 13:30
- Silence
- More silence
- I ask "Any joy?" at 14:43
- Silence
- Then get sent a 'generic response' from a different agent telling me all about how to activate an eSim and go here to this link for more information. Click on it and questions like "what's an eSIM" which really helped(!)
- I replied, made it clear that I'd given a clear problem statement and this was a reach out for customer assistance. I reminded that I had said I would call in if they couldn't help but assured me they could. I share that I'm disappointed my time has not been respected, that a generic link was offensive and asked if they could re-read the chat to understand why I was so disappointed
- 90 minutes later, I get a another reply saying we do have account access but you have to self-serve on an eSim and they suggest I'd just do sim swap again
- I reply.... it's currently 20:20 and it's still not been read
This interaction started at 12:45 and my last unanswered message was sent at 17:00. So 4 hours, 15 minutes and no customer service
The point of this post isn't about the eSIM issue, that ship has sailed and will carry over into tomorrow (day 4) but more about the level of customer service offered by Vodafone.
- Live Chat - two hours, no system access, not an easy experience
- Social Media - four hours (plus), big delays, generic responses, silence
I just lament the days when you could
- Raise an issue via the forum and get a response from a team who would assist
So in my experience, the only way to get any kind of customer service from Vodafone is to raise a complaint into the complaints team. But really, there should be some kind of first level customer care that means you don't have to go down this route.
