NTL cancelation Issue

[Steve A]

I have a problem with NTL and i will try to explain best i can ::

I cancelled my service in november, and it went off on the 24 december.

after i cancelled the service they stated that i was still in a contract as they lowered my bill in August, (my wife spoke to them on the phone even though her name isnt on the account). however at no time did they mention that we would enter a new contract nor did we sign anything, my wife is 100% confident that a new 12 month contract was never mentioned as she wouldnt have agree to it. (plus we didnt change anything on our package they just lowered the bill by around £5)

they have now sent me a letter (from a collection agency) saying i owe them £178.

Now firstly i have no intention of paying them as i had the service for 6 years and would never have signed up for another 12 months. I asked them to supply me with confirmation that i/we (the account holder or my wife) agreed to a contract extention knowing that they wouldnt be able to as we agreed to no such thing.

I wanted to know where i stand, unless they can provide me with verbal or writen proof, im sure that they have no grounds to send me this bill unless they can provide this so called proof? am i correct ?

Any help would be appreciated as this will have a impact on my credit rating which i have worked hard in maintaining a good one.

[Phage]

Yep. Sounds good to me. (IANAL)
I would be wondering why they went direct to an agency. Did they try and contact you first ?

[dave87]

Inform the Collection Agency that the matter is in dispute with the supplier (NTL) and that will put a pause on their steps to recover the money.

If you are willing, call them and register a complaint. This is a usual first step, and should get the situation reviewed. Don't simply accept the person looking into it, get them to record it as a complaint.

Following that, write to NTL detailing:

• The contact your wife had with them
• Why the £5 was adjusted on the bill
• The fact they dealt with your wife, not you
• The failure to mention any tie in period/send you any documentation dealing with it
• Include any reference number given when you complained on the phone
  
  
• Then outline the cancellation was in line with you having had the service for 6 years and being outside of any minimum contractual period.
• That you want confirmation that no outstanding sum is due
  

In the letter give them 14 days to respond to your letter, and if they haven't replied within that time, send another letter referencing the first (and including it if you like) giving them a further 7 days to respond. Usually by this point they'll have sent something back - or decided it isn't worth the hassle of pursuing (possible if they still think they are right, but have a weak case/procedural defects in the renewal).

If you really want to put them on edge, you can also send them a 'Subject Access Request' referring the the recording of the calls between you and them over the specified time period, any letters they have sent (if any) etc. Template is here: http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_the_public...cess_info.aspx or search google for 'subject access request letter' and it is the top result in .doc format. There is a fee to be paid and you have to wait up to 40 days for their response, so send this separately to the letter outlined above.

Hope this helps

[Steve A]

Yep. Sounds good to me. (IANAL)
I would be wondering why they went direct to an agency. Did they try and contact you first ?

They probably couldnt get me on the phone as my number changed when moving over to BT,

I did speak to them after i cancelled the service (but before the service was terminated) which was the point when they stated that i was still in contract, to which i obviously disputed, i told them that unless they provide me with proof that a 12 month extention was even discussed then i wont be paying it,

I even told them that if they provide this "proof" then i will happily pay it. (knowing full well they wont be able to as it was never even mentioned).

The cancelation went through and then i get a letter from this agency.

[Steve A]

Inform the Collection Agency that the matter is in dispute with the supplier (NTL) and that will put a pause on their steps to recover the money.

If you are willing, call them and register a complaint. This is a usual first step, and should get the situation reviewed. Don't simply accept the person looking into it, get them to record it as a complaint.

Following that, write to NTL detailing:

• The contact your wife had with them
• Why the £5 was adjusted on the bill
• The fact they dealt with your wife, not you
• The failure to mention any tie in period/send you any documentation dealing with it
• Include any reference number given when you complained on the phone
  
  
• Then outline the cancellation was in line with you having had the service for 6 years and being outside of any minimum contractual period.
• That you want confirmation that no outstanding sum is due
  

In the letter give them 14 days to respond to your letter, and if they haven't replied within that time, send another letter referencing the first (and including it if you like) giving them a further 7 days to respond. Usually by this point they'll have sent something back - or decided it isn't worth the hassle of pursuing (possible if they still think they are right, but have a weak case/procedural defects in the renewal).

If you really want to put them on edge, you can also send them a 'Subject Access Request' referring the the recording of the calls between you and them over the specified time period, any letters they have sent (if any) etc. Template is here: http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_the_public...cess_info.aspx or search google for 'subject access request letter' and it is the top result in .doc format. There is a fee to be paid and you have to wait up to 40 days for their response, so send this separately to the letter outlined above.

Hope this helps

Thanks for the advice dave, i will get this sorted later and get a letter sent out tomorrow, but i will call them tonight.

[Saracen]

I had a similar (though not quite the same) experience with them. I rang to organise a cancellation, and they negotiated a dropped price, to which I agreed. About three weeks later, I received a letter confirming this, and towards the bottom, it mentioned "12 month minimum period".

I had not, and would not have agreed to that. Had they said that on the phone, I would have insisted on the cancellation I originally asked for. Fortunately, I did have the conversation recorded. Yeah, I know, I'm a cynic.

When I rang about this, I was assured they would "remove that". They also said, repeatedly, that they "could not" confirm that in writing.

So I wrote, by recorded delivery, a letter telling them that :-

1) I did not agree to that
2) I had a recording proving it.
3) I would not accept it.
4) Either confirm that the contract period had not been extended, in writing, or consider this letter as a termination of the contract.

It turns out they can confirm in writing.

Clearly, this doesn't much help you, Steve, at this point.

Beyond that, dave87 outlined exactly what I would suggest, and what I would do in your shoes. The most important bits, in my opinion, are to :-

- get the dispute in to the debt collection agency that the debt is owed at all
- deal with NTL (Virgin??) in writing. At this point, don't do it by phone. You want to be able to prove, if need be, what you did and said later.
- keep an eye, now and over the next few months, on your credit record JUST IN CASE.

In fact, it's sound advice for everybody to keep a periodic eye on their credit record. Mistakes do happen, and they can be hard to sort out a long time after the event.

[Steve A]

Saracen,

Again thanks for the advice, it is all greatly appreciated

[Steve A]

** Update **

Followed both Dave87 and Saracens advice and they have dropped all claims of owed money

So thanks very much for the advise, much appreciated

[Saracen]

Result, Steve. Well done.

Still, keep an eye on your credit record, and check that anything they put on it is removed or at least amended to reflect their mistake.

[dave87]

Glad to hear you got it sorted, but I'd be wary as Saracen suggests of any effect on your credit rating.