One Stop Phone Shop

One Stop Phone Shop

In recent times I have worked tirelessly to resolve a situation that
has arisen due to no real fault of my own. And to this day, I am at a
complete loss over what course of action to take.
For 3 months I have spoken to staff at The One Stop Phone Shop and
explained my predicament in the finest of detail - but to no avail.
Now I bring this to your attention, so that it may lend credence and
weight to the other letters of complaint you will undoubtedly have
received about the One Stop Phone Shop (OSPS).
I would be eternally grateful if you would be so kind as to suggest
some way to free myself from what I can only describe as a straitjacket
of sorts.

My troubles began back in September 2005 when I happened to encounter
some incredibly cheap deals on their website
(www.onestopphoneshop.co.uk).
I decided to take the plunge and sign up for a package (handset +
contract) - which I did.

The following day, I was left a calling card by Royal Mail - They had
tried to deliver my phone, while I was out.
So I visited Royal Mail to collect my package.

On arriving home with the package, I opened it and discovered to my
dismay that this was not the handset I had agreed to take.
They had either made a mistake, or taken the liberty to send me an
alternative cheaper handset. Maybe they had sold out of the model
advertised?
(The OSPS would later assert that it was entirely my fault for signing
for a delivery item without opening in and checking it first.
Furthermore we now had a contract! and I was bound by their terms. )

So, I phoned their customer services to query this point, and they told
me to return the phone as soon as possible - They would subsequently
cancel my contract.
I returned the handset the following day by special delivery.

A week or so later it occurred to me that I should reclaim the postage
costs - as a consumer this was my right - after all I had received
the wrong goods.

Anyway, they would have received the handset by now, and be willing to
reimburse my costs - I mused.
So I called their customer services again to get an update on the
situation and to request a refund.
They advised me to send them the postage receipt - Great ! I
promptly sent them the receipt and looked forward to receiving a
refund. I waited and I waited some more.

I am certain that to this day I have not received a single courtesy
call from their customer services department to apologise for the
inconvenience or simply to apologise for getting me into this wrangle.
How about an explanation for why they sent me the wrong goods through
the post.

Many weeks later, after I had finally given up all hope of a refund I
was dumbstruck when I received a letter from Orange - a phone bill !

It was a bill (from Orange) for a phone that OSPS had sent me by
mistake - a phone which incidentally I no longer had in my possession -
on contract terms very different to the ones requested...

What on earth was going on ?

I immediately called their customer services for an explanation - it
had now been many weeks since I returned the handset.
The staff at the call centre told me in the most abrupt way that they
had not received the handset - this revelation was followed by a mind
numbing silence which I was compelled to shatter with a

'Whaddya mean ! #? You haven't received the handset ? ' .
Quite rightly I was furious.

I had left my phone number with their staff on many occasions asking
them to call me,
to just pick up the phone and call me and tell me, if they encountered
any problems.
If you encounter any issues with my account, just call me - here's my
number - but no phone call - no advice had been forthcoming.

Weeks earlier I had spoken to their staff, and they had given me no
indication that they were missing a handset -
Perhaps, I would have kept hold of my receipt from the post office -
this had the consignment number to track the item, but No !
to the contrary, OSPS had advised me to apply for a refund (and in turn
handover my proof of having posted the handset).
That's right, now I would be unable to prove that I had returned the
handset !

Why had they failed to mention the missing handset earlier ?
Surely, their suggestion for me to apply for a refund presupposed the
receipt of the handset at their end - It sounded reasonable enough..

Perhaps, they would be able to trace the postage receipt in their
Returns department ? and this would absolve me of all responsibility.
Maybe someone would have received this and filed it correctly ?
Surely, this receipt couldn't go missing - could it ? That would be
one-too-many coincidences.

This is exactly what happened!

To this day, the receipt has not been recovered, and so there is no
proof that I have returned the handset.
Many months on and I continue to receive more bills and reminders to
pay for a phone and contract I don't have and never asked for, and have
never benefited from.

The OSPS has adopted the highly convenient position that it was in fact
my fault for signing for a delivery item which I hadn't checked, and
anyway I should not have sent them the original receipt - and all this
in a condescending tone to suggest that I have 'tried it on'.

It would perhaps be too far fetched and incredulous to suggest that
this was a well choreographed and planned 'stitch up' by the OSPS and
in fact I don't believe it is.

This 'gotcha' is designed to penalise any unsuspecting customer who
mails them an original postage receipt. The corresponding handset is
then located and conveniently misplaced - Perfect!

I wonder how many other customers have similar stories of handsets that
have simply failed to arrive at OSPS Returns..
I myself have found OSPS to be unforgiving and ever ready to take the
customer to task over the slightest mistake.

Having grown tired and rather bored of repeating myself to
disinterested OSPS staff - I decided to pay OSPS a personal visit at
their call centre in Crewe, in the hope of dealing with the matter once
and for all.

'I understand that this may not have been the model of handset that you
requested,
however you did sign for the handset and therefore agreed that the
content was acceptable.' - is the response I received from a Grahame.

I have included Grahame's contact details below -

Grahame Colclough
Customer Service Team Leader
One Stop Phone Shop
Tel: 01270504431
Mobile:07790285921
Fax: 01270504445
[email protected]

The One Stop Phone Shop has washed their hands clean of this, and
advised me in no uncertain terms that they will be unable to deal with
this query 'in a face to face manner.'
Meanwhile, Orange continues to send reminders that they will refer me
to a debt collection agency for non payment and that this could
adversely affect my credit rating.

thank you very much OSPS !

name withheld

---

› See More: One Stop Phone Shop

<snipped very long complaint>

To summarise:

* OSPS sent you the wrong phone.
* You returned it.
* They acknowledged receiving it and said they would cancel contract etc
* You sent them postage receipt to get refund (about £5 I guess)
* Received Orange bill, contract obviously not cancelled
* OSPS changed their mind and claim phone never received back by them
* OSPS don't have receipt any more, so no proof of posting


Firstly, Orange provide 14 days cooling off for new contracts. You
should have contacted them directly to cancel the contract etc before
arranging return of phone.
Secondly, never, repeat, never, destroy/give away certificates of
posting or other proofs of posting until the whole matter has been
sorted out. Always send via recorded/special delivery, and keep copies
of everything. Better to have a few pieces of paper lying around for 12
months, than to be stuck with no phone, no SIM, and £25 per month going
out your account. For special delivery/recorded delivery, you get a
stub which is the tracking number. This has nothing on it about the
price paid. You have a separate receipt provided for proof of payment.
You should have only sent this to OSPS, that's all they need, possibly
with a photocopy of the tracking stub to provide further information. I
would NEVER give away that stub - they do not need it.

OSPS may be giving you the run around - however, I personally would
never trust any retailer to cancel a contract etc without confirming
with the network. Assuming they had can be a costly mistake as you have
found.

I hope you manage to get it sorted out though.

D

<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> So, I phoned their customer services to query this point, and they told
> me to return the phone as soon as possible - They would subsequently
> cancel my contract.
> I returned the handset the following day by special delivery.
>
> They advised me to send them the postage receipt - Great ! I
> promptly sent them the receipt and looked forward to receiving a
> refund. I waited and I waited some more.

You're in a weak position. This is unfortunate. But the reason why the
concept of a receipt exists is to ensure that you retain proof of what you
have purchased. To give this up is never a good idea. I am sure you
realise this now.

You have not bought anything on a credit card of any value and therefore you
cannot claim back off credit card.

Other than continue complaining, there is nothing you can do. Unless they
can trace the package that you sent back, there is nothing they can do for
you even if they wanted to help and therefore you really need to speak to
someone high up in the chain to be lenient.

AMO

<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> One Stop Phone Shop
>
> In recent times I have worked tirelessly to resolve a situation that
> has arisen due to no real fault of my own. And to this day, I am at a
> complete loss over what course of action to take.
> For 3 months I have spoken to staff at The One Stop Phone Shop and
> explained my predicament in the finest of detail - but to no avail.
> Now I bring this to your attention, so that it may lend credence and
> weight to the other letters of complaint you will undoubtedly have
> received about the One Stop Phone Shop (OSPS).
> I would be eternally grateful if you would be so kind as to suggest
> some way to free myself from what I can only describe as a straitjacket
> of sorts.
>
> My troubles began back in September 2005 when I happened to encounter
> some incredibly cheap deals on their website
> (www.onestopphoneshop.co.uk).
> I decided to take the plunge and sign up for a package (handset +
> contract) - which I did.
>
> The following day, I was left a calling card by Royal Mail - They had
> tried to deliver my phone, while I was out.
> So I visited Royal Mail to collect my package.
>
> On arriving home with the package, I opened it and discovered to my
> dismay that this was not the handset I had agreed to take.
> They had either made a mistake, or taken the liberty to send me an
> alternative cheaper handset. Maybe they had sold out of the model
> advertised?
> (The OSPS would later assert that it was entirely my fault for signing
> for a delivery item without opening in and checking it first.
> Furthermore we now had a contract! and I was bound by their terms. )
>
> So, I phoned their customer services to query this point, and they told
> me to return the phone as soon as possible - They would subsequently
> cancel my contract.
> I returned the handset the following day by special delivery.
>
> A week or so later it occurred to me that I should reclaim the postage
> costs - as a consumer this was my right - after all I had received
> the wrong goods.
>
> Anyway, they would have received the handset by now, and be willing to
> reimburse my costs - I mused.
> So I called their customer services again to get an update on the
> situation and to request a refund.
> They advised me to send them the postage receipt - Great ! I
> promptly sent them the receipt and looked forward to receiving a
> refund. I waited and I waited some more.
>
> I am certain that to this day I have not received a single courtesy
> call from their customer services department to apologise for the
> inconvenience or simply to apologise for getting me into this wrangle.
> How about an explanation for why they sent me the wrong goods through
> the post.
>
> Many weeks later, after I had finally given up all hope of a refund I
> was dumbstruck when I received a letter from Orange - a phone bill !
>
> It was a bill (from Orange) for a phone that OSPS had sent me by
> mistake - a phone which incidentally I no longer had in my possession -
> on contract terms very different to the ones requested...
>
> What on earth was going on ?
>
> I immediately called their customer services for an explanation - it
> had now been many weeks since I returned the handset.
> The staff at the call centre told me in the most abrupt way that they
> had not received the handset - this revelation was followed by a mind
> numbing silence which I was compelled to shatter with a
>
> 'Whaddya mean ! #? You haven't received the handset ? ' .
> Quite rightly I was furious.
>
> I had left my phone number with their staff on many occasions asking
> them to call me,
> to just pick up the phone and call me and tell me, if they encountered
> any problems.
> If you encounter any issues with my account, just call me - here's my
> number - but no phone call - no advice had been forthcoming.
>
> Weeks earlier I had spoken to their staff, and they had given me no
> indication that they were missing a handset -
> Perhaps, I would have kept hold of my receipt from the post office -
> this had the consignment number to track the item, but No !
> to the contrary, OSPS had advised me to apply for a refund (and in turn
> handover my proof of having posted the handset).
> That's right, now I would be unable to prove that I had returned the
> handset !
>
> Why had they failed to mention the missing handset earlier ?
> Surely, their suggestion for me to apply for a refund presupposed the
> receipt of the handset at their end - It sounded reasonable enough..
>
> Perhaps, they would be able to trace the postage receipt in their
> Returns department ? and this would absolve me of all responsibility.
> Maybe someone would have received this and filed it correctly ?
> Surely, this receipt couldn't go missing - could it ? That would be
> one-too-many coincidences.
>
> This is exactly what happened!
>
> To this day, the receipt has not been recovered, and so there is no
> proof that I have returned the handset.
> Many months on and I continue to receive more bills and reminders to
> pay for a phone and contract I don't have and never asked for, and have
> never benefited from.
>
> The OSPS has adopted the highly convenient position that it was in fact
> my fault for signing for a delivery item which I hadn't checked, and
> anyway I should not have sent them the original receipt - and all this
> in a condescending tone to suggest that I have 'tried it on'.
>
> It would perhaps be too far fetched and incredulous to suggest that
> this was a well choreographed and planned 'stitch up' by the OSPS and
> in fact I don't believe it is.
>
> This 'gotcha' is designed to penalise any unsuspecting customer who
> mails them an original postage receipt. The corresponding handset is
> then located and conveniently misplaced - Perfect!
>
> I wonder how many other customers have similar stories of handsets that
> have simply failed to arrive at OSPS Returns..
> I myself have found OSPS to be unforgiving and ever ready to take the
> customer to task over the slightest mistake.
>
> Having grown tired and rather bored of repeating myself to
> disinterested OSPS staff - I decided to pay OSPS a personal visit at
> their call centre in Crewe, in the hope of dealing with the matter once
> and for all.
>
> 'I understand that this may not have been the model of handset that you
> requested,
> however you did sign for the handset and therefore agreed that the
> content was acceptable.' - is the response I received from a Grahame.
>
> I have included Grahame's contact details below -
>
> Grahame Colclough
> Customer Service Team Leader
> One Stop Phone Shop
> Tel: 01270504431
> Mobile:07790285921
> Fax: 01270504445
> [email protected]
>
> The One Stop Phone Shop has washed their hands clean of this, and
> advised me in no uncertain terms that they will be unable to deal with
> this query 'in a face to face manner.'
> Meanwhile, Orange continues to send reminders that they will refer me
> to a debt collection agency for non payment and that this could
> adversely affect my credit rating.
>
> thank you very much OSPS !
>
> name withheld
>
Signing for a "Signed For" parcel is not a contract. The "Signed For"
document was actually a contract between OSPS and Royal Mail not your
contract between yourself and OSPS and will not stand up in law. All mail
order companies are under the Distance Selling Regs, so you have a set
period from delivery to reject the item (don't know if phones are excluded).
Even so, OSPS are in breach of their contract to supply the phone requested.

For what its worth, complete a Money Claim from the (i think its called)
moneyclaim website. This is like a small claims form, which OSPS will
receive documents that they have to complete. There is a cost for this
service, but if OSPS realise that they are going to be dragged through the
courts, then they may have a change of heart.

A few questions

1. Did OSPS at anypoint acknowledge receipt of the returned handset?
your post does not make this clear.

2. Did you send in the postage receipt and not the actual the Special
Delivery Stub?

3. AS previously mentioned, I guess you did not speak directly to Orange?


If the answer to all of the above is *No* then I am afraid to say that
you do not really have a leg to stand on.

With the amount of money that was at stake you should have checked

1. that the SD had been delivered either by phone of on the RM website

2. Never part with the "Proof of Sending" bit of the SD slip

3. Contacted Orange and confirmed that the contract had been cancelled.

In fact if the SD had not been signed for next day the alarm bell would
have sounded much earlier........

DeeBee

[email protected] declared for all the world to hear...
> Furthermore we now had a contract! and I was bound by their terms. )

Well, also governed by the distance selling regulations, and also the
goods were not as described so sale of goods or trades descriptions
comes into play.

> I returned the handset the following day by special delivery.

Good move.

> Many weeks later, after I had finally given up all hope of a refund I
> was dumbstruck when I received a letter from Orange - a phone bill !
>
> It was a bill (from Orange) for a phone that OSPS had sent me by
> mistake - a phone which incidentally I no longer had in my possession -
> on contract terms very different to the ones requested...
>
> What on earth was going on ?

The couple of days the phone spent in transit it was connected and you
were paying for that.

> I have included Grahame's contact details below -
>
> Grahame Colclough
> Customer Service Team Leader
> One Stop Phone Shop
> Tel: 01270504431
> Mobile:07790285921
> Fax: 01270504445
> [email protected]
>
> The One Stop Phone Shop has washed their hands clean of this, and
> advised me in no uncertain terms that they will be unable to deal with
> this query 'in a face to face manner.'
> Meanwhile, Orange continues to send reminders that they will refer me
> to a debt collection agency for non payment and that this could
> adversely affect my credit rating.
>
> thank you very much OSPS !

Take some legal advice, and then proceed to sue OSPS for 12 x your
monthly line rental with Orange plus a bit for your trouble, and then
pay off the contract with Orange.
--
Regards
Jon

[email protected] declared for all the world to hear...
> Firstly, Orange provide 14 days cooling off for new contracts. You
> should have contacted them directly to cancel the contract etc before
> arranging return of phone.

It's not actually possible for a customer to do that. Whats to stop a
customer buying a phone and then ringing Orange from the comfort of
their own home and cancelling it? A cancellation can only be actioned
by the connecting dealer.
--
Regards
Jon

>
>You're in a weak position. This is unfortunate. But the reason why the
>concept of a receipt exists is to ensure that you retain proof of what you
>have purchased. To give this up is never a good idea. I am sure you
>realise this now.
>
>You have not bought anything on a credit card of any value and therefore you
>cannot claim back off credit card.
>
>Other than continue complaining, there is nothing you can do. Unless they
>can trace the package that you sent back, there is nothing they can do for
>you even if they wanted to help and therefore you really need to speak to
>someone high up in the chain to be lenient.

The lack of the physical posting receipt is not fatal to a claim. There
is something you can do.

Thousands of Court cases every day rely on witnesses saying 'I did this'
or 'I saw that'. Oral evidence is admissible and relevant.

--
..

"." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>>You're in a weak position. This is unfortunate. But the reason why the
>>concept of a receipt exists is to ensure that you retain proof of what you
>>have purchased. To give this up is never a good idea. I am sure you
>>realise this now.
>>
>>You have not bought anything on a credit card of any value and therefore
>>you
>>cannot claim back off credit card.
>>
>>Other than continue complaining, there is nothing you can do. Unless they
>>can trace the package that you sent back, there is nothing they can do for
>>you even if they wanted to help and therefore you really need to speak to
>>someone high up in the chain to be lenient.
>
> The lack of the physical posting receipt is not fatal to a claim. There
> is something you can do.
>
> Thousands of Court cases every day rely on witnesses saying 'I did this'
> or 'I saw that'. Oral evidence is admissible and relevant.

What you say is true, but in this case there is very little the other person
can do.

AMO

that was very useful ! Many thanks for your consideration.
I did in fact phone Orange and cancel the contract - and they advised
me to phone OSPS and do the same - which I did.
So, in fact the contract was cancelled.

On Tue, 07 Feb 2006 17:03:18 +0000, [email protected] wrote:

> <snipped very long complaint>
>
> To summarise:
>
> * OSPS sent you the wrong phone.
Maybe!

> * You returned it.
Maybe!

> * They acknowledged receiving it and said they would cancel contract etc
I can see nowhere in the OP message where OSPS 'acknowledged receiving' the
returned handset.

> * You sent them postage receipt to get refund (about £5 I guess)
No - he asked OSPS about refund of postage and they asked him to "send
them the postage receipt" - he sent them his Proof of Postage, not a Post
Office receipt for monies paid.

> * Received Orange bill, contract obviously not cancelled
> * OSPS changed their mind and claim phone never received back by them
Maybe! - or maybe they never changed there mind and they have never
received the handset.

> * OSPS don't have receipt any more, so no proof of posting
Proof will still exist with the Post Office and Royal Mail - its a long
shot but maybe the OP should go to the Post Office he used, ask to speak
with the manager, explain the situation and ask if the record of Special
Delivery items could be checked.

There is a ledger kept within the Post Office listing all Special Delivery
items posted there, which will also have a piece of the original Proof of
Postage which is detached and stuck in the ledger. This contains the unique
13 digit Tracking Number for that item which can be used (via Royal Mail
website) to confirm delivery status.

> I hope you manage to get it sorted out though.
So do I, and hope the above helps.

john

DeeBee
I know I really messed up.
1) they in did not aknowledge receipt.
2) I sent the stub
3) I did speak to Orange and then to OSPS and then to Orange again, lol

aaaahhhh
sorry

[email protected] declared for all the world to hear...
> that was very useful ! Many thanks for your consideration.
> I did in fact phone Orange and cancel the contract - and they advised
> me to phone OSPS and do the same - which I did.
> So, in fact the contract was cancelled.

It's not. Not until the original dealer has contacted Orange. Nothing
you can say to Orange will get them to cancel a contract - it must come
from the original dealer.
--
Regards
Jon

When you call OSPS the recorded message clearly states that all phones
calls are recorded. Tell them to replay the recording from the date and
time you called them - this will be on you (BT/Cable) phone bill.

OSPS are a bunch of crooks. I'm waiting for them to send my last
cashback from a contract (if they don't, it's small claims court time).
i ordered a new phone from them, but they failed to send the redemption
clips for cashback claims. I called them - their phone menu system sent
me to sales, not customer services - and told them an incomplete
package had been received. I was promised everything would arrive
within 2 days. Of course, nothing arrived, so the phone went back.

And the cold calls from sales continue, asking me if I want another
contract!

Lumpy