Being Connected by Ian Fogg

Apologies in advance but this post breaks my self-imposed 300 word limit. I can’t see any way to say this more briefly and still retain the horror of O2 customer service ineptitude.

Below is an email I wrote to O2 analyst relations / pr after repeatedly failing to resolve the problem through normal channels over a period of four months. Please read the postscript underneath the email for the final nail in O2’s customer service rep. Also, I will be writing about the broader implications for Apple of this kind of customer service experience on their business in my work blog this week too. Keep an eye on it.

Sent: 13 November 2008 16:32
Subject: analyst problem with O2 bill/payment service

Hi [name deleted],

We met last year when Greg Joswiak was in London prior to the iPhone launch. As you may remember I am a Research Director, formerly for JupiterResearch, now Forrester since the acquisition over the summer.

Apologies in advance for this, but I’m pulling my hair out and do not know where else to go.

On the positive side, you’ll be pleased to hear that despite receiving a loan iPhone 3g from Apple, I chose to switch my personal phone over and took up an O2 contract for the iPhone (so I now have two 3G iphones!!!). I subscribed in the first week after the 3G launch.

Summary of the problem:-
- Every month I receive an automated message saying there is a problem with my payment, please call.
- Every month I call, speak to a customer care agent, provide my correct credit card details and the one-off payment goes through. I’m advised this won’t happen again. But the same payment details fail when the bill is due for paying the following month!
- At no point in time have I been able to view my bill on the O2 website – the login fails. Every month I’m advised this will be fixed and it isn’t. Most recently, O2 customer care argued with me that the login was working when it simply wasn’t, on three separate computers.
- Every month I ask for a copy of my bill in the post, and it fails to arrive.
- Last month O2 froze my account, as I was slow getting back due to business travel in the US.

So, the bottom line is:
- I want to pay my bill.
- I have never seen a copy of the bill, and yet have still paid o2 on trust on four occasions now.
- I’m fed up with having to pay manually each month.
- I’m fed up with wasting time each month on the phone with O2 customer care.

Latest is I persuaded the O2 customer care agent to escalate my inability to view my bill, on Sunday. Copy of the email is below. I have heard nothing back despite chasing this three times by email.

Please help! I want to see my bill! I want to pay. O2 seems unable to provide me with a bill or take monies off me automatically!

thanks,
Ian

> From: mycare
> Date: 7 November 2008 20:56:10 GMT
> To: MR Ian Fogg
> Subject: Re: escalation (KMM357530548V90962L0KM)
> Reply-To: mycare
>
> Hi Mr Fogg,
>
> I have passed this case across to my colleague Alan dddddd [name withheld] to investigate then call you back at some point tomorrow, as he is not in tonight i am unable to confirm a time for this call.
>
> If you have any further questions regarding this or any other issues please feel free to contact us free from your I-Phone on 2302
>
> Kind regards
>
> Rob dddddd [name withheld]

The result of the above email was an acknowledgement in minutes. By Monday I was finally able to view my bill and my account had been credited with a sum that paid off my outstanding months’ bill.

But on Wednesday 19th, O2’s automatic systems emailed me to say there was a problem with my account. On logging in they presented me with this message:-

PAYMENTS ON YOUR ACCOUNT ARE OVERDUE

We recently tried to claim a Direct Debit/Credit Card payment for £-12.49 which has been rejected and as a result your account is now in arrears.

Please contact our Payment team on 0870 220 3299 to make an immediate payment by credit/debit card or to pay online at www.O2.co.uk . Alternatively, you can send a cheque with your full name and account number on the reverse to Telefónica O2 UK Limited, PO Box 756, Camberley, GU15 3SS.

To avoid restrictions being added to your phone services please make an immediate payment using one of the options above.

If you have made or sent a payment within the last few days, please accept this reminder as a thank you.

Yes, my account was in trouble because they had tried to claim minus 12.49UKP from my credit card.

Anyway, I immediately emailed O2 pr again. Heard nothing. On Thursday, my account was blocked by O2 for failing to pay my bill. After a 30m call to customer service I was up and running. Emails are still flying back and forth, but I am still not sure that everything is sorted.

And, of course, as O2 have an exclusive on the iPhone in the UK, I have nowhere else to go.