Vodacom - Cointel Rip-Off

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When last did you check your bill from Vodacom in detail?
I just did, the February 2010 statement and found the following item listed under Content Services:

24/01/2010 15:14:32 Cointel 00500@TMobileSA 4.38

Adding VAT to the above rounds it off to R5.00

I was amazed, I had _never_ subscribed to any content services from Vodacom nor Cointel whom I had never heard of before.

I dialled 111 from my Vodacom phone and eventually (following numerous IVR prompts ) eventually chosed to dial 0 ie zero and got through to a human.

After the identification ritual was told that I am subscribed to Cointel Content Services.

I was quite shocked, how could this have happened?

Automatically it seems.

People can just deduct funds from your account without your consent ?????

Which company does the deducting of funds? = VODACOM

On behalf of Cointel with whom I have never had _any_ communication or interaction with before.

The Human on the other end of the phone (Vodacom Call Center) advised that I would have to contact Cointel on 011 848 8455 to arrange for unsubscription to a service which I had never received or requested on my expense.

Vodacom only deducts the funds from my account on Cointel's behalf and cannot unsubscribe me.

I am annoyed!

Not because of the small amount of R5.00, it could be R50 or even R500

I am annoyed that this type of thing can happen without your consent by the company with whom you have a Contract, ie Vodacom who assumes rights to deduct - steal funds from your account.

I have been taught since I was a child that taking anything from someone else without their consent constitutes theft, indeed a crime.

Are Vodacom thieves, thus criminals in cahoots with Cointel?

Since Vodacom distances itself from unsubscribing me I tried to find more info about Cointel and its activities.

They are only available during business hours on the following number:

011 848 8455

Going via web to Cointel produces the following at the top of their page:

Thank you for visiting our Internet site.
Please note that Cointel no longer exist, as it was acquired by Vodacom in 2007, and merged with an internal Group within Vodacom to form the Internal WASP Division.

Now I was advised by Vodacom Call Center to contact Cointel and on Cointel's website they say they do not exist, they are owned by Vodacom.

This is like the dog trying to catch it's own tail, going round and round in circles with no end in sight.

If not resolved or if one cannot unsubscribe then they will be ripping you off each month for a service you _never_ requested or subscribed to.

How can this be allowed to happen?

This is downright shameful :(

Vodacom is happy to deduct your funds without your consent but equally happy to step back and say it is your baby to stop the subscription you never subscribed to.

Vodacom must be getting some form of kickback from Cointel since they are affilliated.

Am I being unreasonable when I get the feeling that Vodacom and Cointel are the new modern day ripoff artists?

This is daylight robbery!

Source
 
Cointel is owned by Vodacom, they bought the company a few years ago... They used to do the Community phones and airtime vending, but probably changed once vodacom acquired it.

ps** I didnt read the whole post so I can't really answer all your questions...
 
While these occurred in 2006 before Vodacom took ownership, one can see what types these are.

They were fined for unsolicited texts and sending Adult Content to minors and Vodacom took these scum over. Seems fitting.

http://www.waspa.org.za/code/download/0330.pdf
Fined R5000.00 for providing adult content to persons younger than 18 years, and (ii) providing messages to a person who has not specifically requested them.

http://www.waspa.org.za/code/download/0213.pdf
Fined R3000.00 for the breach of 5.3 of the Code that it was not clear that Cointel took all “reasonable” measures to ensure that Vodacom did in fact have permission to send marketing communications to its customers.

Sies, sies, sies.
 
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Just called Cointel on 011 848 8455 and got through to voice recording prompting to press 1 to unsubscribe which I did.

I then get told to contact Cointel during business hours between 8:30 to 16:30.

It is Monday morning and I just called ten minutes ago at 10:00 ?????????

Are there differing business hours applicable to Cointel?

It seems that I have been subscribed to a service from which I cannot unsubscribe :(

The plot thickens it seems.
 
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Content services should be banned. If you want them you should be buying it with a credit card, judt like all other services offered on TV and the internet!
 
I just dialled them again and after the recorded voice response chose option 4 for subscription services after which the call was promptly dropped.

Is this even legal?

Automatically subscribed to a service which you never requested and then no option to unsubscribe from it?

Vodacom cannot unsubscribe me, cannot reach Cointel to unsubscribe!

Meanwhile Vodacom is happy to deduct and pass on my _subscription_ fees to an unreachable Cointel.

Where do I go now?
 
Well, I guess going back to the source who deducts the funds is the only option.

Called 111 from my Vodacom phone and the Call Center Agent even tested the number given to me and found that she could not reach them either.

When she went to the website saw the same info I posted above that Cointel does not exist.

Query has been escalated to Vodacom Backoffice for investigation and I am to expect a SMS with a reference number.

It would seem that Cointel is now owned by Vodacom.

Automatic subscription to Content services from a Company that no longer exists.

A subscription they can have no proof that I authorised, simply because I did not subscribe myself.

Something fishy going on here.
 
As promised by the Vodacom Call Center agent my SMS arrived with the Reference Number, promising to feedback within one working day.

Progress on one front, hopefully resolved sooner than later.

Pushing _Content services_ down one's throat is hardly the best way of doing business, especially when it is unsolicited.

Putting the onus on the client to then unsubscribe from a service not requested ...

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrgh !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The las of wasting ones time calling a non-existent Cointel ....

This has got to STOP :(
 
I was on course yesterday, but my cell was on and no call from Vodacom as promised via SMS containing reference number.

I just called the Vodacom Call Center and quoted the reference number and was told investigation is still ongoing as it seems that Vodacom cannot contact Cointel either.

Was assured that I would be contacted as soon as they have further info.

What happens if Cointel cannot be found, since according to their website they do not exist?

It seems that this thread is now becoming Vodacom specific since Vodacom now owns Cointel, maybe a mod should move it to the appropriate dedicated Vodacom forum?
 
Try one of these numbers:

+27 11 848 8462
Phone(24 Hours): +27 82 233 3332
+27 82 945 7040
 
mh348 said:
Try one of these numbers:

+27 11 848 8462
Phone(24 Hours): +27 82 233 3332
+27 82 945 7040
Click to expand...

Not sure if ^ this was meant as a joke, or if not, thanks, but non of these numbers are vailid for Cointel.

First one goes to a noisy FAX line, others are being dropped.
 
mh348 said:
Two of the numbers I got from an old email, that I received from Cointel in 2007, and the other number from one of their other websites http://www.cointelwasp.co.za/BULKSMS/Registration/ContactUs.aspx

http://www.cointel.co.za/ContactUs.aspx
Click to expand...

Vodacom are the actual owners of Cointel, they have been trying for two days now to contact Cointel without success.

There is no response from the Contact form.

It seems subscriptions are being deducted by Vodacom and paid over to a non-existent / non-contactable company called Cointel owned by Vodacom.

Reading what I just wrote above is leaving even me feeling confused :confused:
 
Ouch - tell vodacom you're going to get your bank to reverse the debit orders.
 
No refund offered ....

FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!

SMS response from Vodacom Call Center:

Dear Customer: Please note that your query has been sent to WASPA for the relevant WASP's attention.
Your unsubscribe request has been logged with reference # XXXXXX <-- removed
Kind regards, Vodacom Customer Care.

This was sent today 08/03/2010 <-- eight days to get to this point!

Thread was started 28-02-2010 10:49 AM

No refund offered for the service that I never subscribed to in the first place.

Doing some hypothetical math:

1,000,000 x R5.00 taken without your permission with no need to refund you = R5,000,000

Those are nice numbers, money for jam :erm:
 
"You have been successfully removed from our database"


Well, at least the next person who this happens to has some idea as to what to expect and how long it will take to bring the unauthorised taking of funds from your bank account to a halt.

The funds that were deducted are not refunded though, it is still theft because it was not authorised in the first place.

Vodacom, no thanks to you!
 
I am being charged this now for past 2 months so I am on the same mission, sounds like I could be in for some fun. Let's hope I get more luck and get it sorted out quicker.

Edit: On hold to 111 .....
 
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Thankfully I have also got the "you have been removed from our database" SMS - I just hope that is the end of these charges. Lucky mine only took a day.
 
I work for a WASP (not cointel) and firstly you are making much speculation that Cointel can just randomly bill you. If they did attempt to randomly bill 1million handsets they would be shutdown for good by WASPA.

I often investigate queries where consumers claim they never initiated a subscription or a reverse billed charge (once off). The vast majority of the times the consumer is proved to have done this. Note that I said the vast majority, the minority where incorrectly billed or not enough credible opt in is available and benefit of the doubt favours the consumer (which is right).

Now going off on a mybb forum is great but what you should have done is contacted WASPA and not VODACOM. VODACOM are shareholders, thats all, they do not operate Cointel. Vodacom cannot unsubscribe you or process refunds. Don't argue about being fair, I'm just stating facts.

But WASPA have jurisdiction over Cointel and all the other WASPS.

Now Cointel are also what we call in the industry an aggregation WASP. This means they do not operate any services, and they did not either initiate the billing on your handset, they just offer the APIs/middleware/infrastructure for their clients to do this. Now unfortunate for you (the consumer) there are only a dozen callcenter staff at Vodacom that would be able to tell you all of this, how I know, well I've sat down with these call agents and explained more in detail the role aggregation WASPS play.

Also your chances of get through to these guys is rather slim as you need to work through many levels of escalation first.
 
My main point is, I did not subscribe to _any_ service.

The fact that Vodacom deducted the funds from my account is why they were my first port of call.

They have _no_ proof that I subscribed or opted in as you say.

What gets my goat is that Vodacom simply deducts the funds from my account and there is no option to refund.

That to my mind is theft.

Unauthorised taking of my money out of my bank account without my authorisation and having no proof that I requested the _services_ which I am supposedly have subscribed to.

This stinks!

This is based on shody business practice, and I really mean skelm methods of stealing money and making it hard for you to recover it.

They just unsubscribe you, but keep the money.

There are obviously more people that this is being done to, just not enough people take the time to make the point here.

Which is why I chose to make the point here instead to make others aware of the (legal) theft taking place.

I do not understand how people can deduct funds from your account without proof you have subscribed to a service.

I would rather be unemployed than to work for a company that robs people of their hard earned money.

Sies man, it stinks!
 
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