What to do when Telkom won’t cancel your line

[Marcopolo333]

I had the same problem earlier this year, they can cancel the line in store, you just gotta throw your toys out the cot enough that they get sick of you...

 

[Wasp_21]

Has it not been tested yet, if you have proof of cancellation request and acknowledgment, that when the next debit order comes off, that one can lay charges against the CFO of Telkom, or any other higher ranking finane representative? I mean, they are removing funds from your account illegally are they not?

 

[supersunbird]

Has it not been tested yet, if you have proof of cancellation request and acknowledgment, that when the next debit order comes off, that one can lay charges against the CFO of Telkom, or any other higher ranking finane representative? I mean, they are removing funds from your account illegally are they not?

No it hasn't, you can if you want. In my opinion there are easier routes that might achieve the desired outcome.

 

[Wasp_21]

No it hasn't, you can if you want. In my opinion there are easier routes that might achieve the desired outcome.

Sure, but at some point the process needs to be forced if nothing is happening from Telkom's side. I's moving in the next 6 months and personally I cant afford to have an issue like this hanging over my head when I try cancel my Telkom line. Hopefully it is resolved by then.

 

[DaveHammond]

Go through the various processes described above with Telkom. Document carefully what you have done, preferably with copies of the messages you have sent. Make sure you have had these processes escalated on the Telkom system. . If still no success report the problems to ICASA. They will make sure telkom comply.

 

[Toxxyc]

I must be the only one who got it canceled no issues, and then later on they called me to tell me I have half a month's fee in credit they're like to pay back to me. Which they then did.

To be fair I did move to an address that does not have ADSL, so they promptly canceled it after a week's waiting, so there's that.

To those being billed unfairly - simply reverse the debit order. It's really easy these days. I've done it before with places billing me illegally and got all my money back.

 

[abudabi]

@Toxxyc you and I must be the 2 luckiest okes alive.. lets go gamble.

I cancelled mine about 2 weeks ago online (scheduled it for 30 days' time to not get penalties) and it was actually done last week already.

I've phoned the call centre a few times to ensure all is cancelled and even they said it"s all done and I'm very lucky.

 

[ViperGTI]

They're not worth getting worked up about. My Telkom cancellation process is simple and I've been using it a couple of times last year.

I send a completed cancellation form to their cancellations email address. If I get an auto-reply, then I simply keep a copy of that email and my original cancellation form. If not, I send the cancellation form again a couple of times that week and keep copies of those emails. Never do a cancellation in store though as you have no proof that you've submitted a cancellation.

After that I keep paying until the end of the following month after which I refuse to make any more payments.
Then it is simply a matter of waiting until Telkom (or their debt collectors) are forced to phone you about your "outstanding account". Once they do that, simply provide them with those copies of cancellation requests and tell them to sort it out.

With their mobile contracts, there are a couple of extra steps since they usually force you to have a debit order. In that case, simply reverse the debit order every time a payment comes through until someone eventually contacts you.

You have to stop using the service though. Disconnect any devices you have from the line and if it is a sim card, remove it from the device. If they can pick up any kind of usage of the service after the cancellation was suppose to kick in, then you'll be liable.

 

[supersunbird]

They're not worth getting worked up about. My Telkom cancellation process is simple and I've been using it a couple of times last year.

I send a completed cancellation form to their cancellations email address. If I get an auto-reply, then I simply keep a copy of that email and my original cancellation form. If not, I send the cancellation form again a couple of times that week and keep copies of those emails. Never do a cancellation in store though as you have no proof that you've submitted a cancellation.

After that I keep paying until the end of the following month after which I refuse to make any more payments.
Then it is simply a matter of waiting until Telkom (or their debt collectors) are forced to phone you about your "outstanding account". Once they do that, simply provide them with those copies of cancellation requests and tell them to sort it out.

With their mobile contracts, there are a couple of extra steps since they usually force you to have a debit order. In that case, simply reverse the debit order every time a payment comes through until someone eventually contacts you.

You have to stop using the service though. Disconnect any devices you have from the line and if it is a sim card, remove it from the device. If they can pick up any kind of usage of the service after the cancellation was suppose to kick in, then you'll be liable.

The only auto-reply you will likely get is that the e-mail address does not exist. The cancellation process is now apparently only online, via ones online Telkom profile.

I do not know what one will do if one is unable to link the relevant line to the online profile due to whatever reason.

 

[Ho3n3r]

So farking useless!

Talk to an agent on the online chat, ask about following up the status.

She eventually confirms that there is an outstanding order on my line - an order I've already cancelled, twice, so this is what is blocking my cancellation request. I ask her why doesn't she do it, the retort is "I only do cancellations, not sales requests". I tell her, OK, this is a cancellation request, cancel the upgrade request as well as the line. "No, you need to speak to sales about that"...

 

[Antono]

Why don't they just allow people to cancel in the physical stores?

They allow it and I did it. I stood in a queue for about an hour after which I completed a form and received a reference number. About two days later I received an SMS stating that the case was closed. No cancellation was done and no reason given why it was closed. Twitter, online forum, phone calls and online chats got no results.

 

[Antono]

While I appreciate your approach that is exactly what I did. A brief summary of my actions:
a) I completed the online cancellation. This generates a system response that they will action it within 21 day(I think).
b) After no joy I visited a store and completed a cancellation request in store. Got a case reference and two day later a message saying the case is closed. No cancellation was done.
c) I posted multiple messages via twitter and provide the clowns with all details required. No joy.
d) Posted online hellkom forum again providing all the info needed. No joy.
e) Over this period I persisted with sending cancellation request via email from 5 different accounts, sometimes as many as 10 per day. Got system responses for all. No joy.
f) Phone requests was a joke, No joy.
g) Online chat. No joy. Have the transcripts where promises were made of feedback, never received.

In the meantime they kept on stealing my money. I had to reverse these at the bank every time.

Granted, after 6 months of this I was not polite anymore, why should I be polite with thieves who steals my money?

 

[supersunbird]

They allow it and I did it. I stood in a queue for about an hour after which I completed a form and received a reference number. About two days later I received an SMS stating that the case was closed. No cancellation was done and no reason given why it was closed. Twitter, online forum, phone calls and online chats got no results.

So is your service cancelled? No, because it is not a legitimate process anymore.

You do it via the online process.

Log into the old portal, click on Manage My Accounts, then scroll all the way down the page until you see this, then scroll to the right with the arrow:

View attachment 531395

View attachment 531397

 

[supersunbird]

While I appreciate your approach that is exactly what I did. A brief summary of my actions:
a) I completed the online cancellation. This generates a system response that they will action it within 21 day(I think).
b) After no joy I visited a store and completed a cancellation request in store. Got a case reference and two day later a message saying the case is closed. No cancellation was done.
c) I posted multiple messages via twitter and provide the clowns with all details required. No joy.
d) Posted online hellkom forum again providing all the info needed. No joy.
e) Over this period I persisted with sending cancellation request via email from 5 different accounts, sometimes as many as 10 per day. Got system responses for all. No joy.
f) Phone requests was a joke, No joy.
g) Online chat. No joy. Have the transcripts where promises were made of feedback, never received.

In the meantime they kept on stealing my money. I had to reverse these at the bank every time.

Granted, after 6 months of this I was not polite anymore, why should I be polite with thieves who steals my money?

Try contacting the The National Consumer Commission at http://www.thencc.gov.za

 

[TheMightyQuinn]

Clearly you don't know me very well, I generally get matters resolved. I don't wait 6 months to take action, I do it with in couple of days of requesting or doing some thing, learned the hard way. You start by pestering them daily on their media channels and email addresses, be polite as possible, calling them once or sending a message once isn't going to do it 2 or 3 times a day.Doing it as politely as possible always works, period.I seldom have to get more aggressive, and when I do it's still with a hint of politeness.

I have yet to fail.

As soon as Batman dies, you'll be my next superhero.

 

[wizardofid]

As soon as Batman dies, you'll be my next superhero.

Sarcasm ?

But seriously I found sorting out issues can be quick and easy via social media channels. FNB, takealot, raru, telkom, MTN, my local municipality when we were without water, pestering does the job. Yeah they screwed up, but politeness goes a long, long, long, long, long, long, long way.

Took 2 weeks of pestering to get guys that manufactured my tablet to get the firmware for my tablet after it was infected with stock adware.

It also helps pending the problem to email the provincial newspaper for municipal issues for example.It's a personal hobby of mine to harvest as much email addresses as I can from a particular company I have issues with, the wider the attack the more likely you will get issue attended to, I often found the wider the attack the more people get CCed and that is exactly what you want.

I am no hero but you can beat the system with a little effort.

 

[marlinf]

Can't you go to your bank and blacklist Telkom from withdrawing money from your account? It's your bank account.

 

[Antono]

So is your service cancelled? No, because it is not a legitimate process anymore.

You do it via the online process.

Eventually after I paid them the thousands of rand they demanded from the time I first requested cancellation to the time they eventually did 8 months later. When I started my struggle that was still the process. So between the time that the contract ran out and I requested first cancellation to them time I eventually got them to cancel it they still demanded the money. While I have case numbers and proof of all the requests I have sent they still refused to explain why they did not process my request and nor will they provide me with a detailed bill for the money they stole from me. They are a bunch of thieving whores and normal people are powerless against them if you do not want to spend R50K on legal action to dispute a R10K bill, and they know this.

 

[Marcopolo333]

Why don't they just allow people to cancel in the physical stores?

They can, I managed to get the guy at Telkom branch in Bayside mall, Cape town to cancel that way, just gotta loose your **** with them slightly

 

[hushish]

I tried to call that number but they said they don't do cancellations. I tried emailing the form to the address, so will see what comes from that.