Telkom subscriber asks why her data bill was high, has chat cut off
Telkom recently slapped a data subscriber with a bill for R1,820.95, much higher than the R399 she was expecting.
The higher-than-normal charge was for data usage fees over the standard 20GB her contract provides.
This is unusual for Telkom’s mobile services, as the network not only lets subscribers set spend limits on a contract, but cuts you off when you reach the limit of your data bundle.
Instead of billing you out of bundle, it redirects you to your portal and asks whether you wish to load a new data bundle or continue out of bundle.
In her complaint to Telkom, the client said the bill was completely unexpected, as she has been cut off before after reaching her cap.
However, in March 2017, the system failed and allowed her to go beyond her 20GB without any notification.
Poor service
Initial attempts by the customer to get the charges investigated and reversed were met with unhelpful Telkom support staff.
They claimed the contract did not have a R0 spend limit as she suggested, but a R500 limit.
When she asked how her OOB bill went to over R1,400 when the limit was supposed to be R500, Telkom support ended their chat.
When similar questions were asked over email, no response was received.
Refunded
After MyBroadband contacted Telkom, the case was investigated and the client credited the R1,421.95.
Telkom offered to refund the amount to her bank account, but she had already closed her account and opened a new one – fearing that she would be hit with another big debit order the following month.
The company said its investigation revealed that the client’s limit was not altered.
A software glitch in the system resulted in her not being redirected after reaching her cap. This resulted in her being billed out of bundle.
Now read: Telkom set for massive restructuring
Loading ...