Vodacom - cancelling a contract I just took out

hj2k_x

hj2k_x

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Does anyone know if there is some kind of cooling off period right after getting a phone on contract, that allows you to cancel the contract and give back the phone without suffering any penalties?

Got a phone as a gift and am having second thoughts about it...
 
I believe you have 14 days to return it. There were some other threads floating around here about that.
 
Someone gave you a present that you have to pay for?

I suggest you try and give it back asap. Remember the store just lost a sale so they wont be VERY happy to help you, but they can and should if its only been a few days.
 
morkhans said:
I believe you have 14 days to return it. There were some other threads floating around here about that.
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Ya, I also thought there was something to that effect. But my searches did not return anything useful.

Does that apply even if you have used the phone? And can you cancel the whole contract or do you have to take a different phone instead?
 
JK8 said:
Someone gave you a present that you have to pay for?

I suggest you try and give it back asap. Remember the store just lost a sale so they wont be VERY happy to help you, but they can and should if its only been a few days.
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Hehe, well it was my mom. :)

She took out a contract to get the phone- I don't have to pay for it. That was last thursday now...
 
I had a similar problem with my vodacom contract. I called in to find out whether i could return the phone, even though it was within 7 days they did not allow it as it was already unsealed. The lady told me you can only return the phone if its still sealed within 7 days.

I guess different places work otherwise, good luck :)
 
Spoke to a VC person today who reckoned that cos there was no mention of a cooling off period in the contract that was signed, you cannot bring the phone back and cancel at all.

I am trying to get hold of the manager of the actual store where the contract was taken out to see what he has to say...
 
morkhans said:
Take a look at this: http://www.legalcity.net/Index.cfm?fuseaction=RIGHTS.article&ArticleID=4808975
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Thanks. That is exactly what I thought the law was.

Spoke to Vodashop at the Waterfront and the guy, after conferring with someone reckoned that I should bring in a letter saying why I want to cancel and then they could see from there.

When I finally got through to the manager at Cellucity, where we actually took out the contract, he was adamant that once the conrtact is signed and a number has been assigned to the phone, there is no way to give it back and cancel. He said that cell phone contracts do not have cooling off periods at all and that the only way to get out of it now is to cancel, and pay the full contract amount up front and then still give the phone back :(
 
If the law grants you certain rights, you cannot sign them away either by mentioning something in a contract or by simply leaving it out. Sounds to me like the cooling off period MUST be printed on the contract, so Cellucity are not complying with the law.

Every credit agreement must have printed on the face of it in bold-type capital letters the wording of Section 13(1) of the Credit Agreements Act, in which the cooling-off provision is set out.
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I would get your letter delivered / faxed with proof of receipt asap regardless of who you are waiting for to get back to you.
 
HenryJ said:
Thanks. That is exactly what I thought the law was.

Spoke to Vodashop at the Waterfront and the guy, after conferring with someone reckoned that I should bring in a letter saying why I want to cancel and then they could see from there.

When I finally got through to the manager at Cellucity, where we actually took out the contract, he was adamant that once the conrtact is signed and a number has been assigned to the phone, there is no way to give it back and cancel. He said that cell phone contracts do not have cooling off periods at all and that the only way to get out of it now is to cancel, and pay the full contract amount up front and then still give the phone back :(
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I told you he was going to be difficult, my advise is push him and make him cancel it.

From his side, he stands to lose out on a new contract sold, he takes a hit on the phone, he doesnt get the incentives for the upgrade and if I remember correctly Cellucity actually gets penalised for the whole line allocation. But he can reverse it, he just doesnt want to.
 
Spoke to customer care at canal walk now and the guy advised me that in general, there are no cooling off periods when it comes to cellphone contracts.

This is the same whether you get the phone from Cellucity, Game, Vodashop or wherever. He said that the only time cooling off applies is when you agree to a contract over the phone.

He also said that the only way for a contract to be cancelled the way I want it to, is if the store you got the contract at write a request on your behalf to Vodacom to cancel the contract. He said that this almost never happens and is only ever the case when there is a dispute of some kind, like if the salesperson has mislead the customer to believe something that is not true.

So it does not seem as if there are any options left open to me :(
 
gdiza said:
Sorry HenryJ :(

Why the need to cancel and such, why you change your mind?
Didn't like the phone?
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My mom wanted to surprise me with something nice- I was away for a few days. So she took out this expensive Blackberry contract to get me a blackberry.

But I am quite happy with my SE K810 and don't have a use for the blackberry as such, or the bundled minutes :(
 
guys the problem here with this link(http://www.legalcity.net/Index.cfm?fuseaction=RIGHTS.article&ArticleID=4808975) is the type of contract you have signed, this is not a credit agreement but rather a service agreement, where VC supplies you the ability to use their network in exchange for a certain fee depending on your usage. Cell service providers are huge companies and have a whole legal dept., that contract you/your mom signed is bullet proof, you don't stand a chance. There might be a cancellation clause but that is entirely at their option. As the legal saying goes 'caveat subscriptor' -translated, signatory beware, ie. read the fine print.
 
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