Until I opened the phone bill and had this image forever burned into my mind:
My first thought was, why is there is a comma in the total? Then I thought maybe I'd cry. And then I thought maybe I'd laugh, because the whole thing was so ridiculous. In the end I asked Steve to call Telstra. (I would have called them, but anyone who has heard me on the phone when I'm a bit angry will know that I'm a customer service operator's worst nightmare.) I actually expected the result of that call to be a bit of a laugh at the computer error, and for it all to be fixed then and there.
Not so.
The charges were for the trip we had just returned from. You know, the BUDGET holiday we had in New Zealand. Before leaving, we had bought a data pack from Telstra so we could use our phones over there, including the internet - Steve had told them what we intended to use them for and a suitable pack was recommended. 'Lucky you bought the pack,' the lady said over the phone. 'Without it there are ridiculous charges for this type of thing.'
Lucky indeed. I'd hate to see their version of ridiculous charges!
Long story short: we lodged a complaint, they agreed to drop it by 75%, we still nearly fainted at the almost $3,000 bill that still left us with, I inundated Telstra with angry tweets, we went to the ombudsman, we were then offered 50% off the total, we really freaked out and made them stick to the 75%, we went back to the ombudsman, I sent more angry tweets, and just yesterday the whole thing was resolved.
A phone call that meant we can breathe again: they've wiped THE WHOLE LOT. We owe them nothing.
Life goes on as usual.
Can you imagine the change in mood around here now?
Lessons learned:
- Next time we go away we will stay in touch by sending good old-fashioned postcards
- When you're suffering from insomnia, it is possible to lose even more sleep
- A very relaxed, easygoing person can become a major stress head very quickly
- When you have quite low blood pressure it's actually very easy to raise it (although I don't recommend this particular method)
- Shoulders do not belong next to your ears
- It is possible to not breathe properly for six weeks
- Calling Telstra people morons over the phone doesn't actually speed up the resolution
- Using the word 'ombudsman' a lot makes you feel very important
Yippee that they saw the error of their ways. Not like you didn't ask for advice!!! I bet you felt like you exhaled for the first time in months upon hearing this news. Just ridiculous that you had to go through it all to begin with. X
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you got that taken care of! Man, seeing a phone bill that high would definitely make me sick. That's almost double what my husband and I pay for rent in a year for crying out loud!
ReplyDeleteTelstra people morons? Definitely!
ReplyDeleteHow ridiculous!!
Glad it was all sorted in the end, and you can breathe easier :)
Tracey
xo
I always wonder about the people who think there is nothing they can do and cop it on the chin. It's such a pain in the bum to chase these things down, but I'm so glad it was worth it for you.
ReplyDeletePhew!
ReplyDeleteI hope a bill like that never arrives here.
Holy hell.
ReplyDeleteI'd be a wreck.
We had a similar, but smaller scale, issue a few years ago with Vodafone.
Also, finally resolved with $0 to pay - but man, what a headache it was.
I feel for you.
Relax, breathe, enjoy.
Morons.
:-) xx
Oh YAY Megan - this is the good news story of the year!!!
ReplyDeleteOh wow!!
ReplyDeleteI'm in the middle of a dispute with telstra at the moment as well!
We bought two galaxy tabs from them. one broke, we sent it for repair. they lost it in transit. it took 4 months for them to admit this, and it was only because of J persistently following it up.
Now mine's broken and because I relied on their advice it's out of warranty.
Many angry (and expensive) phone calls later...still not resolved.
We are waiting to hear back from them but I will probably blog about the whole ordeal.
How can telco companies think they can get away with this!?
I am so glad this is finally OVER and behind you! What a joke.
ReplyDeleteThey call it "bill shock", which is a bit like calling being struck by lightening a shock. I would have had a heart attack on the spot. I'm sure many have.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you resolved it, Megan. It would seem ridiculous to charge that kind of money for what basically amounts to your own breath and air... x
Such fantabulous news! Oh, and I'm also super-psyched that I can finally comment... Yay!
ReplyDeleteHoly cow!!! I'm so glad they dropped the bill.
ReplyDeleteThat's interesting, because you are I think the 4th person (all Aussies) who have had such an issue. What is going on with the telecommunications industry that this is even possible? Just beyond belief. Wrong, wrong, wrong...
Well, hope you at least had a good holiday!
Oh megan. This is simply the worst story I've heard. I'm amazed this didn't go to a current affair - its just that sort of story!! Thank god it's now resolved. Id still cry if I'd have to pay just 75% of that bill. Totally shocking. Good vibes must be going your way!!
ReplyDelete