I changed phone deal to save money – then EE said I wracked up £94 in extra charges
ASK ADELE I changed phone deal to save money – then EE said I wracked up £94 in extra charges
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Q. I've had a mobile phone contract with BT for the last eight years and currently pay £12.66 a month.
In April, I was offered a new contract with more data for just £10 a month.
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The contract was provided by EE as the two networks are merging.
I was pleased with the offer so I agreed and signed up.
But I was shocked when I received my first bill for March.
I was charged an eye-watering £56 - £43.34 more than in February.
The next month another shock bill followed, this time for £58.
Both times I was told that I had gone over my data allowance.
When I called and asked what I had used the extra data for I was told that the company does not have the information.
I thought this was unfair, especially as I had set up a £40 bill cap on my account.
I have spent hours on the phone trying to sort this out.
Is there anything you can do?
Malcolm Finch, via email.
A. We all use data to scroll on social media, surf the web and stay connected to our loved ones.
But in this situation your contract caused a disconnect between you and EE.
It is important to read the terms and conditions of a mobile phone contract before you sign up.
Although it may seem similar to your current plan, there could be higher fees or penalties if you make too many calls, use extra data or send lots of texts.
This is what happened in your case.
BT said you exceeded your data limit on your March and April bills.
You were charged for the data you used up to your spending cap of £40 a month.
A spending cap allows you to limit how much you can use your phone outside of your normal plan.
BT has agreed to refund you £79.98 for the additional charges as a gesture of goodwill.
A member of its team has also called to explain how the spending cap works so you do not get hit with a big bill again.
This case shows how important it is to set a spending cap that you can afford.
It should help you to limit how much you spend on roaming, picture messages and texts, which can stop you racking up extra charges.
If you have a spending cap in place then your provider should let you know when you are getting close to your allowance.
That's why I was very surprised that EE unwittingly let you rack up such a big bill, but I'm glad you have got your money back.
Squeeze team total: £224,628.
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