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Old people being ripped off

My wife and I have been friends with a childless couple for over forty years.
Three years ago the man died leaving his 89 year old widow.
They had a 'traditional marriage' for their age  where he worked - sorted the finances and she cooked and washed.
When he died my wife and I ' took her under our wing' showed the old lady how to use a bank card while shopping, sorted her utility bills etc.
She's made remarkable progress for a lady in her early nineties.
On Monday, my wife and I made one of our weekly visits for a 'nice cup of tea' when she showed me a letter from Sky T.V. telling her of a £2 increase of her subscription.
She also said that she couldn't receive one of her Sky channels.
When I looked at her T.V. it became apparent that she was not receiving any sky channels.
She showed me her latest bank statement and she has been charged £63.00 per. month for her Sky package.
Her letter from Sky gave no telephone contact, so I had to return home to use my computer to find a contact number for Sky and after telephoning 3 numbers I managed to contact someone who could help.
Apparently my friends husband had set up a package fourteen years ago and Sky have just been increasing the cost.
I've managed to negotiate a package for £24 per month a saving of £40 per month.
The old lady would never have been able to contact or negotiate with Sky and been paying £63.00 per month until she dies.
       
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Comments

  • Good on you. Probably doing the same to thousands others. Not on
  • i hope she can now receive the sky channels as well 
  • There are some really businesses and individuals out there.

    Trust nobody until proven different has worked well for me when it comes to this sort of thing.

    They'll try and tell you you're rude but rather that than get ripped off.
  • many older people are 'computer illiterate' .. today, when so much is transacted online or when 'bargains and discounts' are dependant on online payments and 'paperless' communications, this is another aspect of life where potentially, older people can be seriously disadvantaged 
  • edited March 2019
    Good on you, there are so many of these kinds of 'sleeping' accounts out there which are worth a lot of money to TV (and other service) providers - and they don't want to wake them up so they try to leave them alone if possible. It's why price rises/service changes as risky because they have to communicate to and risk disturbing customers who are paying big margin for old products, like in this case.

    It's wrong as it exploits certain types of customer (which the elderly generally fit into) but they're operating within the parameters set by OFCOM, so as annual price rises accrue and TV packages get more and more competitive you'll eventually wind up overpaying. That is unless, as is the case with many things unfortunately, you shop around and stay on top of what you're paying - there's no other way unfortunately.

    Edit: And whatever you do, don't sign your nan up to eBilling if she doesn't check her email account!
  • When me dad was still driving, he insured through the same firm as he did every year, Frizzle in Hastings. They were doing no wrong and tbis is no dig at them, my dad just wouldn't change. Typical loyal customer bless him
  • three years or so back whilst going through my (now late) aunt's papers, I found a maintenance insurance policy for a fridge she had replaced at least two years previously ..
     I phoned the company concerned and then put on auntie to discuss cancelation .. she told the young woman at the other end of the line that she wanted to cancel and then the conversation from our end went .. Auntie:  'yes, yes, I see, alright then, thank you, goodbye' .. 'Has she cancelled the policy' asked I .. 'She sounded such a nice girl, I didn't have the heart to' replied Auntie, who incidentally, in most aspects of her life was needle sharp .. what can you do ? 
    (I resolved it 10 minutes later and was told off for being heartless towards the 'poor girl' who needed the job)
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  • i hope she can now receive the sky channels as well 
    An update.
    No she can't receive the Sky channels.
    Sky sent a new card for us to try in her box and it did not work so I contacted them again.
    They said we would need the services of an engineer which would cost £60 for the visit.
    At this point I nearly exploded and explained that the old lady probably had not been receiving all the Sky channels for some months and I would advise her to cancel the subscription and we would get her a freeview box as most of the channels she watches are free.
    The person I was negotiating immediately said she could drop the price of the visit to £30.
    I agree as the reduction in her subscription would pay for the engineers visit and it was important for the old lady to have continuity of T.V. watching as she is virtually housebound.
    The old lady (like so many old folk) would never have been able to cope with the hassle.
    If I can give Sky any credit, they have given me a contact telephone number registered to the old lady which should help with any further problems.     
  • My wife and I have been friends with a childless couple for over forty years.
    Three years ago the man died leaving his 89 year old widow.
    They had a 'traditional marriage' for their age  where he worked - sorted the finances and she cooked and washed.
    When he died my wife and I ' took her under our wing' showed the old lady how to use a bank card while shopping, sorted her utility bills etc.
    She's made remarkable progress for a lady in her early nineties.
    On Monday, my wife and I made one of our weekly visits for a 'nice cup of tea' when she showed me a letter from Sky T.V. telling her of a £2 increase of her subscription.
    She also said that she couldn't receive one of her Sky channels.
    When I looked at her T.V. it became apparent that she was not receiving any sky channels.
    She showed me her latest bank statement and she has been charged £63.00 per. month for her Sky package.
    Her letter from Sky gave no telephone contact, so I had to return home to use my computer to find a contact number for Sky and after telephoning 3 numbers I managed to contact someone who could help.
    Apparently my friends husband had set up a package fourteen years ago and Sky have just been increasing the cost.
    I've managed to negotiate a package for £24 per month a saving of £40 per month.
    The old lady would never have been able to contact or negotiate with Sky and been paying £63.00 per month until she dies.
           
    Unfortunately admin frown on the "C" word but Sky is what the word was designed for!
  • To be fair I don't think sky are any worse than any of the other major institutions. 
  • redman said:
    To be fair I don't think sky are any worse than any of the other major institutions. 
    They're all at it, and it's quite deliberate.
  • redman said:
    To be fair I don't think sky are any worse than any of the other major institutions. 
    Yes - but you would probably notice if you were paying for electricity but not receiving it redman… :smile:  
  • redman said:
    To be fair I don't think sky are any worse than any of the other major institutions. 
    Agreed.  I always remember a story my father told me. Towards the end of his own fathers life, he took control of his affairs and noticed one day a paying in book for Barclays Bank in Eltham.  On further investigation it seems that Fred had had over £2000 in a non interest a/c for over 25 years, and had never been offered advice on where this not inconsiderable amount for him should be invested.  It happens all the time, from internet suppliers to suppliers of everything, the list is endless. 
  • many older people are 'computer illiterate' .. today, when so much is transacted online or when 'bargains and discounts' are dependant on online payments and 'paperless' communications, this is another aspect of life where potentially, older people can be seriously disadvantaged 
    Absolutely spot on!
  • My mum is 87. She is completely computer illiterate and struggles with her smart phone. She has been with British Gas as her utilities provider for years. I recently suggested that she switch to get a better deal. After trawling through all the options using Uswitch I couldn’t find any better deal and all because my mum wants to have a paper bill that she can physically pay and not pay a fixed sum each month by standing order. She is being penalised for being old and not willing to bow to what the utility companies want us to do. 
  • The irony of all this is that the beneficiaries of all this are the shareholders of the companies.

    And the shareholders are mainly the pension and investment companies that elderly people depend on for their income!
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  • Well done @JohnfromNorfolk

    Agreed and nice one John
  • At the time my mum was first diagnosed dementia she was taking out upwards of £120 a month is charity direct debits because of hard selling phone calls on behalf of organisations that should know better. Power of attorney sorted that after a few months, but she won't be the only one.
  • edited March 2019
    I don't think Sky do that to just old people. They do it to all unsuspecting customers. 
    But is disproportionately affects people like her and it is a total disgrace. These things should have a price and that should be the same price for everybody. There is a culture in these companies to screw money from people where they can. They are thieves in a moral sense. 
  • i hope she can now receive the sky channels as well 
    An update.
    No she can't receive the Sky channels.
    Sky sent a new card for us to try in her box and it did not work so I contacted them again.

    The person I was negotiating immediately said she could drop the price of the visit to £30.

    Hang on a second. 
    She's been paying 63 quid and some of the channels didn't work? They sent out a new card and it still didn't work?
    So she's paid for a service, which wasn't delivered to her. 
    And they have the cheek to first of all charge 60 quid and then reduce it to 30, when you complained? 
    I would have told those bastards to at least send someone out free or charge or if not, then reimburse her for the days, where she's been without Sky.

    Otherwise threaten them with Social Media. Often works. 
  • Not so much with the larger companies but with the more unscrupulous ones. Once people are on the ‘gullible’ list they will be plagued by nuisance calls and mail as their details are sold on. It’s a scandal.
  • In slightly different ways it works with insurance companies and utility companies. I would love to see legislation where everything has a set price. It should be up to companies to decide what that price is, but they shouldn't be able to charge different prices for the same service,
  • I had a guy from BT trying to "save me money" on the package I have with them, he ended up recommending some super Wifi "that would only be £8 a month more than you pay now" I asked how that was saving me money? and his reply was, the package was worth a lot more. Told him I didn't want his package and if he can't save me money on what I already pay, he should give up. He did!
  • I had a guy from BT trying to "save me money" on the package I have with them, he ended up recommending some super Wifi "that would only be £8 a month more than you pay now" I asked how that was saving me money? and his reply was, the package was worth a lot more. Told him I didn't want his package and if he can't save me money on what I already pay, he should give up. He did!
    I had similar with virgin. Saving me money by charging me more! 
  • I had a guy from BT trying to "save me money" on the package I have with them, he ended up recommending some super Wifi "that would only be £8 a month more than you pay now" I asked how that was saving me money? and his reply was, the package was worth a lot more. Told him I didn't want his package and if he can't save me money on what I already pay, he should give up. He did!
    Yes I had that call from BT selling me a super hub that guarantees me wifi in every room and a great gaming experience with super super super fast speeds. 
    I told him I'm 60 don't game and can get existing wifi in every room and am fully satisfied with my current service. He still tried to convince me I needed it ...... 
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