Vodafone Handset Warranty: The Plot Thickens

I posted a rant about Vodafone a few months ago and followed it up yesterday with an update. Someone called Edward Peter, who apparently works for Vodafone UK, commented on the update in a way that confuses matters further.

Let's recap: I had an 18 month Vodafone contract that came with a free handset, namely a Nokia 6234. Said handset started mis-behaving 15 months into the contract. When I contacted Vodafone support at the time, I was told that because the warranty of the handset was 12 months and that I wasn't due an upgrade before another 3 months, they couldn't replace the handset. This incident convinced me to leave Vodafone, which I did when my contract expired. I then got a phone call from a customer relationship manager who, when I explained why I was leaving, said that the support people had not advised me correctly and that all handsets had a 2 year warranty. The comment left on yesterday's entry states: If you get a handset directly from Vodafone its warranty matches the length of conttract you're on; 12 months for 12 months, 18 for 18 and so on. So this leaves us with 3 options:

• The warranty is 12 months, irrespective of the duration of the contract, which means you are toast if you have an 18 or 24 months contract and your phone packs up after 12 months;
• The warranty is 24 months, irrespective of the duration of the contract, which means that you're covered because whatever the length of your contract, you are due for an upgrade before or at the same time as the warranty expires, that is until Vodafone start offering 36 month contracts;
• The warranty matches the length of your contract, which means you're covered as you are aligible for an upgrade as soon as the warranty expires.

The last option would be the most sensible one. The first one is a trap for customers and one of the reasons why I left Vodafone even though it seems not to have been Vodafone's policy, just a misconception from support staff.

So if someone knows the answer, please tell me and tell the support guys at Vodafone: giving correct advice may help them retain customers. In the meantime, make sure you check that the length of the warranty for your handset matches the length of your contract, whoever you take your contract with.

Vodafone Support

Stop press: Vodafone are not evil, it's just that some of their support staff don't have a clue. Now that's a surprise!

Following my rant about Vodafone contracts and phone warranties, I did not contact the Office of Fair Trading as I said I would. However, a few weeks ago, as my Vodafone contract was about to expire, I took up a contract with 3 and made sure the phone I was getting had a warranty that extended beyond the duration of the contact. I then requested my PAC code from Vodafone to move the number over to the new contract. Of course, that triggered someone at Vodafone to call me and ask why I was leaving. I explained that they had lost me as a customer three months ago after the phone warranty incident. It appears that what I had been told originally was incorrect: all Vodafone handsets have had a 2 year warranty for quite some time so I should have been able to get my handset replaced without a problem. I was then assured that the support manager would be made aware that some of the staff were wrongly advising customers so that this would not happen again. Ah well, too little too late Vodafone.

Funnily enough, getting the PAC code and transferring the number went without a glitch after that: perfect service both from Vodafone and 3.

For tales of PAC code woos, check Coofer Cat.