Can a mobile operator charge for... text delivery confirmation?

[kashmiri]

Hello,

 

My teenage daughter has a £6.90 Three subscription with "unlimited free text messages". But this month I was shocked to receive a bill of nearly £40, including a charge of ~£30 for "text delivery confirmations".

 

It turns out that, according to Three, texting is free - as long as the phone is set not to receive delivery confirmation. But if delivery confirmations are set to "allowed", Three will charge the customer 1.2p per confirmation.

 

My daughter, then, sent more than 2,000 text messages last month.

 

In my view, text delivery confirmation is an inherent element of the GSM text messaging service, and if texting is advertised as free/included, then networks have no basis to charge for "text delivery confirmation". In the GSM standard, text message transmission (incl. delivery confirmation) incurs virtually no cost to GSM networks (except for costs related to billing the customers for texting).

 

Is there a way to challenge this, in my view unfair, charge? I don't really feel like paying £30 for "delivery confirmations".

[Conniff]

It's certainly an unfair charge and one cleverly worked out so they can say 'Free Texts' but not mention the receipt.

 

 

We hear of government 'think tanks', but not a lot about commercial enterprises using think tanks in a way to find a loophole whereby they can say one thing but mean something completely different thing.

 

 

This is a bit like using Evasion and Avoidance when talking tax, there is no difference, they are both deliberate manipulations to make money.

 

 

If there is no mention of this in her contract, then yes it can be challenged.

[kashmiri]

Thanks... the 1.2p charge is mentioned in the price list which is a part of her contract. Still, this is more about deceipt - as if confirmation was not part of messaging.

 

It is as if Google advertised Gmail as "free email" but charged customers to receive replies. Would that be really "free"?

[renegadeimp]

Delivery confirmation like that used to be free. But sadly it seems that phone operators will charge for anything they can.

[Conniff]

If they just harped on about 'Unlimited Free Texts' and never brought the receipt charge to your daughters attention, then I would make an official complain to her phone company. Even if it is in her contract, something as serious as this, a thing that can make a person accept or walk away from a contract, has to be brought to

her attention and you should tell them that, (if it wasn't the case), and demand the bill be withdrawn.

[Conniff]

Will you tell us who the company is please Kashmiri ?

[kashmiri]

Sure, I mentioned this in the original post. It's Three!

[Conniff]

Sorry about that, the name is normally '3' and not 'Three'.

 

 

Was you daughter told about the receipt at the time of signing up ?

[kashmiri]

Their legal TA name is "Three" but never mind.

 

We were attracted by the "unlimited text" option. Actually, I signed up online, directly on Three website.

 

I think the grounds for challenge could be that the "delivery confirmation" is technically an inherent part of the Short Messaging Service (SMS) in the GSM standard.

 

Like, if a car manufacturer sells me a "car", they cannot later send me a separate bill for the wheels.

 

Am I wrong?

[Ford]

one of those 'stealth' charges.

ee charge apparently also.

turn it off in yr phone. no need for it. depending on the phones message settings, if a text is showing in 'pending' then it hasn't been delivered.

[caro]

I got caught out by this some years ago with orange. At the time my phone was PAYG so I realised before it cost too much but I'm just saying to show this isn't a new thing.

[Conniff]

Their legal TA name is "Three" but never mind.

 

We were attracted by the "unlimited text" option. Actually, I signed up online, directly on Three website.

 

I think the grounds for challenge could be that the "delivery confirmation" is technically an inherent part of the Short Messaging Service (SMS) in the GSM standard.

 

Like, if a car manufacturer sells me a "car", they cannot later send me a separate bill for the wheels.

 

Am I wrong?

 

 

It's about what you agreed to when you signed the contract. Even more so if you done it on line, you weren't rushed and should have noticed that you had to pay for receipts.

 

 

I'm sorry about that, but it's very clear:

 

 

Text delivery reports are currently charged at 1.2p per report. These delivery reports confirm whether the text messages that you send are delivered successfully. Learn how to switch delivery reports on or off, by visiting our interactive guide and choosing your phone.