TIO ombudsman

[Michaels]

Hey all, i have a situation and i just want to see some thoughts on it.

I changed phone provided around august last year ( went from 3 to telstra). When i signed up i went with the samsung galaxy 3 handset.

I have had problems with it from the get go, it was lagging and locking up for small periods of time early on but i thought nothing of it. a few months ago it was freezing for 5-10 minutes at least 4-5 times a day, making the phone very hard to use for anything.

I did the right thing and took it back into the telstra store and they sent it away to Samsung to have it looked at and repaired which is their process. So i got the phone back 2 weeks later and it seemed ok for the initial first 2 weeks. however the past 3-4 days it has been doing it again.

a couple of nights ago my phone froze for 43 mintues.. i took photos using my fiances phone of my frozen screen and my wrist watch showing the 'live' time compared to when it froze.

So i have had the handset for 9 months, it has been sent in for repair in April, come back and its doing the exact same thing again.. am i entilted to a new handset?

I rang the store and they said they would have to send it away again but i think thats not good enough.

I'm going to ring the Telstra head office line on my break, but if they don't comply initially does this have grounds to go through the TIO Ombudsman as their phone hasnt held up for 10 months yet even after 'repair'?

 

[Zim^zuM]

I got out of a contract with vodafone through the TIO for handset issues. But my issues included 2 different phones and about 11 repairs lol. Ask for a new handset, tell telstra you will contact the TIO if they dont resolve this for you. IF they dont resolve it make a complaint, you will get something. I assume they would offer to cancel the contract to at least get you for another 24 months.

 

[SwampRat]

Hey all, i have a situation and i just want to see some thoughts on it.

I changed phone provided around august last year ( went from 3 to telstra). When i signed up i went with the samsung galaxy 3 handset.

I have had problems with it from the get go, it was lagging and locking up for small periods of time early on but i thought nothing of it. a few months ago it was freezing for 5-10 minutes at least 4-5 times a day, making the phone very hard to use for anything.

I did the right thing and took it back into the telstra store and they sent it away to Samsung to have it looked at and repaired which is their process. So i got the phone back 2 weeks later and it seemed ok for the initial first 2 weeks. however the past 3-4 days it has been doing it again.

a couple of nights ago my phone froze for 43 mintues.. i took photos using my fiances phone of my frozen screen and my wrist watch showing the 'live' time compared to when it froze.

So i have had the handset for 9 months, it has been sent in for repair in April, come back and its doing the exact same thing again.. am i entilted to a new handset?

I rang the store and they said they would have to send it away again but i think thats not good enough.

I'm going to ring the Telstra head office line on my break, but if they don't comply initially does this have grounds to go through the TIO Ombudsman as their phone hasnt held up for 10 months yet even after 'repair'?

I believe the TIO is meant to be the 'last port of call' for complaints. It doesn't really seem as if Telstra has really done anything wrong yet, as they are offering to repair it again. I think the TIO are reluctant to do anything unless you've filed an official complaint with the provider that hasn't been resolved to your satisfaction.

My advice would be to send it in for repairs, if the problem isn't properly fixed after 2 repairs, you'd have good grounds to demand a replacement. One failed repair is unlucky. Two is an indication they can't fix it. You might try asking for a smart phone as your loan phone. If that doesn't work, you might ask for a credit on your service charge as you are not able to access your full, paid for service while your phone is away for repairs.

If you have no luck after that, demand a replacement. Quote your rights under Australian Consumer Law.
http://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-rights-guarantees/repair-replace-refund
State the problem is 'Major' and as a result, you are entitled to a replacement or refund. State the problem is major because (as per the definition) because it does not do what the product is advertised as and cannot be easily fixed (evidenced by the fact they've tried twice and failed.)