Plan upgrade uninformed charges

[varundroid]

Hi, I recently requested to upgrade my plan. I was told that my contract will be intact and nothing will change. No one informed me that I will be charged setup fee again just like fresh installation. If you going to charge me $99 bucks everytime I change my plan, I am not sure if I want to stay with TPG after my contract is over. Can someone clarify here that why I was charged setup fee of $99 for just a plan upgrade?

[Anonymous]

Hi @varundroid,

Welcome to the community!

Here are few FAQs about NBN plan upgrade.

1) The change of plan fee (same location) is $0 ?

• Yes, there's no charge for changing your NBN plan.

2) When would be the best time in the current month to enable the upgrade or should I upgrade it next month?

• You may process the change of plan anytime you want, since any unused portion of your current billing will be used towards the new plan.
   

4) My current equipment is working perfectly and therefore would I require an equipment upgrade?
 

• No, the equipment does not require any changes for plan upgrade.
   

5) How to process my upgrade? How long it will take?

• The usual activation of the new plan may take within 4 to 24 hours once it was lodged.

We did an article that you may find helpful, see this link, Changing NBN Plans through My Account.

In this particular case, we've seen that the NBN Plan change was done in the middle of billing cycle there was no additional charge it happened that a new billing cycle was generated ( For March 27 to april 26 ) this happen since TPG bill 7 days in advance to avoid service interruption. You'll also notice a prorated charge for Feb 27 - March 26 which is for previous billing cycle.

Should you need further assistance, feel free to search community for help or chat with us at https://www.tpg.com.au/support/contact/  and we'd be glad to assist you.

 

Cheers! 

[YSC]

A common practice, it seems. Totally extortionate and unncessary. I am in the process of submitting a complaint to the Telecommunications Ombudsman. I imagine TPG are doing this to unwitting, older customers like my father who is 74 and hard of hearing.

[David_M]

Hi @YSC 

Is there something i can assist you with?

There is also a new ''TPG Mobile APP'' to help you with various trouble shooting and account issues, via a mobile phone app.
https://www.tpg.com.au/download

Regards,
David_M

[YSC]

Sure. There are many billing irregularities over a number of years dating back to 2009. I began investigating my billing history more recently and realised the unusual bills date further back in time. In some months there were up to four invoices issued for the same service totalling $239.97 (April 2018) and $149.97 (August 2018). Some months two invoices were issued on the same date for exactly the same service (2 bills for $30.00 in April 2013, 2 bills for $49.99 in May 2010, 2 bills for $49.99 in Nov 2009, 2 bills for Dec 2009). A $99.95 plan change fee was charged for increasing the value of my plan. My understanding is that these fees are not legal in circumstances where there's no loss, as it is penal in nature and unlawful. And a $10.00 delivery fee for a router I never ordered nor received, nor have I signed up to TPG's NBN service. I lodged a complaint last week concerning TPG's billing practices because after numerous requests to cancel my service, it remained active. It wasn't until I lodged a complaint with the Ombudsman that my service was finally terminated. I suspect there are many other unwitting consumers who have been overcharged by TPG's billing practices.

No one at TPG appears to take responsibility. The matter is 'escalated' a number of times until nothing happens, presumably in the hope that the consumer will get exhausted, give up, and go away. When I complained about their Change Plan Fee of $99.95, they suggested that 'it is in the contract'. The contract is unconscionable. The issue is that the fee is arbitrary and extortionate. It doesn't represent actual loss to TPG, and appears simply to penalise the consumer for wishing to change plans - the fee is in fact called a 'Change Plan Fee'. It needs to be removed entirely. I imagine there'd be so many other consumers simply paying this fee, assuming they have to 'because it's in the contract'. There needs to be some level of consumer protection here.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for raising this to us, @YSC. We'd love to love to help see what happened with the charges on the account. To better understand the situation, please send us your account details (Username/Customer ID together with the address on file).

For your reference: How do I private message (PM) in the community

Regards,

Sure. There are many billing irregularities over a number of years dating back to 2009. I began investigating my billing history more recently and realised the unusual bills date further back in time. In some months there were up to four invoices issued for the same service totalling $239.97 (April 2018) and $149.97 (August 2018). Some months two invoices were issued on the same date for exactly the same service (2 bills for $30.00 in April 2013, 2 bills for $49.99 in May 2010, 2 bills for $49.99 in Nov 2009, 2 bills for Dec 2009). A $99.95 plan change fee was charged for increasing the value of my plan. My understanding is that these fees are not legal in circumstances where there's no loss, as it is penal in nature and unlawful. And a $10.00 delivery fee for a router I never ordered nor received, nor have I signed up to TPG's NBN service. I lodged a complaint last week concerning TPG's billing practices because after numerous requests to cancel my service, it remained active. It wasn't until I lodged a complaint with the Ombudsman that my service was finally terminated. I suspect there are many other unwitting consumers who have been overcharged by TPG's billing practices.

No one at TPG appears to take responsibility. The matter is 'escalated' a number of times until nothing happens, presumably in the hope that the consumer will get exhausted, give up, and go away. When I complained about their Change Plan Fee of $99.95, they suggested that 'it is in the contract'. The contract is unconscionable. The issue is that the fee is arbitrary and extortionate. It doesn't represent actual loss to TPG, and appears simply to penalise the consumer for wishing to change plans - the fee is in fact called a 'Change Plan Fee'. It needs to be removed entirely. I imagine there'd be so many other consumers simply paying this fee, assuming they have to 'because it's in the contract'. There needs to be some level of consumer protection here.