[Resolved]  Airtel Broadband Services — Airtel claiming false charges after disconnecting my line without my permission.

Address:

Karnataka

I had opted for an Airtel broadband connection in mid 2012, the monthly payment for which was being made on time regularly.

Account ID is : [protected]

On one occasion (September 2012 billing), because Airtel’s online payment gateway was down, the call centre offered to send a cash pickup service to my office to which I agreed. I paid Rs.1000 to Mr.Vishwanath to clear the total outstanding as told to me by the associate over the phone (I had opted for the 999 plan). The receipt has been scanned and sent to Airtel on many occasions.

Even after the payment was made I kept getting calls from Airtel for a month, asking me to clear my outstanding amount of Rs.1000 which I had already paid. I provided my receipt number and the copy of the receipt (along with sign and stamp from Airtel staff) several times to many Airtel associates but they just couldn’t find records and said that the pickup person seems to have disappeared.

After a few weeks I got a call from another associate to inform me that the money had been deposited in some other Airtel customers’ account by mistake and it should be recovered within weeks. At this point, I had informed Airtel that even though I have made a payment, my line sbeen disconnected. The associate apologized, and assured me that the line would be restored within 24 hours. Even after 5 months, my line was never reconnected and Airtel kept calling me and sending me bills for every month after disconnecting my line without my permission.

Complain no:[protected]/10/2012
Complain No :[protected]th March 3 pm

I have spoken with Team Leader Mr.Nagarjuna Reddy and Ms.Sowhmya most recently, amongst many others, regarding this issue but haven’t heard from Airtel after logging two complains. Mr. Reddy assured me that he will put me on a DND list for collections calls until the case was resolved from their end but I kept getting calls from Airtel for payment nevertheless.

I wrote several emails to all complain departments across Airtel, but there has not been one solution to the issues I have raised, except for a few standard apology mails and “we are looking into this”.

I am sick and tired of answering calls from the collections department for a payment I do not owe them. I have been receiving harassment calls from Airtel employees (their Identity can be tracked when calling), claiming to be section officers/advocates/lawyers from district court, Delhi stating that they have a legal notice for me from Airtel!

I don’t understand why I am being hassled for a clear negligence on Airtel’s part?

Instead of apologizing for their blunder and misbehaviors on the phone, Airtel continues to call me for payments, at least 10-15 times in a day. In spite of repeated requests for a full statement of payments till date and a meeting with an Airtel executive to resolve the case, I have not got any documentation from Airtel to support their claim, nor have they offered to send someone to clarify and close the issue. During one call I was appalled to hear that Airtel does not maintain details of disconnected lines, so they may not be able to give me my payment history and until I pay up the amount they are claiming, I will keep getting harassing call!

In order to stop the calls, I have now offered that I will make an exception and pay the entire amount of Rs. 2934 even though I don’t owe Airtel any money, as long as they can give me a letter stating that they are charging me for months the internet had been disconnected, and that once I make this payment, they will not ask for any other money. They have assured me that an NOC will be sent to me by post 72 hours AFTER the payment has been made, but there is no mention of the requested letter.

I have gone twice to the Cambridge Layout, Bangalore outlet to make the payment, and both times they have had server issues and could not process the payment. The payment cannot be made online as Airtel have conveniently deactivated my entire broadband line, hence they don’t have my records in the system to accept payment.

Airtel is making it more and more difficult for me to close the case and and continue to call at odd hours (Recorded call logs). I called this morning on the same number to ask if they could help me with another branch address around my office where I could make a payment, and the executive Rahul/Mathur, (not sure what their real names are) actually said “we are not a GPS service, find out the address yourself.”

I am now reconsidering cooperating with Airtel and am being forced to make a police complaint for harassment of women and a consumer complain for claiming false charges against a disconnected broadband line. I have managed to extract all my payment details on my own and can prove that the fault is not mine.

I am appointing a lawyer to help me with legalities but in the interim if anyone can give any advice on how to escalate this matter, it would really help a lot.