$40/4GB Plan - getting $10/month price INCREASE!

[alohaya]

Just got this text message from Public Mobile. They are raising my plan price by $10/month, trying to get me to switch to Koodo. Anyone else got this text? 

Public Mobile here. Starting March 20th, 2018 your rate plan price will increase by $10 per 30 days, making your plan $150 for 90 days. But don't worry! Our sister brand, Koodo, has a way for you to keep your $40 price point. Until March 15th, 2018, join Koodo and get 4GB of data, unlimited text and now additionally get UNLIMITED CANADA-WIDE minutes for $40/month PLUS get a one-time $100 bill credit! Offer valid for xxxxxxxxxxx. Redeem at your nearest Koodo location or London Drugs or online at https://koo.do/gocustomer-service. Show this msg and use promo code GOKOODO404GB to redeem along with 2 pieces of ID. Your phone number is your validation code. You're included on the list for Public Mobile offers and deals. To be excluded, reply unsubscribe. Conditions apply.

[lazardus]

Public Mobile,

I activated 2 lines for myself and my wife with Public Mobile in 2016 under the Fall promotion: 3 months for $120, 12GBs of data, and 200 minutes of US and Canada long distance. I received a text message on Feb 15, 2018 informing me my rate would be increased by $30 for each 3 month period. After accounting for the discounts I've accrued with Public Mobile, this amounts to a 27% price increase.

This is a direct contradiction of material representations made by your staff to induce prospective customers into moving from our previous cellular providers and purchasing your services. Here is an example of one such representation made by Brooke_C, a Public Mobile representative:

"If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises."

Source: https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Announcements/UPDATE-Last-day-to-get-our-limited-time...

This makes the representation false or misleading under the Competition Act.

If the cost of my plan increases, I will file a complaint with the Competition Bureau for your contravention of the Competition Act. If I do not receive a response within 5 calendar days explicitly stating that my plan's price will not increase, I will file a complaint with the Competition Bureau for your contravention of the Competition Act.

Further, the text I received offered me a seemingly equivalent plan if I move to Koodo. Here are the problems with such an offer:

1. I just paid for 3 months of service on February 12th, 2018. I received the text in question on February 15th. The offer to move to Koodo expires March 15th, 2018. If I take advantage of the offer, I forfeit 2 months worth of prepaid service with Public Mobile - equivalent to roughly $74.
2. I forfeit the discounts I have accrued with Public Mobile - equivalent to $9 every 3 months.
3. I forfeit the acrrual of long-distance minutes that I have.
4. The plan does not include US long-distance.
5. There is no mention if any of the additional services I currently receive are included in this offer e.g. Caller ID, Voicemail.
6. 4GBs of data per month is not as flexible compared to 12 GBs of data every 3 months.
7. I am not being given any assurance that the plan's cost will not change in the future.

Therefore, I must conclude that this is not a fair or equivalent offer, even after the $100 credit being offered.

If the cost of my plan increases, I will file a complaint with the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services. If I do not receive a response within 5 calendar days explicitly stating that my plan's price will not increase, I will file a complaint with the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services.

Please respond as soon as possible. I wish to resolve this matter in an amicable and timely fashion.

[Wonder_why]

@Charanth182 not only you will be upset,the whole peeps with Promo 12GB Data for 90 days , yes you been rape from behind with no vasoline 😉

[shawnie_boy]

Are you people blind. The Koodo offer is unlimited Canada calling anytime. The terms you see are referring to other non unlimited plans based on the number being referenced. 

[ShawnC13]

@Charanth182, that is why Koodo has offered the $100 bill credit to compensate you for any prepaid time that you will not use.

[ute1978]

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@borrowedcarbonwrote:

and Internet services following cancellation of such services when some or all of the monthly service fees are billed in advance. 

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If it is a contract, yes, but not for prepaid.

[Charanth182]

I'm sorry I'm a little upset with Public Mobile. Meer days after my 3 month plan is renewed they annouce it is going to go up but if i want to keep my plan i have to switch to Koodoo (Why?). However in order to do so i have approximately a month to take the offer...

I have 3 months left of my plan not 1 month.

[RLBL]

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@Samianaumanwrote:

Since yesterday I haven't seen any reliable reply from any one mod member or higher position worker of  pm. 

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I saw one post which referred to the $100 credit, but aside from that... nothing.

It would be nice if an official stickied post (or FAQ) was avaialble.

[Garry]

3. I can confirm the migration plan at Koodo is tab eligible based on individual/s credit check etc..

No different than a new customer opening an account, except we as PM clients are eligible for the $40/4gb offer.

[RLBL]

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@guinness22wrote:

Dear mods .please advise if the koodo plan means free calls 24/7 .Or is it only free 5 pm to 8 am and weekends. Thanks 

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This is not very hard to understand:

X Canada Wide minutes can be used anytime, but they have unlimted time periods (5pm to 8am)

Unlimited Canada Wide minutes can be used anytime, period.

Think about it this way:

If you have UNLIMITED daytime minutes (and unlimited evenings and weekends)... how many minutes can you use in the day???

[computergeek541]

In my case, I am unsubscribed from all the Telus/Koodo/Public Mobile marketing text messages. So, I am unlikely to ever receive the text message notification about these changes since the that text is actually doubles as a advertising for Koodo.  If Public Mobile doesn't otherwise actively attempt to call or e-mail customers about this changes, I am wondering if the bulletin from within My Account would really be considered sufficient notice of a price change (since people who are on autopay really have no reason to login to begin with).  While there will probably be an announcement made on the support forum, is that really a sufficient attempt to communicate such a change directly to the customer?

I'm not saying either way that it is or isn't. I'm just opening it up for discussion.

[Yoyokev]

Dear Public Mobile,

I activated my account with Public Mobile in 2016 under the Fall promotion: 3 months for $120, 12GBs of data, and 200 minutes of US and Canada long distance. I received a text message on 15Feb18 informing me my rate would be increased by $30 for each 3 month period. After accounting for the discounts I've accrued with Public Mobile, this amounts to a 27% price increase.

This is a direct contradiction of material representations made by your staff to induce prospective customers into moving from our previous cellular providers and purchasing your services. Here is an example of one such representation made by Brooke_C, a Public Mobile representative:

"If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises."

Source: https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Announcements/UPDATE-Last-day-to-get-our-limited-time...

This makes the representation false or misleading under Section 52 and Paragraph 74.01(1)(a) of the Competition Act as follows:

Section 52(1) of the Competition Act

False or misleading representations

• 52 (1) No person shall, for the purpose of promoting, directly or indirectly, the supply or use of a product or for the purpose of promoting, directly or indirectly, any business interest, by any means whatever, knowingly or recklessly make a representation to the public that is false or misleading in a material respect.

Paragraph 74.01(1)(a) of the Competition Act
PART VII.1Deceptive Marketing Practices
Reviewable Matters

Marginal note:Misrepresentations to public

• 74.01 (1) A person engages in reviewable conduct who, for the purpose of promoting, directly or indirectly, the supply or use of a product or for the purpose of promoting, directly or indirectly, any business interest, by any means whatever,

  • (a) makes a representation to the public that is false or misleading in a material respect;

Source: http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/c-34/FullText.html

If the cost of my plan increases, I will file a complaint with the Competition Bureau for your contravention of the Competition Act. If I do not receive a response within 5 calendar days explicitly stating that my plan's price will not increase, I will file a complaint with the Competition Bureau for your contravention of the Competition Act.

Further, the text I received offered me a seemingly equivalent plan if I move to Koodo. Here are the problems with such an offer:

1. I just paid for 3 months of service on February 12th, 2018. I received the text in question on February 15th. The offer to move to Koodo expires March 15th, 2018. If I take advantage of the offer, I forfeit 2 months worth of prepaid service with Public Mobile - equivalent to roughly $74.
2. I forfeit the discounts I have accrued with Public Mobile - equivalent to $9 every 3 months.
3. I forfeit the accrual of long-distance minutes that I have.
4. The plan does not include US long-distance.
5. There is no mention if any of the additional services I currently receive are included in this offer e.g. Caller ID, Voicemail.
6. 4GBs of data per month is not as flexible compared to 12 GBs of data every 3 months.
7. I am not being given any assurance that the plan's cost will not change in the future.

Therefore, I must conclude that this is not a fair or equivalent offer, even after the $100 credit being offered.

If the cost of my plan increases, I will file a complaint with the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services. If I do not receive a response within 5 calendar days explicitly stating that my plan's price will not increase, I will file a complaint with the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services.

Please respond as soon as possible. I wish to resolve this matter in an amicable and timely fashion.

[koimr1]

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@guinness22wrote:

Dear mods .please advise if the koodo plan means free calls 24/7 .Or is it only free 5 pm to 8 am and weekends. Thanks 

---

Hey @guinness22, I did send a similar request and got this back from a PM moderator:

"You get unlimited international texts and unlimited Canada-wide minutes"

Another user also switched to Koodo yesterday and it seems to be 24/7:

https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Discussions/WARNING-40-Koodo-Offer-is-actually-55-mon...

Edit: More: https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Announcements/Effective-February-15th-changes-are-hap...

[Kendall]

Dear Public Mobile,

This is a formal attempt to resolve a complaint with regards to the $10 per month price increase (sent by text from "5133" yesterday, February 15).

When I initially switched from Koodo to Public Mobile, I was motivated by the clause that mentioned I would be able to keep the "$120 / 3-months" rate indefinitely with "no surprises."

This price increase is inconsistent and not what was promised when the advertisement indicated the following "If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises". Link to website to this quote: CLICK HERE.

Please contact me directly via phone or email to resolve this issue. Please be advised I will attempt to pursue resolution of this complaint via the CCTS.

[RLBL]

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@MoreYummywrote:

So now the new plan is not unlimited calling?  If so, another trick.  So sad.

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Yes, it is...

the $30 tier is not.  All the others are.

If a plan specifies a number of minutes, those minutes can be used anytime but has a max outside the daytime usage. Unlimited is Unlimited...

[xenophh]

This is a formal attempt to resolve a complaint with regard to the $10/month price increase, as was sent to me via a text from "5133" on February 15, 2018. 

When I signed up for Public Mobile service, my primary motivator was the clause in the fine print that stated that I will be able to retain "$120 / 3-months" rate indefinitely with "no surprises". Public Mobile was a relatively new company, and I took a risk by being a pioneer with this plan. 

This price increase is inconsistent and not what was promised when the advertisement indicated the following "If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises".

Please contact me directly via Phone or Email to resolve this issue. Please be advised I will attempt to pursue resolution of this complaint via the CCTS and the Better Business Bureau

[ulovebass]

Dear Public Mobile,

This is a formal attempt to resolve a complaint with regard to the $10/month price increase, as was sent to me via a text from "5133" on February 15, 2018, a few days after my plan renewed for another 90 days.  

When I signed up for Public Mobile service, my primary motivator was the clause in the fine print that stated that I will be able to retain "$120 / 3-months" rate indefinitely with "no surprises". Public Mobile was a relatively new company, and I took a risk by being a pioneer with this plan. 

This price increase is inconsistent and not what was promised when the advertisement indicated the following "If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises". Link to website to this quote: CLICK HERE.

Please contact me directly via Phone or Email to resolve this issue within 48hrs. Please be advised I will attempt to pursue resolution of this complaint via the CCTS.

[borrowedcarbon]

PM should be refunding unused days, to move to Koodo requires cancelling the PM account.

CRTC "...clarifies that service providers must not charge for a service that is not, and cannot be, provided following cancellation. Moreover, all service providers must provide refunds for retail wireless, local voice (including VoIP), and Internet services following cancellation of such services when some or all of the monthly service fees are billed in advance. The refunds must be pro-rated, based on the number of days left in the last monthly billing cycle after cancellation."

https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2016/2016-171.htm

[Garry]

Best to go to the Koodo forum and ask.

[computergeek541]

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@guinness22wrote:

Dear mods .please advise if the koodo plan means free calls 24/7 .Or is it only free 5 pm to 8 am and weekends. Thanks 

For information about a Koodo plan, it's probably best to contact and ask Koodo about it.

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[mike390]

Dear Public Mobile,

This is a formal attempt to resolve a complaint with regard to the $10/month price increase, as was sent to me via a text from "5133" on February 15, 2018, a few days after my plan renewed for another 90 days.  

When I signed up for Public Mobile service, my primary motivator was the clause in the fine print that stated that I will be able to retain "$120 / 3-months" rate indefinitely with "no surprises". Public Mobile was a relatively new company, and I took a risk by being a pioneer with this plan. 

This price increase is inconsistent and not what was promised when the advertisement indicated the following "If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises". Link to website to this quote: CLICK HERE.

Please contact me directly via Phone or Email to resolve this issue. Please be advised I will attempt to pursue resolution of this complaint via the CCTS.

[wetcoaster]

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@stonechuckerwrote:

@wetcoaster, well there you have it... those would not work for me.

Although I'm in a City with 4 accesses to the Major HWY 403, we're not that big.

I may have to suffer.  I want prepaid.  

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@stonechucker

I hear ya, loud and clear!

[Samianauman]

It's not a single person issue pm ppls need to answer all pm customer who's holding 12gb plan. 

[stonechucker]

@wetcoaster, well there you have it... those would not work for me.

Although I'm in a City with 4 accesses to the Major HWY 403, we're not that big.

I may have to suffer.  I want prepaid.  

[Samianauman]

Since yesterday I haven't seen any reliable reply from any one mod member or higher position worker of  pm. 

[ShawnC13]

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@pharcyde778wrote:

Dear Public Mobile,

This is a formal attempt to resolve a complaint with regard to the $10/month price increase, as was sent to me via a text from "5133" on February 15, 2018. 

When I signed up for Public Mobile service, my primary motivator was the clause in the fine print that stated that I will be able to retain "$120 / 3-months" rate indefinitely with "no surprises". Public Mobile was a relatively new company, and I took a risk by being a pioneer with this plan. 

This price increase is inconsistent and not what was promised when the advertisement indicated the following "If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises".

Please contact me directly via Phone or Email to resolve this issue. Please be advised I will attempt to pursue resolution of this complaint via the CCTS and the Better Business Bureau shortly if I do not hear back within 24 hours.

Thank you.

---

@pharcyde778, you may want to edit this as PM is not relavtively new.  They have been around since March 18, 2010.  When you say you are a Pioneer that refers to the customers prior to I think February of 2015.

[guinness22]

Dear mods .please advise if the koodo plan means free calls 24/7 .Or is it only free 5 pm to 8 am and weekends. Thanks 

[Samianauman]

Dear Public Mobile,

This is a formal attempt to resolve a complaint with regard to the $10/month price increase, as was sent to me via a text from "5133" on February 15, 2018. 

When I signed up for Public Mobile service, my primary motivator was the clause in the fine print that stated that I will be able to retain "$120 / 3-months" rate indefinitely with "no surprises". Public Mobile was a relatively new company, and I took a risk by being a pioneer with this plan. 

This price increase is inconsistent and not what was promised when the advertisement indicated the following "If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises".

Please contact me directly via Phone or Email to resolve this issue. Please be advised I will attempt to pursue resolution of this complaint via the CCTS and the Better Business Bureau shortly if I do not hear back within 24 hours.

Thank you.

[ty666666]

CCTS complaints won't do anything.

Best thing is to take this public & shame them on Social Media.

I just sent an email to CBC's Go Public hopefully they can write about it on CBC & expose them 

Please expose them on Social Media & you can try emailing Go Public, the more people who email, the bigger the chance they write about it.

Email is:

gopublic@cbc.ca

[redstrike]

Hello Public Mobile,

I am writing to inform you that I want like to keep my  current plan with 12GB / 90 days at $120 minus My Rewards that I have had since the Fall 2016 Promo.

Per your own promotional material and answers to customers:

"If you have signed up for the promotional plan, you will be able to keep it after the promo period, as long as you are an active customer. This means that, as long as you are an active customer on this plan, your plan price will remain at $120, even after your initial 90 days. No surprises". Link to website to this quote: https://productioncommunity.publicmobil ... td-p/77350

Please contact me directly to discuss the matter further. If you do not respond within a 24 hr time frame I will assume that you reject all communication on this topic.

Thank you,

Tony

[PhoneSeeker]

Does anyone know if the plan is tab large elegible?