Calls about forced switch from Public

[Ranger677]

Hi all

I just recieved a call from my mother that has me a bit concerned and I am wondering if anyone else has experinced it.

She is with Public Mobile on an automatic monthly plan.  She currently has a flip phone and has a talk and text plan.

She got a text a couple of weeks back supposedlyfrom Koodo with an offer to switch over to them with the same plan.  The wording was defently that of an offer, and I told her to ignore it since she was happy with Public and I did not see any point in it.

Now today she recieved a phone call, again supposedly from Koodo, saying that since Koodo bought out Public, her plan is being switched over and she needs to come in to get a new SIM card.  Although I did not hear the wording like I did with the text, from what my mom was saying it sounded like there was no choice in the matter.

I have never heard about anything like this before and I can not find anything along these lines anywhere, so like I said, I am wondering if anyone else has encountered it and if this is just some shady dealing on behalf of a Koodo rep or something else.

Thanks

[kav2001c]

@selvianna just ignore them

Under wirless code even if Public did plan to change they need to give notice

[selvianna]

I've gotten 3 calls and several texts in the last two months.  In the last call the Koodo Rep said that the public mobile old $45 dollar plans were being phased out in the next month or so.  I told him that makes no sense since I didn't get any e-mails from public mobile with such info.  He was adament that I had to come in and switch before they cancelled all the $25 and $45 dollar plans next month.

[selvianna]

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@Cat_L wrote:

Hi @Ranger677,

@mhaider has it right - that was likely a Koodo Authorized Dealer calling. I can confirm that the offer is real and that it is an offer, not a mandatory migration. I apologize that it was presented as a mandatory migration and for the concern that ambiguity may have caused. 

I will take this back to make sure the offer is not being misrepresented and other customers don't experience what your mom did. On that note, would you mind private messaging me your mom's phone number so I can make sure we follow up with whoever called her specifically?

Thank you for flagging this to us!

---

[selvianna]

I've gotten 3 calls and several texts in the last two months.  In the last call the Koodo Rep said that the public mobile old $45 dollar plans were being phased out in the next month or so.  I told him that makes no sense since I didn't get any e-mails from public mobile with such info.  He was adament that I had to come in and switch before they cancelled all the $25 and $45 dollar plans next month.

[kav2001c]

@Alsch file a complaint against the dealer who called you

What happened over on Koodo? 

[stonechucker]

@Alsch, I would say yes you can come back, however the grandfathered plan you had will no longer be available, and you'll need to choose from the current plan options.

Also, you will no longer have telephone access to support, all will be done via the community and/or email.

This is a thinker.... 

[Rockdaddy22]

That's terrible that they lied to you like that. What's wrong with the Koodo service you've been receiving?

[Alsch]

I received multiple calls in December and finally switched to Koodo because they said that PM was shutting down. Koodo service has been a disaster, and I want to come back to PM. Is that possible?

[Luddite]

Here endith this saga as I have been removed from lists as follows, though not sure her language covers the current situation:

"Thank you for your e-mail to the Public Privacy Request Centre.

We have removed you from the Public telemarketing, e-mail, direct mailing, and

satisfaction survey lists.

Please be advised that removal may take up to 14 days, these guidelines are set

by the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and

will be valid for up to 3 years.

If you have any further questions, please contact us at 1-855-220-2400 Monday to

Friday 8:00-5:00 MST, or by email at Privacy@publicmobile.ca.

Thank you for choosing Public Mobile.

Megan

Public Privacy Team"

[apnea]

I haven't always agreed with you @Luddite, but you are bang-on with your message.

[Luddite]

I am just tired of the current corporate ethos that says "accept these terms and conditions or else get lost". 

I am completely on side with Telus creating 3 business entities and encouraging, even forcing, current customers into the "correct" business unit. Just hoping for more openness from Public Mobile. To wit, a public announcement in this forum and text message to all legacy customers such as:

"Public Mobile is committed to providing the best value in Canada for the plans we offer. This means customer support will only be accessible to you in the Community and by email effective April 30, 2017.

If access to a call centre, and/or a store/kiosk, is important to you we recommend migrating to Koodo or Telus. We have made arrangements for Koodo to honour your current plan for at least 12 months. Please visit your local Koodo store for more details on how to join their service."

[Rockdaddy22]

But people will post it here anyway. So why not get ahead of it with an announcement?

[apnea]

@outdoorsaddixI'm inclinded to agree with you about the grumbles, however the PM model is to have community, forum-based support and communication. He who lives by the sword...

[outdoorsaddix]

@Rockdaddy22 That I agree with. 

I wonder though, if they had made a forum annoucement, would there then have been a bunch of people saying "I want to go to Koodo for the same price too, why am I not eligible, this isn't fair" 

If communication stayed on the offical channels directly to those eligible this probably would have all been fine, but once some slimey resellers got their hands on it, it went off the rails. 

[Rockdaddy22]

I don't really care about the info sharing to be honest. I just wish this situation was handled better. Maybe an announcement about it, that would've been great

[outdoorsaddix]

@Rockdaddy22 @apnea @daredogg I feel like nobody is making the distinction that these emails/calls are coming from authorized resellers who are acting like the slimy scum they probably are if they are trying to make a sale by making it appear mandatory. Communication from Koodo/Public themselves is going through proper more offical channels and not making this out to be some kind of mandatory program. 

I am with everyone on the fact that Telus needs to come down on the authorized resellers who are the actual problem here going rogue. 

The "why" of the whole thing aside, I just fail to see why everyone is getting so bent out of shape over why Koodo and Telus would have access to Public's information? Maybe I am a whole lot more laid back about this kind of stuff, but I just really don't care. I skimmed the privacy agreement when I signed up, I knew that Telus, Koodo, Public and PC Mobile are one giant entity and everyone would probably have my info. 

Now if Rogers started calling me I might bat an eye, but maybe someone can enlighten me as to why this is such a big deal? Maybe I am just more resigned to the fact that if I plan to live and do business in this modern society the best I can hope for is that legitmate companies keep my information within their overarching organization and don't blatantly sell it to 3rd parties for profit.

That didn't happen here, Public didn't do a backroom deal with Koodo, a few authorised retailers went rogue/off script and should be punished. 

[Rockdaddy22]

I just wish I was handled better. I'm here for the long run, I fully support the no frills business model. It's a company in transition and I need to accept the ups and downs I guess.

[apnea]

When I was going through my personal pain of porting, @Luddite and @Rockdaddy22 were two of the biggest proponents of sticking with PM and that it would be 'well worth it in the end'. They were great beacons of support. Eventually my port completed and my cellphone plan has become a non-issue. It's disheartening to see two of PMs great supporters so disenfranchised, because it speaks volumes to the overall direction that PM appears to be taking.

Small-print or no, the emails from Koodo are deceptive and misleading.

[Rockdaddy22]

The whole situation is terrible. If they want to get rid of legacy customers, they should just make it mandatory. You either lose call center access or move to Koodo. It's just sketchy the way it's being handled.

[daredogg]

My apologies as well. I see the context now. Oops 

edit: @Rockdaddy22 I just read this post from @makkahn28 and see now why you called this disgusting!! That email they received is pretty sketchy, especially in the age of phishing. Sending from gmail, I would of thought it was spam! 

[Rockdaddy22]

I'm talking about the part about the guy making it seem mandatory, that's just terrible. I definitely should've been more clear.

[daredogg]

---

Rockdaddy22 wrote:
This is disgusting behavior, I'm really disappointed in this whole situation.

---

@Rockdaddy22 and everyone else worried about their privacy being violated. When we signed up for service, we had to agree to the terms and conditions. There was a checkbox that needed to be checked that referred to the privacy document referenced here. It might not be desirable, but it's definitely within the rights of the TELUS umbrella to contact us.

For further information, please contact us at 1.855.220.2400 or privacy@publicmobile.ca. Unless you tell us otherwise, we will assume that we have your consent to continue to collect, use and disclose your personal information for the Identified Purposes. 

Did you notice the clause? "Unless you tell us otherwise"

We all had to agree to this, but thankfully there's an out (of course it's buried at the end of the document). Luddite mentioned he contacted the privacy officer, and I'm really curious what their response will be, and how the opt-out works.

@Luddite definitely keep us updated on what you find out!

[kav2001c]

@outdoorsaddix yeah I knew this because I had been contacted through Telus Quebec (posted in another thread) and was quite surprised they had account access

Koodo also has access for sure

[TK]

If ever PM wants to get rid of their call center, by moving old clients to Koodo, why not offer those clients a gift, in exchange for "no live support", (and keep those clients).

I have three old $25 plan for the whole family. If PM offers me 4 month free service or, $100 credit, I accept that offer right away.

[Luddite]

@outdoorsaddix Koodo tech support is not free: $5/per call. But it is accessible.

I have withdrawn my consent as "allowed" in that privacy policy. It's the last paragraph under "What are your choices?". We'll see if I actually get an acknowledgement.

https://publicmobile.ca/pdfs/Privacy_with_Public_Mobile.pdf

It's annoying behaviour but typical of corporations out of touch with their customers. Too bad, for me anyway, that PM is still the best deal. Perhaps, other grandfathered customers can expect a push in the fullness of time. 

[Rockdaddy22]

It definitely is

[Ashley]

This is disappointing 

[Rockdaddy22]

This is disgusting behavior, I'm really disappointed in this whole situation.

[outdoorsaddix]

@Luddite It's right here at the bottom. 

Sounds like however the authorised retailers actions are a gross overstep of policy and it sounds to me from the replies from public in threads of this type indicate they (Telus) want to come down on the retailers doing this. 

I don't really see anything wrong with this. It is probably in Public's best interest to eventually migrate all legacy customers to new plans or to Koodo so they can shut down the call centre and keep providing the low cost service you currently get. If you have a legacy account and go to Koodo for the same price, you net win because you now get Kiosks in addition to the call centre. 

The way the authorised retailer tried to guarentee themselves a sale is definatley wrong, but what Telus is doing really isn't I don't see a privacy concern here.