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Mary Turner
Chief Executive
Tiscali UK Limited
20 Broadwick Street
London, W1F 8HT
Ref: RLK1505
28th May 2008
Dear Mary Turner,
Problems with discontinuing Tiscali services and paying off the balance
Threats and slander from companies engaged by Tiscali despite payment being
sent and cashing of cheques showing on my Bank Statements
Total incompetence of Tiscali “Customer Services” staff
At the end of
2007 I ended Tiscali services that were being paid on my Credit Card as that
Card was being renewed, declining to provide Tiscali with the new card
details and advising that I would settle the balance by cheque. That turned
out to be a justified decision on my part as Tiscali, apparently, attempted
to take money from me via my credit card, despite the services being
cancelled.
What followed was many weeks of threats of cessation of services (I only
wanted a dial-up residual arrangement anyway due to old E-mail addresses),
then threats from two debt collecting agencies, despite me having sent
cheques for the amounts invoiced. The first such debt collector threat was
only two days after receiving the final invoice and the day on which I sent
a cheque in response to that invoice; the huge sum of £8-69.
Those companies were Credit Recovery Solutions Limited (CARS) and
Frederickson International Limited. While CARS were reasonable, for that
sort of company, Frederickson’s staff insisted on calling me a debtor,
despite me telling them that was only alleged by Tiscali, nothing like
proven, and that I had a cassette recorder connected to the telephone.
Such behaviour ceased, suddenly, when I E-mailed Naomi Slade at CARS and
pointed out that her company and Frederickson’s were demanding money with
menaces, which is illegal, that Frederickson’s staff had also committed
slander, asked her for full legal justification of their actions and
Tiscali’s actions to take to my local Chamber of Commerce legal team.
Obviously, someone at Tiscali called off Frederickson’s as well, as I have
heard nothing further from them either, but did not have the courtesy to
contact me (nor have CARS or Frederickson’s for that matter), completely in
line with Tiscali’s atrocious approach to customers.
My most recent communications from Tiscali are a letter from Tiscali
customer services and a statement of account.
The letter goes on about no record being found of a payment by cheque for
£8-69 and a request that another cheque be sent, even though my bank
statement shows it was cashed, albeit several weeks after the cheque was
sent. In addition, the letter was written by someone who cannot spell, whose
English is atrocious (my standard of English, while not perfect, is
1950s/1960s Grammar School/High School, Chartered Engineer, author
standard), cannot construct and set out a letter and cannot even address an
envelope properly (photocopies enclosed).
The statement of account was addressed to “Mr Unkown Unknown, 19 19 Blenheim
Gardens” and the content was gibberish (photocopies enclosed). It appears to
refer, in part, to a payment made months ago and, overall, looks as if you
owe me money, though in time that could have been far more usefully spent
elsewhere you have cost me a great deal more.
So far, this nonsense has required me to spend the equivalent of at least
two days, as well as several expensive telephone calls, sorting it out, or
at least attempting to do so. My losses, even allowing for lecturing
preparation time, which is not paid, amount to a minimum of several hundred
Pounds equivalent.
Tiscali must have spent at least a few hundred Pounds chasing a couple of
sums of £8-69, even though payment was sent. Your customer care is as
appalling as your accounting system and level of education and ability of
your staff. I strongly recommend a complete overhaul of both your customer
services, or what passes for them, as well as your recruitment policy.
My situation is that I need the Internet to progress past a difficult
situation, though am now pleased, relieved, that I chose not to install
Tiscali Broadband.
Once past that situation I shall be giving presentations on my business
experiences, among other things, which I expect to begin in the next
academic year. Those experiences include having five years wrecked by a
corrupt Council (Havant Borough Council) that was involved in deception,
fraud, misappropriation of European Funds, etc., (not just with my project)
and the cover-up which followed; nothing published locally, thanks to help
from an editor, and me not able to obtain assistance from the local Business
Link (represented at the meetings involving me project and on the overseeing
Board the Council run organisation). That is all on the Internet and will be
part of many forthcoming presentations, interviews, articles, etc.; as will
my experiences with Tiscali, though it will take me a couple more weeks to
put this letter and all the other Tiscali related correspondence on one of
my Web Sites. (My legal advice is that you cannot libel or slander a public
body, only individuals within it.)
I am gradually getting past the Council and others via my unique
non-engineering side,
Barbara Ford-Hammond’s book “Past Life Tourism –
Gateway to Bridging Your Past and Future”, in which we feature, and my own
forthcoming book,
“Remembering Lorelei”; the links will be in the version of
this letter appearing on my Web Site.
Havant Council having been using my other involvements against me, though
only behind my back; see “The Well-Wisher” page of “Richard’s Journal” (www.richardsjournal.co.uk).
They are scared witless of me being in the public domain. Tiscali, CARS and
Frederickson’s suddenly backed off the heavy handed approach when I said I
would be consulting the Chamber of Commerce legal people. Like the Council
and their colleagues, Tiscali and their associates display the classic
combination of bully and coward. I will be forwarding details of my
experiences with Tiscali, CARS and Frederickson’s to East Hampshire Chamber
of Commerce and to Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Chamber of Commerce
as excellent reasons to join such organisations.
I will be using these letters and E-mails, as well as the telephone
recordings, in my presentations.
In the meantime, is there any chance that you can find a single competent
person within Tiscali to finalise my account and bring it to a resounding
end.
I would also like details of any correspondence about me sent to any third
parties by Tiscali, CARS or Frederickson’s. I asked Francis Orozco, at
Tiscali Customer Services, for that long ago, but, completely in line with
Tiscali’s customer care standards, I received no reply.
Yours sincerely,
Richard L. King
Richard King, BTech, MTech, CEng, MIMechE
Consultant Engineer
RLK Associates
Visiting University Lecturer in Engineering and Materials
Associate College Lecturer in Engineering Science and Materials
Member of East Hampshire Chamber of Commerce
and Industry
Healer, Psychic, Mystic
Member of the Scientific and Medical Network
Copies:
(Details from PC Advisor Forums, Tiscali Worst ISP, etc.)
Matthew Davis, Customer Services Manager, Tiscali UK Limited, 20 Broadwick
Street, London, W1F 8HT
Nathan Francis, General Manager, Consumer Affairs, Tiscali UK Limited, 20
Broadwick Street, London, W1F 8HT
Joanne Davis, Complaints Department, Tiscali UK Limited, 20 Broadwick
Street, London, W1F 8HT
Head of Tiscali Customer Services, Tiscali UK Ltd, PO Box 7206, Kiln Farm,
MK14 6XG
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