Hi, I wonder if anyone can provide a geographical no for the Orange Shop, 24-26 Fitzroy Street, Cambridge.   It has only been open 5 weeks so there is nothing on the Orange website for it; they only have the Petty Curry Shop with a no of 0870 376 3607 fax 01223 353582.   The reason I need this (and asap) is that my son is the victim of some very sharp practice by staff there - he changed his tariff and phone on 2nd Jan as his contract was about to expire then found, to his horror, that they hadn't actioned the change & he is now stuck with a bill for £294 - 10 times his usual bill as he thought the change had taken place.   The manager refuses to give me a geo alternative (I don't actually have the 0870 either), the member of staff concerned didn't write out the contract properly  (although the expression on his face when challenged gave it away that he knew he had made a mistake at very least) but I want to make sure the manager is there before travelling 20 miles to visit the shop again with my son.  Customer Services say they will back my son but he has to go to the shop to sort it (seems weird but I'm not surprised with Orange!)  Also, has anyone else had similar problems?   If so, did you manage to get satisfaction and how?

Thanks for any help.

Email the executive office: executive.office@orange.co.uk

Do as dave suggests, contact the executive office. The tel no is 0870 8700862 this office is uk based and the staff are polite and helpfull. I know I have given you an 0870 no but the staff will always call you back when you get through. I think they are as frustrated about the way some departments operate as you are. I always deal with Orange directly (I think the shops are franchised) and the service is very good but if you get through someone that is less than helpfull just hang up and call back later.
We have several accounts with them and they seem to reward loyalty. (we have been with them for about twelve years)

Good luck, Bill

Dave & Bill,   Thank you SO much for the advice and info.   I hadn't emailed as it was a very complicated situation and, after my post I did begin to make progress (or so I thought) via the Customer Services & Upgrades Depts (using the 0800 nos from the database - thanks!) the shop manager in Fitzroy Street being very obstructive.   However, it became apparent that, although almost everyone was very pleasant and tried to help, they seemed to lack the authority (I was appalled that their frontline staff have no external email facility, other than some supervisors, apparently because a while ago someone sent an inappropriate email - how does that help customers?) hence particular gratitude to Bill for providing a phone no so I actually managed to speak to someone very helpful who then emailed me confirmation of what actions had been agreed and the advice given (cancel the DD).

I would offer a bit of general advice to anyone signing a contract with Orange which may sound self-evident but is not - make sure you read everything and query, in particular, any boxes on the contract left blank.   The shop staff in our case tried to use a blank box as proof of what you may or may not have requested but, as the customer, you will not know this or its implications (eg a blank box by "current plan" does not mean that this is where your current plan is entered but that you did not request a change of tariff even though Customer Services tell me this is bad practice).  Ask them to repeat exactly what you are signing - tariff etc, even if they get irritated as you need to be certain.  I have spent most of the last five days trying to resolve this and over three and a half hours this morning continuously on the phone so, as I say, you cannot be too careful!  I hope no one else does have such problems & that this post may help them to avoid any.

I will post again when the matter is finally resolved - should the no be added to the database?

Thanks.

An 0870 number shouldn't really be added to the database, unless it has an accompanying geographic or free number you can ring. Sort of defeats the objective of the site if we start saying "well you've got to ring this 0870 number..."

Yes, sorry, bit of a bad suggestion, I was just so delighted to have got the written promise of a result I got carried away - perhaps someone knows a geo equivalent?   I was asked by them where I had got the telephone no & said a forum (not which one!)   It seems Orange like to keep their tel nos a secret - a more helpful store manager said he was "not allowed" to give the area manager's no even though Orange Customer Services suggested I ask him!   All I was thinking was that the 0870 would give anyone as desperate as I was an option & I was anxious that the no should not be lost after a few weeks.

I did a Google of the 0870 number that was found, and you might like to try these two geographic numbers - 020 7984 1600 and 020 7984 1886. The first one (1600) was uncovered by doing a 192.com search of "orange" and "W1U 7DZ" (their London office number). It was also confirmed by doing a 192 search of their Bristol office. The second number (1886) was posted on a forum along with their 0870 number.

If you want, can you try them both and report whether or not they are equivalent to the 0870 number, or if they get you to the same place as the 0870 number.

Oh, and another guy that might help is Ian Parker, Group Director of Customer Relations, 020 7984 1888 (http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?p=179251)

Equally, another number that might be worth trying (I'll stop after this one!) is 0500 80 20 80 (taken from the same forum as the above number). Not sure what that one does, but it seems to have a lot of options (and might be worth putting in the database if it still works and proves useful :)).

Hi, thanks for all the options.  It may be a while before I can try them out as the man in the Executive Office was SO efficient and helpful I have no cause to ring!   He actually checked all that was necessary was being done, sent me the confirming email within the hour as requested AND rang me immediately to confirm that he had sent it, I had received it & was happy with it!  On my initial contact on the 0870, he did immediately agree to call me back on my landline.   I was also impressed that he did include in the email an instruction to cancel the DD and confirm he had coded the account so no bar will be imposed.   Also, complaints via this office are apparently reported to the relevant sections of the business AND reported at Board level.   Other than that Customer Services had done this in the first place & they should have a geo no, what more could I ask? Hence, I have no wish to be a pain  The problem is that, as it is is matter of a recalculation of two bills on which the wrong tariff was applied, this cannot be finalised until the next billing date of 12th Feb.   I will, however, try some/all of these numbers at the appropriate time and pass them on to my son for future reference.   Thanks again.

Well, there are here for future reference, in case either yourself or someone else needs them :).

Have a few further comments which I thought I would add to this post rather than start another one in "Chat" which would split the info.  

Firstly, a WARNING - Orange are advertising "Unlimited Calls to Landlines" as part of at least their Racoon 35 package; during my exchanges with them on behalf of my son, I discovered this is subject to a "fair usage policy" which I was unable to find in their Terms & Conditions.   When I queried this, it transpires that the limit is 3000 minutes per month ie 50 hours or less than two hours a day!   Not my idea of unlimited by any means!   I will be raising this with the appropriate authorities.

Secondly, as part of their response, they said it applied to calls to "01/02" numbers.   Could someone please confirm that calls to 03 nos from mobiles are subject to the same OFCOM regs as from landlines?   I'm sure I have seen on here that they are but I can't remember where.   If this is the case, I will go back to them on that as well.

Thanks for your help.

Barbara wrote on Feb 15^th, 2008 at 9:53am:

Secondly, as part of their response, they said it applied to calls to "01/02" numbers.   Could someone please confirm that calls to 03 nos from mobiles are subject to the same OFCOM regs as from landlines?

Better still, Ofcom said it themselves:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/media/news/2007/02/nr_20070213b


Quote:

03 numbers are being introduced as an alternative to chargeable 08 numbers like 0870. Calls to 03 numbers will cost the same as calls to geographic numbers (starting 01 or 02), and be included as part of any inclusive call minutes or discount schemes in the same way as geographic calls. Revenue sharing – where the dialled party can receive a share of what the consumer pays to make a call – will not be permitted on calls to 03 numbers. Ofcom intends these requirements to apply to calls from all types of line, including mobiles and payphones, and is seeking to confirm this by a change to General Condition 17, on which there will now be a short consultation.

Thanks for that, Heinz, have emailed them accordingly.  Will report back; in fairness, 03 may just have slipped the mind of the person in the Executive Office who was dealing with the major aspect of the problems but I think it is worth checking.

Further to the suggestions for alternative nos to the 0870, I have tried all of them this afternoon just to test them as my son will need to speak to the executive office from his mobile within the next few days (they have now recalculated his bill & reduced it by hundreds of pounds - shows it is worth complaining!)   The 0500 802080 just goes to the normal endless Orange customer service menu (& would not be any use from a mobile on this occasion).  The numbers 020 7984 1600, 020 7984 1886 & 020 7984 1888 just ring endlessly engaged; I wonder if this might be because it is a weekend and the executive office is only open Mon-Fri.  I then tried the 0870 no to see if it rang but that goes straight into the endless Orange menu without ringing (hence it cost me!)   I will try the geo nos again on Monday and post results.

Regarding the inclusion of 03 nos, the person with whom I am dealing and who has been incredibly helpful found a considerable lack of awareness at Orange about these nos; he knows they are included in the packages but, just to check they are set up to be included in packages pre-dating their introduction, I am to do a test call on my son's mobile next time I have access and let him know so he can check.   If this shows a problem, he will amend the Orange system to take account of their inclusion in all packages.   If anyone has experienced any problems with Orange & 03 nos, I would suggest they contact the executive office.

Hope this is of some help.

Barbara wrote on Feb 23^rd, 2008 at 2:44pm:

The 0500 802080 just goes to the normal endless Orange customer service menu (& would not be any use from a mobile on this occasion).  [..]  I then tried the 0870 no to see if it rang but that goes straight into the endless Orange menu without ringing (hence it cost me!)

Presumably the 0870 and 0500 numbers are therefore linked if they both provide an "endless menu". You can call 0500 numbers (and 080x numbers) free on a mobile by using one of the call through numbers 020 0222 0700 or 020 0222 0900.

Have just tried those 020 nos again and, yet again, they are all continuously engaged.   Will pass on the advice re call through numbers of 0800/0500 nos.   Thanks for trying.

Barbara wrote on Feb 25^th, 2008 at 1:56pm:

Have just tried those 020 nos again and, yet again, they are all continuously engaged.   Will pass on the advice re call through numbers of 0800/0500 nos.   Thanks for trying.

It is equipment engaged tone rather so they are probably out of service. You can tell this because the first tone is longer than the second. With normal engaged tone the two tones are the same length.

I believe Orange has changed all its incoming DDI office numbers to 0870 and the same is now true of their branches.

I've just tried the 0700 one, and that is working fine from my O2 mobile.

Sorry, jgxenite, I must have missed something, which 0700 number?   I thought anything beginning 070X was an expensive personal number?   I did try the 0500 no but that was only the usual customer services menu not the executive office.   Think I will have to get my son to call the 0870 & ask for a call back - it worked for me.

Barbara, the 020 number ending 0700 (020 0222 0700). That was working fine for me when I tried earlier.

Just to let you all know I have had it confirmed to me that ALL calls to 03 numbers from an Orange contract mobile do come under the inclusive minutes bundle, this includes those on older contracts where it is not specifically mentioned.  (If you look at previous posts, this matter was being checked for confirmation in case an adjustment to the system was needed.)