Citizens Advice responds to £4.6m Vodafone fine

Today Ofcom has fined telecoms firm Vodafone £4.6m after carrying out 2 investigations which uncovered mis-selling, inaccurate billing and poor complaints handling.

Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said:

“Vodafone let down its customers leaving many out of pocket.

“It is good that as a result of Ofcom's action Vodafone customers have got money back after the firm’s failures.

“Our recent study found people had 27.6 million problems with TV, mobile and internet services in the last year - more than any other market. And people lost an average of £80 per problem.

“It’s crucial companies like Vodafone take swift action to improve the way they handle complaints. And with mobile phones now so essential to people's lives, it's also important that consumer protections catch-up to where they are in other vital services like energy or water.

“This action from Ofcom today sends a strong message to other mobile providers that they cannot get away with failing their customers.”

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Notes to editors

  1. The Citizens Advice service comprises a network of local Citizens Advice, all of which are independent charities, the Citizens Advice consumer service and national charity Citizens Advice. Together we help people resolve their money, legal and other problems by providing information and advice and by influencing policymakers. For more see the Citizens Advice website .

  2. The advice provided by the Citizens Advice service is free, independent, confidential and impartial, and available to everyone regardless of race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, age or nationality.

  3. To get advice online or find your local Citizens Advice in England and Wales, visit citizensadvice.org.uk

  4. You can get consumer advice from the Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06 or 03454 04 05 05 for Welsh language speakers.

  5. Local Citizens Advice in England and Wales advised 2.5 million clients on 6.2 million problems in 2014/15. For full service statistics see our publication  Advice trends .

  6. Citizens Advice service staff are supported by more than 21,000 trained volunteers, working at over 2,500 service outlets across England and Wales.