Do you know the feeling when you're sure something shouldn't happen, but you feel like you've been tricked?
Something like that happened to me (as well as to a third of the population of Serbia) in the last two months.
I saw a mipiano post where she asked:
"Do you know what it's like to talk to customer support?"
which prompted me to share this story with you.
If you are from Serbia and use a number in the Telekom Srbija network, you probably have the same or a similar story?
As I wrote at the beginning, that feeling and strong intuition never deceive me.
But why did I think there was no reason to be deceived?
I have signed a contract with a mobile phone operator, until August 2025, the price of the package will not be changed.
But it seems I'm wrong.
This was proven to me by the bill for January, after the package change that Telekom Srbija resorted to in a very corrupt way.
The operator of the call center, after I received them via a phone call, where I was on hold in several attempts for more than an hour (so I understand what mipiano went through), vaguely told me that the packages had been changed, that I had been informed via their website as well as via SMS.
My package is small, so the difference in subscription price is smaller, but still there (although 20% is not a small increase at all).
But the subscriptions for the numbers of my partner and other family members were increased by up to 65%.
In that message, similar to all the previous ones, where there is information about the charge, below in the ninth line, they sent that notification about new packages. but not that they change my package.
When I checked the listing on the app, I wasn't sure how much the increase was because the package change was done in the middle of the month, but after opening my package details, in addition to the name change, I saw what free traffic was included in the package. Everything I don't need and don't use...
This can be clearly concluded from the figures in this picture.
I now have a lot more than I get in the package per month, which means that I don't spend what I have in the package (MB, minutes and SMS), and I won't spend what they added to my package as a benefit, because of my satisfaction...
I was walking in the city (if you've heard about the current situation in Serbia and the student protests that take place every day, demanding that the institutions do their job), when I came across an MTS office.
Yes, it's the right time to check with the "live" agent about these changes.
The office is crowded, but since I waited on the phone for half an hour, I will wait here as well.
One by one, the client leaves and a grandfather (a gentleman over 80 years old) comes to the counter before me.
I can hear him talking to the girl behind the counter. He says he got a bill increased by over 50%, how and why, he asked for a check to see what he called and spent so much.
After checking, the girl said that it was not a question of consumption but a change of package. "So how can there be a change, when I didn't ask for anything to change," he asked.
"Sir, in December, a notice was posted on the MTS website and an SMS was sent to all users. Why didn't you check? You had 30 days to complain about the change and now it's too late. This subscription will be charged to you until the end of the contract, and then you can sign for a cheaper package or sign a contract with another operator, if MTS doesn't suit you."
How pissed off I was when I heard this girl talking to an older man who could be her grandfather.
"But I don't know if I will be able to pay it from my pension?" said the grangfather.
"I'm sorry," she replied, "in that case you will be charged interest and in case of non-payment of the bill, bailiffs will be sent to your address. Next.".
What I heard hit me hard. Not because I knew in advance the answer I would get to my question, but because of disbelief, that this is the way seniors in our society are treated...
When it was my turn, after the confused gentleman, I listened to the same song.
Notification, deadline for complainn, obligation to pay, penalties for termination...
Get the hell out of here, you scammers and thieves.
I don't care about the additional cost I will incur.
It is a matter of principle.
As I did not know where I could address them publicly, I wrote the first post on the LinkedIn platform, where I have had an account for years, expressing my dissatisfaction with one sentence and a rude picture at the end, with which I will also express my (dis)satisfaction here and bring the story to an end
Middle finger to my mobile operator
I promise, I will end my cooperation with you as soon as my contractual obligation expires.
I will never, never recommend any service offered by Telekom Srbija to any individual.