My problems since moving to an Orange Business package continue. When I was sold the package, I was told by Excell Communications that it would cost me no more than £20 per month, the same as my previous T-Mobile package. I was told that the package included a data package, but this is called by Orange an “unlimited data bundle”. So, what is the problem?
Unlimited Date Bundle?
My bill for the month just came through, it is £212.03. I have been charged an additional £126.00 for going over the unlimited data bundle cap of 500Mb.
There has obviously been a mistake! I phoned Orange business support on 345 and explained the error.
Well, the data bundle is only called unlimited because most people do not use that much Internet. What? Are most people professional web content managers that require Internet access to run their business? No. Most people are retail customers who like to watch a odd YouTube video, so there must be a cap.
How Much Do Orange Charge Per Mb?
So, how much do they charge? Their data bundle is $4.25 per month for 500Mb. That is more than reasonable, that is 0.85p per Mb. I used an additional 157Mb (note there was no text/email to alert me I went over). So an extra 157Mb should be about £1.33. No, they charged me an extra £126, which is a charge of 80.25p per Mb. They have increased the fee by almost 100 times. So much for unlimited.
What really sucks about this Business Package is that I get 1000 texts and 1000 minutes. Of those texts, I have used 28. Yes, just 28 text messages. Do I get a refund for not using all 1000? No.
Mobile Internet is Just All Screwed Up
It seems to me that mobile Internet is just all screwed up. Across these networks they are happy for people to send 1000 text messages each month, but send a few more emails than average and manage a few websites, then they sting you.
Orange business support are looking into the problem, and say that I will be contacted within 1 week after they have “recalculated” my account. I fear that their calculations will simply show that I have used the Internet a little more than their measly 500Mb cap. The big question is, will they actually understand that some business users need more than others?
I would be happy to lost 900 texts per month if it meant getting 2000Mb per month. That does not seem an unreasonable suggestion. But hey, this is Orange we are talking about, the company that is looking for to make a brighter future for its business customers. Maybe their new slogan should be “The future is dark, the future is Orange Internet Data Bundles”.
Still cannot get over the fact that Orange ahve charged me an additional fee 100 times greater per Mb for my mobile internet. This has to be the highest excess charge in mobile history. In fact, it could be the biggest excess charge in any industry.
