Bloody Telstra MobileNet

[p38arover]

Tesltra are phasing out the mobile plan I'm on to offer new "enhanced customer care".

So I'll lose my $5.50 per month with $5.50 included calls, zero connection fee, and less than 15 cents per minute to go to $10 per month, NO included calls, 27 cent connection fee and 50 cents per 30 secs or part thereof (oh, and my SMS will costs will rise by 7 cents per message). I presently pay less than if I was on $350/month plan!

Last months's bill which was $14.28 will rise to $83.40

Yes, I can see I'm being looked after with their enhanced customer care. To make it worse, I'm currently on a casual (Staff Plan) plan and to get "cheap" rates on the new plans, I'd need to go into a contract for a 12 or 24 months. Staff Plans have been dropped by my employer.

[Frenchie]

I didn't think they could just change your plan like that?

You signed up for a particular plan. Tell them to get stuffed and go to someone else.

[p38arover]

The trouble is that only Telstra gives an Australia-wide coverage.

We found last year that we couldn't even roam with my wife's 3 mobile when we were in Broome, Derby, Katherine (or anywhere in between) The phone was useless.

My Telstra phone worked everywhere.

[Xavie]

could you keep the cheap Telstra plan and get a new carrier for your everyday stuff? It would be inconvenient but much cheaper.

Xav

[Davo]

Yes, Telstra is the go out here. I've stuck with pre-paid and don't use it too much because at least then it's still pretty cheap and works in whatever Kimberley town I happen to be in.

It's infuriating. All I want is a phone like in the olden days - you know, just to talk to people with! I don't want some blinking contract and options and whatever. It's not like I'm buying a car or something. :mad:

[waynep]

Ron, those cheap rats can be very tasty in a stew if you're hard up ;)

[jik22]

I didn't think they could just change your plan like that?

You signed up for a particular plan. Tell them to get stuffed and go to someone else.

Generally, you'll find it buried in the T&C's you agreed to that they can do what they like after giving you a certain amount of notice.

That did sound like a very good plan though (for the customer), so I'm not surprised they want rid of it. :(

[solmanic]

Good luck to you - at least you still have a phone service!

When Telstra shut down the 0500 One Number (Telepath) system in April we lost all our phone numbers. When we signed up eight years ago these were marketed as "one number for life"... and now they're gone. We had a kick**se business number too - 0500-511-510. What value would you put on that? An equivalent 1300 number would set you back at least $10K at auction.

Telstra gave us 14 months advance warning, however, they do not offer any comparable service to the One Number concept so we were stuck waiting and hoping that something might change or another provider would buy the whole setup off them - no such luck. It made no difference how much advance warning they gave us, we were still stuck incurring costs to migrate to a new system regardless.

Now we are trying to seek compensation from Telstra for all the hurt they've caused us - HOWEVER - since we have decided to go to a different provider (Telstra don't offer VOIP) they have shunted us through to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. Pr!cks!

[Pedro_The_Swift]

Ron, those cheap rats can be very tasty in a stew if you're hard up ;)

sorry Ron,, but,,


:Rolling::Rolling:

[p38arover]

Ron, those cheap rats can be very tasty in a stew if you're hard up ;)

Gaahhh! I hate this crappy HP keyboard they've given us at work. It's smaller than standard and it's a pig to use.

[Disco_owner]

Tesltra are phasing out the mobile plan I'm on to offer new "enhanced customer care".

So I'll lose my $5.50 per month with $5.50 included calls, zero connection fee, and less than 15 cents per minute to go to $10 per month, NO included calls, 27 cent connection fee and 50 cents per 30 secs or part thereof (oh, and my SMS will costs will rise by 7 cents per message). I presently pay less than if I was on $350/month plan!

Last months's bill which was $14.28 will rise to $83.40

Yes, I can see I'm being looked after with their enhanced customer care. To make it worse, I'm currently on a casual plan and to get "cheap" rats on the new plans, I'd need to go into a contraact for a 12 or 24 months.

The plan you're describing is very similar to the Plan I'm on at the moment with Telstra on the Staff MRO plan 24 month contract , a Min $10.00 Network Connection fee to Telstra Next-G network ,but I think it's Capped at $39.95 for a 24 month contract, you do get $29.95 worth of very expensive calls to quickly reach that capped limit, however the beauty of that plan is , when I was on the $5.50 plan I used to spend over $50.00 a month when connected to Telstra Mobilenet GSM Network , yes True calls were cheaper ( as you said ) but now I'm only spending $39.95/month and making over $2200.00 worth of calls ,yes there is 50 cents connection fee( flag Fall )and 30c a sec blocks etc , but even then I never reach the $250.00 but I know where you're coming from with respect to "Enhanced Customer care", Telstra forcing it's customer on to plans which are not suitable for everyone's usage.

[p38arover]

That did sound like a very good plan though (for the customer), so I'm not surprised they want rid of it. :(

It was. Whenever I went to a Telstra shop to look at migrating to Next G, they said stuff along the lines of "Wow - where did you get a plan like that?"

For example, last month, my 4 mins 15 sec phone calls cost me $1.12 each. Under the proposed plan, they will cost $4.77 each.

My quickies of under 30 secs cost me between 10 and 30 cents,. Now they will cost 77 cents.

I'm not a good customer. I spend very little on calls. The past couple of month have been exceptional owing to the increased traffic after the death of our son and also to trip away to Cooma. But next month I'll be back to low costs again. I don't want to carry two phones with different carriers.

Mobile phone charges in Australia are extortionate.

[jik22]

But next month I'll be back to low costs again. I don't want to carry two phones with different carriers.


If you really make hardly any calls, look at the pre-pay tariffs on the 12 month expiry option. Tesltra and Voda both do them (3 probably do, but I find their coverage appalling outside metro areas) and while Voda is probaly cheaper for calls and definitley cheaper for texts, it's country coverage isn't as good as NextG, and it's 3G data isn't as fast.

On months where you know yo'll have high usage, you can always "upgrade" to the $29 cap for that month alone if it makes sense.

[mike 90 RR]

Telstra
When it came time to change over the CDMA i was on, I wrote a letter of complaint to Melbourne / Then faxed them twice / went to the Telstra shop 3 times

Won't repeat the 2 page essay i was on about to them

Basic responce from them was zip / zero
I have canned them totally and am now on the 3 network, including their mobile broadband (love the mobile broadband)

They do as they please and treat you as a satistic

[Lotz-A-Landies]

Bugga CDMA, 3G or NextG - I want my analog phone with 3W in-car kit and 30Km range outside built up areas.

My GSM/3G phone is connected to Vodafone and you may as well leave it at home if you go travelling. Although they claim 95.79% of the NSW population it doesn't even cover you on the Barrier Highway to Broken Hill 5 clicks out of Dubbo and it's no carrier.