Top Up Scam | Reviews | Consumer forum

In August 2013, I came to Canada, I bought their SIM card for $10, and put $25 credit on it for calling. It worked out great. Then I left to back to Asia.

For the next 11 months I used an asian SIM card.

In July 2014, I came back to Canada, I put the SpeakOut SIM card back in and saw I had 40¢ credit left. I then decided to purchase their $30 one month plan.

I called them and told them my phone number, and password, to verify the plan, and how much it would cost me.

Then I go to 7-11 and it turns out you can NOT buy $30 of credit. I called them back and asked why, and how to I get $30 worth. They said I can't but that the $30 plan would actually cost me $32 or $33 or something because of some 911 fee.

So, I gave in and bought $35 of credit which cost me $39 because of sales tax. I called them back and asked them to set me up with the $30 plan, and gave them the activation number for the $35 purchase.

She then told me my balance was around about $25. I told her that I bought a $35 top up. She said there was nothing I could do and I had to go back to 7-11 to sort it out. I told her that if I went back to 7-11 they would just end up telling me to call them back, so why don't we just sort it out now. She refused.

I went back to 7-11, and surprise surprise, we called called them back. They then told me that I was $10 in debt to them because my phone had been active for the last 10 months. I told them it had not been active, and that I had been in asia with an asian SIM card. She insisted that the phone had been active, specifically because there was a 40¢ balance. She told me I should have read the fine print. The fine print. The fine print is not actually fine print. There is a small note saying that the terms are available on their website. I went and looked at it. It is 10 pages long.

This is a pre-paid phone card. PRE-PAID. The advertising material clearly states: "No commitments". No matter what it says in the fine print, if the ad says "no commitments", then legally it has to have no commitments.

I told them I want my money back. She said they would not refund my money. She gave me a phone number to call when the office opens tomorrow. The head office. 1 (800) 668-0220

I suspect that this is actually illegal.

If they don't give me my money back tomorrow, I will be issuing formal complaints to every regulating body I can find in both the federal and provincial jurisdictions, and posting this to as many Internet forums as possible.

I will update this thread tomorrow if I get through to the head office.

...and I thought Rogers was bad.