Slamming happens when your phone service is switched to another company without your permission.
Examples of slamming:
- Your service is transferred to a new phone company without you being contacted.
- You were contacted but gave no permission - for example, you are asked to agree "for more information about their package," and then your agreement is used to transfer your service.
- You agreed to a different product or service.
- You wanted a new service, but were deliberately misled about the identity of the company you were making an agreement with - for example, you were led to believe you were speaking with BT when it was a different company.
Other mis-selling
Apart from slamming, there are other forms of mis-selling that primarily involve misrepresentation (for example, if you are misled as to the relationship between the “new” telephone company and BT) or pressurised selling.
- You've been given misleading company information - for example, you are told that "BT has sold its customers" to the new company, or that "Ofcom has ordered BT to transfer its customers" to them.
- You've been pressurised, either over the phone or on your doorstep, into transferring your service.
- You've had to agree to the service to get information - for example, you've been told that, to get information about its services, you have to transfer your calls or your calls and line rental and then cancel the new service if you don’t want it.
The action you can take depends on the type of mis-selling you have experienced and when it happened. It is also important to report your experience to Ofcom, as such reports help Ofcom tackle slamming/mis-selling.
Although they cannot investigate individual cases, your complaints can lead them to launch investigations and ultimately to take action against companies found to be mis-selling.
You can contact Ofcom online or by calling 020 7981 3040 between 9 am and 5 pm Monday to Friday.