A Labour TD yesterday called on the Dáil Public Accounts Committee to investigate telephone companies' pricing policies after he had a row with Vodafone over his mobile phone bill.
Mr Joe Costello said he is refusing to pay a bill of €740 because it appeared the charges related to messages left on his phone when he was in Mauritius on honeymoon last January.
He was surprised to receive such a bill because his phone had been with him but turned off during the trip. Because of this, anyone contacting him had no option but to leave a message or ring off. He believed he had been billed even on occasions when no message was left.
Vodafone's spokeswoman said its pricing system was "transparent" but said the "roaming" rates charged for the use of phones abroad did not apply when customers switched their phones off.
She said the company would investigate today whether there had been any fault in the system, which might have led to Mr Costello being charged for messages left when his phone was switched off. When asked whether any other customers might have been incorrectly billed due to the same possible fault, she said any such fault would rest with the network owner in Mauritius.
Mr Costello said he was particularly unhappy because there was no appeal procedure when he raised the matter with the company last week. The charges were "exorbitant" and he believed they were hidden in the small print of his contract.
He said he had no difficulty with charges on an additional outstanding bill for €2,000 for calls made at home. He was a heavy user of his mobile phone and generally paid his bill only when it rose to the €2,000 mark. He said that a separate bill for €2,000 had now been paid.
Vodafone's spokeswoman said Mr Costello's phone had been cut off last week when the company did not receive payment. Mr Costello said he was concerned about the "roaming" system, not with the fact that his phone was cut off.