Why did Virgin Media charge me a month’s phone bill? I have canceled my contract!

I left Virgin Media on August 18, after a month’s notice. My last phone and internet bill should have covered 6 days, from August 13 to 18, but instead I received a bill for £148.14 for the period from August 13 to September 3.

When I asked this, I was told that I had to pay for a full month and that Virgin would refund anything due after 31 days.

I said I was not willing to do this and paid €20.44 per phone for the six days I owed. I canceled my direct debit at the same time.

Despite contacting Virgin several times via online chat and telephone, I have not been able to receive a correct final bill.

I have now received another request from Virgin for £148.14. Anton, via email

Angharad Carrick from This Is Money replied: I’m sorry to hear about your experience with Virgin Media. If you have been a loyal customer for eight years, this is not the way you should be treated when you cancel a contract.

To be hit with a £148 bill that you know you don’t have to pay, in a cost of living crisis no less, must be extremely frustrating.

Unfortunately, you’re not alone when it comes to issues with canceling your Virgin Media contract.

In July, Ofcom opened an investigation into Virgin Media after similar complaints from customers who said the company made it difficult to cancel its services.

Some customers say they’ve had trouble reaching an agent, while others said they’ve had to make lengthy and repeated requests to cancel.

Fortunately, you were able to cancel the contract with minimal hassle, but you still ended up with a huge bill even though you paid for what you used.

I understand that the reason you decided to leave Virgin Media was because the cost of your package would increase significantly and you were unhappy with the loss of your WiFi signal.

Anyone looking to cancel a Virgin Media contract should be aware that you will be charged an early disconnection fee if you are in your ‘minimum period’. This is usually agreed at the start of the contract and can vary from 6 to 24 months.

The reimbursement will not exceed the costs you would have paid for the services for the remainder of the minimum period.

However, as you have been with Virgin Media for eight years – four years at your current address and four years at your previous address – the rogue charge is unlikely to be an early closure fee.

When you requested the bill, which should have covered the last six days of August 13 to 18, you were instead presented with a bill covering the period between August 13 and September 3.

When you asked Virgin Media why they included the days of August 18 to September 3, you were told that you had to pay for a full month and that Virgin would refund anything owed after 31 days.

Since you had already paid the amount used and you did not have to pay any further fees, I asked Virgin Media why they had asked for the rest of the money.

You then received a call from Virgin Media, who said they apologized profusely for the way they had handled the termination of the contract.

Wrong billing: Our reader refused to pay the extra £148 and instead just paid what she owed, around £20, but then faced further demands from Virgin Media

Someone from the team told me that bills are generated automatically. In your case, the bills were generated toward the end of each month and paid on or around the 14th of the month.

It meant that your final bill was generated at the end of July and amounted to €148. However, Virgin Media admits that one of its agents made a mistake and the final bill should have been adjusted as soon as you said you were leaving.

If a customer pays more than their last bill by direct debit, the balance will be reflected in their account and Virgin Media will refund any balance to them within 45 days of account closure.

A spokesperson said: ‘We have spoken to (the customer) directly to assure her that we have received her payment of £20.44 as a final payment. (They are) not required to pay anything further and we apologize for the error.”

Have you had a problem with Virgin Media canceling a contract? Contact: editor@thisismoney.co.uk