On the West coast of Scotland Vodafone is much the same as it has been. Only difference is highly populated areas who have 3G now have 4G and there is still huge areas of 2G coverage only

I guess you are lucky in the different areas you go to (or are mainly in built up areas)?

I also left Vodafone a few years ago for the same problem, but have Vodafone still for my works phone and the 3G coverage in rural areas is terrible. Also I've been finding so many dropped calls that sometimes I end up calling work colleagues back on my own Three phone.

I would like them to sort their rural coverage out so it's another option to go to when my £18/month unlimited data, 12gb hotspot, 200mins Three deal runs out.

I got offered and accepted the £20 unlimited calls, texts and data (12GB) deal on a 12 month contract.

I should add that I didn't raise a complaint on my initial contact, I just requested my PAC. I was offered the standard deals which I refused.

I really don’t think Three are that bothered with people leaving.

I have two contracts with Three and did an early upgrade to the S7 edge with my monthly charge jumping quite a bit from my previous unlimited data deal.

Anyway to cut a long story short over the last few days they have infuriated me with the customer service regarding changing the delivery address so have cancelled the upgrade and told them I want to cancel the contract (have to pay an early termination fee)

Not once did they try and change my mind. They wouldn't even apologise for the run around they have been giving me.

After a manic long weekend, I've finally fired off a long letter to Three's executive office and will see what happens from there.

I've attached screen shots and oodles of other evidence of their verbal contract offered to me, and it's my last ditched attempt to get Three to honour a deal and keep me as a customer.

Goodness knows I've been patient enough with them!

Everyone I speak to within Three admits people have been leaving in large numbers. Clearly they can't be too bothered about it, even if people are going elsewhere on 12 or 24 month contracts. Seems like very poor business sense to me.

Maybe they expect people will come crawling back, but in 12-24 months, will Three be a network that everyone will be desperate to connect to?

Yeah I found it quite bizarre that they were quite content with me leaving. I have been with them for nearly 6 years but it didn't really matter when I called this morning to terminate.

I actually did get a call this afternoon from a polite women at Three who was actually very apologetic and acknowledged that retaining customers in such a competitive industry isn't easy. She didn't offer me anything but was keen to find out what my grievances were.

A friend of mine is after a new phone in April, and so I was looking last weekend at the costs of new 24m contracts on all 4 networks. I was surprised by how prices have risen - EE and Vodafone are now very close to each other for a new flagship handset, and they both recommend 10gb plans (!!). For MANY people their heavy usage is in WiFi zones either at home or work. I noticed Three is very similar pricing, and O2 is the only one about 10 to 15% cheaper on some deals.

I think its the cost of the upgrades is now being reflected back in the handsets - but it is again much cheaper to buy handset out right and get SIM only deals for 12m. There was a brief time when contracts were the same, but no longer. The networks are now charging quite a fee for borrowing the money.

The quicker we get the US model where its a loan and a service separated out (as I think O2 do) across all providers, the better.

Hopefully that wouldn't result in ridiculousness like long contracts for SIM only service - pretty sure they don't need two years to recoup the cost of issuing a SIM card

Is it any cheaper? Isnt the price of having to get the actual handset on such agreements really expensive in the US?

I've recently been looking into this and you are right, contracts are now more expensive (my new contract will be around £119 more expensive over the course of the 2 years).

However, if you are a heavy data user and want a flagship phone I don't think it does make sense to buy a handset outright. I have just ordered a Galaxy S7 Edge on EE - £45 a month and nothing upfront, for unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and 10GB data - £1080 over the course of the contract. To buy the phone out right it would cost £619. So for a deal to be cheaper than my contract I'd have to get a sim only deal for £19 a month. For my usage that just is not happening.

Three was working on a similar scheme, but it never happened. In fact, I don't think Three appears to be doing much of anything right now.

Trying to bring up prices to improve ARPU (and I guess letting some customers go actually helps if they were very low revenue generators) seems the main focus.

I do think Three inTouch with 4G calling will have the potential to make a big difference if it comes this month, but until the priorities are changed I am actually of the opinion that I wouldn't really benefit much anyway.

There's one place I go to quite regularly (a zoo where we have annual membership) and Three can give 3G access there - but it's one of those weak areas where despite good signal, it can have many spells with no data flow. It would be beneficial to have 800 4G there, but I predict the phone would still stick on 3G most, if not all, of the time.

JonMorris, you were right and Three were wrong!

After being told twice by Three customer service that my plan (200 mins, 5000 texts, AYCE data, £12.90) would not be changing, I've just got the letter saying that it will.

The letter offers me 200 mins, AYCE texts, AYCE data for £20.

On the phone they offered me 200 mins, AYCE texts, 12gb data. £17 (12 month contract) £19 (30 day contract).

I declined and am now looking elsewhere.

Another update: My letter to the executive office got me an email this morning saying I'd get a call before 1230 - and at 1200 I got a call! They'd listened to the recording (funny how they found it so quickly now!) and admitted I'd been offered the £20 deal as I stated.

They also said there's only 12GB tethering and apologised for the confusion, and the incorrect billing. As a result the refund they've applied will stick, they're applying a one off 8GB allowance (as another poster here said they could do last week) to top me up this month, and then adding 2,000 3-to-3 minutes to the 600 minutes.

If it happens, fair play to Three for having some people that know what they're doing. In fact, they do have good people but have some major issues they need to look at. The problem being that staff in India make things up.

If you stick at it and get through to the team in Glasgow you should be fine, but if you can't get through to them (and it seems there are many barriers put up to hinder you) then you'll have all sorts of problems - and many people would quite justifiably leave.

Three are just doing what T-Mobile (now EE) did to me. Had a contract with them for years, then they decided to drop the 'discount' and so the bill doubled. They denied any offers ever existed and following many lies, I decided to leave and ended up on Three.

Hopefully you've got it sorted.

Clearly far too much effort was needed to get this point and I agree Three does appear to have some people that can really help. The issue is getting past the the drones that appear to be hell bent on saying no and making it up as they go along.

We shall see what happens on 26th March!

I should see the extra 8GB tethering allowance added in 48 hours, and the Three-to-Three minutes added, but the key will be to seeing what my next bill is actually for!

OK, so Three have offered me AYCE minutes/texts and 4gb data for £12.

I got that from EE as a retention deal about 2 weeks ago, on a 30 day plan. You being on Three it should have been cheaper

Cracking deal on EE that.

Three, good deal, but EE 4G coverage is quite a bit better.

Wish three would hurry up and improve the overall 4G coverage but that is for the other thread.

Been a while since i've commented on this thread, just letting you guys know if it hasn't been said already Hull is covered with the cityfibre backhaul and speeds are always 80meg+

Quick Q for you experts. I got my PAC from three on 19th Feb, and used it last week to move to Vodafone.

Do I need to do anything else or will Three cancel my account by 19th March?

Thanks

Your account with 3 will terminate on the day the number transfers over

and in my case (yesterday) the moment the number ports away you lose access to your my3 account.

Are people who have haggled getting letters with details of the deal they may have secured, or is it just a case of being dumped into any deal?

I managed to get somethig that I was reasonably happy with, however nothing has arrived in the post with new T&C's

I never got a letter and never got the right plan, but others did.

This time, following my escalation, I can see they've added the 3to3 minutes and the extra tethering so hope I will change to the right plan next month.

Maybe I'll get a letter this time?