More du customers complain about large bills as a result of unexplained roaming charges

One customer racked up a bill of Dh20,000 after switching her phone on to make a brief call during a recent trip to the UK

du customers at a store in Khaleej Centre in Bur Dubai. Sarah Dea / The National

More du customers have come forward to complain about "excessive" data roaming charges which they claim resulted from only a few minutes’ service at a time.

In one case, a du customer claims she racked up a bill of Dh20,000 after switching her phone on to make one very brief phone call during a recent trip to the UK. In another, a du customer said he ran up a bill of Dh16,000, despite having switched off his data before leaving Dubai.

News of the disgruntled du customers came as the company waived data roaming charges for two readers after The National highlighted their complaints in an article this week.

Georgina Evans, 25, was billed for Dh30,000 following a five-day trip to the UK while Emma Harvey, 43, was billed more than Dh6,000 after using free WiFi on a flight.

In one of the most recent cases, Dubai resident Louise Sweeney revealed was cut off after a six-day trip to the UK. She said she switched her phone on once to make a brief phone call.

On her return she was told she owed Dh452 and that her phone would be reconnected within hours. When that did not happen, she followed up with a customer service representative, who told her she owed Dh20,000.

“I said that was absolutely impossible,” said Ms Sweeney, who is from the UK.

“I have been living in Dubai for 10 years. I always switch my data roaming off. I am very strict about that because I have a UK phone that I use when I go there.”

She said her bill has never been over Dh600 and she was under the impression she had a Dh1,000 cap on the account.

“I asked the du employee about that and he said oh no, because you have been with us for 10 years you have an unlimited amount,” said Ms Sweeney.

“I couldn’t phone my family, anyone, on New Year’s Day. I was really upset.” Ms Sweeney has been told she cannot even challenge the charges until her next bill is generated.

Another du customer, Paul, who did not want to give his full name, said he had lived in the UAE for the last 10 years and had never had a mobile phone bill higher than Dh300.

He told how he had returned from a trip to Europe four days ago to discover his mobile line had been cut off as a result of a Dh16,000 charge.

“I never had the cellular data on,” he said.

“It’s always the first thing I do when I leave Dubai. I think I may have even done it in the taxi this time around, just to make sure.”

He said he could not even make calls from his phone from abroad, so only ever used his mobile when he was connected to WiFi to keep his children entertained.

His bill is due in seven or eight days’ time, and because he has auto pay set up on his account, his credit card will be charged the full amount of Dh16,000, despite the fact he disputes the bill.

“I am not going to get in trouble with the bank for that happening. But of course I don’t want it to happen,” said the British resident.”

“So I am kind of waiting for them to get back to me and sort it out.”

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Read more:

Du cancels huge charges after 'bill shock' for returning UAE holidaymakers

Peter Nowak: High-cost mobile wireless is a shared cultural issue

Du waives a Dh65,000 charge to cancel a three-minute phone contract

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Fellow du customer David Millar is also waiting for answers. His entire du account, which includes two mobile phones, the internet, TV and landline, were cut off as a result of a Dh5,000 bill.

He said the charge was incurred after his wife switched her phone on for seconds in Amsterdam to send a WhatsApp message to her mother. The package was cut off later that day, just as he was about to sit down and watch a football match.

“Our bill comes on the 17th of the month. So I phoned them and said I have been cut off and I was told we had incurred Dh5,000 worth of charges.

“I said ‘that’s not even possible as I just paid the bill on the 18th, the week before.’”

“They said it was probably data roaming. You can’t see anything until they generate a bill.”

He has had to pay Dh1,700 to bring his bill below his credit limit of Dh4,000 in order to reinstate his services. However, he has been told he will be cut off again once his bill rises above Dh4,000 again.

“I even said to them, what if it’s fraud? You know how you get these calls from Antarctica and Nauru and places like that?

“They said you can’t do anything until the bill comes.”

du did not respond to a request for comment.