The 200 euro bill for cancelling a phone port

How you get charged 200 euros for cancelling a port

A Vodafone customer receives a call from a supposed Jazztel agent: he must pay 200 euros by card for the fibre installation. He panics, calls Jazztel and is reassured: the bill will be charged automatically on the 10th or 11th. But the story doesn't start there. Behind it is a cancelled port, an installation that should never have taken place, and a company that impersonated his operator to switch him to another provider.

The case is an example of what happens when number portability becomes a minefield. The customer had a Vodafone loyalty offer at 30 euros a month, but an external agent called him claiming his bill was about to skyrocket and convinced him to switch to Jazztel. When he cancelled, Vodafone demanded payment for the Jazztel installation. Is it legal? Only if it's in the contract, the more sceptical voices warn.

Why you're asked to pay for an installation you don't use

The mechanics are simple: when you port your line, the new operator deploys its infrastructure. If you cancel a few days later, someone has to pay for that visit. Operators demand it from the customer, even when there's no clear clause. In this case, Jazztel confirmed that the bill would be issued automatically, with no card payment needed. But it was Vodafone, the original operator, that claimed the 200 euros for the competitor's installation.

Here the confusion is part of the game. The company that deceived the customer, Telecom & Legal Solutions Iberia, was neither Vodafone nor Jazztel, but an external agent that uses your details to set up the port. It's not an isolated case: those affected describe calls in which callers impersonate your provider to offer you a fake price cut, when in fact they are arranging your switch to another operator.

How to protect yourself: in writing, recorded and by direct debit

The golden rule that emerges from these accumulated experiences is simple: never pay in advance for anything that isn't justified in writing. Demand an email with the conditions, identify the agent with a code and ask for the documentation to be sent to you at that moment. If you've already been charged by direct debit, you can ask your bank for a refund. With card or bank transfer, there's no way back.

For amounts under 3,000 euros, the monitorio procedure (a simplified Spanish small-claims court process) is a route some of those affected have already used, along with complaints to consumer authorities. But before going to court, the most practical option is to refuse to pay and document every interaction.

Alternatives: O2 and Digi, the escape route

Among the most frequently repeated recommendations is O2, Telefónica's brand, which uses its own network and avoids bureaucratic headaches. Also Digi, with rates of around 35 euros a month in recent cases, for fibre and mobile. Compared with Vodafone's 30-euro counteroffer, switching to O2 could miccionan savings of around 20 euros a month, some 240 a year, with no need for new cable installation. That said, coverage is what matters.

The case has one puzzling detail: the customer, despite the deception, stayed with Vodafone. The port lasted one day. And the 200-euro bill for an installation he doesn't use will be charged automatically. The most striking thing isn't that operators try this. It's that there are customers who, after the row, keep paying for something they never asked for.