Vodafone, T-Mobile sued over misleading cellphone packages

Consumer claim foundation Consumentenclaim filed a lawsuit against telecom providers Vodafone and T-Mobile for selling misleading telephone subscriptions in which the client also pays for the cellphone. The foundation wants a court to force the providers to refund the money charged for the device, NOS reports. According to the broadcaster, the two providers received the subpoenas on Tuesday. KPN, the Netherlands' third major provider, is not being sued as it is negotiating a settlement with the foundation. "The door is of course open for Vodafone and T-Mobile. But so far they're not really interested", Sandra de Jong of Consumentenclaim said to NOS. The lawsuit involves subscriptions sold with a "free" phone. The subscription can be extended without a new phone, but that does not mean your premium goes down. According to Stef Smit of the Consumentenclaim, consumers that renewed a subscription without getting a new phone overpay an average of 20 to 30 euros per month for the year the renewal covers. "It therefore involves hundreds of euros per person." According to the foundation, Vodafone and T-Mobile together have about a million subscriptions on which consumers wrongly pay for a cellphone. Last year the Supreme Court ruled that cellphone subscriptions that include a phone are actually loans and that the Act on Financial Supervision is applicable here. This Act also applies to banks, stores and car dealers that offer deferred payment on the sale of goods.