Firm says sorry over pensioner's phone bill threats.

A Telephone company has apologised to a pensioner after it asked him to pay for a service he never received.

Basingstoke-based firm Euphony Communications said it was sorry for upsetting 89-year-old Horace Chapman.

On June 30, the firm called Mr Chapman, of Dunholme, and offered to supply his phone services.

Mr Chapman said he did not agree to the switch and was happy to stay with BT.

But days later he received a letter saying Euphony would be taking over his custom on July 14.

The pensioner wrote to the firm and to BT saying he did not want to switch.

He received a letter back from BT on July 9 saying the move would not happen.

But even though Euphony was never given control of the line by BT, it sent Mr Chapman a bill of £16.65 for the first month’s line rental.

The pensioner refused to pay and received letters from Euphony threatening enforcement action.

Yesterday, after being contacted by the Echo, the company agreed to clear Mr Chapman’s account.

Euphony marketing director Julian Pertwee apologised for the problems Mr Chapman had faced and said the bill was a result of a cancellation error.

He said: “We have made a mistake. The line never came across to us from BT.

“I can only apologise for any mistrust caused.

“With that in mind, Mr Chapman no longer has a financial complication with us.”

Mr Chapman said: “When they called and asked me to leave BT and join their service, I was too polite to just put the phone down, so asked them to send me some information.

“They sent me a letter confirming I’d switched to their service, but I hadn’t agreed to or signed anything.”

Mr Chapman’s daughter Elaine King, 57, of Nettleham, said Euphony had threatened to stop all outgoing calls from her father’s line, which included the direct aid link used to call for help.

She said: “Luckily, dad has me and his family around, but there are some people who can feel bullied this way into paying money they don’t owe.”

Consumer Direct communications and liaison officer Georgina Barton said problems with landline telephone services were a common source of complaints to the consumer helpline.

She said: “Complaints about landline telephone services are at number eight in the top 10 most complained about issues in Lincolnshire this year. We’ve received almost 100 calls.”