In my view, a resounding "Maybe" is the answer. How do I know? Have a gander at the following email, dated 15/10/2021, received by me 18/10/2021:
"Dear mathepac,
Following a review of your account (which is no longer active with us), we have identified that a credit balance of €43.55 remains unclaimed. Please find attached a letter which contains a barcode for the amount owed to you.
In order to claim your refund, please present this barcode at any Payzone Agent (find a Payzone Agent close to you here: www.payzone.ie/consumer/agent-finder, select "Tesco Mobile Cash Payouts " as the product) who will scan the barcode and refund you accordingly. Please note, some Payzone Agents have scanners which won’t require a printout, whereas others may require a printout of the letter with the barcode. Once redeemed, the barcode cannot be used again.
Please note that the barcode is valid for 90 days from the date of issue, and failure to claim your credit within this time will result in you no longer being able to claim your credit.
Replies to this message are routed to an unmonitored mailbox, so please do not reply to this email. Should you have any questions regarding the above, please visit (https://www.tescomobile.ie/customer-notification.aspx ) or contact us on FREEPHONE 1903 and one of our customer support agents will be happy to help you.
Yours sincerely
Tesco Mobile"
Yesterday I presented the hard-copy bar-code to a local CENTRA outlet, a PAYZONE agent, and despite two sales staff, the duty manager, and eventually the owner trying to secure a refund by scanning the barcode or typing it in at the terminal, they were unable to process the refund. After phoning PAYZONE customer service, they were told that no facility exists to process TescoMobile refunds at PAYZONE agents' premises. 40 frustrating minutes expended.
My next port of call was the TescoMobile shop in Tesco Portlaoise. Noone was able to help me, despite the staff phoning through to centralised TescoMobile customer care twice and me leaving details. Not counting the journey time to and from Portlaoise (I had to be there anyway) 65 minutes extremely frustrating minutes expended. I was promised a return contact by the agent within 24 hrs
Today I presented my email & barcode at a local filling station, another PAYZONE agent. Again the email moved up and down the chain of command until a daughter of proprietors rang PAYZONE to be told that no facility exists to process TescoMobile refunds at PAYZONE agents' premises today, but it SHOULD be working tomorrow! 28 more minutes wasted.
I trailed despondently home and as the 24 hrs since my visit to the TescoMobile shop in Portlaoise had elapsed with no contact, I tried TescoMobile customer service again. I browbeat my way up a link in the command chain and got to a "manager" in the London office (she volunteered that information, innit) who said they had an established process and that she would not be able to issue a Tesco Gift Card for the credit amount. I pointed out to her that the process was broken (day 1 deviation?) and I was giving her an opportunity to fulfill the customer expectation they had created without needing to involve a 3rd party. She recorded my call as a complaint and passed it into email-land. I asked for her job title or area of responsibility but she resorted to "manager". She said I'd have a response to my complaint within "24 to 48 hrs". I asked if this was on top of the 24 hr response I'd been promised the previous day and, ignoring the complaint bit, when I could have my refund. No response apart from "How else can I help you today?". I suggested getting over the delusion she had been helpful in any way. 44 more minutes I'll never get back.
It reinforced for me the correctness of my decision to cross TescoMobile off my suppliers' list and to have nothing further to do with them. They have my money for more than 4 years and counting and yet have the absolute temerity to put a stop-watch on my time to access my refund when their staff and processes are eating into the time they allow.
Steer clear, save your sanity.
The little maneen in Portlaoise accused me yesterday of being rude. I wasn't, I simply asked him if he spoke Danish. When he said he didn't, I introduced him to the old saying that I had kicked my dog on the phone and that it was now up to him to kick his.
"Dear mathepac,
Following a review of your account (which is no longer active with us), we have identified that a credit balance of €43.55 remains unclaimed. Please find attached a letter which contains a barcode for the amount owed to you.
In order to claim your refund, please present this barcode at any Payzone Agent (find a Payzone Agent close to you here: www.payzone.ie/consumer/agent-finder, select "Tesco Mobile Cash Payouts " as the product) who will scan the barcode and refund you accordingly. Please note, some Payzone Agents have scanners which won’t require a printout, whereas others may require a printout of the letter with the barcode. Once redeemed, the barcode cannot be used again.
Please note that the barcode is valid for 90 days from the date of issue, and failure to claim your credit within this time will result in you no longer being able to claim your credit.
Replies to this message are routed to an unmonitored mailbox, so please do not reply to this email. Should you have any questions regarding the above, please visit (https://www.tescomobile.ie/customer-notification.aspx ) or contact us on FREEPHONE 1903 and one of our customer support agents will be happy to help you.
Yours sincerely
Tesco Mobile"
Yesterday I presented the hard-copy bar-code to a local CENTRA outlet, a PAYZONE agent, and despite two sales staff, the duty manager, and eventually the owner trying to secure a refund by scanning the barcode or typing it in at the terminal, they were unable to process the refund. After phoning PAYZONE customer service, they were told that no facility exists to process TescoMobile refunds at PAYZONE agents' premises. 40 frustrating minutes expended.
My next port of call was the TescoMobile shop in Tesco Portlaoise. Noone was able to help me, despite the staff phoning through to centralised TescoMobile customer care twice and me leaving details. Not counting the journey time to and from Portlaoise (I had to be there anyway) 65 minutes extremely frustrating minutes expended. I was promised a return contact by the agent within 24 hrs
Today I presented my email & barcode at a local filling station, another PAYZONE agent. Again the email moved up and down the chain of command until a daughter of proprietors rang PAYZONE to be told that no facility exists to process TescoMobile refunds at PAYZONE agents' premises today, but it SHOULD be working tomorrow! 28 more minutes wasted.
I trailed despondently home and as the 24 hrs since my visit to the TescoMobile shop in Portlaoise had elapsed with no contact, I tried TescoMobile customer service again. I browbeat my way up a link in the command chain and got to a "manager" in the London office (she volunteered that information, innit) who said they had an established process and that she would not be able to issue a Tesco Gift Card for the credit amount. I pointed out to her that the process was broken (day 1 deviation?) and I was giving her an opportunity to fulfill the customer expectation they had created without needing to involve a 3rd party. She recorded my call as a complaint and passed it into email-land. I asked for her job title or area of responsibility but she resorted to "manager". She said I'd have a response to my complaint within "24 to 48 hrs". I asked if this was on top of the 24 hr response I'd been promised the previous day and, ignoring the complaint bit, when I could have my refund. No response apart from "How else can I help you today?". I suggested getting over the delusion she had been helpful in any way. 44 more minutes I'll never get back.
It reinforced for me the correctness of my decision to cross TescoMobile off my suppliers' list and to have nothing further to do with them. They have my money for more than 4 years and counting and yet have the absolute temerity to put a stop-watch on my time to access my refund when their staff and processes are eating into the time they allow.
Steer clear, save your sanity.
The little maneen in Portlaoise accused me yesterday of being rude. I wasn't, I simply asked him if he spoke Danish. When he said he didn't, I introduced him to the old saying that I had kicked my dog on the phone and that it was now up to him to kick his.
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