On the 12th of April, 2021, I decided to port over to Vi Postpaid (Vodafone Idea) from Reliance Jio Prepaid because the latter kept calling my ex at random periods of time over a week. Frustrated at this, I went over to Vi’s website and looked at my benefits to switch over. Having discovered they offer 40GB per month, unlimited calling and 100 SMS/day on their base plan of the postpaid section, I was delighted to learn they also provide data rollovers, 120GB to a brand new customer and free delivery of SIM via paperless registration process. I picked a plan and went on with my regular day to day life in Chennai.
On the 16th of April, I received a call from a Vi representative for the purpose of SIM drop right on my doorstep. Happily I guided him, met with him, received the SIM and popped it in. I was charged INR 400 for a postpaid plan (INR 399) during the delivery of the SIM, to my amusement. Over the next span of three days, nothing happened and my existing Jio still continued to work. I had to call Vi multiple times to report this issue, after which they finally decided to drop a new SIM because of an internal porting issue. This time I was told, everything would be taken care of by Vi, and thus I can chill.
On the 20th of April, I received another call from Vi who claimed to be a representative asking me for my address for the delivery process. But this time it was a bit different as we engaged in conversation and worked on a lengthy process for about an hour, as the seamless porting process did not work the last time. I was happy about never having to look back at Jio and gladly popped a new SIM, disposing the idle Vi SIM I received on the first run.
Little did I know Vi’s porting process was not over then and there, as over the span of next two days, I lost my existing SIM’s internet and calling ability, and when finally activated, I had to let Vi know a PIN send to one of my friend’s phone. I did everything as requested but was bemused to know that instead of the plan I requested (INR 399), I have been added to another plan (INR 499). As everything settled down, it was time for more of everything all over again.
Since the 22nd of April, 2021, I moved to my parental home in Kanyakumari district close to the ocean. The network and connectivity issues were only beginning. From call drops to unusable internet, I faced trouble that directly affected my ability to attend calls, classes and daily business. Despite reporting the issue to Vi multiple times, I kept receiving one statement which was vague and general. I was also denied a timeframe for when this issue will be resolved.
“There’s a building blocking network signal to your area, which we are working on to improve.”
I could rarely connect to H (3G), forgetting all about LTE (4G) and H+ (3G+), while mostly staying on the slower side of E (2G). The situation never improved and was frustrating, forcing me to switch over to Whatsapp and Telegram calls via the building’s WiFi network. I also happened to notice that my data quota said 75GB against the 160GB (40GB + 120GB) including the new plan offer I was eligible for, confirmed by a Vi representative. I dialed 199 for the 25th time again that month asking about this, while I was offered an apology claiming the second SIM delivery and onboarding process was handled by an external agent who is not from Vi. Pissed at the fact about not being informed about this fact earlier, I asked about the information security and privacy laws Vi abides by in India. I also told them this is an extremely bad example to treat and handle a customer (also a new one).
Since my switch to Vi, I have been on the network starting 23rd April. A bill was generated and sent to me on the 20th of May via my email for my first billing cycle. One has to understand the fact, I was on a plan, I never signed up for; I was in a situation (and location) where I could not avail my data quota nor make calls without drops. I informed my stance to Vi and they were kind enough to decrease my billing amount from INR 499 to INR 293.94 for that billing cycle, which is still high for terrible network service and negligible data usage.
When offered to pay my bill, I was promised this issue will not continue the next month, and over time I would see gradual but strong improvements across network coverage and calling. With a new ray of hope, I moved on asking them to activate VoLTE feature for my account. Yes, on Vi one needs to request the company to activate the feature for them, which is unusual and weird. Not that it improved the calling experience for me, for I could not even enjoy regular calls with clarity.
On the 20th of July, I received my bill for the next billing cycle which lasted from 20th May to 19th July. But this time, I was asked to pay a hefty amount of INR 482.24, which I feel is both unfair and incomprehensible. I received a ton of calls asking me to pay, so that my networking speed and connectivity will improve, faking promises like the last time. What I am genuinely concerned about, is the fact that billing for a much higher plan (under consideration), was cheaper than billing for the next month, on a lower tier. Also is it fair to charge a customer for service a person is unable to consume?
I have finally arrived at the conclusion that Vi is:
- Slow with terrible network connectivity resulting in poor call quality and unusable internet capability.
- Bad with onboarding customers with zero transparency towards customers, for they neither intimate about changes nor notify them.
- Good at promising customers the impossible, like improvement of signal quality in just three days; while charging exorbitantly for no reason.
- Inconsiderate and time consuming with the activation of SIM, and features like VoLTE.
- Insensitive with customer queries and standpoints.
