Major Problems since day one

Question

Posting this on behalf of my mother. (who BT have cut off in the course of an ongoing dispute over payments). Since she signed up with BT, There have been a number of issues, ranging from deceptive selling practices, refusal to provide sales call transcripts, breach of contract with regards to payment terms, outright hopeless customer service, both with regards to addressing problems, alongside a lack of proactive company-client interactions, and finally, the complete removal of all service whilst payments are in dispute, effective leaving my other unable to contact BT - her supplier - from her own home - this effectively acts as coercion on BT's part.
My mother signed up to BT as a result of an inbound sales call, where BT's representative and my mother, to our joint best knowledge (as BT have yet to send recordings and transcripts of the call) that my mother could both a) Pay her bill monthly, as opposed to quarterly, and b) that the package my mother was signing up to included unlimited broadband. My mother later phoned BT to sign up after comparing the deal she had been offered with her current TalkTalk package.
While my mother admits she cannot recall the exact content of her inbound call, it should be remembered that she had discussed terms with a representative prior to the call, and was in her knowledge, agreeing to those terms. If the BT representative she was in contact with when she made contact did not correct my mother, or firmly outline the terms, BT can arguably have been seen as changing the contract terms without notifying the signing party - a practice which is, to my knowledge, illegal, and if not, certainly immoral, and not a good way to conduct business.
The main sticking point is the broadband charges, which are the charges in dispute. My mother signed up under the presumption that she was on the unlimited option (later discovered to be option 3) due to the household being heavy users due to the data using devices in the household at the time being as follows:
2 games consoles with online capabilities
3 smartphones
1 desktop computer -mine- with a premium Spotify account, regularly used
Another desktop - my sister's - which streamed a large amount of content through iPlayer and YouTube
1 laptop, belonging to my mother's partner, with a recently opened Spotify Free (unlimited ad-supported streaming for 6-months) account, again resulting in a large amount of streaming
With this in mind, my mother had been led to believe that she would be on a similar package to her TalkTalk package at the time, which had Unlimited broadband (Subject to fair use). Given that the representative which made the outbound call which started the process, to our knowledge, confirmed both terms and prices, this could be considered as an oral contract - legally binding in both Scots and English Law - meaning that any changes made without notification would surely render the contract null and void.
My mother and the household then proceeded to use the service on the assumption that it was an unlimited one. The first sign of trouble arose when the first bill arrived after 3 months as opposed to after the first, despite the terms agreed being monthly payments. Whilst the bill stated that my mother was signed up to option 2, my mother didn't contemplate that this was a lesser package than the one agreed to, and instead thought that the abnormally high bill was down to installation charges etc. and thus, the household continued to use the service on the assumption of it being an unlimited one.
When the 2nd bill (April 2012) came through, it became clear that the bill was high due to usage above the download limit - a limit which my mother was unaware existed, due to her being under the impression that the terms she had agreed to included unlimited broadband. Whilst BT have pointed out that they sent notifications to my mother's BT account, My mother feels that it would have been good customer service to phone her and make her aware that the package she was on wasn't adequate -mainly because it wasn't what was agreed to- and if she would like to upgrade - to the package she had agreed to.
My mother refused to pay this bill until the issue was addressed, and indeed she offered to pay the price differential between option 2 and option 3. Bearing in mind my mother had been mislead, this is arguably, on her part, a noble gesture.. BT instead refused to agree to this course of action and  instead blocked both in and outgoing calls; Stopped BT vision; and cut off her broadband. This was temporarily resolved when my mother pointed out that the payments were being withheld due to a dispute, and service continued until a couple of days ago, when all services were again discontinued. This includes the ability to contact the emergency services, as my mother found out when my estranged father – under a non-harrassment order and just released from prison – attended the house, leaving my mother unable to contact the police, potentially putting her life at riskWhilst I understand that this is BT's prerogative, I wish to point out that they steadfastly refused my mother's resolution. Her contact with BT's Call centres has been, to put it lightly, unconstructive, with Call centre reps acknowledging that the charges WERE excessive, but that Management were unwilling to budge. This to me, smacks of a deliberate attempt to NOT resolve the problem by BT.
As my mother's attempts at engaging with BT customer service have been unproductive, I have offered to take it up on her behalf.
To summarise:
My mother was missold a service after having been misled -whether by accident or by design- with regards to her contract (Oral contracts being binding in both Scots and English law)
My mother was notified of going over "broadband limits" which she should not have been subject to, through a channel she was not aware of.
BT actively placed my mother in harm's way by cutting off ALL services – including contact of the emergency services from the landline – without any notification
My mother's most recent bill, dated June 2012, contains the following charges:
BT Home Hub 3.0
13 Jun 12
You have left BT Total Broadband within 12 months ? so this charge is for
the cost of your broadband equipment
£46.00
Broadband and Calls
13 Jun 12
You cancelled this service while on contract - so this charge is for your
Package to the end of your contract
£148.93
Broadband Access Service
13 Jun 12
This charge is for the cessation of your Broadband - for further
information please see http://www.bt.com/ceasecharge
£30.00
Final Payment for Vision+ box
13 Jun 12
You cancelled your BT Vision service whilst in contract - so this is the
deferred payment charge for this service.
£199.00
BT Vision Unlimited contract for 12 months
13 Jun 12
You cancelled this service while on contract - so this charge is for your
TV to the end of your contract
£10.06
All pertaining to consequences of cancellation
+ excessive usage charges (£50 for the period April - June 2012 inclusive)
+ £78.59 in what, to my knowledge, is the disputed payment for excessive broadband
+ the following
Other one-off charges
16 Apr 12
Charge for reconnection of line after outgoing calls were barred
£12.00
Late payment charge
£7.50
the total of the above comes to £582.02 . However, due to my above point, Any payments with regards to cessation of contracts are arguably null and void due to the nature of the contract (altered without consent of the signing party). none of the goods or services above would have been used or sought under the terms BT were apparently working under. In consideration that the above value is more than that of the bill itself, my mother would be happy with the following:
1: A written apology, resumption of her services ( Free Evening and Weekend calls, BT Vision) PLUS a complimentary upgrade to BT Infinty option 2 Broadband services at the rate of BT option 2 until October 2012, at which point my mother is free to either continue using the service at the rate advertised as of June 21st, 2012; or to cancel her BT services without pain or penalty - including but not limited to package cancellation charges; service cessation charges; charges for equipment, and any and all other charges triggered by contract cancellation
OR
2: A written apology; cessation of any and all services without pain or penalty - including but not limited to package cancellation charges; service cessation charges; charges for equipmentl and any and all other charges triggered by contract cancellation; a refund of £46.92 - the difference between the bill, and the charges pertaining to cancellation of the breached contract. + A £50 goodwill payment in acknowledgement that BT's actions actively placed her in harm's way
My mother is open to discussions with BT at the email address provided to the company. Contact details removed from public forum... - Mod
This post also serves as 8 weeks notice from today  (June 21st, 2012) prior to the opening of a dispute with the Communication's Ombudsman as required by Ofcom for the filing of a complaint to BT's ADR scheme. In addition to this, an edited version of the post will be sent to media which deal specifically with consumer rights if there has been no contact prior to July 12th, 2012. these will include, but are not limited to BBC's Watchdog.

Answer 1

Hi Ross,
If you would like the moderator team to investigate this for you, please fill out our contact form (the link to which you can find in my profile in the "about me" section) and we'll see what's going on with your mother's account.
Dean
BTCare Community Mod
If you like a post, or want to say thanks for a helpful answer, please click on the Ratings star on the left-hand side of the post.
If someone answers your question correctly please let other members know by clicking on ’Mark as Accepted Solution’.