Shopper has her eye wiped as she spots half-price napkins

Your consumer queries:Gena Lynam has been having Superquinn groceries delivered to her house for about six months now, and every week she buys a packet of 50 Duni napkins which cost €4.07.

“I was in Dunnes Stores today and was astonished to find that they are charging €2.03 per packet for the same napkins,” she writes. “How can there be such a difference in price?”

In response, the company said it runs promotions throughout the store on various categories and these change in line with its promotional calendar.

“Some supplier promotions can also run in our competitors, but not necessarily at the same point in time.” It said that it is currently running a promotion involving Duni napkin products, which has many of its ranges for sale at half price.

Bill shock after energy switch

THERE ARE BIG savings to be made be being proactive about your utilities but sometimes the switch does not go as seamlessly as it should as a reader called Colette discovered recently. She switched from Bord Gáis Energy to the ESB (or Electric Ireland as it is now known) last September in order to take advantage of discount the company was offering in its post-regulated world.

Things have not gone well so far. She says she was "raging mad" when she discovered that the ESB had taken €420.17 out of her bank account on February 22nd for the latest two-month gas bill".

While that amount seems large, she says the company had actually debited even more, a total of €805.93 from her bank account for gas and electricity between December 22nd and February 22nd. "This is really difficult coming so soon after Christmas and means paying bank interest on money overdrawn," she writes.

She queried the amount and asked to be put on a budget plan similar to the one she was on with Bord Gáis Energy. With that company, the amount for the year was balanced out into six two-monthly bills based on estimated annual usage, so she paid more than she used in summer but less in winter. "They adjust the amount from time to time to take account of actual usage," she writes.

"However, in spite of my pleas that I have been a lifetime user of electricity (I am now 72), they will not put me on such a plan as they claim they have no credit record for me and they don't know what my annual usage is likely to be. This makes no sense to me at all and is very poor customer service, particularly in these difficult financial times. I know that in France, with no credit rating at all (and not being permanently resident there), you will be put on a budget plan immediately for electricity."

She says her total bill for gas and electricity for 2010 was in the region of €1,200, so the €805.93 charged for just two months - admittedly in the depths of winter - looks wildly disproportionate. But it is not only the prices that are of concen, she says. "It was the inflexibility and lack of customer care that really got to me. A big powerful company like the ESB should have better customer relations," she writes.

eMobile 'genuinely sorry' at bad experience

LAST OCTOBER, Brian O'Donoghue switched to eMobile from Vodafone to take advantage of what he calls "their well-priced plans". He agreed to pay €50 per month and bought a Samsung Galaxy S II handset for €100.

"Shortly after purchase the handset began to overheat and go dead . When I attempted to have this resolved with eMobile, problems began," he writes.

He has contacted eMobile by phone seven times, called to an eMobile store four times, emailed the company on three occasions and has had the phone sent for repair once.

"The problem with all this is that every single time I contacted eMobile I was told different things, ranging from I caused the problem by downloading too many apps, I needed to download new software, I would need to send the phone for repair an unlimited number of times, I have done everything correctly and now should be entitled to a replacement handset," he says.

He contacted the National Consumer Agency for advice and then rang eMobile again to say they were not fulfilling their side of the contract and that under the Sales of Goods and Services Act 1980 he was entitled to an appropriate resolution, as the handset could be considered an essential part of the service for which he pays €600 each year.

"It was only at this point that I was informed that the phone must be sent for repair three times before a replacement could be considered.

"This clearly meant I would have to visit an eMobile store on at least two more occasions and possibly on five more before the issue might be resolved."

He says the difficulty is the "appalling customer service from eMobile and their complete unwillingness to deal with this problem in an efficient manner. As you will understand I am not willing to spend many more hours travelling to and from an eMobile store.

"The problem now is if I cancel my contract I will have to pay a hefty penalty (even though I cannot rely on eMobile's service due to a faulty handset) and I will lose my number." He asks whether there anything we can do to assist.

We contacted the company and received the following statement. "We are very genuinely sorry that Mr O'Donoghue has had such a bad customer service experience with eMobile. We can appreciate how frustrated Mr O'Donoghue must be.

"We have arranged to have a replacement Samsung Galaxy S II sent to Mr O'Donoghue and we will also credit (in full) Mr O'Donoghue's next bill, which is due to be issued next week. A member of our customer care team has contacted Mr O'Donoghue to personally apologise to him."