The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Why can't they refund me?

Kindly shed some light regarding this matter. My son used to go to this certain school and at the beginning of every term l deposit a terms worth of money in their school account to pay for the fees.

Last year at the beginning of the year l removed the said child from that school and enrolled him at a new school. I don''t know how l kept the old school's account number and at the beginning of this term l sent money to the old school. When l realized the mistake l communicated with the old school apologized for the said mistake and asked them to reverse the said money. l just got their reply stating that l should go to the bank and ask them to reverse the money. Is it possible that when l go to the bank l will be helped? Kindly walk me through the steps l should take.

I'm not a banking expert but I know this much. I know more than this school knows.

Can you imagine what would happen if a bank could simply be told to reverse a transaction the way this school thinks can happen? It would mean that anyone could change their mind after paying for something. Someone could buy a product and then get their money back.

I think you should educate the school management about this. Yes, it was your mistake, and I think you should suggest that they can deduct any transaction fees from the money they refund, but it doesn't change the fact that the school needs to make a little effort to return your money.

If necessary, I'm happy to contact the school for you. 

Is it fair?

May I kindly inquire. I owe a furniture shop and the debt is in arrears. They handed me over to their debt collectors as I appear on ITC but now their threatening with repossession of the furniture when I asked them to make a payment arrangement as they already handed me over.

Is it fair that they want to repossess the furniture when I still show interest in paying?

No, it's not fair but it is how hire purchase can work.

The first important lesson about hire purchase is something I've said many times before but it's worth repeating. It's called 'hire' purchase because until you've paid the last instalment, you are hiring the goods, you don't own them. That changes a lot. For example, it means that they can claim back, or 'repossess', their property whenever they think they have a good reason to.

And what are those 'good reasons'? The most important one is being in arrears. If you fall behind with your payments, the hire purchase agreement will say that they can repossess their goods whenever you are in arrears. They don't need to go to court to do this because that's also in the agreement. What's it also says is that they can register you with a credit reference bureau when you owe them money.

However, there might still be hope. Let's both contact the store and see if there's still an opportunity to settle this debt amicably.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Can she get her money back?

Hello Richard. Please help. My Mom got scammed by a woman claiming to be calling from her bank. She requested for account number and pin number then she kept on asking for OTP codes until she took P16,000 from the account.

Now I'm asking can they be traced through the number or bank transfer. Is it traceable?

Unfortunately, I can only offer you bad news. The nature of scammers is that they do their best to transfer any money they've stolen from the victims outside the country as soon as possible to stop the banks and law enforcement agencies from tracking the money and putting a hold on it. There is a small chance that if you alert a bank soon enough they might beat the scammers and hold the money but, in this situation, every second counts. If the victim waits even for minutes, it will probably be too late.

I know it's no comfort but your mother is one of many victims of these scams. I know a few people who've fallen for scams like this and I'm sure many readers of The Voice will know others.

One thing your mother MUST do is to report this to the Police. There's a possibility that someone here in Botswana was part of the scam and if so, they need to be dealt with.

Tragically, the only things we have to protect us are education and public awareness. We can our best in The Voice and in the Consumer Watchdog Facebook group but it depends on every one of us spreading the word to the people we care about who are less aware than we are. It's only as a community that we can beat scammers.

They're refusing my refund!

Kindly assist. Last year we registered a company through a consultancy. He assisted with everything we wanted. Now we wanted to make some amendments to our shareholding and we contacted the company and I met him at his office. I then explained that we wanted to remove other shareholders and he charged P850 for that which he demanded upfront payment which I paid in cash.

In our agreement to the service I gave him time frames which he did not meet and later he stopped taking my calls. I then went to his office to request for a refund he is now refusing to. The question is where to I report this guy to pay our money back?

This should be fairly simple, it's not a complicated situation.

However, as we all know, some companies like to take a simple situation and make it much more complicated than necessary. Rather than doing what they've been paid for, or offering a refund, they decide to make like difficult for you. And also for themselves.

I'll contact them for you and see if I can persuade to simplify this situation and give you your refund.

Meanwhile, in future, you know you don't need a consultant to form a company for you? Unless your needs are very complex, you can do it all yourself at the CIPA web site. It's a lot easier than you think.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Where's my alarm?

In February I sought a quote from a security company for an alarm monitoring services which they offered. They went to survey the building and asked me a few questions including where I bank. We agreed on the quote and was made to sign a contract where I provided all my details including the bank account details where they would debit moving forward. I was asked to pay a deposit cash and was issued a receipt on the 5th March. To this day, they haven't connected me. They have not fitted their transmitter. I called them several times and the Palapye office always tells me they are waiting for their Head Office to approve since they don't bank with my bank. Mind you, when I was filling in the paperwork, the person who was there to assist me said my bank was compatible with theirs. Please help. I feel they are in breach and if my business get broken into, who do I look to?

Maybe they don't want your money? Maybe they're happy just to keep the deposit you gave them?
They certainly don't seem to want your business.

I don't understand why they have a problem with your bank. Do they only accept money from people who have the same bank as they do? I don't believe that, it's a crazy idea. I suspect they're just making up excuses to cover their inefficiency. It should take days at the most to set up a payment mechanism, not nearly two months.

I emailed the company but haven't heard back from them yet. Let's see if they really want new customers? And if they don't, they need to give you back your deposit.

Why can't they cancel my policy?

I have been having an issue with my bank charging for a stop order for my insurance. I cancelled the stop order on 28th February 2025 but even up to now they are still deducting my money from my account and when they try deduct the money and there is no money they still try attempt to deduct the money which for means there is a penalty of about P360 each attempt.

Sir I have been suffering about this till now. The insurance company still makes attempts to take my money. Today they took the money from my account even though I stopped the policy in February 2025. Please help me sir.

This isn't good enough. I think we all understand that there are sometimes delays in stopping regular payments from our banks when we cancel something like an insurance policy but it should never be for longer than a month and any refunds should never be paid later than the following month. Anything else is a sign that a company can't be trusted with our money.

What they often forget is that consumers are often punished by their bank for these payments, as you were. These penalties can be very expensive.

I contacted the insurance company and, to their credit, they immediately accepted responsibility for their mistake, even though they explained that you'd contacted your insurance agent rather than going directly to them which slowed things down.

A refund of P1,655 to cover the payments and bank charges should reach you very soon.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

They keep deducting!

Please help me resolve this issue I have. I cleared my loan on January 22nd this year and the lender deducted in February which I understand since payroll for the next month had already been processed. They refunded the money on March 4th. I then asked if they had closed my account to which they confirmed that they did.

To my surprise, they deducted again in March. I called them and talked to someone who acknowledged that it was a mistake on their part and promised that I will get the refund first week of April. Mr Richard, to this date I still haven't received my money, I have been calling their offices only to be met with excuses and empty promises. I received my pay slip today and to my dismay I found out that they have deducted money again for April.

I have stop orders that have been bouncing since February because of this issue.

There's a word that describes this. 'Incompetence'.

You were very reasonable when you understood that the deduction for February might happen because of payroll processes. However, the deductions for March and April are unacceptable and suggest that something is very wrong with the way this lender operates.

I contacted them but have so far not had a reply. I'll keep trying but in the meantime I think that NBFIRA, who regulate non-bank lenders, deserve to hear about this so they can ask the lender to explain themselves. I wonder also if readers of The Voice and the Consumer Watchdog Facebook group deserve to know who they are as well?

Must I pay it all?

I rented a car at the Airport and did not opt for insurance as I assumed the car should be insured given the nature of their business. I collected the car on the 7th April and inspection was done on the car before I left and the existing scratches were marked.

When I dropped off the car on the 11th, I was made aware of the new scratch that was in the car. We agreed that they will send the quotations through. To my surprise, on the 12th April, I got an invoice detailing how much I am supposed to pay for the repairs, P5,038.

I then phoned the owner, asking to share the costs since the car already had the scratches, which are going to be repaired in the process. He said that the existing scratches are not visible, that is why he did not take it for repairs. He said I should pay all the costs since my scratch is the one that's visible.
My request is for us to share the costs on a 50/50 basis, since the car had scratches in all the quoted areas and the same would have applied had the car been taken to the repairs initially.

Unfortunately, I have no good news for you. It was a serious mistake not to opt for the insurance the company offered when you hired the car. Without that insurance, you are responsible for all of the repair costs that you incurred when the car was damaged while you had it. If the repairs benefit the owner of the company, then that's his good luck. Whenever you hire a car, it's incredibly important that you take whatever insurance that the company offers. It's also essential to take pictures of the condition of the car before you drive it away and then when you return it.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Is this phone real?

I'm kindly asking for your assistance in this matter. I bought an IPhone 11 from a store at Rail Park Mall on November 30 last year. So day 2 I went to the store and complained about the phone being slow and they assumed it was my WiFi connection being poor. Okay fine I agreed with them and I travelled to Francistown so when I got there it happened that the phone freezed, I couldn't pick up calls or anything. I couriered it back to them at my own costs they told me I shouldn't update the IOS software because it's likely to crash. They told me to reset it whenever it freezes. I wasn't satisfied about the service and they brought it back with the issue unresolved. As time went on I realized that when taking calls people can't hear me and I can only hear them. Again I called them from reporting the issue they said and they said I should bring it back again and they will make sure I get assistance. I got there and they told me to leave the phone with them for 7 days and they're taking it back to their supplier. It looks like they don't want to refund me nor give me a new phone. The warranty is still valid until next month end. I feel they want to delay until the period expires and never assist me. I don't know what to do about this whole situation.

This store is hiding something from you. My first concern is that they sold you an iPhone that failed after just 2 days. That's not acceptable. Then they suggested that it's your WiFi that's' the problem instead of trying to diagnose the real problem.

Perhaps my biggest concern is that they told you not to update the operating system on the phone. That's a real worry. Why would they do that? It's possible that this phone has been "jail-broken", meaning that someone has overridden the security on the phone which can prevent later operating system and security updates. You also need to ask if it's a genuine iPhone? Whatever the reason, their suggestion is very worrying.

Whatever the situation, it's critically important that we make them understand that this phone is not acceptable, as required by Section 15 of the Consumer Protection Act which demands that products must be "in good working order and free of defects".

We must both contact this store and make sure they understand this.

Where's my couch?

I have a grievance with a furniture store. I bought a couch worth P11,000 on the 27th of December 2024 but after 2 weeks the couch started getting deformed and losing shape. I went to report this to them at end of January and was told that they will come and inspect it but it's been 2 months now and I still haven't gotten any assistance. I've been there 3 times now since reporting to follow up but I'm always being given the roundabout

I would really appreciate your intervention or assistance on this issue. I have the invoice and warranty.

This should be a simple one. I contacted the Regional Manager for this store and he lost his cool. He emailed the store manager and demanded "a clear explanation as to why we are offering such service". I've known this guy for years and when he gets angry with store managers it's not a good experience for them.

If only there were more managers like him.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Where's the permit?

I need your assistance with an issue as follows. In June 2024 I engaged a company for them to assist with work and residence permits for my helper. I paid all that was due from me in July/August. I have been following up with the company. Both directors who happen to be a couple have been throwing me from pillar to post giving different kinds of excuses including the immigration system being down or the immigration office is asking for a document etc.

Now last week I asked for help from someone who works for Immigration and they confirmed that the application I have been following does not appear on the system which means it was never done. The immigration officer advised me to ask for receipts from the consultant and as usual they have been giving excuses. On Friday they didn't answer my calls and today the lady cut my calls. Is there a way you can assist in this regard? I paid them a total of about P8,000.

I think this situation might be difficult. Mainly because this person clearly has no care for her customers. She's taken your money, failed to do anything for it and then lied to you.

I contacted her but she's not willing to talk to me or offer any explanation. I think the next step is to complain about her to the Competition and Consumer Authority. And then go to the Small Claims Court for an order against them to get your money back. Readers can also comment about this in the Consumer Watchdog Facebook group so this company understands what we think of their behaviour.

Has your Facebook profile been stolen? Or did you give it away?

The number of Facebook profiles that have been 'hijacked' is surprising. Several times every day members of the Consumer Watchdog Facebook group try to post what appear to be links to pornography.

The worrying thing is that the profiles trying to post these links aren't fake, they're real, they belong to real people, often people who've been on Facebook and in the Consumer Watchdog group for a long time.

So who are these people trying to post this material? The bad news is that they're you and me, or people just like us. On every occasion we've investigated we've found that the profile has been hijacked by someone that appears to be in Vietnam. However, internet locations can easily be faked or disguised but clearly it's someone who shouldn't be accessing these genuine profiles.

How did they get control of these Facebook accounts? The victims often claim that they've been 'hacked' but it's not that simple. In most cases it's because the victims gave away their Facebook password voluntarily. They usually did this when they responded to a competition on Facebook thinking they'd won a prize and, in order to win it, they were sent a One Time PIN that they were asked to send to the scammers. In fact, that OTP is a Facebook password change OTP and as soon as they've given it away the scammer can change the victim's Facebook password and take control of their account.

The secret is simple. Never, under any circumstances, give anyone an OTP that was sent to you. It doesn't matter who they are and how well you think you know them, anyone who asks for an OTP wants more than just the number, they want your identity.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Was my phone new?

I bought an iPhone 11 pro at a store in the Main Mall on 12 March 2025. I returned to their shop the same week to complain about the battery. Now the phone screen is blinking and the mouthpiece is giving me problems. I have to shout for the other person to hear me. I went to them yesterday to return the phone and the people working there were so rude to me telling me I should go to the police and report. They didn't even apologize, my money is gone just like that?

Here we go again.

The first thing to understand is that it's very strange for a store to be selling an iPhone 11 Pro as new in 2025. That model was first released by Apple in September 2019 and discontinued in October 2020. The current model is the iPhone 16 so this phone is five generations old. Obviously there will be older phones still on sale but from five generations ago? Is that realistic?

Of course it's possible that this is a second-hand or refurbished phone and there's nothing wrong with that. So long as the store is open and honest about it. The law demands this. Section 13 of the Consumer Protection Act says that goods that aren't new must be displayed with "a label on the goods that indicates that such goods are used goods" and by "placing a notice on the invoice issued to a consumer".

Then there's the failure to sell you a phone that works. It doesn't matter if it's new or refurbished, the phone should work properly. The best thing to do is to take it back and insist that they offer you what the law demands: a repair, replacement or a refund.

Where's my refund?

I need your help here to name and shame a catering company. I was hosting a birthday dinner on the 8th of March and she failed to deliver as promised and failed to communicate but I paid her deposit amount of P1,000. We tried calling her but she's been ignoring them, or switched off the phone. She leaves my WhatsApp texts on read, I've communicated with someone whom I want to believe it's her house mate but she said she's not in Gaborone at the moment. Later on she sent me messages telling me that she had a migraine and she apologizes for not delivering but she will refund me. Up to date she's not responding to any calls or texts. Please help me get my money back.

The sad news is that many of the people who work in those industries that support our weddings, funerals and birthday parties are useless. Yes, there are many who are hard-working, reliable and high-quality and who deliver the very best but they are let down by the useless ones.

Frankly I don't care if she had a migraine, she should have made a plan, either with her colleagues or with another catering company.

What you deserve starts with a top-of-the-range apology. It doesn't fix your problem but it would certainly help emotionally. And then you deserve your money back. Without any fuss and without any delays. I can contact her for you but I also think you need to give her a deadline when you want payment. If she ignores that deadline then it's worth a trip to the Small Claims Court for an order against her.