‘Sky ignored my written requests to cancel contract’
Our client skilled assists however an additional reader who had problems cancelling their Sky contract 
Photograph: AFP
In the final yr I have cancelled each my personal Sky contract and a contract entered into by my mother. She was really sick at the time (she has subsequently died), and I was dealing with her affairs.
I detest contact centres. With that in thoughts, plus a bad expertise in the previous when attempting to deal with the Sky phone centre, I decided not to mobile phone but rather to get in touch with Sky in writing.
For both my personal contract and my mother’s contract, a clear written cancellation was sent to Sky. This included all the appropriate account reference particulars and a signature from the account holder. In both instances Sky positively refused to act on people letters. Sky claimed that further security information was essential. Only when I manufactured a certain complaint about its deliberate attempts to prevaricate and preserve charging me did Sky, with bad grace and no apology, ultimately cancel my contract.
In the situation of my mother’s contract, Sky says it attempted to telephone her on receipt of the cancellation letter.
That might be real, but, as she was critically unwell at the time, her phone line was not answered. Regardless of obtaining a written cancellation letter from my mother, with a more stick to-up letter informing them that the direct debit mandate had been cancelled, Sky ignored these letters and kept the contract open.
Then Sky set debt collectors on to my mom. I have subsequently sorted this out, but undertaking so needed significant amounts of my time and work.
RS, London
Difficulties over cancelling Sky contracts has been an ongoing theme for a while now in the postbag, and we have reported broadly on numerous similar situations. They reflect quite badly on the company.
In respect of its poor managing of your late mother’s account, Sky has agreed to send a £50 donation to the British Red Cross.