A Watford woman who was barred from accessing the internet on her mobile phone says she feels conned by the network operator.

Nola Montgomery, of Merton Road, had the internet access on her iPhone cut off because she had used too much data, despite taking out a £45-a-month o2 contract that boasted 'unlimited' use.

The 23-year-old was left baffled when she was unable to get online earlier this month, and claims it was another three days before o2 contacted her to let her know she was barred.

She said: "They just turned it off. I rang customer services and they didn't know what was going on either - we went through a long process of re-setting my phone but nothing worked.

"I just felt it was unprofessional that they didn't tell me. They would be quick to tell me if I was late paying a bill but not when they've cut me off it seems."

Nola was barred under the operator's fair use policy, which states that all usage must be for the customer's private, personal and non-commercial use, and must not adversely impact the service to other o2 customers.

The dental practice receptionist was told that her use was affecting other o2 customers in the area, and slowing their internet connection speed.

She said: "I find it hard to believe I was using that much data. They said I had been using a huge amount, and my partner and I do use the phone all the time, but when I got the contract I was under the impression it was unlimited.

"They advertise unlimited data but it seems they decide how much you can have."

O2 terms and conditions state that the operator "reserves the right to remove the data access from your account or disconnect your sim or tariff at any time, having attempted to contact you first".

Spokesperson for o2 Sarah Taylor said: "It is our policy to warn people but, as this was an extraordinarily high amount of data in just 18 days, we took the decision to temporarily bar the service.

"Ms Montgomery’s data service will now be restored."