Cashback Hints and Tips

--_Adam_--_2 · 20 August 2006 at 9:54AM

I've been using 12 month cashback deals for the last 5 years, and just wanted to share some of my hints and tips for you. Please feel free to add some more, or provide comments.

Providers

Mobileshop started the cashback craze, and they were very good at paying up. They're a long-established company, and still provide some basic free 12 month deals.

I've had no problems with e2save, carphonewarehouse or one-stop-phone-shop (all the same company now, essentially) - it's always worthwhile ringing up two weeks after posting to ensure that everything is progressing, so that you have scope to correct any problems.

I've been surprised at how well the link (part of the currys, pc world, dixons chain) have been in honouring the cashback deals.

I used to use talkworld, and these were a nightmare to contact, but as they're no longer in existance, it doesn't really matter!

I've not had any other experiences with the other cashback providers, but have feel that if I've got £300 riding on a contract, I'd rather have the security of the bigger brands.

Best deals

Over the last two years, cashback deals on the three network have produced the biggest moneysaving. Finding a good deal is difficult - although if you leave it til the last day of a calendar month, or wait until just before or after Christmas, these are the times when you can normally bag yourself a bargain.

Obviously, no hints and tips page is complete without referring to the great http://www.reestitmutton.co.uk web-site

Claiming Cashback

I always now photocopy the first two pages of the bill, include a covering letter, and post recorded delivery to the address in question. If you send the bill off as soon as you have received it, you give yourself that extra few days to correct any problems.

Don't hesitate in phoning 10 days after posting, just to ensure that they have received your letter - I'd advise to leave it this long, as processing can sometimes be a bit slow!

What to do at the end of the 12 months

Don't forget to phone up a month before the end of the contract to speak to the network in quesiton.
Most people find it easier to cancel the contract, but you also normally have the possibility to convert the contract to a PAYG tariff. This then gives you the scope to wait some time before moving to another cashback deal if there are no deals around. Moving to a PAYG deal also saves you from porting out of the old contract early, and causing problems with your 12th bill claim!

Porting

I've kept my number for the last 8 years, and have ported it about 6 times now. The trick is to be kind to your current network provider - they have to give you the PAC, but just mention that you're not certain that you want to leave, but would like the number just in case.

I've had many consecutive three contracts recently, and have found that porting to an o2 PAYG sim card and back to be the easiest way to keep my number. There are normally some free or 99p sim cards available, and it makes sense to have a pile of these ready to use

- http://shop.o2.co.uk/student

Also, don't forget to mention on your cashback claim if you have ported your number - they'll get mightly confused if they don't recognise the phone number on the bills you send in!

Adam

lkoky · 20 August 2006 at 10:19AM

Good advice Adam.

I have never done number porting before, just wondered how do you port a "3" number to a O2 PAYG?

I understand that one will need to get a PAC from it network provider, in this case "3".

What I dont understand is how do I port the number ot O2 PAYG? Isnt the PAYG always come with a number pre-allocated?

thanks.

siliconbits · 20 August 2006 at 11:02AM

Seems crazy but I am told that you can't carry your o2 number when you move contracts.

--_Adam_--_2 · 20 August 2006 at 11:06AM

Ikoky,

To port:

- Phone up 3 and say you wish to port your number to another network. They will provide you with a PAC code (normally 3 letters and 6 numbers, for 3, most probably starting HTG......)

- Phone up o2 and say you wish to port a number to a particular sim card, and let them know the PAC code, and the number you wish to port in. After 5 working days, the number will be ported to the specific o2 sim, and the old number will be discarded.

Remember that companies like easymobile only allow you to transfer a number to the sim card when you purchase it. I've always found o2 to be the most flexible, as long as you don't take the micky (i.e. transfer in one day, and request a PAC the next).

Adam

CovRobbo · 20 August 2006 at 11:15AM

CovRobbo wrote:

Sorry to ask a question that has probably been answered previously but I'm a bit confused!

I'm just about to sign-up to a mobileshop mobile deal for 12-months free line rental on a 12-month contract. I've spent lots of time reading-up on these cashback deals due to their complex nature but have one final question before I complete the deal.

Cashback claims must be made at months 5, 7, 9 and 12. Does this mean that I send the 4th airtime bill I receive from O2 when I recieve it at the start of the 5th month (May)??

For example, if I started my contract on the 1st January, would I submit my fourth monthly bill (for April) as soon as I recieve it at the start of the fifth month?

Any clarification would be greatly appreciated!

Any Chance someone could answer this one??

--_Adam_--_2 · 20 August 2006 at 11:33AM

CovRobbo,

If you are in any doubt, it's always wise to contact MobileShop directly.

Normally, this would mean your 5th, 7th, 9th and 12th bills, but it can be interpreted differently!

adam

user1234_2 · 20 August 2006 at 11:39AM

siliconbits wrote:

Seems crazy but I am told that you can't carry your o2 number when you move contracts.

If you are saying everyone on o2 won't be allowed to port to another network then I am afraid that is just misinformation. :rolleyes:

Reestit_Mutton · 20 August 2006 at 5:31PM

Hi Adam,

Reestit Mutton here - thanks for the site ref.

Just a few (important) points to note about your hints and tips...

(1) While the Carphone Warehouse companies accept photocopies (and online printouts), many cashback providers only accept original bills. It's worth mentioning this alongside your comment about photocopying the first two pages of the bill as many people who blindly treat that as unversally valid advice may come unstuck.

(2) re. porting onto O2 and Vodafone - there are one or two providers that are known to void the cashback if the customer ports their number in AFTER commencement of the contract. They specifically request that you provide them with the PAC code and let them arrange it at the point of purchase. The retailers' argument is that O2 and Vodafone treat a port-in request after commencement as if it were a cancellation and recommencement of the contract and thus claw-back the retailer.

(3) One of these days, someone really should do a full side-by-side comparison of all the retailers' cashback T&Cs - this should include, among other things:

(a) whether claims vouchers are required
(b) whether a cover letter is required
(c) the length of the claims window
(d) the processing time for sending out cheques
(e) whether original bills are required
(f) whether online bills will be acceptable
(g) whether faxed claims will be acceptable
(h) whether subsequent claims are dependent on all previous claims being accepted
(i) whether porting is allowed, including instructions on what to do when claiming if you have ported your number
(j) whether changes of address are allowed, including instructions on what to do when claiming if you have moved house

To be honest, I have a lot of this info logged somewhere in the depths of the database that drives my website - I just haven't had the time to sit down and work out how to provide a user-friendly interface to it that is in-keeping with the look and feel of the site (too many jobs to do, too little time).

One last thing...some people prefer not to have to deal with cashback claims at all. For these people it's well worth using the best crop of current cashback deals just to find alternative offers to play off against your current provider when negotiating a renewal deal. Financially speaking, you'll never get the best deal by staying with your current provider. However, if you play the negotiating game well, the difference can somtimes be small enough (<£100) that you can justify the extra cost as worth it for removing the risk and hassle so often associated with cashback deals.

regards
Reestit Mutton

--_Adam_--_2 · 20 August 2006 at 9:06PM

RM,

Thanks for the great comments - that is definitely some important pieces of information contained there.

Like you say - it's important to spend some time comparing the offers that are available, and acknowledging the risk that the cashback deals do impose.

It's surprising, but if you're not fussed about a new phone, some PAYG deals offer good value for money, which also includes the added bonus of guaranteeing that you won't receive any unexpectedly-large bills in the post!

Adam

dagger_meerkat · 20 August 2006 at 9:59PM

Reestit_Mutton wrote:

(2) re. porting onto O2 and Vodafone - there are one or two providers that are known to void the cashback if the customer ports their number in AFTER commencement of the contract. They specifically request that you provide them with the PAC code and let them arrange it at the point of purchase. The retailers' argument is that O2 and Vodafone treat a port-in request after commencement as if it were a cancellation and recommencement of the contract and thus claw-back the retailer.

If I understand you well, that means if I gave the PAC code to the retailer at the point of purchase, then I shall not have any problems with claiming cash-back, right?

Reestit_Mutton · 20 August 2006 at 11:52PM

dagger_meerkat wrote:

If I understand you well, that means if I gave the PAC code to the retailer at the point of purchase, then I shall not have any problems with claiming cash-back, right?

Currently, yes, that would be the correct interpretation.

To the best of my knowledge, I don't recall any retailer to date having excluded porting customers from their cashback offers. However, retailers have been known to amend their cashback T&Cs from time to time (there have been a spate of T&Cs updates recently) and I cannot guarantee that porting customers will not be excluded from these deals via the retailers' T&Cs in the future.

All it would take would be for the networks to begin applying lower levels of sales commissions to porting customers. Vodafone has been known, on occasion, to limit certain special offers on their site to non-porting customers so discrimination against porting customers isn't such an outlandish possibility.

HtH
Reestit Mutton

Cashback Hints and Tips

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