Orange won't unlock their phones for 3 months

alric · 13 February 2008 at 12:00AM

Orange say they won't unlock any phones bought from them for 3 months.
There was nothing about this in the terms of sale. Can they do this?
I got this reply to my letter/email today
"Thank you for your email regarding your new phone.

I was sorry to learn that the phone your bought from the Orange store on ebay, has to be registered for 3 months before it can be unlocked from The Orange network, so you can use it abroad. May I apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Unfortunately, this is correct and would have been the same wherever you purchased an Orange phone. Have you contacted the Orange store to perhaps get a refund.

The only way around this issue is to register the SIM card, take it abroad with you and then after 3 months, call Orange for the unlocking codes, give an email address and then once the codes are received, we can email them to you.

I appreciate this may not be the answer you were looking for and once again apologise for your disappointment.

Kind regards

Jean
Orange Customer Services"

I bought the phone to use abroad, and can find no way to unlock it atall.It's a Nokia 5500 BB5 phone. There was no mention of this at all in any of the T&Cs that I could see.
Does anyone know how I can put some pressure on, or at least complain to the right people?
I really want to get it all up & running with GPS before I go.
I really don't want to try calling Orange from the other side of the world, 3rd world foneboxes! Almost as bad as UK ones!

will-in-estoril · 13 February 2008 at 2:51PM

The Orange Store on Ebay makes it clear that the handset will only work with the Orange SIM supplied: it is clearly stated in the FAQs at the bottom of the listings page.

Although I do not agree with phone locking (I view it as anti-competitive) it is at present lawful, and Orange do not hide the fact that this is how their handsets on Ebay are sold.

You might be better off just having the handset unlocked at your local phone shop. It will cost you £5-£10.

alric · 13 February 2008 at 7:29PM

I sent it to Fonefunshop and they were unable to unlock it. I get the impression that if anyone can do it, they can.
The Orange Store on ebay implies that it is locked to Orange, but not that it has to remain locked indefinitely, nor for 3 months.
i was hoping that they could make an exception given the circumstances, but they seem to invent rules for the sake of having rules.

will-in-estoril · 14 February 2008 at 12:00PM

Which part of the UK are you in? There are numerous independent shops which should be able to unlock your handset. The one I use charges £5 for Nokias, including BB5 locks. Try http://www.globalkall.com/

alric · 14 February 2008 at 12:17PM

Like I said, Ialready sent it to fonefunshop, they couldn't do it
http://www.fonefunshop.co.uk/Unlocking/unlock/nokiabb5high.htm
I've no reason to believe anyone else can.

Who can I write to, email, FAX, to complain about Orange's decision?
There must be someone who can take them to task

charlatanuk · 14 May 2008 at 10:43PM

After spending hours at the weekend searching for a code for my Sony Ericson and uncovering that I couldn't find one I decided to phone Orange during my lunch today instead.

After selecting various options and speaking to someone (I ended up going through the "thinking of leaving Orange" option) I asked if "I could "acquire" the code to unlock my phone". She didn't understand what I said and so I said "I would like the code to unlock my phone."

The girl mentioned something which I couldn't make out and I mentioned it again. She asked for an explanation why. I told her "I wanted to put another sim card in when travelling abroad." I was told it "should work anyway". I said "I tried before and it didn't" and asked for the code.

I was told that it would take 20 days.

I asked why? She stated she "didn't know that it would be passed onto another team and it would take 20 days".

I said "fine, I'll have to wait 20 days". I was then told me it would cost £20.

I asked "why"?

I was told "it just does".

I mentioned that I thought my contract had expired. Could she tell me when it happened.

"February 3rd".

I asked why they didn't inform me.

"We don't have to."

I told her "I'd have to think about what I'd do next".

She asked if she could help with anything else.

I felt like saying, "given the option that I chose that caused me to speak to you, perhaps I could speak to someone with common sense."

But I said "no" and hung up. Nothing like consumer sovereignty eh? :P

proplusplus · 15 May 2008 at 12:53PM

the conditions for unlocking a phone are:

Registered sim to handset for a minimum of 3 months.
£20 fee for unlocking - as there is usually a charge from the manufacturer.
7-15 working day (usual) wait to obtain unlcoking code from manufacturer.

@ charlatan UK - not all operatives are pleasant in any company - unfortunate, but yes - frsutrating. If you go through to disconnections they will help to diconnect you / keep you as a customer.
They do not know necessarily how to repair your phone/activate MMS/obtain you an unlocking code. This is becuase different departments 'specialise' (for want of a better word) in different areas. Helpdesk on 150 is best option for unlocking codes.

@ original poster. BB5 handsets can be unlocked - has been possible for a long time. High street shops will do for £5-15. Not all will know how, but it's deffinately available - might be the quicker option.

i think you'll be hard pressed to find a case to have your phone unlocked by Orange for free. The auction says that the handset is locked to orange and for use with an Orange sim. Granted, it does not state in the T&Cs that it is a BB5 phone, but why do they need to tell you that? The phone information is available from the handset manufacturer. Should Orange be obliged to tell you what kind of solder is used on the board? what size the resistor is inside the handset?... It's not information that they necessarily know, but that doesn't mean you can't find out about it.

I know it's frustrating, but your best option may be to find a high street unlocker.

proplusplus

Orange won't unlock their phones for 3 months

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