Batter down your annual mobile costs article Discussion Area

trickidicki

Twice I have actually given notice to revert to PAYG. I think this conentrates their mind. Second time they gave me 9 months free on 400 mins +250 texts as an upfront £315 credit, and a new SE 610i. I think they hope that with such a huge credit you'll be careless about overspending the package. It's for my daughter at uni - now she moans 'not enough texts'! you can't win.

carsales_2

hi every body
i have two contracts with 3 both about to expire both on talk 600 30.00 per month . i have been with them for two years was talking to three today about leaving and was asking for my pac codes as the nokia 6280 are both in good condition
ended up with same allowance but 11 months free with one month at 13.00 per contract. i reckon thats a good deal!

gerryh_2

Hi. Orange offered to to better T's Flext deal, & did. 600 mins + unlimited txt + new phone, for both wife & myself, then without pushing added 2000, yes 2000 extra minutes to one phone. When pushed, they split it between phones. So for £30/month we both have 1600 minutes + unlimited txt.

snurfen

I keep my Orange contract going to keep my number - the Mrs uses the number, replacing the pay as you go she had.

fancied upgrading my handset (which I would then use with my works voda sim) to a sony-Er P990i. I need to make lots of notes on the move, and wifi and 3G connections very useful for my job when out of the office.

Called Orange and asked for an upgraded handset, told me the SPV model I actually wanted was out of stock, but the P990i was available. £149.99 on current tarrif.
Nicely explained to lad that I really fancied it and seeing as this was my 10th year on that contract, whats the chances.
He told me to say I was thinking of leaving, and he'd put me through to the "disconnection team".

Upshot is, I was sent a spanking new toy for free, then asked if I wanted to rethink my plan, as I wasn't being very efficient on current plan.

Offered me 265 cross network mins (odd number, I know) and 100 texts for £20 - couldnt believe the savings!!!!! Asked to drop minutes and up the texts and she said "oh ok, have 265 mins and 200 texts for same price".

Moral of my story, be friendly on the call to the provider and enter into a bit of banter - they'll bend over backwards for you.

well happy! :j

nadoligllawen

I read Martin's little story about haggling with his provider and I have had some success in the past doing exactly that. Unfortunately, I came upon a brick wall yesterday. Despite offering new customers better phones, more minutes and texts than I, as a customer of 4 years could get, they were unwilling to match their own new customer contracts so I was forced to go elsewhere. I did exactly what Martin suggested, didn't cut off immediately, just requested my PAC code and rang back (4 different times) to see if I could achieve a better deal. No joy, although there were noticeable differences in what I was offered by different people - which suggests a degree of flexibility which may prove useful if you happen to find an agent in a good mood who happens to want to do a deal with you. Anyway, to cut a long story short, I have subsequently done the deal with T mobile (through dial-a-phone recommended on MSE) at a cheaper price, with new phone, loads more minutes and texts and have cut my links with O2. Their loss!

stpandp

WhyDoILikeYou wrote: »

BTW its t mobile i work for and can helpp with

I will be phoning t-mobile up towards the end of this month, having been on walk n web for the last 18 months. I will be looking to keep the phone (i.e.) won't need a new one, but simply a good tarrif with a mixture of not too many cross-net calls (?100/month), texts (50 max), data (? under 10mb)

What should I be looking at for another 12 months?

stpandp

carsales wrote: »

hi every body
i have two contracts with 3 both about to expire both on talk 600 30.00 per month . i have been with them for two years was talking to three today about leaving and was asking for my pac codes as the nokia 6280 are both in good condition
ended up with same allowance but 11 months free with one month at 13.00 per contract. i reckon thats a good deal!

it's even better than that - the way 3 do this is by adding credit to the account immediately, so I'm now over £200 in credit - no cashbacks to claim etc

stefano

I'm currently on O2 with 250 minutes and 100 SMS for £20 inclusive.
This is my 3rd year with them, and every year they increased my inclusive package and decreased my costs, although last june the saving was minimal.
Should I hope for more and better, and if so, what should I compare it to, or should I be thankful andbe happy with what I've got, and maybe hope for a new phone on renewal?

yonny1

Hmmmmmmmm - hasnt worked for me! My contract finished yesterday with t mobile, Ive just phoned them to see what they can offer me - and the guy on the phone couldnt give me my PAC code quick enough!!
Im still holding the phone - speechless!! What did I do wrong??

john57

Have been with Three for about 3years and have 5 contracts, three which were due for renewal very recently.

Three contacted me when they were due for renewal and offered me 450 minutes and 250 texts for £27 a month when I had been paying £18 a month for the previous 12 months.

I said no and asked for the PAC codes for all three contracts. Did nothing for nearly four weeks and Three rang me and said if I agreed today that I could have 500 anytime minutes and 100 texts, no phone upgrade and 18 month contract for £1 a month.