Cooling off period with three sim only contract?

clb776

Hi just after some advice...basically my husband bought a iPhone 4 from a friend who said it was unlocked. My husband got a 12 month sim only deal from three. Put the sim in and the phone is not unlocked! Getting an iPhone unlocked seems to be impossible?! It actually works onorange, t mobile, virgin, lyca and o2 but not three? Anyway...tried to return sim and cancel contract but there is no returns allowed? I thought with any contract there was a cooling off period? It was bought in store...not online if that makes any difference!

gjchester

No

Three take the view that once a service is used (in the case the sim) then the DSR is no longer valid.

The DSR is for you to examine something in your own home not trial it. With hindsight you should have tried a PAYG sim.

Now if the phone accepts Orange and T-mobile and O2 then it suggests it's unlocked so it may be something wrong with the SIM, have you tried the sim in another phone?

Techhead_2

gjchester wrote: »

No

Three take the view that once a service is used (in the case the sim) then the DSR is no longer valid.

The DSR is for you to examine something in your own home not trial it. With hindsight you should have tried a PAYG sim.

Now if the phone accepts Orange and T-mobile and O2 then it suggests it's unlocked so it may be something wrong with the SIM, have you tried the sim in another phone?

DSR doesn't apply to in-store purchases.

Agree with your unlocking comment though, OP what happens when you put the SIM in?

clb776

When I put the sim in it says 'invalid sim' and it works in another phone. It's an iPhone 4...we've tried it in a different iPhone 4 and it works fine. In the same iPhone the virgin sim works also...as well as orange, vodafone, and o2. I assume my husbands iPhone is unlocked to all networks except three! Before we got the contract we tried a few sims..they all worked and three was the better deal so went for that! On the iPhone settings where it says carrier it says Tmobile uk. I assume this is the sign it's not unlocked totally! Even if we unlock it again there is no guarantee it will work with three as it's already unlocked to all the other networks judging by the other sims it accepts! Bloody phones!

grumbler

clb776 wrote: »

I assume my husbands iPhone is unlocked to all networks except three!

There are only two possibilities:

1. it is locked to some network (and subnetworks)
2. it is unlocked to all networks

The former is obviously not the case as it works on O2, orange and t-mobile.

clb776

And vodafone and lyca and virgin! I didn't know a phone could be partly unlocked...I guess next time we will have to check all possibilities! We are now stuck in a 12 month contract that is unusable! Lesson learnt!

izools

The contract isn't unuseable, the phone is at fault.

It is unfair to blame that on Three.

Guys_Dad

clb776 wrote: »

When I put the sim in it says 'invalid sim' and it works in another phone. It's an iPhone 4...we've tried it in a different iPhone 4 and it works fine.

Is it not possible for you to take both Iphones into a 3 shop, plus a couple of other (O2, Orange T-Mobile) etc sims to demonstrate to the technicians that your sim works in another Iphone, that at least 2 network sims work in your Iphone but the 3 sim doesn't and ask them if they can help?

It seems a very weird problem as you have explained it and 3 technicians apre possibly the best bet, if approached in the right way.

gjchester

Techhead wrote: »

DSR doesn't apply to in-store purchases.

Doh :doh: Didn't notice that.

Although to be honest Three as just as stringent online, use it and thats it, the DSR is an examination period on three not a trial.

gjchester

clb776 wrote: »

And vodafone and lyca and virgin! I didn't know a phone could be partly unlocked...I guess next time we will have to check all possibilities! We are now stuck in a 12 month contract that is unusable! Lesson learnt!

It is possible that the phone has come from three and for whatever reason they have blocked it online. Unpaid bill maybe, that may explain why it works on other networks but not three, whereas if it's nicked it could be blocked on them all.

mrochester

Have you tried popping the 3 sim into the phone, connecting it to iTunes and pressing the update button to see if there are any carrier updates that need applying? It's a long shot but it could be that you need to get a 3 carrier update installed for it to recognise and work properly with a 3 sim card. Worth a shot if nothing else.