No O2 signal, anything can be done!?

sarahlancs

Hi all,

Just a brief outline of what has happened, I'm not sure if anyone has any suggestions to help or if we are completely stuck in this situation...

My dad bought an iPhone 4GS on O2 from the Carphone Warehouse website with a really good deal (£18 p/m, free phone etc). He decided to update from his prehistoric brick as he needed a fast, reliable, easy to use phone due to a change in our circumstances. He is a carer for his father and spends most days with him, approx 25 miles from our house in one of the next towns.

He took his fancy new phone to show his dad and soon discovered there was no O2 signal at all at his fathers house or in the surrounding areas. We contacted O2 who said there was a mast down in the area, and as soon as it was fixed it would be an improved signal. We gave them a week to fix it, called them back and spoke to a different advisor who said even when the mast is fixed (of which there is no specific timeframe to do so) the area only offers a 2G signal anyway. They told us to contact Carphone Warehouse who, O2 say, should have informed us of the bad signal in the area before we bought the phone.

Now, I wouldn't necessarily say C.W. should have, as we bought it online, the phone works fine in our area, C.W. wouldn't have known we wanted to use it in another postcode etc. But is there anything we can ask C.W to do for us in retrospect? We know the signal on EE/Orange is good in the area we need it, and although he doesn't want to, my dad has said he is prepared to pay extra for an Orange/EE contract. Does anyone have any tips/suggestions on how best to get a result from the situation? Many thanks.

StuC75

When the mast has been fixed then the phone will still work in that area (since will connect on 2g signal)..

most networks\retailers have the ability for you to check likely coverage in advance - I know when I changed in store they were able to bring up coverage maps for each network.. so it makes most sense to actively seek out that information upfront (unfortunately)..

However because you have bought online you don't get that level of 'advice'. and because it works elsewhere you will likely have little recourse (definitely outside the scope for DSR's \ contract termination for the amount of time elapsed)..

Does your granddad have wifi at his place? connecting to wifi would get most of the functionality working..

Other than that its grin and bear it - I moved jobs from leeds to Dewsbury and my o2 connection became unusable in work - but it wasn't any kind of grounds to cancel the contract.. it worked fine everywhere else - so when I changed networks - it was the first thing checked..

sarahlancs

I thought it may be a case of that. Live and learn but what an expensive lesson! No, no wifi or anything (80-odd year old farmer!).

Thank you for your reply!

Herongull

Don't get another contract!

Get the iphone unlocked if possible - he will have to pay for this. Then pop a PAYG sim in. If Three works in the area, get a 3:2:1 sim. If not have a look at white mobile, which runs on the EE network. Don't transfer the number of course.

When he is at home, he can swap the sims and use O2

Then if the O2 mast is fixed in a few months time, he can go back to using the O2 sim.

Alternatively just get a dumb phone for £5 and PAYG sim and he can use that at his fathers place.

sarahlancs

Huge kudos to Carphone Warehouse. They apologised that the phone doesn't work in that particular location and as a good will gesture have sent my dad a free Nokia handset and loaded it with £30 credit on an Orange SIM card so he can use it at his father's. I am so impressed as technically they didn't have to do anything, and what a generous gesture.

Thank you for all your advice.

Nodding_Donkey

That is a great result and props to Craphone !!!!!house

kingrulzuk

sarahlancs wrote: »

Huge kudos to Carphone Warehouse. They apologised that the phone doesn't work in that particular location and as a good will gesture have sent my dad a free Nokia handset and loaded it with £30 credit on an Orange SIM card so he can use it at his father's. I am so impressed as technically they didn't have to do anything, and what a generous gesture.

Thank you for all your advice.

Make sure you check it again. coz it might be another contract that ur father might not know about. Nothing comes free there is always a catch in Business.