Can Vodafone lock an iPhone that's bought unlocked?

asmilkov

My girlfriend got a pay monthly plan with Vodafone a couple of years ago and recently she asked them for a PAC as she's cancelling and switching providers. She's always owned her mobile phones and most recently, in December, she bought an iPhone from the US that she started using with her Vodafone SIM.

Along with the PAC information, Vodafone sent her an email saying she needs to get a NUC as her phone's locked. She chatted with Vodafone's support through the app and they confirmed that she indeed has to unlock her phone even though she didn't purchase it from Vodafone.

This sounds ridiculous to me; if this is correct, on what basis can Vodafone lock an unlocked phone that's not been purchased from them?

Jon_01

I'd say Voda are talking their normal rubbish.

Just try the phone with another sim and you should find it works fine.

eDicky

iPhones are or were sometimes sold that locked to the first network whose SIM is inserted. If this is what happened, it is not Vodafone's doing, but probably it's detectable by their system.

System

asmilkov wrote: »

My girlfriend got a pay monthly plan with Vodafone a couple of years ago and recently she asked them for a PAC as she's cancelling and switching providers. She's always owned her mobile phones and most recently, in December, she bought an iPhone from the US that she started using with her Vodafone SIM.

Along with the PAC information, Vodafone sent her an email saying she needs to get a NUC as her phone's locked. She chatted with Vodafone's support through the app and they confirmed that she indeed has to unlock her phone even though she didn't purchase it from Vodafone.

This sounds ridiculous to me; if this is correct, on what basis can Vodafone lock an unlocked phone that's not been purchased from them?

If what your saying is correct then why don't you pop another carrier sim into the phone and see if its indeed locked to Vodafone.

If it's locked then contact Vodafone and ask for a written explanation on why the phone was locked to their network when you did not get the phone from them. It's better getting the reason from the source so you can then decide the next proper course of action.

AndyPK

as said, phones purchased from carphone wharehouse or argos lock to the first sim inserted, So could be the same as your US supplier.

or its one of the problems buying from a different continent

macman

From what source did she buy it in the USA? Apple Store, AN Other retailer, or mobile provider?

PHK

asmilkov wrote: »

My girlfriend got a pay monthly plan with Vodafone a couple of years ago and recently she asked them for a PAC as she's cancelling and switching providers. She's always owned her mobile phones and most recently, in December, she bought an iPhone from the US that she started using with her Vodafone SIM.

Along with the PAC information, Vodafone sent her an email saying she needs to get a NUC as her phone's locked. She chatted with Vodafone's support through the app and they confirmed that she indeed has to unlock her phone even though she didn't purchase it from Vodafone.

This sounds ridiculous to me; if this is correct, on what basis can Vodafone lock an unlocked phone that's not been purchased from them?

There's three points here. There is no unlock code, Apple's activation servers have a database of which (if any) network an iPhone is locked to, unlocking an iPhone means changing the Apple database to show its SIM free.
When purchased from certain outlets an iPhone will lock to the network of that SIM. This is generally the case in the US and also from some UK retailers. (Although that has now changed) and is an Apple policy. (As with all things Apple there's some debate about this)
Networks can see if the handset is locked and will be able to arrange an unlock.
In short, this isn't something Vodafone has done to you, it's the way iPhones work.