Move number across - same provider

joshimoto

Anyone else had trouble trying to keep their mobile number while getting a new contract with the same network provider through a third party deal?

I recently took out a new contract with Vodafone - through Carphone Warehouse on a deal - as my current contract minimum term (also with Vodafone) has ended. Upgrading directly with Vodafone just wasn't a good enough deal, hence why I went through CW. Now I have two contracts with Vodafone, and I want to end my current contract, move the number across to the new contract and live a happy life (until this presumably happens again in 24 months time).

While it's a simple process of sending a single text for a PAC if you're changing between different providers, It's such a faff if you're changing to the same provider. I've spent probably an hour on the phone to Vodafone trying to establish the process for achieving this. 

As far as I can tell, I need to request my current contract (now on a rolling contract as minimum term has ended) to be transferred to a PAYG sim, wait 30 days and then fill out an online form requesting the old number to be kept and ported over to the new contract. I'll also have to pay a pro-rata bill for the overlap of 30 days between the two contracts.

There's no easily available information about this kind of process on the Vodafone website, and I surely can't be the only person in this position? I usually go for Vodafone due to signal availability where I live, but they rarely offer the best deals themselves, so I'm likely to have to go through this process indefinitely at each renewal stage.

There has to be a simpler way, as per the recent one-text PAC/STAC process introduced last year or whenever it was...

Thanks for your thoughts

Neil49

There are numerous operators who use the Vodafone network so your best option is to get a sim from one of them, port your number across and then port it back again to replace the number on your new Vodafone account. 

Take a look at Asda payg or Lebara for starters but don't sign up for yet another contract!

flaneurs_lobster

Doesn't have to be a Vodafone network that's used for the "double" or "triangular" port. Just use the cheapest PAYG sim you can find. The whole process will take around 5 working days (ports don't happen at weekends).  Numerous articles online about this process like https://www.phonesltd.co.uk/what-is-double-porting-mobile-number/

grumbler

flaneurs_lobster said:

 Just use the cheapest PAYG sim you can find.

For porting it's the smallest topup that matters.

https://kenstechtips.com/index.php/payg-top-ups

531063

grumbler said:

flaneurs_lobster said:

 Just use the cheapest PAYG sim you can find.

For porting it's the smallest topup that matters.

https://kenstechtips.com/index.php/payg-top-ups

Just done a port and asda mini top up is now £5

grumbler

531063 said:

grumbler said:

flaneurs_lobster said:

 Just use the cheapest PAYG sim you can find.

For porting it's the smallest topup that matters.

https://kenstechtips.com/index.php/payg-top-ups

Just done a port and asda mini top up is now £5

In this case it's worth considering 1-month contracts as well, e.g. Up to 3GB

flaneurs_lobster

531063 said:

grumbler said:

flaneurs_lobster said:

 Just use the cheapest PAYG sim you can find.

For porting it's the smallest topup that matters.

https://kenstechtips.com/index.php/payg-top-ups

Just done a port and asda mini top up is now £5

And no voucher top-up any more. Only top-up less than this that I can think of is Three Data Reward (£2).

joshimoto

Thank you everyone for your input. I'm particularly grateful about the suggestion of double-porting (credit flaneurs_lobster) - this does seem to be the way to do it. I'm sure it will be useful for end of next contract. As I've given notification to change my existing contract to PAYG I'll see through the longer process with Vodafone. 

The reason I chose not to go with a piggyback provider is somewhere in the back of my head I remember hearing that piggyback providers just get the leftover dross bandwidth that the main carriers do not use. I've never been able to confirm this one way or another, so if anyone has any thoughts on this let me know, or I'll start a separate thread.

Thanks again, what a great forum this is.

Josh