I don't understand Lyca Mobile's port-in form

flaneurs_lobster

Think the advice would be to leave it until Monday.

timt1961

I agree the form is awful...but you can port in very easily using the chat-bot on the Lycra mobile porting form page.

I have done this with two phones..so..

1. Using your old SIM, get the PUK code from your current provider (text PAC to 65075)
2. Put the Lycra mobile SIM in you phone and wait a few minutes for it to activate and note your new number.

This is all you need to proceed..no SIM numbers needed

3. Now go to the porting page and click on the chat-bot at bottom right.
4. Follow the directions for porting.
5. They will send a text to you with a code you need to enter to proceed and it takes you through the whole process.

HaroldWhistler

littleboo said:

Its a terrible form, but I ported in last week and it worked, although I was expecting problems....

I agree. It is a truly dreadful form. And even when it finally works or doesn't work, the page stays exactly the same with small green writing appearing just above the form. 

Lyca seriously need to update their website. TemmyTemjin said:

This exact same form stumped me today. It's utter rubbish. Whoever put it together needs to be dragged, thrown, and locked into a UX design school and not let out.

For what it's worth in case it helps anybody who comes across this, my understanding:

"Mobile number you want to keep" - The number you want

"New Number" - The default phone number of your provided new Lyca sim

"Lyca Mobile SIM number" - This is the long number on the back of the sim card package underneath the barcode

"Other Mobile SIM number" - No clue. I didn't fill this in. The form was submitted fine without it.

Again, though, just so we're clear; complete trash.

This is a great guide. I would also add this suggestion that if it doesn't work on the first attempt, sometimes (for some reason), if you omit the initial "0" on your "mobile number you want to keep", it then proceeds to work. For some reason the "+44" on that field has to be taken into account, but not on the "new number" field where the initial "0" stays. 

LDCA

Finally succeeded. Here's how for the mandatory fields.

First name* - Your first name 
Last name* - Your last name/surname
Email* - Your email address. If you have multiple email addresses, it's the one associated with the Lyca account 
Mobile num you want to keep * - The phone number you want to port over. Enter with NO 0 at the beginning e.g. +44 7901 234567
Porting authorisation code (PAC) * - The PAC code you got by texting "PAC" to 65075 while your OLD SIM was in your phone (not your new Lyca SIM)
New number * - The phone number Lyca gave you that you don't want. Again, NO 0 at the beginning. 
Lyca mobile SIM number * - On the bit of plastic you popped your SIM out of, there's a barcode. Enter the number under the barcode. I didn't use spaces and double checked I'd entered it correctly as it's long. 
Port In Date * - I used tomorrow's date because I wanted the earliest it would let you choose. I guess some people might plan it for a specific date, 

The baffling "Other Mobile SIM number" is optional so I ignored. 

When I succeeded, there was a green "Request submitted Successfully" message and a ref code in the top left of the form. 

As everyone's rightly pointed out, this form is appalling. It looks like they got a developer to do it without any UX designers. It shows utter contempt for their customers, for usability and for accessibility. If they don't value acquisition and retention, you can bet they won't value customer service. 

In this case Lyca's reading this, I'll repeat the advice given in my damning Trustpilot review:
- Use persistent field labels, not ghost text which is lost when the field is populated (usability and accessibility 101) 
- Error messages should be in red and inline, i.e. over/under the field where the error is. Your persistent field label should also be red in this state, but please also use an inline error message as some of your users will be colour blind
- Your field labels should be unambiguous and self-explanatory. The volume of comments in multiple MSE forums prove no one understands them at the moment
- Provide tooltips so we have a fighting chance of understanding what you need us to enter 
- Your chatbot content needs to be in plain English, not your in-house jargon
- Give users the option to persist their entries in the Chatbot during the session, even when the Chatbot window is minimized or closed. That way the user can alternate between the form and the Chatbot. I had to open and close the Chatbot 4x while completing the form, losing my entries every time. This is only for the session, you should have the capacity for that. 
- Let users select menu options from previous bubbles in the chat, not just the latest one. Otherwise, they'll have to start again like I did 
- Hire good UX designers and a UX copywriter. You will get huge return on investment for their work so this is not an area where you should economise. 
- Have some respect for your customers. There are multiple threads about your onboarding problems on MSE, going back some time. It's worrying you haven't acted on any of it. 
- Have some respect for accessibility and hire designers and developers who can create a compliant experience. 
- Have some business sense. This is acquisition and retention we're talking about and you are creating barriers to onboarding. 

flaneurs_lobster

In a previous life I would have charged Lyca 3 days billing for that level of testing and report.

I'm afraid there's a reason why they are cheap.

LDCA

LOL, thanks @flaneurs_lobster that would be quite a day rate given it took me a few minutes  

PHK

Just to add that ‘Other Mobile SIM number’ is likely the long SIM number of your old SIM from the provider you’re leaving. 

(As background, calls etc are actually routed to the long number assigned to the SIM. The network software associates the phone number with that SIM number. There are some technical circumstances where this might be needed and other networks did used to ask for it. The number used to be printed on the SIM itself But with the advent of micro and nano SIMs they are no longer big enough for  the number to fit so it’s on the holder or documentation) 

It’s so rarely needed that I don’t know why they ask for it. 

delmonta

LDCA said:

Finally succeeded. Here's how for the mandatory fields.

First name* - Your first name 
Last name* - Your last name/surname
Email* - Your email address. If you have multiple email addresses, it's the one associated with the Lyca account 
Mobile num you want to keep * - The phone number you want to port over. Enter with NO 0 at the beginning e.g. +44 7901 234567
Porting authorisation code (PAC) * - The PAC code you got by texting "PAC" to 65075 while your OLD SIM was in your phone (not your new Lyca SIM)
New number * - The phone number Lyca gave you that you don't want. Again, NO 0 at the beginning. 
Lyca mobile SIM number * - On the bit of plastic you popped your SIM out of, there's a barcode. Enter the number under the barcode. I didn't use spaces and double checked I'd entered it correctly as it's long. 
Port In Date * - I used tomorrow's date because I wanted the earliest it would let you choose. I guess some people might plan it for a specific date, 

The baffling "Other Mobile SIM number" is optional so I ignored. 

When I succeeded, there was a green "Request submitted Successfully" message and a ref code in the top left of the form. 

As everyone's rightly pointed out, this form is appalling. It looks like they got a developer to do it without any UX designers. It shows utter contempt for their customers, for usability and for accessibility. If they don't value acquisition and retention, you can bet they won't value customer service. 

In this case Lyca's reading this, I'll repeat the advice given in my damning Trustpilot review:
- Use persistent field labels, not ghost text which is lost when the field is populated (usability and accessibility 101) 
- Error messages should be in red and inline, i.e. over/under the field where the error is. Your persistent field label should also be red in this state, but please also use an inline error message as some of your users will be colour blind
- Your field labels should be unambiguous and self-explanatory. The volume of comments in multiple MSE forums prove no one understands them at the moment
- Provide tooltips so we have a fighting chance of understanding what you need us to enter 
- Your chatbot content needs to be in plain English, not your in-house jargon
- Give users the option to persist their entries in the Chatbot during the session, even when the Chatbot window is minimized or closed. That way the user can alternate between the form and the Chatbot. I had to open and close the Chatbot 4x while completing the form, losing my entries every time. This is only for the session, you should have the capacity for that. 
- Let users select menu options from previous bubbles in the chat, not just the latest one. Otherwise, they'll have to start again like I did 
- Hire good UX designers and a UX copywriter. You will get huge return on investment for their work so this is not an area where you should economise. 
- Have some respect for your customers. There are multiple threads about your onboarding problems on MSE, going back some time. It's worrying you haven't acted on any of it. 
- Have some respect for accessibility and hire designers and developers who can create a compliant experience. 
- Have some business sense. This is acquisition and retention we're talking about and you are creating barriers to onboarding. 

Thanks so much for this, it was stressing me out! I've done what you said and hopefully all will be well. I did register for my Lycamobile account with the original number first, I hope that is ok. 

Apart from this and their terrible customer service, have you found them to be ok otherwise?

delmonta

And is there a good way to check everything ported ok? I had never read about issues with porting like texts coming through, but calls not etc. 

Johnersh

Just to add to this (now slightly old) thread, in case it helps anyone (and bearing in mind the form still hasn't changed)

If you order an eSIM, as people will increasingly want to do, you have no physical SIM/barcode as referred to above. That number can be found buried in the phone settings once activated, but for those that are less techy it may help to know that the SIM number/ICCID number are the same thing: That number is emailed with the order confirmation.