(Very) Old O2 PAYG SIM Card

KittaKatta

Loveabargain123 said:

@KittaKatta oh no that just terrible. I went to the Birmingham City Centre branch. They just asked me how much I topped up and when I said £10 a year he ran out the back and did it as fast as possible 🤣 

Sounds like Giffgaff might be a good option but honestly if it was me I'd go back and ask to speak to the manager of the store and point to the text O2 sent, I can't fathom how they could refuse...

Hope it gets sorted, but you're right no particular rush just yet I guess!

I may try that. Or I will go to Birmingham City centre the next time I visit: they seem much more on the case than they are in London  

Kim_13

KittaKatta said:

Loveabargain123 said:

@KittaKatta oh no that just terrible. I went to the Birmingham City Centre branch. They just asked me how much I topped up and when I said £10 a year he ran out the back and did it as fast as possible 🤣 

Sounds like Giffgaff might be a good option but honestly if it was me I'd go back and ask to speak to the manager of the store and point to the text O2 sent, I can't fathom how they could refuse...

Hope it gets sorted, but you're right no particular rush just yet I guess!

I may try that. Or I will go to Birmingham City centre the next time I visit: they seem much more on the case than they are in London  

That may be a good idea. Or just say you are not interested in a monthly bundle or contract having listened to their offers, and could they swap your sim as required and stated in the message sent to you, or get a manager so that you can discuss the sim changes with them.

I would also be hesitant to trust them when they say they will refund the credit - it’s an automated process that closes the account with no refund when a PAC is used, to my knowledge.

It reminds me of a time before Sim Free phones: my dad wanted a handset that had to be bought with £10 airtime. He asked if they could apply it to my mum’s PAYG sim, as he had a SIM only contract with them. They said they could and took her number to do this but the credit never arrived.

brewerdave

Kim_13 said:

KittaKatta said:

Loveabargain123 said:

@KittaKatta oh no that just terrible. I went to the Birmingham City Centre branch. They just asked me how much I topped up and when I said £10 a year he ran out the back and did it as fast as possible 🤣 

Sounds like Giffgaff might be a good option but honestly if it was me I'd go back and ask to speak to the manager of the store and point to the text O2 sent, I can't fathom how they could refuse...

Hope it gets sorted, but you're right no particular rush just yet I guess!

I may try that. Or I will go to Birmingham City centre the next time I visit: they seem much more on the case than they are in London  

I would also be hesitant to trust them when they say they will refund the credit - it’s an automated process that closes the account with no refund when a PAC is used, to my knowledge.

It reminds me of a time before Sim Free phones: my dad wanted a handset that had to be bought with £10 airtime. He asked if they could apply it to my mum’s PAYG sim, as he had a SIM only contract with them. They said they could and took her number to do this but the credit never arrived.

I switched my number from O2 to ID mobile last year using the PAC; I had a small credit that I was "assured" would be refunded by cheque - STILL waiting !

missile

It should be possible to transfer credit from old SIM to the SIM you use, assuming that is with O2(?)

KittaKatta

I found a PAYG with RWG Mobile. I only need to send a (payable) text once every 90 days to keep the card active and I only need to top up whenever I run out of money. I may switch to them.
I am not sure I want to try talking to O2 again, though they did provide a good service for many years.
Many thanks for the feedbacks about the credit. At least I'm aware of it in case it never does materialize.

anotheroutrage

KittaKatta,

I could not log into my O2 account via PC through wifi internet. You should be able to do this with the mobile off, as it has nothing to do with the O2 signal and I don't have the app installed anyway. I was escalated through three levels of customer service none of which even understood any of the above. The second level tried to "upgrade" my Classic PAYG as I was not a" satisfied customer". The third told me that the login problem was because I had an "old" SIM which would stop working within months. They tried to upgrade me away from PAYG as if SIM and Tariff meant the same thing.

The website problem was not  dealt with at all. I later found out that many people have the same login problem with both the web and app versions of their accounts, so the system is very poorly implemented.

I also searched the entire internet.. twice I think.. for the "old" SIM issue which is simply that physically old SIMs can't do higher than 2G. NOTHING TO DO WITH YOUR TARIFF- but the hard sell corruption is rife. You are not obliged to change tariff.

Also, I could find absolutely no reference to Classic PAYG being shut down anytime, let alone specifically in April 2025, which was probably another untruth you have been told. Classic PAYG was withdrawn in Nov 2019 if I remember rightly, but if you could get a new SIM from the shops then, you could still register so long as it was within the expiry date as on the packing. I got another two, so we have four in our household. Don't ever add a temporary data top-up, or a European roaming, or anything else, as you WON'T BE ABLE TO GO BACK to PAYG123. It will go eventually, but there is no official sign of that right now. Someone please say if they know differently.

I've been with O2 for over 10 years, but the customer service now could not be worse. When PAYG123 goes I will be off to something like RWG, ID, 1pMobile, etc. Whatever is good for low use.

flaneurs_lobster

anotheroutrage said:

I also searched the entire internet.. twice I think.. for the "old" SIM issue which is simply that physically old SIMs can't do higher than 2G. NOTHING TO DO WITH YOUR TARIFF- but the hard sell corruption is rife. You are not obliged to change tariff.

I'd like someone to explain why an "old" SIM cannot be used for 4G (or any other service). Isn't a SIM (or eSIM) simply a unique identifier for the device? Is there some other functionality that depends on the "type" or "age" of the SIM?

I can understand that eg OP @KittaKatta 's 20 year-old SIM will be of a physical size that cannot fit into a 4G device and can therefore see the need for a swap, but is this the only "technical" difference?

There doesn't seem to have been mention of OPs old phone, will it need to be replaced to use (Voice over) 4G. Perhaps @KittaKatta could tell us the make/model?

There does seem to be a lot of bull being spouted by O2's CS around the need to "upgrade" both the SIM and consequently the tariff. My Classic 123 PAYG (3 years old) is working just fine on 4G although I'm unsure if VoLTE/4G Calling is implemented on my phone or on my service.

anotheroutrage

The SIM is not just the phone number. It has complex interactions with the mobile masts, and the protocols and implementations change between mobile generations. Keeping them all going costs money. Here's more about it:

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/coverage-and-speeds/3g-switch-off/

If you have a new-ish phone, you only need to get a new SIM that can do 3G,4G etc. Physical size does not matter- with modern SIMs you can break them down to fit whatever slot you mobile has - old SIMs can be cut to size, but it's dodgy.

It's also nothing to do with the tariff, and clearly it's a scam that agents and support staff try to con you that you have to change that.

If you have a VERY old mobile that can only do 2G, it looks like you'll have to save up for a newer one, and get the new free SIM.

anotheroutrage

..OK, reading deeper in the info, it looks like 3G will start to be withdrawn in 2025 but will take a decade or so. 2G is not being switched off, so will be OK for the forseeable future. But you'll need a new SIM if only for 2G, as it is mentions that the provision of the 2G service will be changed/moved.

brewerdave

anotheroutrage said:

..OK, reading deeper in the info, it looks like 3G will start to be withdrawn in 2025 but will take a decade or so. 2G is not being switched off, so will be OK for the forseeable future. But you'll need a new SIM if only for 2G, as it is mentions that the provision of the 2G service will be changed/moved.

3g is already being switched off - for instance, Vodafone have already completed their switch off and most of the EE network is also switched off. I believe the only network holding on to 3g next year ,will be O2.