SIM only - almost Hobson's Choice?

pseudodox

I am not really seeking advice on what to do, just commenting on the absurdity of a situation.  I have no intention of migrating to another provider BTW.

My SIM only deal with Three ends soon.  It was for 24 months and currently costs me less than £6 per month with unlimited calls and texts and 4GB data.  I might make one call per month and send a couple of text messages and I rarely use the data - doubt I have used even 1GB in total over the whole 24 months.  My life does not revolve around a mobile and it's really just a standby for any emergency that may crop up when I am out and about.  Otherwise I am at home on wifi or on my PC.  I appreciate that whatever I pay gives me availability 24/7 so regard it as insurance.  Affordability is not an issue.

I have 3 offers for renewal
1. Do nothing, the <£6 cost will roll on, subject to CPI + 3.9% increase every March
2. Take a new 24 month plan which gives me 4GB for £12 (£13 next March, £14 March 2027)
3. Take a new 24 month plan which gives me 8GB for £8 (£9.25 next March, £10.50 March 2027)

No 1 option runs until they decide to no longer offer it - how long is a piece of string?  I don't like uncertainty.  No idea what they might then offer me.
No 2 option is just plain weird!  What possible reason would I have for taking that over option 3?
No 3 option seems the most practical, continues to give me reassurance and gives Three money for old rope, whilst I puzzle over what I can possibly use 8GB a month for.

I will of course talk to them before making a decision, as I have managed to talk down offered prices in the past.

phillw

Phone them up, tell them you are thinking of leaving as you can get 5gb of data, unlimited mins and text from lebara for the equivalent of £3.45 a month for a year (uses vodafone network).

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheap-mobile-finder/sim-only/

They should offer you something better than you're on, though probably not as good as lebara. It's then up to you whether you take it or not.

Isthisforreal99

Option 1 may no longer be an option as CPI + % has been done away with - I say 'may' as not 100% sure if only applies to new contracts but seeing as you are going out of contract then the new flat rate increases could apply which could be more than CPI + (see the various O2 threads).

pseudodox

Isthisforreal99 said:

Option 1 may no longer be an option as CPI + % has been done away with - I say 'may' as not 100% sure if only applies to new contracts but seeing as you are going out of contract then the new flat rate increases could apply which could be more than CPI + (see the various O2 threads).

Yes - I did think that was the case, but the offer is directed at me personally as an existing customer (ie I got an email from them, did not find this online, so I have it in writing).  Option to do nothing leaves everything in their court so very unlikely I would take that anyway.  Certainly shall ring them and mention that others can offer me a better deal, although as said I have no intention of moving. I live in a signal black hole and having tried various providers Three has been the most stable - and now they are in bed with Vodafone I do have a second string to the signal bow, even though Voda can be very patchy.  I have an old ASDA PAYG dumb phone which got migrated by ASDA to Voda and which rarely gets a signal

I will wait until nearer the contract end time in case they come up with anything else.  Last time I renewed I left it until the eleventh hour, played the "I am thinking of leaving" card and got offered a Black Friday deal which was online as not actually available to existing customers.  They play games, we play games!  I just found the option 2 to be bizarre!

Neil49

Is there any reason why are you staying with Three and not considering other providers?

If you like the network you could consider switching to Smarty on a rolling monthly contract for £6 per month. They are owned by Three. 

pseudodox

Neil49 said:

Is there any reason why are you staying with Three and not considering other providers?

If you like the network you could consider switching to Smarty on a rolling monthly contract for £6 per month. They are owned by Three. 

I am happy with Three.  I am not good with tech and they have a shop in my local town, where the staff have been very helpful when I have problems.  As said affordability is not an issue in itself and I don't like change.  Appreciate all advice.

born_again

Black Friday coming up soon. pretty much all big providers have deals.

JSmithy45AD

pseudodox said:

Isthisforreal99 said:

Option 1 may no longer be an option as CPI + % has been done away with - I say 'may' as not 100% sure if only applies to new contracts but seeing as you are going out of contract then the new flat rate increases could apply which could be more than CPI + (see the various O2 threads).

Yes - I did think that was the case, but the offer is directed at me personally as an existing customer (ie I got an email from them, did not find this online, so I have it in writing).  Option to do nothing leaves everything in their court so very unlikely I would take that anyway.  Certainly shall ring them and mention that others can offer me a better deal, although as said I have no intention of moving. I live in a signal black hole and having tried various providers Three has been the most stable - and now they are in bed with Vodafone I do have a second string to the signal bow, even though Voda can be very patchy.  I have an old ASDA PAYG dumb phone which got migrated by ASDA to Voda and which rarely gets a signal

I will wait until nearer the contract end time in case they come up with anything else.  Last time I renewed I left it until the eleventh hour, played the "I am thinking of leaving" card and got offered a Black Friday deal which was online as not actually available to existing customers.  They play games, we play games!  I just found the option 2 to be bizarre!

The option to "do nothing" actually leaves everything in your court, not there's as it will be a rolling monthly contract. With the merger between 3 and Vodafone you should (in theory) be able to get the same signal on either service including all MVNOs that use them. Use Lebara as leverage when talking to them.

phillw

pseudodox said:
, although as said I have no intention of moving. I live in a signal black hole and having tried various providers Three has been the most stable - 

You don't have to leave, just talk to them as if you want to leave. If they try to use signal strength at home as an argument, then you can tell them you have friends on other networks that are fine when they visit.

When you have told them you are thinking of leaving then you are bartering with someone who can offer you a discount if they think you will leave.

Frozen_up_north

Whatever you do, don't opt for a long contract. We were with Three and found their local site to be very unreliable, basically it had no battery backup and went off at the slightest glitch in the mains supply. We have since been with O2 and EE (using GiffGaff and 1p Mobile), the local sites with O2 and EE have been rock solid. With the merger of Voda and Three, there will be a lot of site re-shuffling and maybe not always improving coverage where you live/work/drink/shop. While you are reluctant to switch networks, it is very easy and can save a lot of money as well as sometimes offering better features (eg roaming).

The main three networks tend to not often offer cost effective deals, they have more staff to answer calls and may have high street shops nearby. However that has to be paid for, hence why generally the virtual networks are better value.