SIM Limbo

I've jut put an old Vodafone PAYG Sim into a spare phone. The phone logs
on to the network OK and a balance check shows just over £13. However,
if I try and make a call I'm told I have insufficient balance.

I can't call CS to ask them as I've 'no balance' So is the sim in some
sort of sim limbo between working and being cut off?
--
Dave C

---

› See More: SIM Limbo

Dave C wrote:
> I've jut put an old Vodafone PAYG Sim into a spare phone. The phone logs
> on to the network OK and a balance check shows just over £13. However,
> if I try and make a call I'm told I have insufficient balance.
>
> I can't call CS to ask them as I've 'no balance' So is the sim in some
> sort of sim limbo between working and being cut off?
Found the answer.
It does appear that Vodafone have a 'limbo' or quarantine as they call
it. Only way to get it out is to top up, even though I still have credit.

--
Dave C

"Dave C" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Dave C wrote:
>> I've jut put an old Vodafone PAYG Sim into a spare phone. The phone logs
>> on to the network OK and a balance check shows just over £13. However, if
>> I try and make a call I'm told I have insufficient balance.
>>
>> I can't call CS to ask them as I've 'no balance' So is the sim in some
>> sort of sim limbo between working and being cut off?
> Found the answer.
> It does appear that Vodafone have a 'limbo' or quarantine as they call it.
> Only way to get it out is to top up, even though I still have credit.
>
> --
> Dave C

fone them up and grumble?

Neil - Usenet wrote:
> "Dave C" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> Dave C wrote:
>>> I've jut put an old Vodafone PAYG Sim into a spare phone. The phone logs
>>> on to the network OK and a balance check shows just over £13. However, if
>>> I try and make a call I'm told I have insufficient balance.
>>>
>>> I can't call CS to ask them as I've 'no balance' So is the sim in some
>>> sort of sim limbo between working and being cut off?
>> Found the answer.
>> It does appear that Vodafone have a 'limbo' or quarantine as they call it.
>> Only way to get it out is to top up, even though I still have credit.
>>
>> --
>> Dave C
>
> fone them up and grumble?
>
>
I did. They refused to budge and said it was the only way. So I said
'give me a PAC code.' Guess what? "You will have to top up to get it out
of quarantine first, sir"

--
Dave C

Hi Dave, sorry to hear of the problems you've had.

On pay as you talk, if you're not actively using the phone (e.g. no
chargeable outgoing calls / sent text messages or successful top ups)
over a period of 180 consecutive days, the number can be placed into a
quarantine state. To prevent this you'd need to either top up or
receive a chargeable SMS (e.g. an alert) within 90 days in order to be
removed from quarantine. If you're in quarantine you can still receive
incoming calls but no outbound calls can be made. Accounts are then
expired if a you fail to top up after being in quarantine over 90 days.
When a mobile number is expired any calling credit is removed from the
account and an expired account is disconnected.

I work for Vodafone and we might be able to help, if you wanted to go
to www.vodafone.co.uk and select 'contact us' then 'email', you can
drop our online team an email. If you leave the short-code FIT135 in
the title / body of your email (this code is used specifically for
customer service related issues that we pick up online and try to
resolve by bringing into customer services) along with the relevant
security information and description of the problem (a link to this
thread would also be of help) we should be able to get your number up
and running again.

Dave C wrote:
> Neil - Usenet wrote:
> > "Dave C" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> > news:[email protected]...
> >> Dave C wrote:
> >>> I've jut put an old Vodafone PAYG Sim into a spare phone. The phone logs
> >>> on to the network OK and a balance check shows just over £13. However, if
> >>> I try and make a call I'm told I have insufficient balance.
> >>>
> >>> I can't call CS to ask them as I've 'no balance' So is the sim in some
> >>> sort of sim limbo between working and being cut off?
> >> Found the answer.
> >> It does appear that Vodafone have a 'limbo' or quarantine as they callit.
> >> Only way to get it out is to top up, even though I still have credit.
> >>
> >> --
> >> Dave C
> >
> > fone them up and grumble?
> >
> >
> I did. They refused to budge and said it was the only way. So I said
> 'give me a PAC code.' Guess what? "You will have to top up to get it out
> of quarantine first, sir"
>
> --
> Dave C

MinervaUK wrote:
> Hi Dave, sorry to hear of the problems you've had.
>
> On pay as you talk, if you're not actively using the phone (e.g. no
> chargeable outgoing calls / sent text messages or successful top ups)
> over a period of 180 consecutive days, the number can be placed into a
> quarantine state. To prevent this you'd need to either top up or
> receive a chargeable SMS (e.g. an alert) within 90 days in order to be
> removed from quarantine. If you're in quarantine you can still receive
> incoming calls but no outbound calls can be made. Accounts are then
> expired if a you fail to top up after being in quarantine over 90 days.
> When a mobile number is expired any calling credit is removed from the
> account and an expired account is disconnected.
>

Thanks for the info. It's not a problem, just that I did not think there
was a stage in between the 6 month rule and disconnection.

To be frank, I was going through some of my old PAYG SIMS to see which
ones worked, most had only a few pence on them, but the Voda one was
used sometime list Spring when I was away where there was only a Voda
signal, hence the £13. I'll probably put a fiver on it, as I would like
to keep it.

--
Dave C

Dave C wrote:
> MinervaUK wrote:
>> Hi Dave, sorry to hear of the problems you've had.
>>
>> On pay as you talk, if you're not actively using the phone (e.g. no
>> chargeable outgoing calls / sent text messages or successful top ups)
>> over a period of 180 consecutive days, the number can be placed into a
>> quarantine state. To prevent this you'd need to either top up or
>> receive a chargeable SMS (e.g. an alert) within 90 days in order to be
>> removed from quarantine. If you're in quarantine you can still receive
>> incoming calls but no outbound calls can be made. Accounts are then
>> expired if a you fail to top up after being in quarantine over 90 days.
>> When a mobile number is expired any calling credit is removed from the
>> account and an expired account is disconnected.
>>
>
> Thanks for the info. It's not a problem, just that I did not think there
> was a stage in between the 6 month rule and disconnection.
>
> To be frank, I was going through some of my old PAYG SIMS to see which
> ones worked, most had only a few pence on them, but the Voda one was
> used sometime list Spring when I was away where there was only a Voda
> signal, hence the £13. I'll probably put a fiver on it, as I would like
> to keep it.
>
Although I've just been p*ssed off to see that calling Vodafone on
07836191191 from my Virgin phone has been classed as National Call Rate
and charged.

--
Dave C

Dave C wrote:
> Although I've just been p*ssed off to see that calling Vodafone on
> 07836191191 from my Virgin phone has been classed as National Call Rate
> and charged.

Would it not have been worse if it was classed as Vodafone mobile
number and charged at cross-network rate?

King Of Fools wrote:
> Dave C wrote:
>> Although I've just been p*ssed off to see that calling Vodafone on
>> 07836191191 from my Virgin phone has been classed as National Call Rate
>> and charged.
>
> Would it not have been worse if it was classed as Vodafone mobile
> number and charged at cross-network rate?
>
No, I have 300 X-Net minutes a month!

--
Dave C

Try 01925 862000

www.saynoto0870.co.uk is always your friend

--
Gerry (The MOTH)

"Dave C" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> King Of Fools wrote:
>> Dave C wrote:
>>> Although I've just been p*ssed off to see that calling Vodafone on
>>> 07836191191 from my Virgin phone has been classed as National Call Rate
>>> and charged.
>>
>> Would it not have been worse if it was classed as Vodafone mobile
>> number and charged at cross-network rate?
>>
> No, I have 300 X-Net minutes a month!
>
> --
> Dave C

Dave C <[email protected]> wrote:
> Dave C wrote:
>> I've jut put an old Vodafone PAYG Sim into a spare phone. The phone logs
>> on to the network OK and a balance check shows just over #13. However,
>> if I try and make a call I'm told I have insufficient balance.
>>
>> I can't call CS to ask them as I've 'no balance' So is the sim in some
>> sort of sim limbo between working and being cut off?

> Found the answer.
> It does appear that Vodafone have a 'limbo' or quarantine as they call
> it. Only way to get it out is to top up, even though I still have credit.

Do be careful that they don't do to you what they did to me. That's
what I was told, so I registered my credit card and topped up and it
still didn't work. I was then told it didn't work because "Vodaphone
were having problems, try again tomorrow". So I did, and this time I
was told that the real problem was that they'd already expired me and
given my number to someone else, and then allowed me to register my
credit card to it and pump some money into someone else's phone!

I was pretty annoyed, considering I'd spent over an hour on the phone
to sundry half wits over a period of about a week to get to that
position. So they told me if I got myself another number they'd
transfer the money to it.

So got a new PAYG SIM on a cheap special offer with credit equal to
the price, and after registering it ok I rang up and asked for my
money to be transferred. The usual rule of three applied in that case
too, i.e., you need to speak to three people in order to find someone
who's not just pretending to work for Vodaphone but is actually a
secret agent from another company trying to destroy their customer
service reputation.

Vodaperson1 : I'm sorry sir, we only deal with general enquiries on this
number, I'll transfer you to someone who can help. <after 5 minutes
of elevator music I ring off and back again.>

Vodaperson2 : I just don't believe anyone at Vodaphone ever promised
you that. It's completely against our policy, and even if it wasn't
there's absolutely no way that kind of credit transfer can be
done. You've lost your money. Ok, I'll connect you to my supervisor,
but he'll just say the same thing. <after 5 minutes of elevator music I
ring off and back again.>

Vodaperson3: Yes, I can see the details of this on our records. I'm
sorry this happened to you, sir, it's happened to a few people, it's
our fault for not checking properly. It won't take a moment to
transfer your money (rattle rattle) there you are, sir, credit
transferred. Can I help you with anything else?

--
Chris Malcolm [email protected] DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]

Sorry to hear that Chris. The official policy is that, if a number is
recycled, the calling credit is lost. As you say though, it sounds like
an error to begin with following the original disconnection / credit
card registration. Working for Vodafone I'm glad that it's resolved now
but regret it took you three calls to do so. If you ever did want to
drop an email through at the above address using the FIT135 short code
our team would be happy to investigate this further and feed your
comments back directly into the business, we'd just need a link to this
thread and the two numbers involved.

Chris Malcolm wrote:
> Dave C <[email protected]> wrote:
> > Dave C wrote:
> >> I've jut put an old Vodafone PAYG Sim into a spare phone. The phone logs
> >> on to the network OK and a balance check shows just over #13. However,
> >> if I try and make a call I'm told I have insufficient balance.
> >>
> >> I can't call CS to ask them as I've 'no balance' So is the sim in some
> >> sort of sim limbo between working and being cut off?
>
> > Found the answer.
> > It does appear that Vodafone have a 'limbo' or quarantine as they call
> > it. Only way to get it out is to top up, even though I still have credit.
>
> Do be careful that they don't do to you what they did to me. That's
> what I was told, so I registered my credit card and topped up and it
> still didn't work. I was then told it didn't work because "Vodaphone
> were having problems, try again tomorrow". So I did, and this time I
> was told that the real problem was that they'd already expired me and
> given my number to someone else, and then allowed me to register my
> credit card to it and pump some money into someone else's phone!
>
> I was pretty annoyed, considering I'd spent over an hour on the phone
> to sundry half wits over a period of about a week to get to that
> position. So they told me if I got myself another number they'd
> transfer the money to it.
>
> So got a new PAYG SIM on a cheap special offer with credit equal to
> the price, and after registering it ok I rang up and asked for my
> money to be transferred. The usual rule of three applied in that case
> too, i.e., you need to speak to three people in order to find someone
> who's not just pretending to work for Vodaphone but is actually a
> secret agent from another company trying to destroy their customer
> service reputation.
>
> Vodaperson1 : I'm sorry sir, we only deal with general enquiries on this
> number, I'll transfer you to someone who can help. <after 5 minutes
> of elevator music I ring off and back again.>
>
> Vodaperson2 : I just don't believe anyone at Vodaphone ever promised
> you that. It's completely against our policy, and even if it wasn't
> there's absolutely no way that kind of credit transfer can be
> done. You've lost your money. Ok, I'll connect you to my supervisor,
> but he'll just say the same thing. <after 5 minutes of elevator music I
> ring off and back again.>
>
> Vodaperson3: Yes, I can see the details of this on our records. I'm
> sorry this happened to you, sir, it's happened to a few people, it's
> our fault for not checking properly. It won't take a moment to
> transfer your money (rattle rattle) there you are, sir, credit
> transferred. Can I help you with anything else?
>
> --
> Chris Malcolm [email protected] DoD #205
> IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
> [http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]