How to deal with O2 PAYG

I have a O2 PAYG SIM that I carry (with a 5110 phone!!) to use if I find
myself in an Orange-free zone when working.

Unfortunately I only end up needing to use the phone a few times a year
so it time expired and was blocked. I rang O2 who have re-instated it
but insist that I must add top-up to use it even though it has £22
credit on it.

Is there any way around this stupid situation - admittedly of my own
doing? I have asked at a top-up point but the smallest amount they can
add is £5 - just more money not to use!


--
Woody

harrogate three at ntlworld dot com

---

› See More: How to deal with O2 PAYG

In news:[email protected],
Woody <[email protected]> typed, for some strange, unexplained
reason:
: I have a O2 PAYG SIM that I carry (with a 5110 phone!!) to use if I
: find myself in an Orange-free zone when working.
:
: Unfortunately I only end up needing to use the phone a few times a
: year so it time expired and was blocked. I rang O2 who have
: re-instated it but insist that I must add top-up to use it even
: though it has £22 credit on it.
:
: Is there any way around this stupid situation - admittedly of my own
: doing? I have asked at a top-up point but the smallest amount they can
: add is £5 - just more money not to use!

How long since you used it..? I have an old Cellnet SIM that was last used
well over a year ago and it's still live with over a tenner of credit on
it.

It's got a good number, too.


Ivor

On Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:53:05 -0000, "Woody"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>I have a O2 PAYG SIM that I carry (with a 5110 phone!!) to use if I find
>myself in an Orange-free zone when working.
>
>Unfortunately I only end up needing to use the phone a few times a year
>so it time expired and was blocked. I rang O2 who have re-instated it
>but insist that I must add top-up to use it even though it has £22
>credit on it.
>
>Is there any way around this stupid situation - admittedly of my own
>doing? I have asked at a top-up point but the smallest amount they can
>add is £5 - just more money not to use!

I do the same with a Virgin (T-Mob net) SIM PAYG SIM that never
expires (and exactly why I got it). Not sure if they still do that
package but it may be worth a look.

Cheers, T i m

p.s. And exactly why I was going for the Voda PAYG non expiring mobile
broadband.

"Ivor Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In news:[email protected],
> Woody <[email protected]> typed, for some strange,
> unexplained
> reason:
> : I have a O2 PAYG SIM that I carry (with a 5110 phone!!) to use if I
> : find myself in an Orange-free zone when working.
> :
> : Unfortunately I only end up needing to use the phone a few times a
> : year so it time expired and was blocked. I rang O2 who have
> : re-instated it but insist that I must add top-up to use it even
> : though it has £22 credit on it.
> :
> : Is there any way around this stupid situation - admittedly of my own
> : doing? I have asked at a top-up point but the smallest amount they
> can
> : add is £5 - just more money not to use!
>
> How long since you used it..? I have an old Cellnet SIM that was last
> used
> well over a year ago and it's still live with over a tenner of credit
> on
> it.
>
> It's got a good number, too.
>
>
> Ivor
>


Mine's also a good number.

No, it was barred as it always came up 'SIM card registration failed' on
the 6310i and no provider name on the 5110. If I try to make a call it
diverts me to the top-up line, but it will accept incoming calls.

I was not aware that in the contract terms it required me to use top-up
immediately after a card was switched back on - especially as they have
had the use of my money f.o.c. for nearly a year!

And yes, O2 is a good one to carry out in the sticks. When it was
built - as BT Cellnet - there was still the 'universal service' mindset
in the outfit and as a consequence they provided coverage in many places
that others feared to tread, albeit thinly sometimes. Voda are also
quite good in that area, but Orange and particularly T-Mob are only
interested in centres of population and major routes.

Which is why you can easily class many rural parts of Northern England
an Orange/T-Mob-free zone.


--
Woody

harrogate three at ntlworld dot com

On Wed, 24 Dec 2008 15:38:30 -0000, "Woody"
<[email protected]> wrote:


>
>Which is why you can easily class many rural parts of Northern England
>an Orange/T-Mob-free zone.

We must have been lucky then. We have motorcycle holidayed (camp sites
tend to be fairly rural <g>), all 3 of us have T-Mob phones and it's
rare we have had no service (or certainly were others do). We have
also leant our phones to folk on 'other' networks when they have had
no signal.

Not been for a while mind, do such things get worse?

Cheers, T i m

"Woody" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "Ivor Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> In news:[email protected],
>> Woody <[email protected]> typed, for some strange, unexplained
>> reason:
>> : I have a O2 PAYG SIM that I carry (with a 5110 phone!!) to use if I
>> : find myself in an Orange-free zone when working.
>> :
>> : Unfortunately I only end up needing to use the phone a few times a
>> : year so it time expired and was blocked. I rang O2 who have
>> : re-instated it but insist that I must add top-up to use it even
>> : though it has £22 credit on it.
>> :
>> : Is there any way around this stupid situation - admittedly of my own
>> : doing? I have asked at a top-up point but the smallest amount they can
>> : add is £5 - just more money not to use!
>>
>> How long since you used it..? I have an old Cellnet SIM that was last
>> used
>> well over a year ago and it's still live with over a tenner of credit on
>> it.
>>
>> It's got a good number, too.

You have to use it every three or six months - I have SIM's on all networks
kept alive this way.

>>
>>
>> Ivor
>>
>
>
> Mine's also a good number.
>
> No, it was barred as it always came up 'SIM card registration failed' on
> the 6310i and no provider name on the 5110. If I try to make a call it
> diverts me to the top-up line, but it will accept incoming calls.
>
> I was not aware that in the contract terms it required me to use top-up
> immediately after a card was switched back on - especially as they have
> had the use of my money f.o.c. for nearly a year!
>
> And yes, O2 is a good one to carry out in the sticks. When it was built -
> as BT Cellnet - there was still the 'universal service' mindset in the
> outfit and as a consequence they provided coverage in many places that
> others feared to tread, albeit thinly sometimes. Voda are also quite good
> in that area, but Orange and particularly T-Mob are only interested in
> centres of population and major routes.
>
> Which is why you can easily class many rural parts of Northern England an
> Orange/T-Mob-free zone.

Correct, but this is technical as much as infrastructure provision. O2 and
Voda have network on 900MHz as well as 1,800MHz, whereas latecomers Orange
and T-Mobile only have it on the latter. The former works better over
rolling terrain and distance, but you need two things: - 1. O2 or Voda SIM
and 2. Dual band [or better] phone to use the 900Mhz band.

And you may need to configure your phone as well.

>
>
> --
> Woody
>
> harrogate three at ntlworld dot com
>

On 23 Dec, 18:53, "Woody" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I have a O2 PAYG SIM that I carry (with a 5110 phone!!) to use if I find
> myself in an Orange-free zone when working.
>
> Unfortunately I only end up needing to use the phone a few times a year
> so it time expired and was blocked. I rang O2 who have re-instated it
> but insist that I must add top-up to use it even though it has £22
> credit on it.
>
> Is there any way around this stupid situation - admittedly of my own
> doing? I have asked at a top-up point but the smallest amount they can
> add is £5 - just more money not to use!
>

I've read that as well as the usage requirement per 180 days, the
credit must be topped up once in a while, variously reported as either
3 years or 999 days