mobile data SIM top up

[brenduggan123]

I have a data sim card located 200 miles away which sends me info from some machinery (a wind turbine). There is no phone with this SIM card so its not possible to set up an account as this requires me to receive a text on a phone. I want to top up and have managed to do so through the vodafone website but I think it did a phone rather than data top up as the signal is still not working. Impossible to get through to someone working for Vodafone, any suggestions welcome. Thanks 

[AnnS]

Hi @brenduggan123

Providing you entered your mobile data number, the credit should reach your data SIM.  

There is always a slight deley when topping up online.   If the credit is not on the number by tomorrow morning at the latest, please use Live Chat, they will be able to locate the top up and get it onto the number.

Further info for you below.

Topping up

[BandOfBrothers]

Hi

What is it set up for?

Is it definitely data only ? The current tariff wouldn't change unless you as the customer requested so. It can sometimes take a short while for the top up to hit. I assume your 30 days were up. 

Have you tried their Landline number if you can't use live chat or 191 from a working Vodafone sim card. 

 Landline Tel :03333040191 

When using the Vodafone Landline number key in your Vodafone mobile number after prompted OR if issues exist where the IVR System will not recognise the mobile number then you can opt to ignore the initial prompts to type in the mobile number, and then on approx the 4th request it should then change to ask to input 1 for Payg or 2 for Contract Customers.
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General enquiries: Monday to Sunday 8am – 9pm

[Annie_N]

@brenduggan123

I think the problem is that you have added credit to the account, but not yet used it to buy a datapack.

I no longer have an active data SIM, so there are limits to how much I can experiment, but using this link, and topping up by voucher, it seems to be possible to do it all as a seamless whole.

If the money is already on the account, I fear your options are either to purchase a datapack from within the account, or to ask the assistance of Live Chat or Customer Services to do it. You might find Live Chat the easier option, and I hope that this will produce an engagement window for you.

There are ways to set up an account so that routinely you can ask to send the security code to an alternative number - but it does require having the SIM in a phone for a little while to receive some codes! If you could arrange this, either if you visit the turbine, or if someone else could do so, and forward the codes to you, it might save you a lot of trouble in future.

If this is a possibility, please say so, and I'll try to describe what needs to be done!

[brenduggan123]

Thank you for all the replies - much appreciated. I've been using this sim card for a couple of years now, topping up over the phone every 3 or 4 months - not sure what a datapack is(?). I'd prefer a monthly direct debit but I'm told this is not possible (?)

Attempts to go to live chat get me to this  page http://www.vodafone.co.uk/contact-us which doesn't seem to have a link through to live chat - I think live chat might the best option but it's not making itself obvious through my own seraches. Thanks in anticipation of your replies 

[BandOfBrothers]

You're welcome. 

The live chat link is in my signature below. 

[brenduggan123]

Thanks BandOfBrothers. Tha link takes me to the vodafone contact us web page, I am then asked to make a choice, I go for Personal and PAYG, this takes me to a page

http://www.vodafone.co.uk/contact-us/index.htm?lp_offsite={"type":0,"campaignId":275307532,"engageme...}

with 'Check our popular questions', lower down is help and support, not what I'm after, and below that is live chat with no links to click on apart from 'Ask the forum on the bottom right'   - ANy direct links to live chat much appreciated - thanks 

[Annie_N]

This is thoroughly confusing! My link pops the engagement window for me, but @BandOfBrothers' link just takes me to the Contact page, which in turn contains a Live Chat link if I choose the PAYG tile - perhaps one or the other will work for @brenduggan123!

But, if datapacks don't mean anything to you, I don't think it can possibly be a data SIM that you're using - you couldn't have run trouble-free for a couple of years without having struggled with buying datapacks. What does it do? Does it enable something in the turbine to talk computer-to-computer to another computer, or is it sending texts containing information, transmitting data as an audio signal, or......? [Sorry, these non-standard uses of SIMs fascinate me!]

Are you able to check your balance or products by any means? The most likely one I can think of is to call 03333 048048, enter the mobile number for the SIM, and it should at any rate give you a balance, and possibly some additional information - I'm not 100% sure what the IVR will offer when using that route, but taking option 2, followed by option 1, and again option 1, normally produces some information when calling 2345

[brenduggan123]

Thanks Annie, I'm afraid your link produces the same window as Bandof Brothers and I've allowed popups just in case it was that. 

The SIM is to send commands (by text from a different mobile phone) to the comms box  of the wind turbine so I can switch it on and off and toher functions. It also sends back lots of performance data which I can access on a dedicated website. I've topped up over the phone for a couple of years, doing it every 3 or 4 months, I hope this helps ....? 

[BandOfBrothers]

Hi,

Try requesting the desktop version of the site. 

 I see....