Pay as you go services

[mde13]

I lived in Belfast the last two summers and had a Vodafone Pay-as-you-go SIM both times.  When I returned to Belfast after a year of being away, my SIM had become inactive and I had to buy a new one.  This was a bit of a hassle in telling friends of my new ph# change.  Now I will be in London for some time, so I was wondering if it's possible for me to reactivate an old SIM card instead of having to buy a new one again.  My SIM has been inactive for 11 months.

Alternately, if this is not possible -- then is there anywhere at Heathrow Airport where I can buy a Vodafone SIM?

[mari1970 · Accepted solution]

Hi mde,

If your sim has been deactivated then am afraid you will need to get a new sim with a new number..

On PAYG you need to make a chargeable event at least once every 180 days, and if this is not done you then have a further 90 days to top up and make another chargeable event to keep the number active.. If you dont do this the the number will be disconnected, which you would probably find after 11 months of non use..

You may be able to get a new sim at the airport, however you should be able to pop into a Vodafone store to get one also

[mde13]

Ok thank you for your help.  Do you know what kind of shops sell Vodafone SIMs?  In the past I've always gone to one of those sketchy small internet cafes and been able to find them there, however I would really like to purchase one before I leave Heathrow, instead of wandering around looking for a Vodafone store or internet cafe.  For example, do you think a Tesco or newsagents would sell SIMs?

Thanks again.

[DeveshAgarwal]

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mari1970 wrote:

Hi mde,

On PAYG you need to make a chargeable event at least once every 180 days, and if this is not done you then have a further 90 days to top up and make another chargeable event to keep the number active.. If you dont do this the the number will be disconnected, which you would probably find after 11 months of non use..

Hello Mari1970

A follow up to your response. If we do not make a chargeable event in 180 days, could we make a top up within 180 days? Will that serve as a "renewal" trigger to the Vodafone system?

I do not know if you work for Vodafone, but I sure wish they put these types of details within the FAQ of the PAYG or free SIM. Other than these forums, the information is very hard to find.

TIA

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[AnnS]

As long as it is no longer than 270 days, you can top up and make a chargeable event withing the 180 days and this would bring the SIM back into service but it is best to keep the SIM active.

All  the information on disconnection is in the PAYG airtime terms and conditions.

[a-n-t]

Hi, bit of a bump this, but the Google gods led me here, and I was wondering if someone could help out.

I have a very, very old phone here (Siemens A50, ex-Vodafone PAYG) that I lost quite a while ago, but I've recently found it. It still charges and functions okay, but with it not being used for a fair bit of time it has predictably been disconnected at some point - just says 'Network search'.

I'm going to try and get a compatible sim reader so I can retrieve some useful old numbers and texts on it, and despite the sentimental value (XD) of the ancient handset, I don't hold out any hope of actually using this phone again - I obviously bought a replacement mobile that I've been using since that one got lost. What I REALLY want to do, though, is rescue my old number on it if at all possible, because having found it now I realise it's the best, most memorable number I've ever had - I've been using the replacement phone for many months now, and I still can't confidently recite its number off the top of my head, whereas this one is pretty much hardcoded into my brain. It's the only phone number I ever truly loved ;_;

Could any Vodafone bods please check if my number is still available to me, like to transfer to a new sim? I'm getting a new phone soon and I'd love to use this number, and look after it better this time. I'm not sure when the last activity on it was, but it will have been several months. Hopefully it's still retrievable, so it'd be great if that could be checked out, to be certain. Otherwise I'll need to give it a proper funeral. =(

Ta,

Ant

P.S. Any suggestions as to what sim reader I could get to capture the contacts and texts on such a relic of a phone would be most welcome.

[AnnS]

Hello a-n-t

If it has been longer than 270 days since the SIM was last used with a chargeable activity, it will be impossible for Vodafone to even locate this number and the number will be long gone and could even have been reissued to a new user. You may still be able to see any contacts stored on the SIM card by pitting it in an alternative phone.

You only option here will be a new SIM card with a new number.

If you would like a memorable number, Vodafone do have a list of gold numbers which you would be able to purchase.