Pay-As-You-Go SIM won't text to Europe?!?

[tbessie]

I got the 30 pound "Big Value Bundle" for travel in the UK and France, and to call and text in and to the UK, France and Germany.

 Since I got it, it didn't seem that SMS messages were getting to friends in France or Germany.  SMS to the UK and the USA were going through.  I never got any error message when a text didn't go through.

 I've been discussing this with Vodafone Support for many hours, and they haven't been able to figure it out.

 Has anyone else had this issue?  I'm thinking of asking for a refund of all or part of my money, since it just isn't working.

 - Tim

[AnnS]

Hi @tbessie

If you are using the SIM in the UK to texts friends using a overseas number, the charge won't be included in your Big Value Bundle and you will need additional credit to pay the 24p per message charge.  However, if you are roaming in the inclusive country, this charge will be covered in the Big Value Bundle.

There is futher information on calling and texting abroad from the link below.

Calling and Texting Abroad from the UK.

If you are going to be in the UK for an extended period, you can save money on calling and texting overseas numbers by opting into Vodafone International, free for PAYG customers.

[tbessie]

I was able to call France and Germany from the UK.

I was able to call France, Germany and the UK from France.

I was able to text the UK and the USA from the UK and France.

I was NOT able to text anywhere in the Europe Zone from within France.

I have a hefty balance in my account.

This doesn't seem to match with policy.

Can you explain?

- Tim

[tbessie]

I spoke with support a couple more times today.  They said that everything looks fine on their end, and that they think it's likely my handset.  I find that unlikely, given it's a modern phone (Sony Xperia X Compact), and I tried 3 different SMS clients and none worked.  I also tried both SFR and Orange here in France to send with, and Vodafone itself in the UK.  None worked to send texts to Europe Zone phones.

I'm going to let my PAYG lapse and get an SFR SIM for the rest of my trip.

Hopefully Vodfone will refund my money on account.

[Tash]

Thanks for keeping us updated. So we can take a closer look into this for you @tbessie, I've sent you a private message with details to contact our team.

Once we've received your details, we'll be in touch as soon as possible.

[Annie_N]

@tbessie

What format of number are you using? Sometimes, starting an international number with 00 doesn't work well, and it's generally better to use + at the beginning. So +44 for UK, +33 for France, +49 for Germany, +1 for US, etc.

As I understand it, there is a different "exit code" from some countries, and also from some mobile networks, but virtually all systems recognise + as meaning "exit". Also, texts are handled by a different system from phonecalls, so the fact that a number is recognised for calling doesn't automatically mean that it will be recognised for texting.

All of my Contact list is now in the + format, since when I've not had problems while travelling, and it doesn't cause any difficulties at home, as +44 7xxx etc is recognised by the UK networks.