Purchasing PAYG phone

[Chrisalker]

I've got a sim only plan and usually buy a PAYG phone (usually break them fairly quickly), I attempted to purchase a PAYG phone in a store and was told I had to also purchase a £10 sim card or I can't buy the phone. I can do it online and send it to the store to collect free of charge with no sim card (saving £10). Why can't the store have this option? Seems totally ludicrous!

[BandOfBrothers]

Hi,

Most Network shops do this by asking a person to top up an initial amount onto a new SIM card. Some forgo asking for the top up amount if a person shows they are already with the Network on Payg. 

I understand what you are highlighting. 

[AnnS]

@Chrisalker

This is generally the same for every network, including third party sellers such as Carphone Warehouse.

The network subsidise the phone to be used on the network and expect to make some money from selling the phone.

It is the same when purchasing the phone online, you probably didn't click on the phone. If you had, you would have noticed you have to choose your bundle.

[Chrisalker]

Don't mean to be rude but i had clicked on the phone, added to basket and did notice the sim card options. However at the bottom there was a "use my current sim" eliminating the need to purchase an additional sim card.

Order complete and being sent to my home address.

Mission successful.

[BandOfBrothers]

Congratulations. 

I've purchased before from CPW before and upgraded the handset on Payg to which they remove the 'Top up'part.

Enjoy your phone. 

[Annie_N]

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@Chrisalker wrote:
The sim card options; however at the bottom there was a "use my current sim" eliminating the need to purchase an additional sim card.

Order complete and being sent to my home address.

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Yes, that is indeed correct, and I agree that it seems completely crazy that this option is only available online. A few of the stores will agree to sell a phone with a separate £10 top-up voucher, which can at any rate be passed on to family or friends, but other stores insist that it has to be a Big Value Bundle, which I believe they also activate on the spot; this makes attempting to return a phone as faulty or unsuitable something of a nightmare. I can understand that it's part of trying to ensure that the phone is used on the network, but my feeling is that it does nothing to enhance Vodafone's reputation. (Sorry, rant over!)

There was a brief period a couple of weeks ago when it seemed that the despatch department didn't regard "using existing SIM" as a valid choice, and were delaying despatch until a "valid option" had been selected. My hope is that this was simply a result of the need to despatch a very large number of new iPhones in a short time, and that normal service has now been resumed. However, if you do run into a problem of this sort, please post back here, so that we can raise it as an issue.