Free SIMs for Ukraine refugees - calling Ukraine

[1wheeler]

Hi, I've got two Ukrainian refugees with me. They've got the free  Voda PAYG SIMs with free calls and 20 GB monthly allowance. When they loaded them to their phones they could call Ukrainian numbers, but now they can't. They get a message saying that the calls are outside their data allowance. The Voda help page https://www.vodafone.co.uk/mobile/ukraine-support says that calls from UK to Ukraine should be free, but the phones are acting as if they've run out of credit. Very helpful bloke in the local Voda shop couldn't find out anything.

Yesterday I called the helpline for one of the phones, was told that tech support would reset the SIM (wait 30 minutes, turn off phone, remove SIM, wait 20 minutes, ignore confusing messages about account being cancelled) which fixed it for a few hours.

Can anyone from tech help advise please? Our girls are desperate to talk to their parents.

[MarkD]

Hi @1wheeler, we understand the importance of getting the calls sorted as quickly as possible. Please send us a private message on Facebook or Twitter with the the two mobile numbers, the social media contact details are here. When you do message, just select 'Speak to adviser' to get connected and include your Community username. If the calls manage to connect after you spoke with our tech team, our specialist team can review the actions taken and help with the next steps. Please keep us updated with how you get on. 

[ruthhostler]

I am also having this problem with the lady i am hosting, it was fine fir the first 3 days but now she cannot contact her husband and parents in ukraine, it says that number is outside her allowance. Please can you advise here as the messenger link does not work for me and i dont have twitter

Many thanks

[MarkD]

Hi @ruthhostler, are you trying to access the link through a desktop browser or the mobile site? On the contact us link in the previous message, in the first message there is a link for the Live Chat team who'll be happy to help. You'll need the mobile number that's affected when speaking with the team, you can find this by calling *#100# from the handset. 

[skwasek]

see below - posted twice by accident

[skwasek]

Hi.

I have 2 ukrainian refugees staying with us currently - I am their sponsor. They have had this Sim for nearly 6 months and are coming to the end of their free period, though both are still not working yet, so will not be able to afford to pay for the service yet.

They have been given 2 "everyone.connected" sims at the food bank and want to know if they can port their current uk numbers to the new sims or even extend the free period on the sim they already have? Can anyone help please?

[Mark]

Hi @skwasek, When the 6 month free period comes to an end, we'll send a message to the number advising of the options available to them, this includes offering our Big Value Bundles at a reduced price. If you ask the account holder to reach out to us via our social channels, we'll be more than happy to look into all the options available to them.