Master code

[Dutchy1]

I have been trying to unlock my phone to use with another SIM Network. I have entered various codes PuK, NUC etc, having read other posts it appears i need a Master Code for my handset from Vodafone. How do i get this as no one appears to know what a master Code is?

Many thanks

[KateB]

I have been going through this since 22nd Aug. I have just written a last letter which is a "letter before action" before I go to Small claims Court.

Vodafone have breached their contract and don't seem to care. 😞

[TJ]

We'll need to access your accounts, so we can pass your details onto our NUC team and get your Master Unlock codes sent to you @raminahmadi and @KateB. 

Please contact our team via Facebook, or get in touch on Twitter. You can find more information on doing this here. 

Please also provide a link to this thread, along with your username; this will save time and we’ll be able to help you quicker.

[KateB]

Been there done that numerous times online complaint, letter complaint, Facebook complaint, Twitter complaint, phone calls, the list goes on. I have added a link to this conversation on my Facebook communications, gets me nowhere. 

Still no mastercode. Still locked handset 9 weeks later.

As previously stated Vodafone have breached their contract with me. 

Small Claims Court here I come.

[Hannah1251]

Hi TJ,

What are alternative ways of resolving this for older customers (like me) that don't have Twitter or Facebook accounts?

My phone has been hard locked for 3 weeks, it needs a 'Master' or 'Unfreeze' code. This was confirmed by your chat representative Sonu, 7 days ago. He said that he would escalate the issue and I would receive this code within 24-48 hours. I am still waiting,

This is the third time in as many weeks that a chat rep has given me assurances which turned out to be false, on matters regarding billing, my phone or my account, 

Please tell me what I can possibly do to get the assistance I deserve as a loyal customer of 9 years.

Live Chat is not giving me any results, only false assurances. I cannot call 191 because my phone is hard locked. I cannot use MyVodafone app because my contract has ended, 

I've already been pushed into setting up a Vodafone Community account just to get through to someone. I'm not setting up Twitter or Facebook accounts (for the first time in my life) just to get the help I deserve!

Please, I'm tired and I just want this to be resolved.

[KateB]

Have you filled out a complaint on the Vodafone website, hopefully you still have account number as you will need that.

From my online complaint and then three letters that I wrote I ended up with a Vodafone customer relations person who phoned me at regular intervals to assure me. 

In my experience,  you have to keep pushing and keep waiting. It seems there us a terrible backlog, so many people seem to have the same same problem. 

I finally had a successful phone call with a Master Unlock Code from Vodafone 2months to the day from being disconnected. 

It is very frustrating,  and they will owe you compensation.  But persevere it will get there.

Ps, dont bother with Facebook or Twitter. I didnt get any joy from either channels.. just another method for them to fob you off.

[Hannah1251]

Thank you, KateB. This is the most clear and coherent advice I've received on this topic in 3 weeks... You know that a company needs to urgently improve its post-sales care when customers are reliant on other customers for support.

I will begin escalating this to the complaints team tomorrow following your lead.

[TJ]

Thanks for getting in touch @Hannah1251 - I'm really sorry to hear you phones hard locked and apologise for the amount of time it's taking to get things resolved.

As advised above, you can raise a complaint with us via or escalation form here. Best of luck getting everything back up and running again soon. 

[StephJ]

Same problem, Samsung S10. Due to my own fault, I now need an MSK code to unlock, having received the NUC quickly, I was hoping this would also be a prompt process but so far isn't proving so, any advice on how to speed this up?
I have the NUC but the phone is essentially a useless brick unless I can unlock it. First person said at most 2-48 hours to get the unfreeze code, then when I chased this up the follow-up email just said 'an update as soon as possible' ... not very reassuring. 

[Tash]

@StephJ It can take 10 working days for us to receive the master code from the manufacturer. If it's been longer than this, please get in touch with us through our Facebook or Twitter pages. When sending us a private message, please include your Community username and a link to your post. You then won't need to repeat your query.

[StephJ]

Vodafone should be ashamed, 10 working days for a simple code. Well, I waited and waited and I've gone an alternative route and paid for the code, has cost me about £1 for every day I waited for Vodafone so well worth it considering I had it within 15 minutes, yes I repeat 15 minutes. Please sort yourselves out, and I second Ofcom following through with the proposed ban on locked handsets.