topic Re: Using Phone abroad. in Mobile Services

Using Phone abroad.

StoneCold2 — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 12:12:10 GMT

I have a EE sim on a Samsung s20 Ultra and I am trying to use it abroad. Every time I try to use the phone to make an outbound call I get a prompt stating 'outgoing calls barred'. I have paid to have a roaming packing whilst abroad, and was told my phone would work as normal however I can now no longer receive or make calls and cannot call EE for assistance. The addon service I took was the 60 minute roaming package where theoretically I can make and receive 60mins worth of calls for a set line rental amount.
I am a bit stranded now and need EE to email me or get in contact so, I can start using my phone here in Turkey. There is no email support or chat service EE provide in the event there lines are done which is a bit ridiculous.
So far, I have reviewed all the supplementary setting for call barring (switching features on and off) but nothing. Set a spend limits, switched mobile data and roaming on and off and tested both way. And still no luck in making any calls. Any help would be much appreciated.

EE was also notified of my travel plans, so this is even more frustrating that nothing works out here.

Re: Using Phone abroad.

XRaySpeX — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 12:17:11 GMT

Where did you switch roaming on and off? It needs to be on your a/c not just your phone.

As you are on contract, did you activate roaming on your EE a/c before you left UK by texting ROAMING to 150? Having a roaming billing add-on doesn't of itself activate roaming on your a/c. Having roaming activated on your EE a/c, not just on your device, is crucial to using your contract SIM abroad.

Often just rebooting the phone is the simple remedy. Also try selecting a network manually rather than auto.

Otherwise you need to call CS to get your roaming activated. Try calling CS on the Freephone no. in my sig. on Skype over WiFi. It should be free.

Re: Using Phone abroad.

StoneCold2 — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 12:54:16 GMT

Took onboard all your suggestion but had no success. I cannot call EE from here as my 'Outgoing calls are barred'. If this can be lifted, I can then call EE using the minutes I have had added onto my plan. I cannot even receive call from the UK hence, I need someone from EE Customer service to call me and sort this mess out.

Re: Using Phone abroad.

XRaySpeX — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 13:16:36 GMT

Then use Skype as I suggested.

Re: Using Phone abroad.

Leanne_T — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 14:10:43 GMT

Hi @StoneCold2

I am very sorry we have no account access on the community to get this looked into and contact you, please try the advice from @XRaySpeX to contact our mobile guides and get this sorted.

Leanne.

Re: Using Phone abroad.

StoneCold2 — Fri, 12 Apr 2024 14:12:57 GMT

Thank you XRaySpeX. Calling via Skype worked!!!
I was able to speak to customer service to resolve the matter.
Ultimately, EE set a bar on their side to restrict all inbound and outbound calls on my account when phone is being used abroad. However, it took EE CS 5 hours and 3 different tech agents to notice this bar was enabled - whilst stating from the offset that I had a barring issue that result in outbound call being barred and inbound call being notified that my service was temporally unavailable. .
Other checks CS performed were...
1. removing spend cap. (Which I had done prior to the call)

2. taking the sim card and rebooting the phone. Not restart.

3.Under Settings-Connections-mobile network- network operators (set this to off)- then find a local operator and find one that allows you to make and receive calls

4. Turn Mobile Date and Data Roaming off if you have no plans to use data whilst abroad.

5. Remove International Call Barring setting on EE side. Not at device level but EE operating system level.

Issue had to be raised to Level 2 Mobile Tech Teams - Options 1 ,1, 2. I called EE via skype using their freephone number +44 800 079 8586.

Note: I cleared all Caches and Data Caches as per someone's advise on youtube and checked all the supplementary setting and even performed a factory reset, but all this was a waste of time and I ended up losing key data I held on my device such as password and username I have stored which I now need to retrieve somehow.

Re: Using Phone abroad.

XRaySpeX — Sat, 13 Apr 2024 22:28:19 GMT

Thanks! You're welcome 🙂 ! Glad I could be of assistance & trust it is now sorted.