Proper PAYG not monthly cost

[sw2boro]

Ok, I didn't ask the question, but I am looking for similar information, so thanks for your answer.

So, if you have a PAYG, it will get set up with a pack when you buy it? And then on day 30 of ownership you have to extend that pack? What happens if you don't?

You say that if you have done the STOP PACK thing you can 'use the SIM for calls & texts but not data as normal PAYG at standard per-unit rates paid for out of your standing PAYG credit balance' - ok, sounds good, so, how do you use or get charged for data in that circumstance? Or can you only access data when you are connected to your (or a friend's/employer's/whatever) WiFi?

I mean, say I had a PAYG, I use it mainly as a WhatsApp machine round the house, I might make a very occasional call when I am out and about or a text, why would I want a pack? Only data I might use when out and about is sending/viewing a couple of WhatsApps a day.

Thanks in advance to anyone with answers!

[Leanne_T]

Hi @sw2boro

The pack would last 30 days and then if you text STOP PACK to 150 this would remove the pack for you. If you have no credit on your account the pack could not renew until you top up. You will be charged for calls and texts.

Ways to top up a pay as you go account can be found in this Help page. 

To purchase a data add-on you would need to top up first and then add this by connecting to data and a page will show offering you available add-ons, or visit add-on.ee.co.uk. You can use WiFi with no data add-on. 

Hope this helps 🙂

Leanne.

[sw2boro]

Thanks for getting back to me Leanne.

It helped a bit...

...but, I have follow up questions. So, what happens if you do nothing? I bought a PAYG phone for someone else. I think that the shop may have installed a pack to start off, as the recipient of the phone has been able to read WhatsApps when out and about. it's twenty-odd days since the purchase, so the initial 30 days will be up by this time next week.

If they do nothing, does the pack just stop being in effect and the phone default to 'proper' PAYG and they will pay for calls & texts out of the £15 credit that is on the phone? Or do they actually have to make the effort to send a STOP PACK message? Surely the pack would just stop anyway because it is expired?

Are you saying that if it has just defaulted to 'proper' PAYG that although calls & texts will be paid for from the credit, they will no longer be able to access the Internet via the EE network? That they cannot PAYG on data usage from their credit?

And is then the only way to access network data via EE by buying at a minimum a £5 pack? That someone can't actually PAYG network data?

Sorry, lots of questions, but there's no easy to follow start to finish explanation that I can find.

Thanks for the help so far!

[sw2boro]

Ok, looks like someone in Customer Service has separated out my posts from the thread it was originally on, but they have accidentally lost some of the context. To be helpful, I have added back the original post/question from another user and the original reply from EE - this should help things make a bit more sense!

No need to thank me!

"

Original question 5/4/22

So I needed to get a second phone setup last month as my previous ee PAYG sim expired and I got a bundle. At the time, I was a bit confused and asked the person selling it to me if it was really PAYG as it seemed like I needed to renew it every month.

I'm still none the wiser, to be honest, but just got a message saying to make sure I had £10 credit for my SIM this month as the renew date is coming up.

So here's my question: is there actually a PAYG service that has credit that only goes down when I use the phone? In other words (like the good old days) if I make a few calls and send a few texts that cost say £2.50, the remaining £7.50 stays on the account ready for me to use it whenever? At the moment, it seems like if I only use my phone once, I'll be paying £120 per year (£10/month) just for the privilege of having the option to use it, even if I don't!

Am I dense and missing something or have the phone companies pulled a fast one on what PAYG now means?

Original answer 5/4/22

 All EE PAYG SIMs come primed with a recurring Pack of allowances ready to bought out of your PAYG credit as soon as it is sufficient. Your last top-up went to buy this Pack.

By texting AL to 150 it should show you the Pack you have bought with your credit & how much you have left from your allowances until its expiry date.

Text STOP PACK to 150 before you next top-up & you can use the SIM for calls & texts but not data as normal PAYG at standard per-unit rates paid for out of your standing PAYG credit balance.

To save the SIM going into hibernation due to lack of use, just remember within every 179 days (~ 6 months) to make a chargeable action like making a chargeable call or text, topping up or buying a Pack or Add-on, not just using your mins, texts or data from any Pack or Add-on you might have."

I hope this helps.

[XRaySpeX]

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@sw2boro wrote:

So, if you have a PAYG, it will get set up with a pack when you buy it? And then on day 30 of ownership you have to extend that pack? What happens if you don't?

All EE PAYG SIMs come primed with an auto recurring pack & when it expires it will auto renew the next time you have sufficient PAYG credit to buy it. Until then you won't have any pack but will be able to make calls & texts, but not data, directly from your credit at standard rates.

@sw2boro wrote:

how do you use or get charged for data in that circumstance? Or can you only access data when you are connected to your (or a friend's/employer's/whatever) WiFi?

You may always use data over a WiFi connection. It is of no concern of EE or your SIM. To use mobile data you would need to buy a data Add-on from your credit. To do this you text ADD DATA to 150 & choose 1.

@sw2boro wrote:

I mean, say I had a PAYG, I use it mainly as a WhatsApp machine round the house, I might make a very occasional call when I am out and about or a text, why would I want a pack?

---

You need to do the arithmetic. Is it cheaper to buy data thro' a pack than thro' an add-on? Packs give you far more data then add-ons, but if you only need little data occasionally an add-on whenever you need it might be be more appropriate. For larger data you could still use your pack occasionally by timing your top-ups of your credit judiciously.

STOP PACK does not stop your current pack as such but stops it auto renewing after it expires until you buy another pack. 

I believe this response which answers your Qs in your 1st post also covers your 2nd post, but if it doesn't just ask.

[sw2boro]

Thanks for the reply XRaySpeX, some useful stuff in there.

1) So - the auto-renewal thing. It sounds like the phone I gave as a gift will use up the £15 credit over the next week buying a new pack automatically then? Unless the giftee does the STOP PACK thing?

And if they did STOP PACK, the phone will just use up the £15 over a period of time, in classic PAYG style. Which is basically fine.

2) Right, so you can't just PAYG mobile data/network data. Seems a bit odd, but that seems to be how it works. I have had a bit of a read up on the Add-ons and in some ways it seems relatively straightforward - but I cannot see a price list on the website. Please could you point me to it?

3) Yeah, packs vs add-ons is for the individual to decide, and so far I am thinking add-ons is likely to be the best way for the phone owner in this instance. However - do add-ons have a time limit/expire after 30 days or anything? And as at 2), I can't (yet) see how much add-ons are.

This does seem like an awkward system, though. I was a PAYG person years ago, but have had a contract with EE for c.15 years now so have not paid much attention to PAYG for some time. I bought a smartphone as a present for someone who is not particularly tech savvy and has no interest in the business side of this stuff either - they would never have tried to do this themselves and would have rather gone without a smartphone than get involved with pricing structures etc. I am not doing much better, despite working with computers and businesses for many years!

Anyway, my thanks again for your patience and help.

[XRaySpeX]

1. Yes, if the SIM already had the £15 credit on it when you bought it or handed it over it will be used immediately to buy the primed pack for the 1st time & it'll be too late to STOP PACK now. Otherwise, if it has no credit on it already the giftee may text STOP PACK before he ever tops-up & revert to standard call & text PAYG.
2. PAYG PLAN PRICE GUIDE Non-Standard Charges 
3. Add-ons are for a duration of 7 or 30 days.

[sw2boro]

That's great, ta.

As it happens, the £5 pack thing may be the best for the giftee, but that's a discussion I will need to have with them next time I see them...

Thanks again - you may not have given me the answers I would have liked, but you have helped me get things much clearer in my own mind, and that's appreciated.

[XRaySpeX]

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

I don't see what answers you may not like, other than not being able to buy data directly from credit.

[sw2boro]

Aye, basically that - but that's EE's doing, not yours!