SIM for lift emergency line

[dw3305]

Our block is changing the lift emergency line to a GSM system which needs a SIM card.  Our suppliers are saying we need one on a contract for £10 a month, whereas PAYG seems a no-brainer to me.  I'd be surprised if it made more than half a dozen calls a year, and four of them would be on the quarterly inspections, which would keep the number alive.  Is there some reason we can't just get a PAYG SIM, register it, top it up with £10 and make a diary note to check the balance every year?

[XRaySpeX]

What sort of device is it in? Can it receive & send texts? If not, you will run into these problems, PAYG or contract:

1. Won't be able to register it. Needs to read a OTA text.
2. Won't be able to check balance. Needs to send a text.
3. ...

[dw3305]

I was thinking that we put the SIM in a phone when we first get it to create an account.  We can then receive any texts we need to validate it, and subsequently check the balance and top up the credit when necessary.  The occasional calls the device makes keep the number alive.

[XRaySpeX]

As long as you can do that & register it you should be OK. At the same time you should text STOP PACK to 150 to remove the pre-primed pack that it comes with. The online EE a/c should give you the balance at any time.