Failed Port from Vodafone

[AmzChhabra]

I am a small business customer who recently joined EE. Porting was supposed to happen yesterday and as per the usual process, my Voda SIM stopped working, followed by a text message from EE stating the number port had been completed.

Data works on the new EE Sim, however when calling or making calls from what should be my previous number, I get the message "You have dialled an incorrect number". Weirdly I can send and receive text messages, but only via the temporary number issued with the EE sim.

Numerous calls to customer services has ended up with me being transferred to an EE store, Apple or the line being cut off rather than any sort of help from the small business team in India. I was told I needed to go to an EE store to provide proof of ID so I can get a password set on the account, the EE store tried a new SIM, and other troubleshooting tactics, but still nothing. The UK team cannot help me as its a small business account and I am stuck with a business line that cannot receive or make calls, or receive SMS.

Is there some sort of escalation path to someone I can speak to in the UK to get this resolved, seems like a simple "Split Port" problem, perhaps needs a network refresh on EEs side. The India team are unfotunately not helpful at times, and where they fall short, they seem to just palm me off to someone else to make it not their problem.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[bristolian]

You've done absolutely the right thing in contacting EE-CS to report this problem, and you're right - there is an escalation process for these "split port" and similar scenarios.

It sounds like yours might be complicated by the lack of an account password to enable frontline-CS to verify your identity, and they're referring you to an EE retail store to perhaps use face-to-face methods to pass account security instead. In doing so, the store is using some initiative to try well-meaning methods to troubleshoot, without realising your issues are clearly account/core-network level and thus need action directed there.

I am unsure what specific processes CS have to verify the identity of a new business account, but I should imagine they would need to be undertaken by the nominated account point-of-contact in the first instance - after all, the company is the defined legal entity in this case and thus you could potentially be a random third party. Out of interest, how many individual lines are on "your" business account?

[AmzChhabra]

Only the one on this account, set up as a sole trader. I set up another one 2 days previously, with a port from 3, that went through no issues. In all the years of porting numbers, this is the first time one has failed for me and the inconvenience of not being able to receive calls is causing no end of issues, and being a business account I am unable to commuinicate.

[bristolian]

Ah, a sole trader is the "grey area" with business accounts, there's no separate legal entity which remains the individual.

I'm not familiar with CS' processes here, but I should imagine that there would be an option for CS agents to ask alternative account-specific questions that only the sole-trader individual should be in a position to know. That would enable account-security to be passed, a password set, and the technical escalation process to thus be followed.

[AmzChhabra]

so we have a password on the account now, as we went into store and verified using photo id. the next steps i would imagine is to get someone in CS to do a sim activation and network reset, but getting anyone in the small business team to do anything seems to be an issue, as they just bat the call off to someone else!

[Christopher_G]

Hi @AmzChhabra 

Welcome to the community.

It's good to hear that you've managed to get the security aspect of your account sorted. I recommend restarting your phone and resetting the network settings on your device:

Tap Settings > General > Reset > Reset Network Settings > Follow the on-screen prompts.

If it still isn't working, I can only suggest speaking with our Small Business team on 150 again, so that it can be looked into further by the team who handle number ports.

Please keep us updated with what happens.

Chris

[AmzChhabra]

Thanks for the reply. These steps have been done, alongside many other troubleshooting steps. I finally got through to someone who didnt transfer me to an EE store or Apple for help, who has raised a ticket with the MNP team to look at the port as it definitely seems to have failed.

My concern now is that the MNP team are only contactable via email from the tech team, not via phone or any other means (supposedly) and there is no timeline on how long this will take to fix. 

Annoyingly I am flying out to Greece on Monday, flight is at 9:05am, so if we can't get it resolved today, I will be at a loss with no phone for  week which is hugely concerning for me. I cannot even have the calls diverted at a network level to temporary phone as the number now ceases to exist anywhere!

Hugely dissapointing start to a new contract and relationship with EE.

[Christopher_G]

Thanks for the update, @AmzChhabra .

These issues are very uncommon. It is really unfortunate that it has happened this close to your trip too, so I understand your disappointment.

Fingers crossed the MNP team can get this sorted quickly for you.

Chris

[bristolian]

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@AmzChhabra wrote:

Annoyingly I am flying out to Greece on Monday, flight is at 9:05am, so if we can't get it resolved today, I will be at a loss with no phone for  week which is hugely concerning for me.

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My understanding is that some of EE's MNP-support does work outside weekday hours.

Much depends where the issue lies here - whether it's internal to EE or requires co-op from the donor-network. If you've got a single-user fault raised, that's absolutely the best course of action.

[AmzChhabra]

OK so the plot thickens, and I am now losing the will to live with the support team. It appears the port is correct, although the MNP team have not confirmed. I am now being told that the SIM card issued to me is actually inactive, and the SIM provided by the store yesterday as part of their troubleshooting is the correct SIM, but that one is completely dead and will not register to the network.

I am at a loss here, they are saying the new SIM card is active, so they cannot activate it again, yet it is completely dead. The original SIM works for data and SMS (on the temp number).

They have conveniently asked me to wait 24 hours from when the SIM was registered in store, which according to their systems is 18:04, just after the time at which small business CS closes!

Is there not anyone else in EE that can help here @Christopher_G? I seem to be going around in circles, and the lost time and revenue at this stage is more than the contract is worth over the next 10 years!