topic No signal in France in Tech Support

No signal in France

nidostar — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 11:55:44 GMT

I have an iPhone on an O2 monthly contract. I am in France on holiday at a destination I often visit. Previously I have had excellent all bars mobile phone coverage here. I can actually see the Orange telephone mast from the garden. However currently there is no Orange FR service at all. I can receive other services (Free, SFR, Bouygues) but the signals are very weak and occasional. Others at the house who have an Orange FR contract have no problem receiving a good signal. My phone's iOS is up to date. I have tried contacting O2 from here via landline but after 30 minutes in the queue I gave up. Does anyone have any suggestions for solving this, please?

Re: No signal in France

MI5 — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 11:56:43 GMT

@nidostar

Some things to try:
Manually search for another network
Reboot the phone
Turn off 5g in network settings
If you have an iPhone change your data APN to "mobile.o2.co.uk"
If still not working then contact O2 to remove the Roaming bar on your account.
If you message O2 on Facebook ( https://o2uk.co/O2CFB) , Twitter ( https://o2uk.co/O2CTW) or Instagram ( https://o2uk.co/O2CIG) , they should be able to help you with this.

Re: No signal in France

nidostar — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 12:01:55 GMT

Thank you MI5. I had seen these suggestions in other topics and tried all you suggest before posting. None of your suggestions have resolved the issue. Telephone contact with O2 failed for the reason I mentioned. I do not do Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. What next?

Re: No signal in France

jonsie — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 12:42:06 GMT

Use Skype to call the free numbers

Re: No signal in France

nidostar — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 17:40:00 GMT

Thank you jonsie. I have tried contacting O2 via landline but ended up in a queue which I left after 30 minutes waiting. I can't see how Skype would help (do people still use Skype in the 2020s?).

Re: No signal in France

jonsie — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 18:11:59 GMT

It was just an option as you have no signal on your phone

No one I know uses Skype but I have used it a number of times when in Thailand to call O2 and UK based banks. Oh....and changing a flight with Emirate which was great fun but expensive!

Re: No signal in France

nidostar — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 20:39:59 GMT

Thanks again. I find calls via WhatsApp to be the most convenient. But my problem is more to do with the inability to exchange SMS text messages or to make/receive calls from/to my mobile number. I wonder if O2 have fallen out with Orange FR such that the latter no longer facilitates roaming for the former. Bear in mind other French carriers appear to work. It's just that their signals where I am are extremely weak and keep disappearing when I need them.

Re: No signal in France

madasaf1sh — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 21:30:23 GMT

@nidostar

It could be that the Orange mast is not working correctly, hence you cant connect to... Orange FR roaming still works..

This page from Orange FR might help https://suivi-des-incidents.orange.fr/infos-couverture-mobile

Re: No signal in France

nidostar — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 21:38:57 GMT

Thanks madasaf1sh. It was worth a try but sadly the link page shows I should be receiving an "excellente" signal. As indeed I was until January. As I mentioned above, others at the house who have Orange FR accounts appear to be receiving a good signal. It suggests a setting has been changed such that mine and my wife's iPhones no longer receive a signal. But then why are we able to get a signal from other providers when we visit nearby towns? Most odd.

Re: No signal in France

jonsie — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 21:55:07 GMT

How long have you been in France?

Last year some new usage (FUP) terms were introduced

Along with the 25GB per month limit there is a 63 day continuous usage limit restriction

Just wondering

Re: No signal in France

MI5 — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 22:00:14 GMT

According to the T&C's it's addition charges, not disconnection.

Using our services in our Europe Zone for more than 63 days in any four-month period is what we consider to be unfair use. If you do this we’ll send you a fair usage notification by text. If you continue to use these services after we’ve notified you, we’ll apply surcharges for further usage that we recognise as overage.

These surcharges are £3.50 per GB for data, 3.3p per minute for calls and 1p per text. The surcharges will appear on your next month’s bill. We’ll stop applying surcharges to your European Zone usage once the majority of your usage over the previous four months has been in the UK.

Roaming Fair Usage | Terms and Conditions | O2

Re: No signal in France

pgn — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 22:01:14 GMT

If this is the first time you have used that iPhone in that location, there is a possibility the antenna in the phone is not working correctly, or is defective...

Alas, booking in to an Apple iPhone Repair Bar for an Apple tech to run checks on it might not be so easy... France and Apple have history: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/right-to-repair-apple-france @nidostar

Re: No signal in France

nidostar — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 23:54:03 GMT

Some good points here. We generally only switch mobile data on when we're away from the house. A couple of times last year we were told that we had exceeded our "fair usage" quota and would be charged. The charges weren't unreasonable actually. I don't think O2 cut you off if you exceed their "fair usage" allowance. On this occasion both my wife and I lost signal in January less than a month since we were last in the UK. Both our phones are affected so I don't think it's an antenna issue. The plot thickens! Thanks for all your input.

Re: No signal in France

madasaf1sh — Tue, 12 Mar 2024 09:33:03 GMT

@nidostar

Sounds like a local issue with the Orange Mast, I am afraid, if you can maybe worth speaking to people in the village you are in and asking if they use Orange and have any issues..

Re: No signal in France

nidostar — Tue, 12 Mar 2024 11:19:59 GMT

Yes I think you're right @madasaf1sh. Though I know Orange FR subscribers locally have no problem getting a signal. I shall continue to pursue.

Re: No signal in France

MI5 — Tue, 12 Mar 2024 11:36:11 GMT

@nidostar

It wouldn't be unusual for Orange Fr to block roaming connections if they needed more capacity for their own subscribers.

I've always found SFr to be the best in our region for signal.

Re: No signal in France

nidostar — Tue, 12 Mar 2024 14:03:34 GMT

I hadn't though of that @MI5. It could certainly explain things.

Re: No signal in France

jimi_jo — Mon, 02 Dec 2024 11:33:38 GMT

I am having the same problem. Not even the O2 app will load and I am in a house with the fastest WiFi service there is!

Re: No signal in France

Enlli — Mon, 02 Dec 2024 12:25:34 GMT

@jimi_jo If you are using WiFi then it's nothing to do with O2 roaming