Hi everyone - my sister is currently experiencing the below; because of the issues mentioned, she's unsure if it will create further problems by creating her own account to post this.
I hope this is the correct Forum Board to raise this. Her query is below:
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This is quite a complicated one for me to explain hence the really long post - I’m really sorry. I’ve tried to summarise three phonecalls, which in total lasted for over 4 hours yesterday.
*NB: I have already requested a PAC code from my existing provider, and I have 14 days left to use it.*
I saw a deal on Uswitch for an O2 SIM only 32GB £8/month (12-month plan, unlimited calls/text), which directed me to the O2 website. When I pressed checkout, there are two options: sign in as an existing customer or register as a new customer. I went for the latter using my email address (Email 1), but it said that there is already an account with Email 1.
NB: I was an O2 customer a few years ago. I assumed no customer account details would have been kept.
I then went through ‘log in as an existing customer’, using Email 1, clicking on forget password, which tells me to put in last 4 digits of Direct Debit and postcode. I didn’t know what to do because as I mentioned, I am not a current O2 customer so I called O2.
There weren’t any operator options that seemed relevant to my query but eventually got through to Agent 1. I explained the situation and asked if it was possible to dissociate Email 1 from my previous account so I can go through the order. Agent 1 said that’s not possible and suggested the following:
- To use a different email address/create a new email address and go through register as a new customer
- Go through the forgot password and enter in direct debit details that I will be using for the plan I want to purchase
- Update previous O2 account from Email 1 to different email address so it frees up Email 1 to use to purchase order.
I asked if I went through the last option, would that mean I have two accounts with O2, which Agent 1 confirmed though I can request the email address/account to be deregistered(?), so it doesn’t exist anymore, but that process will take 10 working days.
During the call, Agent 1 couldn’t match the Uswitch deal and offered a deal which I didn’t want as it was 24 months; and stated that it would be easier if I go through a purchase of a deal they’ve offered now, so they could process it over the phone on my previous account, so I don’t have issues when trying to purchase online.
I went for the third option using Email 2 (an email address that I hardly use). After the phonecall, I went through ‘register as a new customer’ using Email 1. This took me to a page to enter some personal details (full name, date of birth, address, phone number*). A message appeared that these details match an account with a different email address and either sign in with that different email address or call O2.
NB: All the details that I had entered at this stage was the details that were on my previous O2 account, as no details has changed.
*The phone number I entered is my current phone number which I want to port over once I buy the SIM only. But it was also the same number when I was with O2 a couple of years ago. I wasn’t sure what to put in here, so I put this current phone number.
I ring up O2 again and explain the whole situation to a Agent 2. Agent 2 mentioned details which Agent 1 hadn’t e.g., O2 keep details of all previous customer accounts, but it is inactive as I’m not a customer with O2 anymore.
Agent 2 said that they could see an account with Email 1 but that it is almost a dummy account as there are no details on it. The agent tried to delete this dummy account but couldn’t. They then said to try logging into previous account via existing customer option, using Email 2 (which the previous agent changed from Email 1) and go through forgot password and enter in direct debit and postcode details which was used for the previous account. (Here the agent also mentioned that if I don’t do anything, within 10 days the dummy account with Email 1 will be automatically deleted, and so after that time, once I’ve purchased the Uswitch deal with my previous account with Email 2, I can then change Email 2 to Email 1 again.)
I did the above but a message appeared that the details didn’t match; the details were correct as it was verified by Agent 2 with the information on my previous account. The agent couldn’t seem to figure out what the problem was and suggested to try again in a few hours.
At this point, I was at a double whammy as I couldn’t proceed with the order with either email addresses. Like Agent 1, Agent 2 tried to offer me a different deal as couldn’t match the Uswitch one and said that taking up a deal now over the phone would be the easiest option for me as they can’t fix this issue. The agent also suggested that I provide another email address so they could try to fix this. But I wasn’t going to create another email address and create further problems. I was put on hold while the agent said they will go to speak to their manager but eventually the line cut off…or they hung up!
I called again and was put through to Agent 3. I explained the whole situation for the third time and again the agent couldn’t help me and said multiple times the only option for me was to take a deal they were offering me (again not good deals; were 24 months which I didn’t want). I wanted to clarify the 10 days automatic deletion of the dummy account, but the Agent wasn’t sure about this (conflicting and inconsistent information given! So which information is true?!) I requested to speak to a manager, and apparently, the only way to speak to one is to raise a complaint. They put that through (giving me a Reference Number) and assured me “100%” a manager would call me back in an hour, 15:30 UK time. No manager has called since.
NB.: All agents were not from the UK.
At this point, I don’t know what to do as O2 can’t seem to fix the issue. I followed their instructions and it’s now a mess. I want to get the Uswitch deal before it runs out and use my PAC Code before its expiry so I keep my current number. I want only one account with O2 with Email 1 being the primary account email address because that’s my main email address which I use in my daily life. Had I known that this would cause so many problems, I wouldn’t have gone through the option that was provided by Agent 1, as Agent 1 didn’t provide me information on what happens after. I thought it would be simple changeover. I'm not sure if I have overcomplicated this.
Thank you for your patience for reading up until this point. I am very much hoping someone in the community will be able to help with my query.
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[I am also tagging @Dave-O2 (after reading How to find help & contact O2: A Guide - O2 Community)] - hope that is ok!
