Help! Can't phone O2 and live chat not working.

[Anonymous]

im in France at the moment and there's a call bar on my number that means I can't phone O2. I can receive calls and the Internet works but I cannot make calls (pop up tells me call are barred). I managed to get my sister in England to call O2 yesterday and they said they had requested the bar be removed and it would take between 2 and 24 hours but 25 hours later it is still there. What can I do?

I have tried re-booting my phone every two hours..

[MI5]

There has to be a roaming block on your account - can't be anything else, surely....?

[Anonymous]

Yes, there is.  The trouble is that every time I speak to o2 they say, no, they swear it has been removed but it never is.

The most frustrating thing about all this is that I have to wait until I'm abroad before I can find out if they have removed the bar.  I'm stuck.

[MI5]

It shouldn't be difficult to sort out. Maybe a new account is the only way though.

[Anonymous]

I will have to buy my way out of this one first.

I think what I'm going to do is nothing until I know I'm going away again in a couple of months.  Then, when I cancel it will be cheaper.  I will then move to 3 who do free roaming.  I don't want to because I've been with o2 for years and years and have business cards with my o2 number printed on them but I can't see another way out of this.  I'm not even convinced if I let this contract end and then make a new one that I won't be associated with the previous account and I won't still have the same problem.  It seems like even when the bars are removed, they get put back on again.

It's a Kafkaesque nightmare.

[Anonymous]

Oh and they don't seem to want to put me through to somebody senior.  I might write a letter.

[Cleoriff]

Hi @Anonymous

If you do move to Three don't worry about losing your existing number (as you have that printed on business cards etc. Just ask for your PAC from customer services http://www.o2.co.uk/contactus and give it to Three

Some general info here about porting your number from O2 to Three

http://www.portnumber.co.uk/transfer/mobile/from-O2/to-Three

[Anonymous]

Thank you for that but I'm worried that I might take any problems with me if I keep my number.

I'm completely paranoid now.

[jonsie]

Only the number will transfer.  Nothing account related will cross over at all so you don't need to worry. 

[Cleoriff]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thank you for that but I'm worried that I might take any problems with me if I keep my number.

I'm completely paranoid now.

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I go abroad a lot and know how you must feel. As you say the only way of testing is to to wait till you get abroad and then you are stuck if it doesn't work. (Though moving that number to three wont mean you take a roaming bar with you)......:smileywink:

[Anonymous]

I know it's all a bit 'first world problem' but not having my data connection spoiled my holiday.

I really don't understand why o2 are unable to unbar my account, or let me close this one without penalty as I will be opening another.