Furious at O2 - Security process to Unlock second hand iPhon

I have just had a 35 minute conversation with a wall.

So I bought a used 3G 16GB from ebay over a year ago. Mint condition and 2 months old with the original PAYG SIM. I then removed the PAYG SIM and put my O2 simplicity SIM in it for the past year.

I call O2 today to get my iPhone unlocked so I can sell it as 'officially' unlocked, and to be robbed in the process of £15 (cheeky So*s). All was going fine until the security process asked for the first time that I had used the SIM and when my last PAYG top-up was and for how much?

I told him that I have never topped it up personally, that I have never used that PAYG SIM ever in the year that I had owned it. So, o2 refused to unlock my phone. There must be tens of thousands of people who have purchased second hand iphones that are over a year old, that want them unlocked who are not going to have this sort of information! He suggested we all call the people we bought the phones from (over a year ago on ebay!) and ask them to look through their credit card bills so they can give us all the exact amounts and dates!!

Can anyone think of any solution to this? Or has anyone encountered the same STUPID O2 policy and wondered what to do next? The only recourse to me was suggested that I write a letter of complaint to O2. What, and wait 6 months for O2 to get their heads out of their backsides and change a stupid policy?

They obviously deliberately want to make it as hard as possible for us to legitimately unlock our handsets.

why do you expect o2 to disreguard a policy designed protect customers accounts and devices when you did not/cannot prove that you are a customer?

Perhaps you could try asking orange or voda!

Sorry to say but whilst I'm sure your iPhone is 100% legit, O2 don't know this and they are 100% justified in asking the questions they do.

Well luckily someone at O2 saw it my way then! After 3 phone calls I found someone at O2 with more common sense than most - she immediately saw the predicament, and resolved the issue for me.

I have been a pay-monthly customer with them for 5 years and have 2 other PAYG SIMS registered with them - the phone is official UK O2 stock that I have been using for over a year. It's IMEI is clear and legit so I see no reason why people who have paid good money for these phones - allbeit secondhand - shouldn't have the chance to unlock their phones legally as per O2's policy.

There must be a lot of customers who have used other sims in these phones after buying them second hand - both O2 and other network sims, and they should not be prevented from unlocking them legally simply because they do not know the exact activation date - also the 14-28 day waiting period is a joke. If a PAC code can be issued within 7 days and usually within just a few hours, so should unlocking codes. Especially as we are paying for the service.

Saw common sense or broke the rules? in your favour this time but next time it may not be, please bo so forgiving then!

What did she do? Issue you an unlock code? Are you now unlocked? How long did it take?

I don't understand your position at all...why are you so against honest people getting an honest service? I take it you think it's fine for O2 to not unlock PAYG customer's phones just because they are second hand?

I remind you that O2 made all their profit at the point of sale - some £550 I think. Also all other o2 phones are either sold unlocked or are unlocked for free at the end of the contract period if you are pay monthly or can be unlocked from any high street store for a fiver. I have unlocked all my past phones at home for free via my computer. (edited to remove a term that was 'moderated' by big brother).

Why are you defending a (should be illegal) strategy that only applies to the dreaded iphone? Can you not see that I (at least) have a point? The phone is linked to the IMEI number - as long as the IMEI is clean (not registered as stolen or lost) and if the phone was activated over a year ago or more then the current owner should be able to officially unlock his/her phone as long as they have a credit card on file and are an existing customer of O2's.

And no, she didn't break any rules - I don't think anyone would do this for a customer, you'd have to be pretty stupid to put your job at risk over unlocking a phone. I wasted an hour talking to two people who couldn't understand my point, I suppose it all depends on who you talk to as to the level of service you get, which is better than just having drones read from a screen who choose not to use their heads to try and solve a customer's issue.

Last edited by abcdefg on Fri Nov 20, 2009 3:09 pm; edited 3 times in total

She put it through under my O2 pay monthly number that I have been using in the phone for the past 12+ months instead of the initial PAYG sim which I never used (but still have registered to me). I will still have to wait for the unlock code like everyone else, she even spoke to a supervisor who ok'd the procedure and said it would be fine.

That is customer service, actually listening AND being able to act.

that's fine because that proves that you have been using that number with that phone, the other number did not.

It's all about proof of ownership, and O2 not just unlocking phones for any tom dick or harriett that calls in.

Please you were satified (sort of) in the end

Yes, all's well that ends well

I'm just so annoyed at the first two CS reps I spoke to - the first one was just so dense and stubborn and incapable of thinking outside the box. He just kept repeating the mantra 'if you don't pass the security there's nothing I can do...' and the second woman (Natalie; nice woman) and I just spent 20 mins arguing over silly points unrelated! At no time did they actually stop to think about the problem and try and suggest a solution.

The 3rd person, a wonderful women called Sarah - immediately suggested a solution and acted on it. It's a shame that O2's training isn't standardized and that all the people there aren't as savy & helpful as Sarah is.

After all those arguments, my iPhone was unlocked yesterday by O2. It only took a couple of days from filling in the form to getting the text confirmation.

Unlocking via itunes was easy and straight forward. A big thank you to Sarah (Scottish accent) in the iPhone PAYG CS department for resolving the problem.