1p Mobile T's & C's

[Martin Nicholas]

Our terms and conditions are changing

We are writing to advise you that we will shortly be changing the terms
and conditions of your 1pMobile service as set out below; these changes
will become effective on 1 October 2021. Please note that there is no
change to our core pricing of 1p/minute, 1p/text, and 1p/MB.

Summary of the change we are making

We are replacing the requirement to top-up your 1p mobile account with
a minimum of at least £10 every 120 days, with a new minimum spend
requirement of £2.50 per month.

--
Regards,

Martin Nicholas.

E-mail: reply-...@mgn.org.uk (Address will be valid throughout
September).

The Usenet: 41 years of social media.

[Woody]

On Fri 03/09/2021 06:41, Martin Nicholas wrote:
>
> Our terms and conditions are changing
>
> We are writing to advise you that we will shortly be changing the terms
> and conditions of your 1pMobile service as set out below; these changes
> will become effective on 1 October 2021. Please note that there is no
> change to our core pricing of 1p/minute, 1p/text, and 1p/MB.
>
> Summary of the change we are making
>
> We are replacing the requirement to top-up your 1p mobile account with
> a minimum of at least £10 every 120 days, with a new minimum spend
> requirement of £2.50 per month.
>

Methinks that will probably loose them a lot of customers?

[Tweed]

It’s going to lose them the customers they don’t want.

It’s the age old problem. Start a new virtual network - need customers so
offer very good terms. Then discover that hoards of low spending
unprofitable folk sign up. All the high spending people stay with the
mainstream networks. I’m never quite sure what the long term business plan
of these ultra cheap networks is.

[Chris Green]

Martin Nicholas <reply...@mgn.org.uk> wrote:
>
> Our terms and conditions are changing
>
> We are writing to advise you that we will shortly be changing the terms
> and conditions of your 1pMobile service as set out below; these changes
> will become effective on 1 October 2021. Please note that there is no
> change to our core pricing of 1p/minute, 1p/text, and 1p/MB.
>
> Summary of the change we are making
>
> We are replacing the requirement to top-up your 1p mobile account with
> a minimum of at least £10 every 120 days, with a new minimum spend
> requirement of £2.50 per month.
>

It's not really PAYGO then though is it!?

Essentially it's a £2.50/month contract with 'shareable' total spend
on calls, messages and data.

For £6/month you can get unlimited calls and SMS with 4Gb data (or
even more in some cases).

--
Chris Green
·

[Richmond]

Martin Nicholas <reply...@mgn.org.uk> writes:

> Our terms and conditions are changing
>
> We are writing to advise you that we will shortly be changing the terms
> and conditions of your 1pMobile service as set out below; these changes
> will become effective on 1 October 2021. Please note that there is no
> change to our core pricing of 1p/minute, 1p/text, and 1p/MB.
>
> Summary of the change we are making
>
> We are replacing the requirement to top-up your 1p mobile account with
> a minimum of at least £10 every 120 days, with a new minimum spend
> requirement of £2.50 per month.

If a month is 30 days then that's the same amount of money.

[Tweed]

Not if the text is taken at face value. It requires you to *spend* £2.50 a
month. That means you have to go to the effort of using up credit if you
are under the limit.

[Richmond]

Ah I see I misread it.

[David Woolley]

On 03/09/2021 10:16, Tweed wrote:
> Not if the text is taken at face value. It requires you to*spend* £2.50 a

> month. That means you have to go to the effort of using up credit if you
> are under the limit.
>

I noticed that as well, but concluded that it didn't really make sense,
so I assume they will deplete the account at the end of the month, if
there is a short fall.

Although the total amount is the same, it is going to look better on
their balance sheet, as the unused top up will appear as a liability on
the balance sheet. It is something that the accountants will treat as
being owed to the customer, until you actually use the services you have
paid for.

[Pete Forman]

This is a significant change. Their USP used to be that although they
required a top up of £10 / 120 days, which is the same as £2.50 / 30
days, that credit did not expire. So, say, you could spend little in the
first three months and then use the service a lot in the fourth month or
even later. Now that credit will be lost. IMHO the essence of PAYG is
that top ups (other than bolt-ons/add-ons) do not expire, unless you are
terminated through inactivity.

These changes apply to those who signed up before 2021. It remains to be
be revealed what the conditions will be for new customers come October
but it seems that they will effectively be a monthly contract operator
rather than PAYG.
--
Pete Forman
https://payg.pythonanywhere.com

[MikeS]

Agreed.

I have used them for over 3 years. My *average* monthly spend is >£2.50
but it varies very widely between months. Under the present system that
was no problem even if I went several consecutive months with low use.
Now those months will increase my spend.

Unfortunately as most of my spend is presently for calls I still cannot
find any better PAYG SIM unless you spend more than £6 per month (the
cheapest free call bundles) on giffgaff or iD. Neither expires credit or
has a minimum spend but their call rates with credit are higher than 1p
(especially giffgaff). Suggestions welcome if I have missed any options.

[Woody]

ISTR there is one SP who do a speech/text only deal for £4/m

[Woody]

What about those like me who signed up <in> 2021 before the end of this
month?

[Pete Forman]

I have seen emails sent to two customers. They clearly set out the
changes to the T&C in clause 3 ("minimum spend of £2.50 every 30 days")
and knock ons from that. The also say that the changes apply to all
customers who joined 1pMobile before 1 January 2021.

Given that you have not received any communication there looks to be a
reasonable chance that you can stay on the current £10 / 120 days. The
web site front page and T&C still say that.

My guess is that new customers from October will be on the new deal and
2021 customers will transition at some point next year.

[Chris in Makati]

On Sat, 04 Sep 2021 19:41:40 +0100, Pete Forman
<petef4...@gmail.com> wrote:

>This is a significant change. Their USP used to be that although they
>required a top up of £10 / 120 days, which is the same as £2.50 / 30
>days, that credit did not expire. So, say, you could spend little in the
>first three months and then use the service a lot in the fourth month or
>even later. Now that credit will be lost. IMHO the essence of PAYG is
>that top ups (other than bolt-ons/add-ons) do not expire, unless you are
>terminated through inactivity.

This is exactly what I used to like about 1pMobile.

I'm in the UK only for a few months of the year, with the remainder of
my time spent in SE Asia. I could let my credit build up in my
1pMobile account until I was back in the UK, and could then use it to
buy all the data I needed. It seems that option will no longer
available.

For other reasons, I switched from 1pMobile to Sky some time ago. Sky
allows you to roll over and accumulate unused data in your account for
up to 3 years. I believe that Sky are now the only UK network with a
tariff like that.

Chris

[Andy Burns]

Pete Forman wrote:

> I have seen emails sent to two customers. They clearly set out the
> changes to the T&C in clause 3 ("minimum spend of £2.50 every 30 days")
> and knock ons from that. The also say that the changes apply to all
> customers who joined 1pMobile before 1 January 2021.
>
> Given that you have not received any communication there looks to be a
> reasonable chance that you can stay on the current £10 / 120 days. The
> web site front page and T&C still say that.

I'm the email contact for my brother's 1p mobile account, it was setup
in April 2019, it received the notification on 2nd Sep that T&C will
change on 1st Oct.

[MikeS]

I emailed 1pMobile and asked whether their email meant that customers
joining during 2021 *and thereafter* will continue with the 120 day
topup requirement and no minimum monthly spend. This is their reply:

"That is correct, these changes in the T&C's are happening for customers
who joined before the 1st of January 2021."

No other information was offered but I find it bizarre that they have
apparently decided to offer worse terms only to long standing customers.

[Pete Forman]

I posed the same questions but have not had a reply yet. It seems that
my guess about those signing up in the immediate future is wrong.

I agree it is bizarre but if I play Devil's advocate there may be an
explanation. They may have sleepers who are racking up auto renewals
three times a year and that credit is a liability for 1pMobile. The
monthly minimum spend allows them to claw some of that in. It is still
sad that they will punish loyal customers.

I wonder if it is possible to port out and then back to get back on the
good T&C?

For very low users £2.50 / month is still the cheapest. 3 and Lebara
start at £5 / month though slightly cheaper deals are listed via
comparison sites.

[MikeS]

I have averaged >£2.50 a month since joining 1p but recently some months
fall below that which is why the change annoys me. iD have no minimum
usage but their credit call rate is 3p/min so I would end up spending
more anyway.

For really low use (on my 2G backup phone) I have giffgaff where an
initial £10 topup lasts "forever". Unfortunately their credit call rates
are so expensive that you need to buy a £6 monthly bundle if you call
for more than about 14min/month.

[Martin Nicholas]

I should add that I'm an existing customer. I was quoting the email
that was sent to me.

--
Regards,

Martin Nicholas.

E-mail: reply-...@mgn.org.uk (Address will be valid throughout
September).

What did you learn today? Something, I hope.

[tim...]

"Pete Forman" <petef4...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:877dftv...@gmail.com...

as has been said already;

loyal customers who only spend 50ppm isn't loyalty that you need

[Tweed]

Exactly. Why is there this expectation that potential service has to be
provided for next to nothing? Remember for landlines, which was all we had
once upon a time, you have to pay monthly rental even if you never make a
call. As has been pointed out before, there are costs to the networks
regardless of whether or not you make calls.

[Chris Green]

Tweed <usenet...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >> I agree it is bizarre but if I play Devil's advocate there may be an
> >> explanation. They may have sleepers who are racking up auto renewals
> >> three times a year and that credit is a liability for 1pMobile. The
> >> monthly minimum spend allows them to claw some of that in. It is still
> >> sad that they will punish loyal customers.
> >
> > as has been said already;
> >
> > loyal customers who only spend 50ppm isn't loyalty that you need
> >
> >
> Exactly. Why is there this expectation that potential service has to be
> provided for next to nothing? Remember for landlines, which was all we had
> once upon a time, you have to pay monthly rental even if you never make a
> call. As has been pointed out before, there are costs to the networks
> regardless of whether or not you make calls.
>

Yes, but the networks need to be honest about what they're charging
too.

--
Chris Green
·

[MikeS]

This is not simply about stopping very low spending users. The original
terms require exactly the same minimum spend per month. The difference
is reducing the flexibility to carry credit over from the odd low usage
month or two.

If offering the original T&Cs to new customers only is now a time
limited special offer that should be clear on the website. Everybody has
introductory offers these days but they are forced to say so, usually in
tiny print. Possibly 1p can get away with it because there is no
contract to sign up to. That doesn't make it any less unethical.

[David Woolley]

On 07/09/2021 21:35, MikeS wrote:
> Possibly 1p can get away with it because there is no contract to sign up to.

I'm pretty sure that small print rules go with contracts not Contracts.
No later than when they actually provide a service to you, and
possibly as soon as you send payment, you are entering a contract, even
if that is not a Contract, meaning a contract that commits you, and not
just them, for a significant amount of time.

As I and someone else have hinted, the new arrangement can look a lot
better in their accounts. With the four month system, they can't claim
to have received any income from you until you actually use the service,
and your outstanding credit is shown as a debt that they owe. With the
new system they can claim income from you every month, and their debt
doesn't continuously grow, if you come in under the £10 per four months.

[Woody]

On Fri 12/11/2021 08:57, Andy Burns wrote:
> Martin Nicholas quoted:

>> Our terms and conditions are changing
>>
>> We are writing to advise you that we will shortly be changing the terms
>> and conditions of your 1pMobile service as set out below; these changes
>> will become effective on 1 October 2021.
>

> I think my brother has been using his mobile less recently (I keep him
> topped up) first message received relating to the new T&Cs today
>
> "Your monthly usage for the last 30-day period on your 1pMobile account
> was below the minimum spend requirement of £2.50, and therefore
> shortfall of £0.51 has been deducted from your credit balance".
>

Didn't I see something that said that this change in T&C only applies to
users who were active before 2021?

[Andy Burns]

Martin Nicholas quoted:

> Our terms and conditions are changing
>
> We are writing to advise you that we will shortly be changing the terms
> and conditions of your 1pMobile service as set out below; these changes
> will become effective on 1 October 2021.

[Andy Burns]

Woody wrote:

> Didn't I see something that said that this change in T&C only applies to users
> who were active before 2021?

Yes, I think so, it's not worth the hassle of moving the number away and back again.

[Martin Nicholas]

This is the, now rather frowned upon, business practice of shafting
loyal customers.

It's a pity they don't relate the minimum spend to the top-up. i.e: you
have 120 days to spend your £10, etc. That way I can text the excess to
charity as I did before.

--
Regards,

Martin Nicholas.

E-mail: reply-...@mgn.org.uk (Address will be valid throughout

November).

The Usenet: Join the conversation.

[MikeS]

You did but what really annoyed me about that was they announced the
change as an "improvement" in the service. If they believe that how come
they are using the old "unimproved" service to attract new customers?