Nokia phone

[perose]

My husband has a pay as you go mobile phone for emergency use only whilst hill walking. Fortunately he has not needed to use it but the credit has been taken so now it is useless. Does anyone know why this has happened? We are reluctant to put any more money on it as the same will probably happen again.

[Goofy]

I had a contract that I had to make a call every 3 months or it stopped. Got into the habit of making one call a month just to make sure. Like your husband, it was only for emergency use, but worth the small cost of a call to keep it 'alive'.
I suspect this is the same with your contract. In fact, I had to use the free (ha ha - the amount that came with it) in the first month or I lost that too.

[perose]

Thanks Goofy, my husband says what happens to the money that they steal from you? He is thinking of crushing the phone in his vice and sending it back to them!

[ACtheTROLL]

the call thing is part of the way payg pays for it'self .... you are after all getting a virtual "line" rent free
and there are only so many numbers to go around so .....
just like bank accounts .... use it or lose it.

a 1 second call every 2 months 28 days (to be safe) isn't going to break the bank..... I know hill walkers in general walk because they hate other people .... but he could ring himself .... so the interaction can be kept to a minimum.

think of it as recycling

.... even my 78 year old mum manages to keep her phone going

[Rollo]

This happened to me with a "pay as you go" mobile.

I rang the service provider and after going through some security checks and details given when I registered with them, they restored the service and the credit I had on the account.

Now I make a call every month to make sure it does not happen again.

[Quoi]

Its not only your credit they will take - If a phone is unused for a while they will reallocate the number!

[perose]

Thank you to all.

[tellboy]

here are the rules for pay as you go on orange

We will disconnect your Device if during the previous six months, you have not Registered a new Top Up or you have not made chargeable calls from your Device or received incoming calls on your phone. For the avoidance of doubt calls shall include but not be limited to voice calls, data calls and text messaging. On disconnection your mobile telephone number will be reassigned. On Re-connection you will be assigned a new mobile telephone number. Orange may at its discretion, on request and on Re-connection to the Services, re-credit the amount remaining on your account at the time it was disconnected.