Not receiving Incoming Calls - Fresh Sim

[#1]

I see from browsing this forum that I am not the only one having this issue of not receiving calls and going straight to voicemail.

Spoken to several of the PlusNet  team advisors, done the usual things, sent me a new SIM. Still not working!

Go down the #21# route. still not working.

Try your SIM in another phone. Occasionally worked but not every time.

Funny thing is I have even purchased a Tesco P.A.Y.Go Sim and that will receive a call every time I dialled it from my land line.

Currently I am waiting for the technical dept to get back to me with a fix!!!!, I had to supply them with 3 failed calls to my phone, 2 hrs apart. with details of the phone they came from and I have been given a timescale of 5 working days to contact me, I was told by phone!!!! Told it would be by email after pointing out I can not receive calls!!! doh

If they can't resolve this problem it will be " Issue me a PAC number and hello Tesco Mobile"

It seems this has been going on too long now and it should have been solved.

I am not holing my breath that any solution will be upcoming which is a shame as the PlusNet SIM only package is well priced and generously supplied with calls, data and text for £6.00 a month 

[#2]

Hi warrtydog!

Thanks for taking the time out to get in touch with us. 

I'm sorry to hear about the issues you've been experiencing with your SIM card. On rare occasions when an issue does arise, we do need to run through troubleshooting steps to investigate the issue and possibly implement a fix. If this cannot be resolved at a Customer Service level, it will require further investigation from our Operations Team.

I understand that you have provided us with 3 examples for the Team to investigate. Rest assured, if there is a 'bug' that could be causing this, they'll work to resolve this for you as soon as possible. 

- Rebeka 

[#3]

Hello,
Well, very interesting. Both my wife and I have hit this issue recently, called Plusnet support and then were asked to jump through the usual hoops, and, as normal, to no effect. Came on here to find that it’s not an uncommon issue. However, one of us has had it fixed, but by a method as yet unknown and obviously secret from us poor users. So it can be fixed, but why isn’t it a standard fix? Come on Plusnet, get this into your support knowledge base and sort us out (or tell us how to do it) before we are forced to go elsewhere...
Ian

[#4]

The fix that works for me on an iphone6 is to turn off 4g. This ensures all phone calls get through. If I need to use 4g for data I just switch in on again.

[#5]

Thanks. My wife and I received new SIMs today, but that did not fix it. However, your suggestion of turning off 4G has provided a temporary fix! This at least may help identify the cause of the base problem. Obviously, this is inconvenient for normal use, but at least there’s a clue here that may help the techies provide a proper solution. Fingers crossed for a quick and permanent solution. 🙂
BTW my wife’s phone is an iPhone 5S.

Ian

[#6]

Been having the exact same issue with both of my plusnet sims both in Galaxy S7's been jumping through the usual hoops etc

Typically everytime the plusnet staff called me to get the proof the call came through to my phone with no issue luckily they didn't to my other sim so they are "investigating" but i just tested what you suggested and im amazed because it worked with both phones.

When the phone is in LTE/WCDMA/GSM (Auto Connect) mode no calls get through.

When the phone is in WCDMA Only mode the calls come through with no issue.

Going to call through to support when i get the time to forward this info to them.

[#7]

Also found out this issue is local to where we live (in Broadstairs). Out of the area and it works ok. So maybe it’s a mismatch with the local mast (timings wrong?). Called PN who made us download new configs (APNs?), but no change. Hmmm...
Ian

[#8]

Hi lanro

Done fair bit of research and contacting PN customer services with regard this ongoing problem.

I have now left PlusNet and gone to Virgin mobile.

When my Virgin SIM activated and my number transferred I started to get the same problem.

If I called my mobile from my PN landline it to went straight to voicemail.Grrrrh

After a little Googling I discovered this problem is not confined to PN. It seems to be happening to all networks to some degree and not only in the UK. Its happening worldwide and has been for a number of years.

The problem is 4G/LTE in the network settings. If you have a strong 4G signal it stops your phone receiving calls for some reason.

I have set my network to 2G/3G setting, effectively turning off 4G which is 5bars I my house (EE) and I can now receive a call from my landline.

If you have a strong 4G signal in Broadstairs this is probably the cause of not receiving calls but you get calls if you are in a weak or no 4G area. Check it next time you are away from Broadstairs to see if that is the case. 

I need to try my SIM in another type of smartphone to see if it is still the same problem occurring but you would have thought phone manufacturers and phone networks would be aware of this ongoing problem and got it sorted by now.

Moderator's note by Mike (Mav): Duplicate post released from Spam Filter and removed.

[#9]

The underlying problem is that, unless the phone and network support VoLTE, then when a phone is connected via 4g, it needs to switch to 2g/3g to receive the call. If the phone is slow to do this due to signal strength or the phone itself ,then the call! Is dropped.

I don't believe any of the MVNO's support VoLTE yet, it's only supported by the major networks themselves and only on phones supplied directly by them.

[#10]

Thank you MisterW and Wartydog99. This is all very interesting. I notice another user (name forgotten) had exactly the same issue in Tewkesbury, so location is very significant.

So, this is a well known issue, covering many places, but is denied to exist by PlusNet. All the evidence points to a configuration issue to do with 4g switch over, probably in the mast electronics, although it could just be in the phone internal configuration (slow to respond or reply). Whatever, if us non-specialists can almost pin-point the problem area why can it not be resolved by the experts, or at least acknowledged? Are the technical elite hiding something far more significant from us, or are the main providers hiding something from the virtual providers (like PlusNet)? More visibility and a fix please, PlusNet. Low cost shouldn’t mean the loss of a core service, receiving phone calls...

Ian

[#11]

TBH I'm not sure how much of the problem is down to the phone OR the network. Either way I don't believe that there is anything that PlusNet can do to fix it!. They don't run the network and have no control over your phone.

I seem to recall that there were some code sequences that could be used on Android phones to extend things like voicemail timeouts but I can't seen to find them at the moment...

[#12]

This problem is also appearing in the Virgin Mobile forums recently, indicating a EE network problem?

[#13]

As PlusNet are effectively paying customers of EE they should be able to pass on our problems and demand a fix is found and implemented. The service we’re getting is definitely sub-standard and PlusNet are responsible for the service we get. I’m not sure what we, as PlusNet customers, do next to move this on... I’d rather not leave PN, but may have to 😞

[#14]

And strangely, with no announcement or any form of contact or phone update, both our iPhones are now receiving calls 100% when at home. For the last few days. Brilliant. Sounds like it WAS a local mast configuration issue that’s been quietly sorted. For anyone else with this issue I suggest that you encourage PN to get the mast setup checked!

Ian 🙂

[#15]

Whilst we'll certainly pass any information regarding potential faults to EE, who maintain the equipment, you can also register a mast fault etc with EE themselves; this will allow you to receive email updates regarding any maintenance of the network equipment directly.

You can do this at https://myaccount.ee.co.uk/networkchecker/checkservice.