Switching query

[#1]

My wife has a very basic phone and uses O2 Pay As You Go. I have the same. Her phone has a large credit balance; mine doesn’t. She has bought a new Huawei smartphone, wishes to switch to a Plusnet mobile contract and keep the same number. She has obtained the PAC code from O2. We naturally would like to transfer her existing O2 credit balance to my O2 phone.  O2 say this can be done but that her existing number will then be immediately terminated. 

Am I right in thinking that in that event she will not then be able to retain her existing number on moving to a Plusnet contract? If so, is the sensible way out of this to accept a new number (if she doesn’t use up her credit balance first)?

[#2]

@ajax  the number must be active to be able to port it, so you are correct, it wouldnt be possible if O2 terminates it when you transfer the credit.

Is the Huawei phone a dual sim by any chance ? most are. If it is and your wife doesnt mind a new number eventually then I suggest:-

Get a new number with the Plusnet sim, put both that sim and her old O2 sim in the new phone. That way she will be able to receive calls on the old as well as the new number. Set the phone to default to making calls with the new Sim, and once all her contacts have got used to the new number, you can then transfer any remaining credit and terminate the old O2 sim.

[#3]

I read that ‘your device supports only dual card dual standby single pass, which means you cannot use both SIM cards for calls or data services simultaneously’. This however doesn’t detract from your advice, does it? That is still valid?

Needless to say, I’m much obliged to you.

[#4]

Basically that means that you can only have an active call on one sim card at a time and only one sim can be used for data. It's what I expected. It doesnt detract from my advice, it just means that if you are making or receiving a call on one sim, an incoming call to the other would not be accepted/ go to voicemail.

I operate my phone I  exactly the same way, I have a Plusnet sim which I use for calls and data, and an old giffgaff payg sim which I use to receive calls from some family members since they get free giffgaff to giffgaff calls.

[#5]

Thanks. May I press you a little further as I’m a novice in regard to this – as must be obvious. My wife doesn’t have to ask O2 for a switching code (by texting STAC to 7505). She  just picks a Plusnet SIM-only deal, as if she has never had a mobile phone before. Is that right?

[#6 · Accepted solution]

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@ajax wrote:

Thanks. May I press you a little further as I’m a novice in regard to this – as must be obvious. My wife doesn’t have to ask O2 for a switching code (by texting STAC to 7505). She  just picks a Plusnet SIM-only deal, as if she has never had a mobile phone before. Is that right?

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Yes, if you wish to do as I suggested and use both sims for the time being , then you just pick a sim deal and dont provide Plusnet with a Pac code. They will then allocate a new number to the sim they provide.