Porting in and out

MikeHiow · 10 Sep 2010 at 23:39

Right, this is a complicated request, but I'll do my best to explain it;

My partner's contract has just run out, she no longer wishes to proceed with it. My contract has a year left, and the idea is to port my partner's number into my contract and port my number out to a new (monthly) contract with another provider, as I no longer wish to be with o2.

Now, o2 say they can port my partner's number on to my current contract, but I'll loose my number. They also say I can port my number out, but I'd have to terminate my contract for that privilege, at that cost of £575.

Now, I thought Ofcom state that numbers must be easily portable without penalty for doing so - this doesn't sound like what I'm getting here. Does anyone have any suggestions? My partner isn't that fussed about her number (although would like to keep it) - My number is essential to me, however.

Morba · 11 Sep 2010 at 00:57

porting you number out ends the contract that you have in place, so they charge you for the remaining months of the contract.

Immsy · 11 Sep 2010 at 10:59

As above, porting your number out will end your contract hence the charge.

MikeHiow · 11 Sep 2010 at 11:03

I know that is what they want to do - I just can't understand why. They are happy to change my number if I wanted.

Morba · 11 Sep 2010 at 13:51

Change your number yes, but then you lose your current number. You can't port your number out and keep the contract.

rypt · 11 Sep 2010 at 18:06

Morba said:
Change your number yes, but then you lose your current number. You can't port your number out and keep the contract.

Only because they are being bloody minded, there is no technical reason why it cannot be done

MikeHiow · 11 Sep 2010 at 19:13

My thoughts exactly, I was hoping I might find someone who has been successful in getting results with this, as, like I said, I was sure Ofcom state they must make the number freely portable without penalty for doing so.

Morba · 11 Sep 2010 at 19:14

Are you sure about that?
If you just do a number change or a port in, doesn't the number still stay with the account but becomes unused/ not usable.
Where as porting your number out means it goes fully to another network, it doesn't stay as a ghost number on an account.

Morba · 11 Sep 2010 at 19:15

MikeHiow said:
My thoughts exactly, I was hoping I might find someone who has been successful in getting results with this, as, like I said, I was sure Ofcom state they must make the number freely portable without penalty for doing so.

It is freely portable. They aren't charging you and won't stop you.

MikeHiow · 11 Sep 2010 at 19:28

Well there is no reason why that should be the case.

It isn't freely portable, they want me to pay £575 to cancel a contract I do not wish to cancel.

Morba · 11 Sep 2010 at 19:38

I'm not sure on mnp these days but I'm sure it's as I said above previously.

Myshra · 12 Sep 2010 at 01:54

All networks do this I'm afraid and it will not be fixed. I'm pretty sure you're wrong about the OFCOM statement as well sorry. If OFCOM did demand this I can tell you there would be a lot more public information about it. Your number is portable as long as it's outside of a legal contract that is currently in place is how I believe it goes. This is why it's dead easy on PAYG, outside of contract (but at the end of a bill cycle) etc etc..

There's a slight technical reason for this link if I remember rightly, I think it goes like this. You're billed by your MSISDN (your telephone number in long form, specially coded for networks) -as in, all calls you make, data etc... are tagged with it. In order to bill you (as you're under contract) they need to have registered your MSISDN to the network so that i) they can register you on the network, allow you to make calls etc... and ii) so they can collect the details of said stuff. This is all pretty interwoven and ripping out an ID to give to another network via PAC code is i) ballache and ii) probably messes with their billing system. Thus, in order for you to get the number via pac they need a replacement MSISDN so they can use that to track you. Now overwriting one MSISDN with another isn't too bad but doing a clean break to free up a MSISDN for network X again is tough to bill for so they basically don't, they terminate your contract.

I would be extremely suprised if you pull this off, you quite possibly signed your contract to this number when you agreed to the contract sorry.

Is there more to this? Is there a reason you want to leave o2 in a hurry?