OT: Buying a SIM card PAYG

Difficult to say. I have a Tesco Mobile PAYG account that doesn't seem to expire as long as you use it once every six months, but it's years old and I don't know if there's a current version. This one says something of the sort, but it also says 'out of stock'.

Try one of the comparison sites.

Look at GiffGaff. No need to buy a goodybag if it's infrequent use. Just use it every two or three months for one short call, to be safe.

Giffgaff is nearly there. It has to be used for anything in 6 months. That can be a minimal phone call, a text message, a few seconds on data. In one case when I was warned that I had not used my phone I simply logged into my account and that was enough to count as usage.

idMobile

Lookup 1p mobile. They have a variety of old-school options that don't require monthly top ups. They do a 1year £40 prepay deal where it's

They use EE and they're website works as does customer service where you can ring up and speak to someone without waiting on hold for 40mins!

Oops...

s/they're website/their website/

Lebara, 5 squid plus 1 for the sim to buy , so low minimum up front. Dial an actively received number for a couple of seconds once a month and very occasional proper use for 2FA (2 factor annoyance) has lasted over a year I think

No but it appears you have to top up £10 every 90 days so not a month but definitely regular top ups required

They do a 1year £40 prepay deal where it's

I would recommend GiffGaff. Your credit does not expire. You only need to top up when its used..

Your sim card will not expire as long as your account is active. To keep it active just need to make a call every 6 months. They send an e-mail when its about to expire.

Dave

Yes, 1pmobile are for people who do use-up their credit, not those who want £10 to last for decades ...

Giffgaff PAYG rates are 25p per minute, 10p per text for outgoing traffic (free for incoming and I believe still free for outgoing phone calls to another GG customer/sim). The credit doesn't run out but the user needs to remember to top up when the credit gets low. One call or text has to be made every 180 days to keep the number alive.

You only have to be on hold to the doctors surgery etc. for 30 minutes for quite a lot of the PAYG credit to be eaten.

Depending on the number and length of the outgoing calls perhaps their £6 per month package which gives unlimited UK calls is more suited.

You can run both methods at the same time. Put credit on PAYG and when necessary buy a one month package for, say, £6. The PAYG credit will remain intact and unused while the £6/month package is active.

Of the big networks, Tesco PAYG Lite looks like a contender:

"Our pay as you go Lite tariff is great if you use your phone occasionally. It's a simple tariff with a flat-rate charge of 8p/min for calls and 4p a text. Only existing customers can switch to the Lite tariff by downloading our our free app, online in your account or by calling 282 free."

(ie set up a regular Tesco PAYG SIM and then call them to switch to Lite)

Some Tesco stores have phone shops where she can get help if needed.

Some of the other less well known operators have lower charges than Tesco.

Check the 'inactivity' section where he mentions how frequently you need to make a chargeable event (call, SMS, data) to keep the SIM alive.

Theo

Which bit of the pay once for one year part of their plans don't you understand?

One payment of £40 gets you £40 of credit and each item costs 1p and the £40 lasts for one year or until spent.

Or one payment of £48 gets you unlimited minutes/texts and 500MB/month and lasts for one year.

Steve presented the following explanation :

Thanks guys, that's brilliant, cheers.

My 3 mobile PAYG is of that ilk. Not sure if its available to 'new buyers'

I gave up on Giff Gaff long ago for exactly this reason. They upped their PAYG rates without even telling me, and it was only when my credit kept disappearing that I found they did it.

I am currently with Lebara, and I see that they have a deal for £3.90 per month (with 300 minutes of calls). Here:

A lot of these accounts are no longer available to new buyers. I have a dual sim phone, so I can retain my old O2 number, where the tariff is 3p per minute - on a deal no longer available.

I think it is still available from Three, but when I went to check it crashed Firefox - three times.

Literal PAYG has just about died out, I reckon - displaced by cheapo packages, Like Lebara's ~£5 per month or my current unlimited/unlimited/roaming/110GB for £10 per month (Talkmobile).

Like you I still maintain an obsolete O2 PAYG account - mine needing a six-monthly chargeable call and a £10 top-up every 999 days!

Perhaps looking for a zero "standing charge" tariff looks a mite kranky in 2024.