Not quite a year ago I switched my mobile phone service provider from Vodafone to BT Mobile. By the end of 2020 I was paying BT Mobile £20 for 40GB data per month, regularly using about 30GB of that.
But I could easily have used more. I'd been consciously curbing my Internet usage so that I wouldn't run out of data. I was always watching my data consumption in the last two weeks before the billing date, wary of going over that 40GB limit - which would have been very expensive! I'm not talking only about my usage of the phone itself. Since getting rid of my landline and my Home Broadband last year, I have been tethering my laptop to my phone and using 4G for my large-screen streaming, such as website videos and catch-up TV. It works well for me. And instead of paying for BT's 'luxury' Broadband, I've got away with just their mobile phone service, saving me at least £30 a month.
But now my BT Mobile contract was approaching its end. In fact it would finish while I was still away on my upcoming Scottish holiday. So I decided this morning to negotiate a fresh contract while still at home.
There had been some cracking SIM-only deals recently - notably from Three, one of their best deals offering unlimited data for only £17. But there was a snag with Three. Their 4G/5G network was geared towards city-dwellers and didn't quite cut it in the countryside. Or at least not yet. So it was no good to me. In any case, surely I would never need unlimited data: I could see myself expanding my usage somewhat, especially if I bought a new camera with larger photo files to upload, but I didn't need an infinite amount of data.
EE remained the best (and fastest) for nationwide 4G/5G coverage, so I'd been looking chiefly at their deals. Their current best big-data deal was 160GB for £20 a month. True, it would tie me to a 24 month contract, rather than the usual 12 months; but even in two year's time this would still be a very reasonable deal, an awful lot of data for no more than I was currently paying to BT Mobile. If I migrated to EE, I wouldn't feel short-changed. When negotiating, it's always important to have a credible alternative to the present service, one you'd be happy to switch to, to strengthen your hand.
My plan then was to phone BT Mobile, and ask them for a new contract that would give me more data than I had at the moment, but for the same price.
Not being too greedy or pushy, I had in mind asking for 50GB or 60GB, but I'd insist on not paying more than £20 to have it. If they said no, then I would wave EE's '160GB for £20' deal at them. EE was a subsidiary of BT. I would simply be asking for what was being offered by another part of their organisation. It would be daft if they wouldn't meet my modest request. But if they wouldn't, I'd politely and regretfully threaten to go.
Well, I made that call. I spoke to a pleasant man called Ryan, and I didn't have to argue one bit! I explained what I was looking for, and he himself immediately offered EE's 160GB for £20 deal. Well, blow me! He said he'd moved onto that deal himself. He added that it was now usual to point BT Mobile customers with straightforward needs to no-frills EE. They wouldn't get the full glittering range of BT's freebies, extras and add-ons, but they'd get more data.
I'd take more data any day. I didn't want sport and movies and Wi-Fi hotspots, and such things as parental controls.
So I agreed. We went through the various ID, banking and credit-rating checks and Ryan explained what would happen as regards the switch-over. I'd become an EE customer. I'd get a new SIM card with a temporary phone number, and this would reach me in a day or two, certainly well before I'd set off for Scotland. Having replaced the old BT Mobile card with the new EE card, I'd be able to use my phone straight away. But callers or texters wouldn't be able to reach me until I'd used the PAC code from BT Mobile to transfer my normal phone number to the EE card. However, with that done, I would be fully up and running.
The signs are good that all this will happen smoothly. I've already had a confirmatory email from EE, and a 'sorry to see you go' email from BT Mobile. Ryan said that although the BT Mobile email will mention a small termination fee, it will in fact be waived. This makes sense. There's really no severance here. I'll still be with BT in a wide sense, merely continuing under the EE banner.
It's interesting that BT are keeping EE quite distinct from their own main services. Ryan couldn't say what BT's Grand Plan was, but it does seem to me that BT Mobile will in the future be made attractive only to customers who also have BT Broadband. Everyone else will be encouraged to look at EE instead.
I really do hope I can pop the new EE card into Prudence within two or three days! It would be a disaster if I had to go off to Scotland with the EE card still on its way.
Another thing. Once I have an EE account, presumably my BT account will be closed - meaning that if I ever wish to reinstate my landline (with perhaps a mandatory upgrade to a fibre cabinet-to-house connection) I'll have to go through the entire new-installation process, with a new account, all at great expense. This is truly burning my boats. Henceforth, it's wireless Internet or nothing.
Gulp.
But look! A visit to EE's website shows that they know I'm on my way!
