Upcoming Changes to our Old Rewards Program

[J_PM]

Hey Community,

We have an important announcement to share with our subscribers who are currently enrolled in our old Rewards program.

We’re making changes to our rewards program and are sharing how these changes impact some of our subscribers. Starting in May, we’ll be retiring our old Rewards program and moving all subscribers to our Public Points™ program. 

We launched the Public Points™ program in January 2022 to provide our subscribers with more ways to earn and spend rewards, with greater flexibility. As part of our commitment to continuously evolve our products and services, it's time to retire our old Rewards program and shift our focus on enhancing our Points program.

To show our appreciation for your continued loyalty, subscribers on our old Rewards program will receive a special thank you. We'll send you a text message when it has been added to your account by March 31st. 

We’re excited to continue providing you, our valued subscribers, more opportunities to earn and spend rewards with Public Points™ moving forward.

To learn more about your move to Public Points, check out our FAQ here.

The Public Mobile Team

[MintBerry]

Is anyone else having issues with replies going through?  

I tried to make a couple last night regarding the recent texts PM sent looking like a last ditch attempt to backup the story they told in their objection which was disproven by a number of us that showed this text never came out and none of them showed up.

The timing of this new text and wording are not accidental.  PM probably got told by CCTS they never sent the text they claimed and now are sending it so they can say "see we did it".

[Kevin6432]

See ya, Public. It's been nice saving money with you. Unfortunately, just as I finally hit my $5/mo in loyalty discounts, I think it's time to find a new company. By taking away the rewards, there is zero reason to stay with you.

With the advent of No Name Mobile and Fizz offering significantly more data for similar price points... Public has just become a waste of time and money.

For example, up until now, I pay around $8 for my 250MB. I can make do considering how much I'm saving. But now that with Public Points my monthly bill would increase to around $14/mo for that same 250MB and no other bonuses.... Why would I not switch to No Name or Fizz who offer 2-3GB for just $19?

By forcing Public Points, you have no longer made Public an economic option.

Good on you guys for ruining a good company. It always happens.

[fixin1]

@Gimli007 - I hope PM responds by May 1st so then Public Points doesn't go in effect.

[Gimli007]

Well.  Its been 13 days since my complaint (April 3rd) 

-CCTS acknowledged the complaint.

-PM objected April 5 ( thanks Michael from pm escalations)

-CCTS rejected PM's objection April 9

I have not heard boo from PM  - via text, phone, email, wire, or stone tablet.

You simply cannot "sell" your service with the promise of no price changes and a "stay with us and we will credit you" system, and think it is okay to arbitrarily drop the fundamental piece of the service equation. 

in the meantime - i will keep on getting random dropped calls ( i catch the msg on screen saying something like  "server did not respond") and spending lots of clicks to authenticate with 2FA to comment on a forum....

wheres my scotch.....?

[Cheefster]

Hello Y4J259. Thank you for posting your correspondence from CCTS. Can you clarify, does the message mean that CCTS rejects your complaint (presumably about PM's veiled price increase), or that CCTS rejects Public Mobile's objection to your complaint, meaning that CCTS is continuing to examine the merits of your complaint (against Public Mobile's veiled price increase)?

I'm trying to assess if there are merits to following the same route that you did (e.g. complain to PM, then complain to CCTS).

[Nermal3]

This isn't correct.

On my $15 plans, I got a 5GB data bonus.  On my $25 plans, I got a 30GB data bonus.

[ansontg]

This is absolutely unacceptable.

1. I have a 50gb plan and have never hit my data cap so far. The 240gb offered as compensation for the removal of rewards is therefore simply pointless and worth nothing to me.

2. I joined public mobile in order to use to use the rewards system. This removal of the rewards system is akin to a universal increase in price for any customer on the rewards system. I was promised they would never take this away, and that my loyalty would be rewarded. This has been breached by Public Mobile.

[hTideGnow]

HI @Climatecrisis 

even you won a car with Roll up the Rim, you have to sign and agree before you drive the car way. If you don't read the term , didn't sign it, or you signed it but broke the terms, they will take it away.  Make perfect sense 🙂

[Climatecrisis]

That's like winning a car and then you decide to sell it they take it away Does not make sense 

[Climatecrisis]

Its like you win the lot in Canada and decide to retire out of Canada and they take your winnings away 

[Climatecrisis]

I appreciate you making this effort I was also was considering writing as well 

[Climatecrisis]

If you lower the plan to get value out of the bonus data They knew this would happen and blocked it 

[Climatecrisis]

Data that expires is guess as useless bringing sand to the beach 

[Climatecrisis]

Lets do some rough math Lets say 500,000 subscribers use autopay 2$ savings per month We are going to lose instantly 500,000 x 2$ per month Instant millions for them Now they need you to stay 12 month to receive 10$ discount 10/12 is 0.83 cents a month They believe we are fools, Staying a few pennies below fido rogers and others 

[jhhead]

I do agree that the biggest slap in the face was how they removed the 'benefit' of getting 1 point per month being with them and then forcing the change.

If I had known this was the route they would take then of course I would have proactively made the switch. But without notification of the changes we are stuck with nothing. 

It's like let's make this change the worst possible outcome for our long time customers because we can.

[RetiredGuy1]

I appreciate you bolded “at least” and will add, as many have pointed out, removing the 150-day time restriction would actually make the bonus meaningful. Of course, replacing the bonus data altogether with the 1 point for each month a customer has been with PM (which was pulled the day before the announcement) would have been the most appropriate means to recognize loyalty from their customers in a proportionate manner. But then again, PM seems to have some difficulty understanding the whole concept of loyalty.

[Mtn]

I do not wish to have my rewards program changed.  My previous rewards were applied automatically, but the new changes will result in a more costly phone bill.  I do not need a gift of more data that will expire, I want a low cost phone plan.  With these new changes, I cannot recommend Public Mobile to anyone. 

[HALIMACS]

@Haiggy1 

They are assigning data promotions in buckets according to plan values, so as long as you’re within the plan value that is eligible for one bucket of data, you’ll still get it.

However, if you move to a lower plan bucket, you’ll forfeit the entire bonus.

It’s really dumb – they must reconsider this and at least give folks the bonus associated with that lower data bucket if folks downgrade their plan.

But, alas, Public Mobile really wants to screw it to its members. 

[Haiggy1]

If that's true, then I was not informed. I already was in touch with a moderator to complain, and they said that you need $29+. Their response is as follows:

I would like to help you but those are the terms of the new system, actually there is a disclaimer shown when you try to change your plan:  "The bonus data will remain active, unless your account becomes inactive, or you switch to a plan of lower value, or to an incompatible plan."

[hTideGnow]

hi @Haiggy1 

actually, different plan will get different bonus data, not everyone getting 240GB.  Those with $15 or $25 plan will get much less the data.

if you lowered your plan, there is a slight chance agent will give you another set of bonus data that they give to other subscribers on the same plan.  try and ask them

[Haiggy1]

I've learned (the hard way?) that this 'special' one-time 'thank-you' applies to plans of $29+/mo. ONLY. Switching your plan to a lesser one that will actually allow you to make use of this 240GB in 150 days, actually winds up removing it entirely... somehow it's supposed to make sense that someone who currently uses 10GB/mo. will be grateful to be able to use 58GB/mo. (10GB plan+240GB/5 months) and at the same time, won't let you drop your plan for those 5 months (150 days) or you lose it all.

[JaceM]

I do not want to be moved to Public Points. My previous rewards were applied to my payment automatically without me needing to complete any actions. With the new system, I will need to manage my account every month to "apply points" to my bill. The way the new system is being explained suggests that it also slashes the savings, instead of saving 5$ per month for loyalty, I will only get 10$ per year? Public Mobile stated in 2022 that the move to the points system was optional and that previous customers could remain on the old rewards program. The old rewards program was what made Public Mobile an ideal service, particularly since rewards were applied automatically to my bill each month. The amount of extra time and energy that will now need to be used just to manage my account that didn't previously need to be managed is diminishing the value of the service. The extra data as a "loyalty gift" is useless to me as I am already on a unlimited data plan. Will Public Mobile change the points application so that points can be applied automatically? Needing to do it manually is drastically going to reduce accessibility which they are touting as a major priority. If accessibility is so important to Public Mobile that they have a tab dedicated to it, why are they diminishing it with these types of changes.

[RetiredGuy1]

@dudesbot 

https://www.publicmobile.ca/en/bc/get-help/articles/move-to-public-points

That page was updated yesterday:

[Update April 15, 2024: All subscribers on the old rewards program will be moved to Public Points. Notice will be given in advance of the move to Public Points by text message or email, or otherwise in accordance with our Service Terms.

We’re sending notices in batches. Some customers were notified in March, by text message or email. Others will be notified via text message by April 18, 2024.]

[Y4J259]

I received PM text notifying me of the change to pints today. My May renewal date is May 26. So I guess they're messaging as we approach last cycle before May plan renewals. 

[Y4J259]

Timeline with CCTS: 

I filed complaint April 4. PM rejected complaint April 7. CCTS rejected the rejection April 16. Here's why:

We examined the customer's complaint and Public Mobile's objection to the complaint.

Section 4.3 of the CCTS Procedural Code states that The Commissioner may not direct or require a Participating Service Provider to change any of their policies or practices. Additionally, pricing of products or services fall outside the Commissioner’s scope. As your complaint pertains to an increase to your billed charges and a change to your contract, the CCTS confirms that your complaint falls within the scope of the CCTS. 

The CCTS cannot accept objections that are based on the merits of the complaint, and such objections will be rejected. A “merit-based objection” is an objection in which the PSP asserts that the complaint should not be accepted by the CCTS because the PSP is allowed to do the action that the customer complained about.

Additionally, The CCTS does not consider the following matters as “pricing of products and service”: billing disputes, contract disputes or changes, price changes, additional charges, and removal of promotional discounts.  For this reason, we are rejecting the objection as your complaint meets the requirement set out by the procedural code.

[ShawnC13]

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@dudesbot wrote:

Hi everyone,

I haven't been following this thread the best. I've seen someone say that they've gotten recent notifications via text about this transition in 30 days. I haven't received one. Does anyone know if it depends on user? Also, maybe an Oracle could chime in, does this transition have a set date in May?

Once again, the corporate communication via PM is terrible.

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@dudesbot, some people received emails and some recently got texts.  We haven't been given and actual date or anything like that.  I do think it could be different for everyone based on either renewal or date of notification.

[NoseyNick1]

> I haven't received one

Usual disclaimers apply, not an oracle, sample size of 1, the plural of "anecdote" is not "data", etc etc...

... but in my case, they coincidentally(?) happen to have texted me approx 1 day before my April renewal, and my GUESS is they are going to make the switch immediately before/during/after my May renewal?  [Shrug]  It might make the maths easier if they don't have to pro-rata Rewards vs Points?  😐

[dudesbot]

Hi everyone,

I haven't been following this thread the best. I've seen someone say that they've gotten recent notifications via text about this transition in 30 days. I haven't received one. Does anyone know if it depends on user? Also, maybe an Oracle could chime in, does this transition have a set date in May?

Once again, the corporate communication via PM is terrible.

[Matty1234]

Well that's an obvious one, if Public can change the terms and existence of the old legacy program, they can certainly change and cancel the new points program. Customers can actually win against corporations if there is solidarity. 

[NoseyNick1]

Not sure why new customers are relevant on a thread about "Legacy" Rewards?   😕