HELP: No service whatsoever!

[felicia07]

I signed up for publicmobile on June 17, received my SIM card and proceeded to create an account for myself. Half way through the registration process, the website glitched and kicked me out. I was on the 'pick your plan' page trying to pick the options I wanted when the website booted me out. 

I tried to re-create an account, but the website gives me an error (* The phone number entered is invalid or you may have created your profile already. If you've forgotten your password, please click here.); therefore, I figured the website must have saved my registration even though I hadn't completed the process before it booted me. I proceeded to try to log in. My email and password I had entered did not work. To give public mobile the benefit of the doubt, I then chose the option that I 'forgot my password' even though I'm certain of the password I had entered. I entered my email address on the email verification page and it leads me to a security question that I did not pick. Puzzling!

I have been in contact with publicmobile regarding this issue since July 19 to try to resolve the issue. I have received several emails to verify my email address and I have done so; this has not solved the problem.

After all these issues with my account, not being able to log in and not even having picked a plan, publicmobile prompted Koodo (my previous provider) to cancel my plan. On July 21, Koodo emailed me and said that I 'recently scheduled [my] mobility service to be cancelled on July 21, 2016'. I in no way thought my Koodo service would be cancelled if these publicmobile related issues were not resolved. This is completely unacceptable.

Today, I have the publicmobile sim card in my phone as I no longer have my Koodo account. Yesterday, publicmobile emailed me to say that they are opening a ticket to solve the self-serve issue; however it can take weeks before the issue is solved. Publicmobile said that they would provide me with a 10 day plan that includes unlimited texts in Canada and unlimited calls in the province in the meantime. As of today,  I haven't received texts or calls, I cannot text out or call out,  and I do not have data! I switched from my unlimited talk/text Canada-wide and data to nothing? I in turn requested the 90 day plan with unlimited talk and text Canada wide and 4GB/ 90 days, as I originally intended before being booted from the site on day-1.

There is no evidence to suggest that I received this plan and the fact that it can take weeks to get resolved is disconcerting to say the least. How can publicmobile cancel my original cell service provider when they didn't have my account and plan details in advance? This is completely unacceptable. I do not have a landline and rely solely on my cell phone. 

Has anyone else run into this issue?

Please help! 

[Alex-M]

@srlawren , Having a technical background, I can easily identifiy and determine from a technical standpoint, issues that tend to arise when a customer / community member reports Data connection issues, or an inability to connect through Public Mobile's APN (Access Point Name) Network. Given my own technical knowledge of such issues, and from my own experiences with troubleshooting such issues when I once worked as a Technical Support Agent for an ISP, I could easily trace it to a misconfiguration setup on either the Client's (Home or Busines User's) end of things, or on our own end with a misconfiguration of one of our Network Servers.

I won't go into a whole lot of detail about this, but I am sure that you can understand that I have a good knowledge of where the issues lie, especially when it comes to Internet or Data connectivity.

I have offered both suggestions and temporary solutions to @felicia07 on what she can do in easy steps that she could follow, while she waits on her Open Technical Ticket to be addressed and for Public Mobile's Tech Support Team (if they have one), to fix the issues on the back end with their own APN (Access Point Name) Network server.

You are welcome to read thoroughly the steps that I have left for @felicia07 , to try to resolve her Mobile Data connectivity issue. The APN network configuration I have outlined for her is the setup that I have on my own Mobile Phone, and it works for me. I have also outlined another way that she can have Internet Connectivity on the go if she needs it, by using free Wi-fi Hotspots at some local fast food restaurants, and coffee shops, such as Wendy's, McDonald's, TimHortons, Starbucks, and some Internet Cafes.

You can read my previous post on the suggestions I offered her for temporary Internet Connectivity with her Mobile Phone, on Page 04 of this forum discussion thread. As well as a brief explanation of how, why, and what happens between a Client's (Home or Business Users) device and the Host Network Server when establishing a data connection, and why there may be a disruption in service between Client and the Host Network resulting in limited or no Data / Internet Connectivity primarily due to a misconfiguration, or missing essential information on the Client / Host Network with proper APN name, port number, and proxy server numbers, etc. These setup configurations need to be properly set on both the Client Side and Host Network Server, and need to match exactly, or there will be no proper way to communicate with the Host Network Server at all that is providing the gateway through the Client's device to establish a working Internet connection.

Just think about how your own home Internet works with your ISP (Internet Service Provider). No matter what device you use to connect to the Internet with, your ISP's Host Network Server is the gateway you use to connect through to establish an Access Point that grants you the access to be connected to the World Wide Web through the proper configuration and setup of both Client and Host Network.

[Shazia_K]

@srlawren, 

Rest assured that everything's been taken cared of, the ticket is still opened and we are just waiting for a fix from the back end

[srlawren]

@Alex-M trust me, I look at everything with an analytical and technical viewpoint!  However, I still believe that we have eliminated most likelihood of it being an issue with the phone configuration at this point, and I blieve we need @Shazia_K or @Mary_M to look at @felicia07's account.  I've seen this on the community before, where everything seemed fine on the customer's end, and it's usually something not quite right with their account behind the scenese that ends up being the culptrint.

@felicia07 are you in fact still having issues with data?  

[Alex-M]

@srlawren, Sorry, it's seems your post was cut a little short. From what I am able to collect from reading your post, you are saying that you believe the current issue that felicia07 is having to be more account related than a data related connectivity issue? Well, I'm not going to say that it isn't an account related issue, but I am going to lean more towards it being a poorly setup configuration issue which I believe could be contributed to a poor APN configuration setup.

Looking at it with an analytical and technical viewpoint, if I were setting up a Wi-fi router inside someone's home, because the individual wanted to go from a wired Internet cable connection to a wireless Internet LAN (Local Area Network) connection, and wanted to use not one, but two wireless devices (Laptop PC / Desktop Pc, and Mobile or Tablet PC), proper configuration settings would have to be in place on the end of the wireless router to establish the connection through the router's internal Network Setup.

Before any Internet connectivity could happen through a wireless connection, the Admin / User would have to create an Access Point. This Access Point is made through the setup of a Wi-fi network on the User's Laptop or Desktop PC through the current OS they happen to be using. Once that has been established, the users cable modem is linked to the wireless Wi-fi router. Automation of obtaining a unique IP Address (Internet Protocol Address), happens on the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) which is on the server side of the ISP's (Internet Service Provider's) DHCP server.

Once a request is sent to obtain an IP address from the ISP's DHCP server, it accepts the request and relays it back to the Client (User's PC), where the Dynamic IP Address is held both on the User's PC, Wireless Router, and any wireless devices that may be linked to the router through Wi-fi connectivity.

Along with the Dynamic IP Adress, comes other related configuration information that gets sent from the ISP's DHCP Host Network Server such as the Subnet Mask and Default Gateway.

Much in the same way, this is how an APN (Access Point Name) server would work. The client computer, or in this case the User's Mobile Phone, needs to be properly configured and setup to make a callback request to the host server. If the client's mobile phone has the proper APN name, and all the necessary configuration settings that involve the proper details of the proxy address, and port numbers being used to collect data from the mobile carrier, then a proper connection can be established between the Client (Public Mobile's Customer) and the Host Network Server (Public Mobile's own APN server).

If something is missing with the configuration details of the APN itself either on the Client's (customer's configuration), or on the APN Host Network Sever (Public Mobile), then no proper Internet connection can be established, and the customer is left with limited or non-functional data that they can not use.

This is why I strongly believe that there is a misconfiguration within the APN settings which are either on the customer's own Mobile Network settings, or with the way Public Mobile's APN network is handling the request / callback from Client to Host to establish a proper Internet connection.

This is why I have taken into account of listing the APN configuration settings I have on my own Mobile Phone, and have mentioned that it works for me. I have listed steps as well that the orginal poster felicia07 can take to help resolve her data issues, and hopefully it will work for her. If it does not, then I have also listed other alternative methods she can take an approach to.

Also, as we all know and it has been confirmed by both @felicia07 and @Shazia_K, the functionality of the services where she can both make calls and recieve them, now works through Public Mobile's services on her Mobile Phone. However, she still does not have any Data connection functionality on a Mobile Network. Mobile Network connectivity from her phone isn't properly configured to grant her access through Public Mobile's APN Network, and this is what needs to be sorted out.

[srlawren]

@Alex-M I have to admit I didn't read the full length of your posting, but FYI @felicia07's previous response tends to suggest quite strongly that there is an account issue or systsem glitch that someone at PM will need to correct.  The reason I believe this is due to the fact that her phone works fine when using another PM account holder's SIM, while Felicia's SIM placed in said other account holder's phone does not receive any data.  While not 100%, I'd say this likely rules out the phone and APN configuration as 

[Alex-M]

@felicia07 I would like to suggest some things you can try to get your Mobile Data to work. This method has worked for me, so it may work for you too.

1) Goto your Mobile phone settings, goto Network Connections, Goto Wi-Fi. If Wi-Fi is turned on, turn it off to disable it.

2) Under Network Connections, goto more Networks (tap on it). On the next menu screen, goto Mobile Networks. On the Mobile Networks screen you have three options, Access Point Names, Network Mode, and Network Operators.

Goto Access Point Names. You should see something that looks like this:

APNs

Mobile Internet

sp.mb.com

If you don't see this, you can easily add it. Just tap on the + (Plus Sign) at the bottom of the screen and in the name for the APN which is: sp.mb.com

If the APN name is already there, then tap on it, and you are brought to the Edit access point screen. Do not make any changes here yet. You just want to make sure that all the details and settings of the APN you are using look correct as what follows below:

Name

Mobile Internet

APN

sp.mb.com

Proxy

74.49.0.18

Port

80

Username

Not set

Password

Not set

Server

Not set

MMSC

http://aliasredirect.net/proxy/mb/mmsc

Multimedia message proxy

74.49.0.18

Multimedia message port

80

MCC

302

MNC

220

Authentication type

Not set

APN type

default,supl,mms

These following three options should be grayed out an unselectable:

APN protocol

ipv4

APN roaming protocol

ipv4

Turn APN on/off

APN turned on

These two options are on by default and are selectable:

Bearer

Unspecified

Mobile virtual network operator type

None

This option is off by default and unselectable:

Mobile virtual network operator v...

Not set

Now, the above APN settings should be exactly as shown, and if they are not, then you will have to edit each indivdual setting. You can do this by tapping on each individual setting, and entering the necessary details (as shown above), until it matches.

Once you are done with that, tap the back key (return button) on your Mobile Phone to exit from the Edit access point screen. This will bring you back to the APNs screen with the Mobile Internet and APN that was just set: sp.mb.com

Next the APN name you should also now seen a Green lit (Radio Button), meaning that the APN is now On and active.

For good measure, reboot your Mobile Phone. This should allow your phone to refresh the settings you just applied, and your Mobile Data Network should now kick in and be ready for use.

Please make sure that while you are using your Mobile Network, that you turn off and have your Wi-fi disabled on your Mobile Phone. Leaving your Wi-fi on while your Mobile Network is also enabled will cause limited service, or no network activity at all as both networks will try to fight for control to establish Internet connectivity, and you may wind up with no connectivity at all.

Should you have the need to use Wi-fi with your home router, make sure that you have your Mobile Network turned off first before you use it. And, when you are on the go where no Wi-fi is available to you, then turn on your Mobile Network for use.

As for being able to use Google Maps with an Android type or iPhone type of Mobile phone without any internet connectivity, this is possible to do if you download the map you need from your Google Maps app on your Mobile phone, and you save it for use as an offline map.

Here is how you can do that:

Download an area to use offline

1. On your phone or tablet, open the Google Maps app .
2. Make sure you're connected to the Internet and signed in to Google Maps.
3. Search for a place, like San Francisco .
4. At the bottom, tap the bar that has the name of the place you searched. ...
5. Select Download .

You also have the ability to get offline directions and voice navigation with your offline map, but it only applies to driving by car. However, In your driving directions, you won't have traffic info, alternate routes, or lane guidance. You also can't modify routes like avoiding tolls or ferries.

For further instructions on using Google Maps offline with your Mobile Phone for both Android and iphone follow this website URL: https://support.google.com/maps/answer/6291838?hl=en

Also, keep in mind that if you have a Airplane Mode feature on your Mobile phone, that you turn off and keep it disabled. Leaving this feature on will disable any connectivity that you've had with Wi-fi or your Mobile Network, meaning that you will still be able to make and receive calls, but you will not be able to use the Data functions of your phone such as text, email, and web browsing.

I hope that my suggestions help you out while you are waiting on the technical ticket to bring resolution to the data issues you are experiencing. If my above suggestions do not bring you any clear resolve, then you can still use Wi-fi while travelling with your Mobile Phone, as there are many Free Wi-fi hotspots such as Wendy's, McDonalds, Tim Hortons, and even some Internet Cafes and Coffee Shops that host free Wi-fi. Just make sure that when you need Internet connectivity and are using a free Wi-fi hotspot, that you turn off your Mobile Network.

[felicia07]

As Shazia_K pointed out, everything has been resolved except I still don't have data. My APN settings are correct and I continue to swap sim cards with my husband who has a fully functional public mobile plan (with data). When we swap; the issue continues. I have data on my phone with his sim card, and ahe doesn't have data with my sim card. It's definitely the service and not the phone.

I will be travelling for work this week and the lack of data will really inhibit my ability to get around. It's scary how much I rely on Googlemaps!

Please follow-up on the ticket.

[Shazia_K]

@Luddite, 

Everything is working for @felicia07 except data connectivity, she is not able to connect to data. I have already opened a technical ticket for her and it should be looked in shortly.

Thanks for following up 🙂

Shazia

[Luddite]

More to the point, is your service now functional @felicia07?

[kutzki]

Beeeeeeeeeeeffffffff. LOL I love this place.

[Alex-M]

@kav2001c Sorry for my long post, did I give you eyestrain while reading it. Yes, guilty as charged.. I do write a lot when I have a lot to say. Anyhow, thank you for that elaborate explanation on slamming, not like I really needed a thesaurus to define what the term slamming meant. As per the CCTS Guide and mandate, I still have yet to see a list of Do's and Do Not's that fall under the Mandatory listing of what the CCTS is able to handle with Telecomunnications Providers and the Services it offers, including a list of complaints that they deem valid enough to even call a legitmitate complaint.

Can you offer me that? Perhaps copy and paste it in your next post so that I may read it myself?

Oh, and please tell me where I said anything in my prior posts about making any sort of reference to Porting between Koodo & Public Mobile as being slamming.

How's that for a short post? Is it easier on your eyes to read?

[kav2001c]

@Alex-M you like to write ALOT

Slamming is unauthorized porting (which I clearly linked to)

eg You have a really good number and *I* port it to another carrier for myself

Think of it as theft if it makes it easier

In order for it to be a slam you would need to port to a NON TELUS brand

Bell Rogers or Wind

Porting between Koodo & Public is not slamming (again) 

Seriously read the links and type a bit less eh

[Alex-M]

@felicia07 Yes, you are correct, it is definetly an issue with the PM account itself. Switching PM card sims in each other's phone will not resolve the issue, but it may help determine where the problem lies for further troubleshooting of the current issue.

[Alex-M]

@kav2001c wrote: 1- As per OPs post (which you read) system kicked them out at plan selection. You can review steps here:  but plan selection very clearly happens AFTER number selection (port)

I am well aware of this, and a month ago on June 01, 2016 (My Activation Date) with Public Mobile, I opted not to have my old number ported from my previous mobile carrier. During the activation process, I was able to select the type of plan I wanted (30 Day Plan), then came the part where I was asked to choose a number from a list of available numbers with an area code prefix of either 416 or 647. After I had chosen my new number, I was brought to the payment system with the selection to choose which method of payment I was going to pay with. After I chose my method of payment, my account and service were activated.

Simple enough process right? Like I said above, I did not make a port selection, and I was able to select a plan before selecting a number from the list of availabe numbers that Public Mobile had available to choose from.

Now, please explain to me why it is easier to just pick a new number with a new mobile carrier, while it is such a daunting and difficult task to port one single number from a previous carrier over to the new carrier.

Porting a single number (as I'm sure you're well aware of yourself), should not take weeks to do, or even stretch out over a period of a month, such as in the case of the OP's unfortunate circumstance as she mentioned in her original post. Furthermore, I am well aware that it can take a least a day or two at most to have a successful port of a single number. Possible reasons for any such delay of a single ported number may result from an unpaid bill to the previous mobile carrier or a breach of contract resulting in the carrier witholding the request for the port until the issue is met and the matter becomes resolved.

It's not as if the OP was requesting, as according to her original post, that she wanted to have more than one number ported over, or that she was trying to port over a landline number to her new carrier (this woud take longer to do), as such she writes:

Today, I have the publicmobile sim card in my phone as I no longer have my Koodo account. Yesterday, publicmobile emailed me to say that they are opening a ticket to solve the self-serve issue; however it can take weeks before the issue is solved. Publicmobile said that they would provide me with a 10 day plan that includes unlimited texts in Canada and unlimited calls in the province in the meantime. As of today,  I haven't received texts or calls, I cannot text out or call out,  and I do not have data! I switched from my unlimited talk/text Canada-wide and data to nothing? I in turn requested the 90 day plan with unlimited talk and text Canada wide and 4GB/ 90 days, as I originally intended before being booted from the site on day-1.

There is no evidence to suggest that I received this plan and the fact that it can take weeks to get resolved is disconcerting to say the least. How can publicmobile cancel my original cell service provider when they didn't have my account and plan details in advance? This is completely unacceptable. I do not have a landline and rely solely on my cell phone. 

As you can clearly see here, if you read that bit, Public Mobile made every effort to come up with some sort of resolve, yet what I find to be most intriguing is how they couldn't just simply port her number over from her hold carrier, and why Public Mobile's own self-serve system was booting her out from the intial day that she was making an attempt to activate her account after choosing her plan, where she writes here:

I signed up for publicmobile on June 17, received my SIM card and proceeded to create an account for myself. Half way through the registration process, the website glitched and kicked me out. I was on the 'pick your plan' page trying to pick the options I wanted when the website booted me out.

When I signed up to Public Mobile, I did not get booted out of the self-serve system, it was a smooth transition for me because I chose to go with having a number supplied to me from the new carrier (Public Mobile).

I also took a look at the CCTS complaints guide that you are refering to. I look thoroughly through that, and I did that today as well, and I would like to draw to your attention again, that nowhere in that guide does it outline what does and does not fall under their mandate. Because if it did, then that itself would clearly be outlined on the section of the guide that you were directing my attention to observe.

Here, let me copy and paste the section on slamming you were refering me to from the URL link you posted:

For complaints pertaining to unauthorized transfer of service (slamming):

• Date of unauthorized transfer;
• Date you became aware of transfer;
• Name of telecommunication service provider to which you should be a customer;
• A copy of any bill you may have received from the telecommunication service provider who transferred your service;
• Amount that you would have been billed had your service remained with your original telecommunications service provider; and
• Any pertinent document such as copies of bills from the original telecommunications service provider or any relevant correspondence between you and the telecommunications service providers in question.

@kav2001c Please tell where in this section of the CCTS Guide does it clearly say that this type of complaint does not fall under their mandate, or any other types of complaints outlined in the guide pertaining to a particular Telecommunications Provider. As I'm sure you know, any type of complaint that falls under a Telecommunications act is assessed and reviewed under the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services.

And, as I have aforementioned before in a previous post, I was just offering this as an alternative suggestion if issues could not be resolved.

It is good to see that Public Mobile is working hard to address these issues, but unless the OP replys back that her issues have been resolved in a satifactory manner, then the mater itself still hangs in a state of unresolved limbo.

Also, @kav2001c you wrote:

3- Even if Public wanted to cancel the OPs Koodo account (why?) they still would require INFORMATION from OP to complete port. Public & Koodo are totally seperate companies and as well there is no advantage to Telus which brand collects the money

Of course I know that Public Mobile and Koodo are totally seperate companies, and they fall under one big Parent company which is Telus. Both PM & Koodo are subsidiaries (smaller companies) under the Parent company Telus. Just like Mobilicity (once privately owned) is now a subsidiary of Rogers.

I never said that PM or Koodo wanted to cancel out the OP's Koodo account, that was something that the OP herself said in her original posting. It is a question that she posed herself, and you don't seem to be paying much attention to that key point of her post.

[Shazia_K]

@felicia07, 

Can you try your SIM card one more time in your husband's phone? 

[felicia07]

It's an unlocked phone; I was with Koodo and I switched my number to PM. Things are progressing as I now have access to my self-serve account. My account says I have the call/text/data package I want, but my phone still does not have call/text/data. 

My husband has an active PM sim card so to make sure my phone was not the issue, we switched sim cards. His card worked perfectly in my phone, and his phone (with my sim card in it) did not work. So the issue is not steming from my phone; it's definitely the sim/account.  

[kav2001c]

@felicia07 you are using the Koodo phone with Public SIM?

[felicia07]

I responded in a private message. 

[Shazia_K]

@felicia07, 

Can you remove the SIM card and then try inserting it back in? Can you manually search for network?

[Shazia_K]

@felicia07, 

What is the model of your phone? 

[felicia07]

I just rebooted my phone and it now says it can't detect the cellular network. When I try to make a call a box pops up and says that the 'cellular network is not available'. No data or call/text. 

[Shazia_K]

Hey @felicia07, 

Some troubleshooting were done, can you try and reboot your phone now? 

Please let me know if you get service on the phone?

Thanks,

Shazia

[kav2001c]

---

Alex-M wrote:

And lastly, please show me where and how you think that Public Mobile does not fall under the CCTS mandate, as it is clearly listed as one of the Participating Service Providers listed on CCTS site where complaints and issues can be launched.

---

Right here @Alex-M CCTS clearly defines WHAT TYPES of issues they intercede on. 

https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/complaints/guide

Scroll down to section on slamming

Simply being a member of CCTS does not somehow equate to you can file frivolous complaints

The CCTS has a very strict mandate on what they can and can not do

[kav2001c]

@Alex-M it is obviously a number port issue for 3 reasons

1- As per OPs post (which you read) system kicked them out at plan selection. You can review steps here: https://activate.publicmobile.ca/ but plan selection very clearly happens AFTER number selection (port)

2- Public would have NO WAY of knowing what OPs Koodo phone number was. Unless OP GAVE them that number in step 2

3- Even if Public wanted to cancel the OPs Koodo account (why?) they still would require INFORMATION from OP to complete port. Public & Koodo are totally seperate companies and as well there is no advantage to Telus which brand collects the money

I also previously DID show you where this issue does not fall under CCTS mandate. Refer to my previous post to you where I even provided the link. This is not a "slam" and therefore CCTS does NOT involve themselves with port issues whatsoever.

[Alex-M]

@kav2001c I appreciate your opinons and viewpoints, but if take another read of the OP's general post, why would, if it was indeed a number porting issue, take the previous carrier and the new carrier (Public Mobile) such a long time, over the span of a month from the OP's sign up date of June 17 when trying to activate her account. She even states in her post that on July 19 that she has been trying to resolve the issue with Public Mobile, and they haven't been able to come up with a resolution yet to offer her. Then she says on July 21, 2016 Koodo emailed her to notify her that her service with them was being cancelled, and that she was unaware that this would happen if issues with Public Mobile remained unresolved.

I am quoting her last words in her OP here in case you may have missed seeing it:

There is no evidence to suggest that I received this plan and the fact that it can take weeks to get resolved is disconcerting to say the least. How can publicmobile cancel my original cell service provider when they didn't have my account and plan details in advance? This is completely unacceptable. I do not have a landline and rely solely on my cell phone.

In her very last statement above she clearly asks: How can publicmobile cancel my original cell service provider when they didn't have my account and plan details in advance?

I only made the suggestion that she launch a complaint to the CCTS for that sole reason she mentioned above where I quoted her words here. I suggested that as an alternative option, since I felt myself that neither mobile carrier, old or new had the right to do what they did without her prior consent or knowledge. If in fact it was a porting issue, and not a system or account activation related issue to the self-serve section of the site itself, then please tell me why you think it is taking Public Mobile so long to port over a single number from a previous mobile carrier to a new carrier like Public Mobile. This poor girl is still without any functional service what so ever.

And lastly, please show me where and how you think that Public Mobile does not fall under the CCTS mandate, as it is clearly listed as one of the Participating Service Providers listed on CCTS site where complaints and issues can be launched. See for yourself here and use the Edit > Find feaure in your web browser and type into the search field: Public Mobile or just simply scroll down to the bottom of the page to find it as all Telecommunication Service Providers are listed there in alphabetical order: https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/complaints/service-providers

Don\t know how you could have missed seeing what the OP was clearly saying in her post, or the suggestions that I made as an alternative approach, as I also did aforemention that I hoped someone was looking into the matter from Public Mobile, but the OP's last comment in her post is what really prompted me to make the suggestion I had made. I hope that you now understand why I suggested that.

[kav2001c]

@Alex-M Of course OP gave Public a port request. It isn't magic (how else would they even know what his Koodo cell number is? Systems are NOT linked)

Also your long post to CCTS is irrelevant as it does NOT fall under their mandate.

https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/complaints/guide

Furthermore I have to question WHY you would waste time making a complaint that certainly takes much longer to complete (even if they had the ability to fix this) versus simply requesting assistance through either Public or Koodo?

[Mary_M]

Good morning @felicia07

Thank you for reaching out to us - and welcome to Public Mobile.

I'm truly sorry to hear about this.

Firstly, the Koodo cancellation does sound like you had a port request done. Once your phone number is transferred over, your previous account gets cancelled automatically.

The reason why you may not be able to access your self-serve account yet is because of the number transfer. It may take a few hours for the system to recognize this, but don't worry, I'll look into it.

Would you please send me your phone number by private message ?

Thank you,

Mary

[Alex-M]

@Luddite There is also another free alternative called iEvaphone that felicia07 can use to make both local (Canada wide) and International calls. The service itself is completely free to use, you have the ability to make 4 calls a day for a duration of 24hrs on a single IP. The free online, no registration service supports most popular web browsers, as well as mobile browsers.

You can make calls from your PC, Mac, or Android Phone (with downloadable App from the Google Play Store) as well.

The website's FAQ for iEvaphone even says that all calls placed are covered and paid for by iEvaphone itself, hence the time limit period of 4 calls per day which keeps the service free, and doesn't cost the caller or the recipient being called any money.

The only requirements you need to use the free online phone service is, an internet connection, a web browser, PC or Mac, Android phone if using the Android app, a microphone and speakers, and the latest version of flash player for your web browser (which is free from Adobe).

The website for the free online phone service is: https://ievaphone.com/

The FAQ (frequently asked questions) for iEvaphone can be found here: https://ievaphone.com/faq

Hope this helps as another temporary alternative felicia07 to the issues you have been experiencing, and I hope that something gets resolved soon, and you aren't having to wait any longer than you have for PM to fix it's own issues.

[Alex-M]

@kav2001c I hope you don't mind my saying so, but no where in felicia07's post does it indicate that she was trying to port over a number from her previous mobile carrier (Koodo). If you take the time to read thoroughly, she mentions that she was having issues with the self-serve plan options, and being kicked out of the system each time when selecting the type of plan that she wanted to go with.

Nowhere does it say that her issues revolved around any porting of an existing number from her old mobile carrier, so that assumption can not be made by any one community member or PM customer support staff member here, because it does not apply, and she did not mention this.

Aside from that, I would also like to point out that there are still many issues that need to be worked out with PM's Self-Serve features, online payment system and payment history, and minor bugs and issues when it comes to posting discussion threads in the community forums where errors sometimes occur with member authentication even though you currently happen to be logged into your account with the proper account details, including you username and password.

If the owner and website master made better effort to address such issues, by applying necessary patch fixes or updates to resolve said issues that plague this site, then there may not be a great need to waste such time on reading through pages and pages of probelmatic things that tend to arise out of such glitches and bugs reported throughout the community forums by PM customers.

This is why I feel that the webmaster should be informed of such arising problems that still exist, because to me it feels like this website is still in it's infantile Beta stage and hasn't matured enough to be at a satisfactory level where it is fully functional. Past and previous posts from the present year to the past year would clearly indicate signs of this dysfunctionality throughout different areas of the website experienced by different PM customers. All you have to do is search through the community forums to read them.

[Alex-M]

@felicia07 I hope that someone on the Public Mobile customer support team is looking into your problem, and hopefully will look into assessing the issue to work closely with you on resolving it.

I am not sure if you were aware that both Koodo, your previous carrier, and your new carrier Public Mobile are subsidiaries (smaller companies controlled by a bigger Parent company), which is Telus. I believe from reading your post that Public Mobile had no right to go ahead and just make assumption to act on your behalf and prompt your previous mobile carrier Koodo to cancel your plan.

I agree with you that this is unjustly inappropriate business behaviour, and neither your previous or your current mobile carrier has the authorization to act out on your behalf when you clearly gave no verbal or written agreement for them to just cancel out your existing Koodo plan, while leaving you stranded with a non-functional service when trying to sign up with a new carrier such as Public Mobile.

For faster results on how to best approach and handle the issues you are having, I would recommend launching a complaint with the CCTS, and explain to them your situation and the issues you have experienced. You can launch a complaint on the CCTS (Commissioner For Complaints For Telecommunications Services) here: https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/complaints/service-providers

Scroll down the page until you find the logo for Public Mobile and click on: File a complaint

You can also choose to chat with a live agent by clicking on the: Would you like to chat with us? Click Here button at the bottom right of the page.

You can even call them toll free at: 1-888-221-1687 or email them if you wish at: response@ccts-cprst.ca

Their office hours are from: Monday to Friday, 9-8pm Eastern Time.

I hope this helps you out felicia07. No one deserves to have a Big Telecom like Telus push the little guys around like Koodo and Public Mobile, just because they happen to be smaller companies that are owned and ruled by the bigger Parent Company with an Iron Fist. It does not make it right for any telecom to make decisions and act on behalf of any individual customer without having the consent of the customer first to give any jurisdiction or authority to act on his or her behalf.

Furthermore, I understand that Public Mobile tries to do it's best with providing what little customer support it has, comprised of an online community base forum consisting of voluntary members and a somewhat small and lacking PM customer support staff. Alas, this is what you get when you sign on to a small no-contract carrier that has been literally bought out by Telus, and exists in name only with a small online, self-serve presence.

This is the same exact thing that has happened with Mobilicity, which was once privately owned, but was bought out by Rogers. A simple Google or Wikipedia search will verify this.

What surprises me the most is when Telus had acquired PM in October of 2013, PM started to launch it's Beta Program and Self-Serve Plans two years later on August 31, 2015 and people then were still reporting problems with their accounts expiring or being suspended even after the fact that some of them had made payments on time with their existing PM plans.

I myself have had such a payment issue at the end of the month of June 30, 2016 and I made sure that I made payment two days prior before my plan expiry date. Payment went through when I confirmed it with my bank, but Public Mobile's poor payment tracking history was reporting $0.00 Funds in my account, and no update history to reflect that payment was received and had been applied to renew my plan.

Luckily for me, the only way that I was able to alert PM quickly of my payment was through the online email system. Of course I had to wait 48hrs for PM to take notice and actually make the necessary changes to bring my account out of Suspension (strangely enough), and alert me by text that my payment had been received and my account was renewed to carry on with my 30 day plan.

Point in case is, that if PM were to implement a free live chat widget on their site, such as using the one I had suggested in a new topic discussion thread, there would be no need for having to wait 48hrs for PM customer support staff to reply back with a resolution to customer issues, because everything could easily be sorted out in a matter of a few minutes, instead of a matter of two days or even a week with most issues.