Purchasing SIM's at Walmart

[BlackSky]

I am a new customer of Public Mobile (only 2 weeks)... So I thought I would get a friend to switch over - Went to Walmart to purchase a SIM card and was told they can't sell them anymore without activation? I don't want a Walmart employee to create a profile for me - to ask me my address - to ask me my phone number - to ask me my email address. I don't want to stand there at the Walmart computer and scroll through a large list of phone numbers to find one I like. Why the new policy and a third party relaying my personal information?? The other 2 places that your SIMs are available would be at least a 90 minute drive (one way) for me. I changed to Public Mobile - Don't start disappointing me!

[computergeek541]

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@ashleyskye wrote:

I also had Lucky Mobile pushed as well. They guy was saying the only difference was the sim card was free with Lucky. I dont know where he got that idea - there was no promo and they cost $10.

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While the regular price is $10 for both Lucky and Public, the salesperson was offering you the Lucky Mobile sim free if you activated. 

[XionBunny]

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@ashleyskye wrote:

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@sweden06 wrote:

I pruchased my sim card at a Walmart in Quebec City. I had to specifically ask for it and they wanted to push the Lucky Mobile Sim Card (I used to be with Lucky). After a long back and forth (and four people in the discussion because only one spoke a bit of English :D) I could eventually purchase it without activation. 

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I also had Lucky Mobile pushed as well. They guy was saying the only difference was the sim card was free with Lucky. I dont know where he got that idea - there was no promo and they cost $10.

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Mainly cause they don’t stand to make as much pushing public mobile, also it’s kind of the trend to complain about service here, so they only continue that trend smearing the service at point of sale.

[ashleyskye]

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@sweden06 wrote:

I pruchased my sim card at a Walmart in Quebec City. I had to specifically ask for it and they wanted to push the Lucky Mobile Sim Card (I used to be with Lucky). After a long back and forth (and four people in the discussion because only one spoke a bit of English :D) I could eventually purchase it without activation. 

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I also had Lucky Mobile pushed as well. They guy was saying the only difference was the sim card was free with Lucky. I dont know where he got that idea - there was no promo and they cost $10.

[darlicious]

@Chandell25   I'm happy to hear that they are recommending public mobile but still a little misinformed. A little intimidating the online only support at first but you'll soon get the hang of it. If I can figure it out just about anyone can. My brain may not be able to grasp the computer skills all that well but the community is very helpful and understanding. Many here will take you under their wing and guide you thru the process. It's the sense of community that can really draw you in and 99.99% of the time it's a positive experience. Welcome to public mobile.

[Chandell25]

i agree, i had a good experience at walmart as well. the clerk was very friendly and helped set everything up, except i did not know or get informed that it was all based online with no help-line or in-person support 

[sweden06]

I pruchased my sim card at a Walmart in Quebec City. I had to specifically ask for it and they wanted to push the Lucky Mobile Sim Card (I used to be with Lucky). After a long back and forth (and four people in the discussion because only one spoke a bit of English :D) I could eventually purchase it without activation. 

[BlackSky]

This thread has been going for quite a while which tells me there is still problems with this Public Mobile supplier.

computergeek541 - You are correct about the Mobile Department in Walmart not being owned or ran by Walmart.  The way Walmart (Canada) has chosen to set up that department is make it seemless...   There are no signs saying "This department is not operated by Walmart".  If Walmart choses this way to operate - then they SHOULD get the slack when things don't go right in that department.  It is within their walls...  When I buy a product from the Mobile area - the receipt still says WALMART.

When you go to McDonald's and order a Big Mac...   It is the same in Windsor as it is in Calgary as it is in Halifax...    We should not be getting different answers on this issue.  It should be OUR option - Yes, please activate it for me...  or NO, I will do it at home where I don't have to give my information out loud, I can do it when I have the time, I can take as long as I want going through the list of phone numbers until I find one I like...

The last part is the @CS_Agent told me when this was first posted that:

1. As a customer we can buy a SIM - not activated at Walmart.  End of Story...   So, I took the email into a Walmart - they Manager called the company that runs the Mobile Centre - and NO, we must activate it for you.

2. @CS_Agent told me they would investigate it because that was not true...

I gave them store information where it happened (4 Different Walmarts) with names and phone numbers...    Zero happened.  The same problem is still in existence - with the results being hit or miss.

[computergeek541]

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@marimacas wrote:

I agree that Wal-Mart has not good customer service overall....

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Anyone could have good or bad experience at a location, even if dealing with the same location again. People are human and don't always do everything perfectly.

When you say that Walmart does not have good customer servce, that in itself provides a problem for Walmart. That's because the people who sell sim cards or activate cell phone servcies are not Walmart employees, and the it's a actually a different company running that the cell phone service department.

[marimacas]

I agree that Wal-Mart has not good customer service overall....

[JenL]

@darlicious  good point!

[hairbag1]

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@Klokwe wrote:

I didn't have any problems with purchasing a public mobile sim card at walmart. They did not ask me to activate so I purchased it and activated my sim online and I am also new to public mobile.

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Welcome to Public Mobile. If you have any questions, there's always someone in the Community Forum to help you...way better than an off-shore call center eh !!

[Klokwe]

I didn't have any problems with purchasing a public mobile sim card at walmart. They did not ask me to activate so I purchased it and activated my sim online and I am also new to public mobile.

[w1nter]

I purchased mine at Walmart in South Calgary today. MIne was a good experience, the clerk helped me activate the phone in-store and gave me a sim card at no charge. The process was fast and straight-forward. I found it a bit odd that when I informed him I would like to switch to public mobile, the clerk warned me against public mobile by saying the public mobile is entirely online and has no help line or support in-person. Anyhow, the switch to Public mobile was very easy!

[baz]

Hi Darlicious,

I agree with you that Wal-Mart should be more open about selling the SIM card only....There are times when you want to do the set up yourself. But having said that, I am still glad that the attendant did all the donkey work so to speak, especially as the PM site was buggy...he had to re-enter our info mutilple times before it worked. I can imagine if I was doing this alone at home, I would have been flustered without any phone assistance to go to. The attendant mentioned that the PM webiste can be buggy sometimes when activating a new registration, this was re-assuring to have him do it. 

Thanks for you feedback. 

[darlicious]

@baz  Thanks for sharing a positive experience of your activation at Wal-Mart and with the offer of a free SIM it would be hard to say no. It is still unfortunate that they would not sell a SIM card. Not every SIM is for activations and the denial to a customer seeking a replacement card only is an inconvenience  and reflects poorly on Wal-Mart's conditional customer service.

 Can you imagine if Canadian tire denied you the sale of new tires if you did not have them installed by them? Or McDonald's requiring you to dine in only? But I'm very happy you and your wife decided to switch mobile providers. Welcome to public mobile. May you have a Happy Noel and a Merry New Year!

[baz]

Hi there,

I am a new PM subscriber and so far very happy to be part of the team. I have seen some negative comments re purchase of SIM cards in the Brampton area, so I wanted to give a positive one. I went to Wal-mart at Mayfield and Bramalea in Brampton fearing the worst, but it turned out to be a wonderful experience for my wife and I. I wanted to only buy the SIM and then activate them at home myself, but the attendant/ manager would not sell, stating they will only sell if activated on site...I am really glad we went through that route. The attendant gave us the SIMs for free, activated both of them and made sure I kknew how to get the free data plan and international minutes (which I now have). I am glad that he activated it because the PM web site was a little buggy and he made sure after several attempts that evrything went smoothly for my wife and I. We have subscriped to $25 plan with credit card so we have already received our $2 credit plus the next month free ( we activated before Dec 16th so getting another $25 credit each). The attendant was patient and very knowledagable....he spent almost 25-30 mins with us whilst also attending other customers. Overall, very happy and satisfactory experience. 

[liuxinbing]

Opened my first PM account at Walmart 6 months ago. All went well, and SIM was free.

As there is new referral bonus deal, I went to the same Walmart last 

Friday to open the second PM account. It was the same sales associate, and he said that the SIM is still free if activate in store (by him). All went well.

Two days later, the first PM account got the $20 referral bonus, and this new account got $10. Also the 1G bonus and 400 min LD added.

[Suganglittle]

PC mobile will help you thru and they also have a help line number o my they can access if you don't feel you can do it alone

[cbx4evr]

Walmart still has the Sell on Activation Policy Only - at some locations. Myself I had no issues with the Walmart in Fort Sask, AB. Sold me the card, went home and activated in less time than it took to get the card. Walmart only has one person working and there is always a line up.

Convinced my brother to make the switch. He has 4 phones in the family. First Walmart he went to in Edmonton wouldn't sell the card citing something about a promotion and they had to do it. I call BS. Second Walmart he went to had no problem selling him the 4 cards but first tried to sell him on Freedom Mobile.

Personally I hate Walmart and try to stay out of there unless I really need to go to the bathroom.

[Triguy]

You could leave a review.  There is also a Wow mobile.

https://www.publicmobile.ca/en/on/store-locator

[Amandaclarice]

Im trying to purchase a sim at walmart north bay and they refused to sell me a sim unless I signed up with them and gave my personal information to a stranger.

Odd because I had no proublem in the past buying two accounts for relatives.

[s2scotty]

My Walmart guy /asked/ me do the typing too. It's just easier & quicker.

/S

[drmartin]

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@BlackSky wrote:

I am a new customer of Public Mobile (only 2 weeks)... So I thought I would get a friend to switch over - Went to Walmart to purchase a SIM card and was told they can't sell them anymore without activation? I don't want a Walmart employee to create a profile for me - to ask me my address - to ask me my phone number - to ask me my email address. I don't want to stand there at the Walmart computer and scroll through a large list of phone numbers to find one I like. Why the new policy and a third party relaying my personal information?? The other 2 places that your SIMs are available would be at least a 90 minute drive (one way) for me. I changed to Public Mobile - Don't start disappointing me!

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The guy at the Walmart I went to let me use the computer all on my own, not sure if it was because he was busy with another customer, but I liked the fact that I got to enter all my data without his help, give a referral, enter my cc number, etc... 

[bonifaceviii]

Walmart Markville Mall in Markham didn't let me buy a SIM without an activation either.

If the mobile kiosk people are just third-party sales contractors it doesn't really surprise me that this is such a widespread problem.

[mctnguy]

I also experienced the same thing.

I will never deal with Walmart for anything mobile phone related other than buying a SIM card, assuming they would sell me one.

[raymcl]

I went to Walmart in Windsor East to purchase a sim and on arrival found a note on the cellphone counter saying would return at 1:20 PM which was 45 minutes away. I went and asked an employee in another department if there was someone else who could help me. They informed me that the clerk who worked in cellphones was not a Walmart employee, but worked for a private company and I would simply have to wait. He did show up at the time specified and he sold me a sim without requiring that it be activated. Still, I would consider this poor customer service on Walmart’s part.

[mimmo]

@yucango  why not just go to london drugs.  they are much nicer to deal with than walmart.

[yucango]

I am in British Columbia and there is a good, so-called promotion at Walmart.

  Months ago when I was first considering Public Mobile, the saleman at Walmart tried to scare me off of Public Mobile because:

1. They have no help line.

2. They could mess up me trying to port my number.

Then they tried to promote some other product.  Something is definitely going on...I can smell the stink.  I am no conspiracy buff, but it seems like Walmart or perhaps these independent sales people are against public mobile. (maybe they don't get as much commission?)  I will probably forego the promotion because I fear these guys might goof up on purpose.  Heh Walmart, everthink of  sending  in some secret shoppers and find out what is going on !  

What is happening is very bad PR for Walmart.  I would fire the salemen who are involved in the blink of an eye. 

I plan one more trip to Walmart regarding PMobile and if I get screwed about ..I will haul the manager right to the phone center and confront these guys.  I don't mind a bit of trouble to get rid of the nonsense that goes on in the market place.  Don't respond if you are one of the apathetic Canadians who make a stand for nothing.

 I am an international business person and this stuff is common in the market place and stinks.  I could give you many examples of other corporations who say one thing and do another.

Well there's my rant.  I will tell you what happens when I approach Walmart later this week.

Oh the drama.  Better than t.v.

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@computergeek541 wrote:

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@VAL2 wrote:

Hi everyone,

Just to say I went to walmart supercenter in montreal today and the guy told me they were not in charge of the activation and I had to do it myself. He also used this argument to try to sell me an other product.

Cheers

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Isn't doing it yourself the prefered method for most of us?  I would have just thanked the person and purchased it for the $10.  Unless there is a specific promotion that you can only get by activating at Walmart, I know of zero advantage to activating in store.  In fact, I see it as a disadvantage.  Who wants to stand there for 15 minutes while the person activates your account when you can just do it from the comfort of your home? 

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[computergeek541]

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@VAL2 wrote:

Hi everyone,

Just to say I went to walmart supercenter in montreal today and the guy told me they were not in charge of the activation and I had to do it myself. He also used this argument to try to sell me an other product.

Cheers

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Isn't doing it yourself the prefered method for most of us?  I would have just thanked the person and purchased it for the $10.  Unless there is a specific promotion that you can only get by activating at Walmart, I know of zero advantage to activating in store.  In fact, I see it as a disadvantage.  Who wants to stand there for 15 minutes while the person activates your account when you can just do it form the comfort of your home? 

[VAL2]

Hi everyone,

Just to say I went to walmart supercenter in montreal today and the guy told me they were not in charge of the activation and I had to do it myself. He also used this argument to try to sell me an other product.

Cheers