keeping my moms home phone number

[Jomp]

Hi folks,

 My mom is elderly and she wants to cancel out bell home # since it cost $70 for a home phone these days, so I was wondering if i cancelled the home phone  would I be able to get my mom on a public mobile plan and get to keep her original home phone number since she has had it for over 50 years ??? it's a 450 area code number from Quebec Montreal .

Thanks for your help in advance.

[darlicious]

@softech 

The fine art of negotiation. I don't pay anything for any rental equipment.

• Advanced modem
• Wifi booster
• HD PVR
• 3 HD digital boxes

Optik TV Pick six combo  $55

Internet 25 (for good)       $4.95

Total                                    $59.95+tax  Total discounts $160.05+tax  

Previous bill before qualifying for the internet for good program $123.46 including taxes.

[softech]

My parents have an older plan, they still tagging couple dollars on..

I used to have that too.. upgraded to a newer plan and they finally "include" it in the plan.

[darlicious]

@softech 

You pay for the rental of your modem?

[softech]

one thing Telco never change during these years..they like to rent us stuff.. 

old days: renting phones.

now: renting modems.

other than monthly service fees.. they like to knock couple more dollars from us monthly.. 

[darlicious]

@AE_Collector 

I had all of those phones except the steel blue one. Telus was a bargain then because I remember renting the fancy black one at the bottom during my first year at OCA with bell and the rental charge was about $22 a month because my bill was about $40.

[AE_Collector]

Telephone rental was a part of phone bills for a very long time. And of course you can rent more than one phone. Here in BC I seem to recall about $10 a month being about the highest rental charge per telephone with $3 or so being about the lowest. It depended on what you wanted to rent of course. From the early 90’s on these Heritage Telephones (BC Tel worked with Northern Telecom to design these in a historical sort of look) were the basic rental set in BC at around $3 a month. Below the Heritage is the Signature, Solo and Harmony premium rental phones that I think were in the $5 - $7 a month range and then came the most deluxe for the 1990’s, the Vista phones with Call Display that I think were around $10 a month.

AE_Collector

[darlicious]

@AE_Collector 

I wouldn't be surprised if bell is still charging a $30 equipment rental fee for the telephone itself.

[Korth]

Public Mobile $25 Unlimited Canada-wide Talk plan is already better than the Bell $70 plan. Even if you never use the Text and Data components.

You do have to buy an unlocked, radio-compatible, SIM-compatible smartphone (or non-mobile "cordless" phone). And a PM SIM card.

Elderly folks can benefit from a mobile phone, even if it's just a familiar-to-them form factor like a flip-phone. But they also might be prone to losing/breaking it, they might be too dinosaur to understand such newfangled technology, they might simply have vision or hearing or dexterity too poor to operate a mobile phone.

You can get things like the ZTE "Home Phone Station" which are effectively just non-mobile (powered by wall-receptacle) cellphones equipped with unexciting phone handsets. Buy the thing outright for 50 bucks, plug in a PM SIM card, and good to go. As a bonus, it's a "home" phone which can even be used anywhere there's electricity - like at an overnight friend's place, a hotel room, etc - it's not strictly wired in place like a home landline.

Landline Number Ports are possible. If it seems too complicated or treacherous then just send a private msg to @CS_Agent or get a support ticket from Simon chatbot, let Public Mobile handle the details for you. You'd have to keep paying for the existing (Bell) service until the number port completes, at which point the old account (and billing) terminates and the new service (Public Mobile) takes over the number.

Don't forget to use your Referral code (you get the Reward, your mom gets $10 credit). You could wait for a promo but each month you delay would be wasting money on that overpriced Bell plan.

[darlicious]

@Jomp 

Both of those bell bills are way too high and typical of how providers take advantage of seniors unfamiliar with todays technology. With internet, tv and home phone there should be bundling discounts. Usually the home phone is thrown in for free! I would go over those bills with a fine tooth comb and get on the horn to the loyalty department to complain and demand a credit and a serious discount without a contract or their new term for a contract....an "agreement"!

Not delivering a service that is being charged is not an excuse and an excellent basis for a CCTS complaint. That should light fire under their butts to credit back for services not recieved or overcharged. In the meantime apply on your mother's behalf for both the mobility for good and internet for good programs run by telus for seniors (et al.)

You may still be better off with a pm $15 plan (with eventually $7 in reward discounts with autopay and loyalty). The internet for good gives unlimited internet 25 for $9.95 a month. You could order tv or set up an amazon fire stik or any of the other tv streaming services for her. Set it up and she can just ask alexa for her tv shows or favourite movies.

It takes about a month to get approved once you submit her :

• CRA Statement of Canada Pension Plan Benefit T4A(P)

and fill out a very simple form and email it to telus. Here are the links....

https://www.telus.com/en/social-impact/connecting-canada/seniors/application?linktype=subnav

https://www.telus.com/en/social-impact/connecting-canada/people-with-disabilities/application

[BlueB]

@Jomp - Some very good comments from @AE_Collector and actually made me think of something.  After porting the number and before cancelling your Fibe and other services, you can always give them a call and ask what they'll do for you for pricing/promotions/retention.  If nothing, not much is lost and you can still leave.  If your service is okay otherwise, mayyyybe, just maybe they'll offer you something worth staying for.  🙂

[AE_Collector]

Wow, slow around here lately so one new post an hour ago and we are on page 4 of replies already!

I skimmed over replies, didn’t thoroughly read each one and have several comments…

-Porting the phone number from Bell to Public Mobile may very likely leave the Internet and TV portion of the Bell account working so if that isn’t wanted you will need to talk with them. BUT as mentioned you should Port the number out before starting that I would think.

-Probably not fair to call them crooks over some/many of the channels being paid for not working on wifi or a internet based device, there could be LOTS of reasons for that and some likely include CRTC regulations. Watching on a phone/tablet is a supplemental feature, not the intended way to use the service. (Yes I am known to stand up for and support the Telcos on some subjects. BC Tel / TELUS paid my wages for 37 1/2 years).

-It certainly IS possible to have a landline costing that much but almost certainly it is a line loaded down with features that aren’t really needed that could be eliminated. As mentioned, you can get a Telus landline pretty cheap now though it may (not sure) be more do-able if you have other services using the same facilities to the house such as internet and/or TV.

-And finally… has your mom already got a cell phone or used them in the past? It can be close to impossible to retrain older parents on the switch from hardwired to cellular. Seems like it should be easy but…. My mom is 91, has a landline and an inexpensive cell phone mainly for emergencies. The last time I remember her using it she had to stop someone on the sidewalk to get help to call me with it. She DOES take it with her but would have to really be in a bad spot before she would actually try to use it. She figured my old BlackBerry was too complicated so sister got her one of those $69 (ish) seniors phones that are supposedly “easy to use”. Pffft, no such thing if having to navigate a directory and figure out how to select a name/number and hit send is considered wildly complicated by the user.

AE_Collector

[LurganIeUk]

I have had less issues with PM than what I did with Telus prepaid. So I agree. 

[softech]

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@og2 wrote:

@Jomp Since your mother is elderly, I would suggest picking a more reliable provider. You don't want to have an emergency only to find out you have no services. Plus Public mobile only uses 3g for voice, while 2nd tier up will have VoIP(voice over IP) better service and reliability.

don't gamble on your mother's life. Choose either Koodo or Virgin Mobile. 

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Yes, I agree with @og2   Be aware that Autopay failure occurs sometimes.  We have customers complain about that.  And you know ..when this thing happens, it always happen on  moment you need your phone most.  That's why I said if you have someone at home to do the support (and in your case you likely have a 2nd phone with you sister), it might be ok.

[BlueB]

@Jomp 

I would argue a little differently about reliability than @og2 .  Public Mobile is owned by Telus and uses their network.  If there's an issue with the network, Telus is a top tier provider and will proactively correct it.  Public Mobile isn't disadvantaged because of this.

Where there could be issues on how Public Mobile is so cheap - no realtime customer service with everything being online.  In this case - it's slower to fix problems if they come up, although the Moderators here have been pretty good.  There are also some glitches with AutoPay, etc, but if it works with a manual top-up, many have seen that it generally works overall.

Other than these glitches, I would argue it's not an issue with reliability or gambling with safety.  I agree there are service disadvantages, but I haven't had anything "do or die" that the Moderator's couldn't help with.

On a separate note, in true emergencies where 911 is needed, all current phones (even without service/SIM card) can call 911 so this is another "safety net" in case of an emergency too.

[LurganIeUk]

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@og2 wrote:

@Jomp Since your mother is elderly, I would suggest picking a more reliable provider. You don't want to have an emergency only to find out you have no services. Plus Public mobile only uses 3g for voice, while 2nd tier up will have VoIP(voice over IP) better service and reliability.

don't gamble on your mother's life. Choose either Koodo or Virgin Mobile. 

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Both PM and some other VOIP offer E911 not 911. So if you feel E911 is not good then you need to research that first. Right now in BC, 911 is not working well for an ambulance. 

[og2]

@Jomp Since your mother is elderly, I would suggest picking a more reliable provider. You don't want to have an emergency only to find out you have no services. Plus Public mobile only uses 3g for voice, while 2nd tier up will have VoIP(voice over IP) better service and reliability.

don't gamble on your mother's life. Choose either Koodo or Virgin Mobile. 

[Jomp]

thanks! 🙏

[LurganIeUk]

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@BlueB wrote:

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@LurganIeUk wrote:

Also DO expect a refund from Bell for the unused portion of the billing. 

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...they may also start sending you greeting cards saying We Miss You! 

After I cancelled, they mailed me greeting cards for a few months asking me to go back! 😂

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70 bucks is outrageous for a land line. I you appeal properly Telus will make your land line $5 a month for ever. Money is in internet and TV. But then again there is Bell!!!

If mother is ok with keeping cell phone close...the $15 plan and some $5 500 minute add-ons would likely fit the bill OR tell every one to call her. 

[BlueB]

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@LurganIeUk wrote:

Also DO expect a refund from Bell for the unused portion of the billing. 

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...they may also start sending you greeting cards saying We Miss You! 

After I cancelled, they mailed me greeting cards for a few months asking me to go back! 😂

[BlueB]

@Jomp 

Bonus tip: Before activating with Public Mobile, look for promotions that will benefit you.  For example, use a friend/family's referral code to get a one-time $10 credit!  Your friend/family member will get $1 every month off their service.  (If for some reason you don't have someone to refer you, we're all members here and would be happy to help you with a code if needed.)

There are other promotions that may be of benefit to you too, such as a 2GB bonus for $35/mo+ plans.  Register here and you'll need to enter the promocode upon activating online:

https://www.publicmobile.ca/en/on/pd3-3523583103?dclid=CN6_jrHNj_ACFdJ6YgodMYQE5g&cmp=BAC_Public-Mob...

Canadian Cell Supplies is a popular online retailer who often have promos too.

Hmm...

That's interesting, @softech - thanks for providing that.  I learned something new today too!  🙂

[LurganIeUk]

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@softech wrote:

yes, most likely is you can port over her phone to PM without issue.  You can confirm if porting eligible here (it's Koodo site, but Koodo and PM both owned by Telus):

https://secure.koodomobile.com/checktransfereligibilityparrot/default.do?lang=en&appname=otherportal

But honest, for elderly, you might want to look for some VoIP solution like Fongo Home Phone or Primus.  It is around $5 to $10 per month (but might have activation charge).  I would say it is more reliable than cellular.   Especially you are not leaving with her , I assume.  Cell might have more expected issue and harder to support in case something goes wrong.  I have been using Fongo Home myself and it is solid (as long as internet is up and running).

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I guess every one has their preferences and a price to pay monthly in mind. I can tell you the VOIP.ms is fantastic to deal with and our bill averages $13 a month including taxes. Billing is Canada Wide and US calls which we rarely call is only a bit more...not cents more!! We usually us FaceTime for USA calls.  Voip.ms like PM does not charge to call 800 numbers as well. 

I know I have said this before:

Voip.ms is fully programmable vs others

Can forward, if you like, all call to both of our cell phones as well

Voice mail is also emailed to you in MP4 as well, if you set up. 

Loads and loads of space to block calls. 

@softech  elderly?? How old is that??

Voip does require wi-fi and depending on the service also an ATA box best hardwired to modem. 

[softech]

@Jomp  i guess if someone living with her, then support is not an issue  🙂

but still VoIP could be cheaper solution..   you can also connect a wireless phone units, 2 or 3 handsets.  

[Jomp]

Thank you all for the great and fast responses. moms been sick the last year and is living with my sister so the landline is useless especially for $70 per month ... 

[LurganIeUk]

Also DO expect a refund from Bell for the unused portion of the billing. 

[softech]

yes, most likely is you can port over her phone to PM without issue.  You can confirm if porting eligible here (it's Koodo site, but Koodo and PM both owned by Telus):

https://secure.koodomobile.com/checktransfereligibilityparrot/default.do?lang=en&appname=otherportal

But honest, for elderly, you might want to look for some VoIP solution like Fongo Home Phone or Primus.  It is around $5 to $10 per month (but might have activation charge).  I would say it is more reliable than cellular.   Especially you are not leaving with her , I assume.  Cell might have more expected issue and harder to support in case something goes wrong.  I have been using Fongo Home myself and it is solid (as long as internet is up and running).

[BlueB]

@LurganIeUk 

I'm curious too what the current process is... @Jomp feel free to let us know how it goes!  🙂

My experience with porting a landline number is also several years old.  I needed to provide all account details and send them a picture of my phone bill matching my name before I could transfer.  Then, it was "magically" done (no further confirmation either).

[Anonymous]

for porting requests for landline telephone numbers take a longer period of time. like 5 days or more,

and you have to getting her a device phone moblie is no more landline.

[LurganIeUk]

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@Jomp wrote:

ok so this will work with her land line right?

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Yes as long as the BELL # is in an area that PM offers service. Likely it is.