The Unofficial Speak Out Wireless Canada Consumer Page - Topic: Pay-as-you-go plan??

Howard Cherniack on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Sat, 28 Jan 2023 03:01:41 -0800

I'm afraid that Telus made a fairly attractive offer to my friend, and she jumped at it. Thanks to pdops and Gopher GUts--I'm pretty sure that you're right, and I'll have to remember that for the future.

Howard Cherniack on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 01:10:31 -0800

I see your point (and thanks also to pdops). Many thanks. I will suggest to her that she just top up and see how long it lasts--unless she's already gone somewhere else, since she's pretty impulsive.

Gopher GUts on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 22:37:27 -0800

Howard Cherniack said
I see the Rates, but under Plans there are just 30-day ones, and I don't see any way to get any other.

That's where the apparent confusion comes in.
Talk & Text is not a "plan", it's the default state of the account.
$1.25/mo for 911, plus any calls .35/min (in or out) and texts sent at .20 each.

Adding a "plan" says: "Hey, take a chunk of money out, and give me these other cool features for a month".

Howard Cherniack said
Certainly my friend would not have willingly signed up for any 30-day plan,

Possibly not, but whenever I log in to double-check my balance and see what's new, the screen always tells me that I don't have a plan, and encourages me to get one. I just ignore it. I've been on the $25/year not-a-plan since I got my first phone back in 2007.

Her phone must have some type of "logs" that can show all activity. Maybe make a list of all the texts and calls (with time spent) and see what they add up to?

35 cents per minute can suck the account down pretty fast. It's only 71 minutes total. With 1.25 left over, that's only 67 minutes used. How much does she talk?

pdops on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 08:52:01 -0800

Perhaps the way to go is to NOT select any plan? It is devious marketing by SpeakOut to not show an obvious way to not have to select a 'plan'

Howard Cherniack on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Mon, 23 Jan 2023 22:58:19 -0800

Thanks for your post.

I see the Rates, but under Plans there are just 30-day ones, and I don't see any way to get any other. Certainly my friend would not have willingly signed up for any 30-day plan, since she intended her phone only for emergencies and for receiving texts.

I filled out the "Contact Us" form with the question some time ago, and still haven't heard back. If I am able to get an answer, perhaps by phone, I'll report back here.

Gopher GUts on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Mon, 23 Jan 2023 18:44:30 -0800

If you're going to look under "plans", don't scroll down, just click on the big orange circle marked "TALK & TEXT RATES". That's where you'll find the standard $25/year option.

https://www.speakout7eleven.ca/talk-text-cell-phone-rates

If she's already added some kind of 30-day "plan" to her account, I assume you just wait for that plan to expire (or officially cancel it early), then the account reverts to the pay-as-you-go model at the end of that 30 days.

https://www.speakout7eleven.ca/faq

> What happens when I remove a plan from my account?

> When you deactivate a plan from your account, it will be removed on the next Anniversary Date.

Howard Cherniack on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Sun, 15 Jan 2023 13:52:29 -0800

Yes, it certainly seems now that the only plans available involve monthly charges. Yet I remember pretty clearly that, when my various friends signed up, there was a plan that was completely on a pay-as-you-go basis--put some money in and it would last for a year. Maybe they changed the available plans? Maybe I fantasized it?

Thanks for the suggestion--I certainly will check with SpeakOut support.

pdops on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Sun, 15 Jan 2023 10:07:06 -0800

The 911 access fee would only account for $15/year. I just logged in and looked at their plans and it is difficult to see how NOT to have to pick a monthly plan. The lowest cost monthly plan is $20 so that would have drained your friends $25 balance a long time ago. Also the plan would have expired after a year so going 19 months without a top up would be impossible.

I would ask their Customer Service via the form at the bottom of their Contact Us page

https://www.speakout7eleven.ca/contact-us

Let us know what you find out.

Howard Cherniack on Pay-as-you-go plan??

Sat, 14 Jan 2023 16:00:06 -0800

I've recommended SpeakOut to a couple of friends who intend to use their phones very rarely--mostly for emergencies and receiving texts. There was a pay-as-you-go plan where you could put $25 in your account, and it would last for a year if you had no airtime or text charges.

I just got a call from such a friend--she set up her SIM card with $25 late last year, has used the phone very little, and now has a balance of $1.25. When she set up an online account, she is offered a choice of "30-day" plans that include monthly charges.

Did I misunderstand the pay-as-you go plan? Has something changed? Could the 911 access fee ($1.25 /month?) have drained the account? (I don't think that she's had the SIM card for 19 months yet.)