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Original poster

Help with pay as you go sim for first phone

19 replies

Whataday21 · 04/12/2021 05:04

Sorry I didn't know where to put this. My son is getting his first phone for Xmas. He is young and won't be using it that much. It's just to contact me in emergencies. For this reason I'm looking for a pay as you go that doesn't have to be topped up each month. Do they still exist?

OP posts:
Ekofisk · 04/12/2021 05:24

Giffgaff’s Sim only deals let you use PAYG, or you could opt for a £6 per month deal. You’d need an unlocked or O2 phone as it uses the O2 network.

Original poster
Whataday21 · 04/12/2021 05:30

Thank you. I know tesco do 7.50 per month but it's such a waste. It's an o2 phone.

OP posts:
Mydogisagentleman · 04/12/2021 08:19

Our DD had a Tesco sim, chosen purely for the coverage

TeenMinusTests · 04/12/2021 08:45

ASDA Mobile do complete PAYG.
(Their cheapest bundle is also only £4 / month text & talk only)

Pixiedust1234 · 05/12/2021 15:18

Virgin is stopping payg so I have been looking around. According to the Martin Lewis website asda does a cheap payg. Be careful though as some payg sims require you topping up so much every few months which is useless for emergency mobiles

fussychica · 05/12/2021 15:43

Giffgaff

ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 05/12/2021 15:47

Giffgaff, or Parentshield if you want to limit his calls to specified numbers.

Thepowerofthelook · 05/12/2021 15:59

My youngest two have a £5 smarty plan on a rolling contract. Also get reduction for unused data and discounts for more than one sim.

BarbaraofSeville · 05/12/2021 17:01

When you say 'he won't be using it that much' do you plan only allow him supervised use?

If he has it out and about, unless there's parental controls on it, I have no idea what is possible, it is very likely he will use data, which will cost a lot on PAYG.

Unless you are going to effectively exclude him from data, it's probably worth spending a fiver or so a month on Giff Gaff etc and then you have unlimited calls and texts too.

www.moneysavingexpert.com/mobiles/cheap-sim-only-contracts/

Queequeg07 · 05/12/2021 18:12

Why not RWG Mobile. They have a totally free monthly plan that gives 50 minutes or 50 SMS messages. Or you can pay £1 a month for 75 minutes or 75 messages.

But you will need an unlocked phone as they use the EE network.

Original poster
Whataday21 · 05/12/2021 18:50

Thanks everyone. I've been thinking about it some more, and I think having a set amount of minutes/texts could be dangerous if he needs me but has run out. We're also really rural so I think I do like the idea of whatsapp etc so he can send his location, use maps etc. He won't be allowed the phone in the house, just for when he goes out, which currently is hardly ever but that will soon change hopefully. He's a rule follower and knows that I check all devices. He would only have family numbers in it. He's still young so I can control all this at the moment.

OP posts:
Ekofisk · 06/12/2021 06:57

The Giffgaff £6 goody bag gives you unlimited calls and texts and 1Gb of data every month. The app is easy to use to track data usage too.

Iggly · 06/12/2021 07:01

I would go with giffgaff. It’s impossible he’ll run out of texts as it’s unlimited.

I wouldn’t rely on WhatsApp in a rural location because it needs data - I have to remind my son to use texts when his data runs out!!! (We live in a town surrounded by countryside and data is patchy)

Zimbolino · 06/12/2021 07:05

My daughter is on 1pmobile, which is absolutely fine for her. (She has a cheap dumbphone.)

P0ntiacBandit · 06/12/2021 07:06

please check mobiles.co.uk for sim only deals. They have some great offers and the company ID is fairly good, my Niece is on a £5 or £6 plan with unlimited minutes, texts and fairly generous data.

helloyoutoo8 · 06/12/2021 07:11

Another one for SMARTY. Any data unused they refund you each month. So my £10 plan normally comes to £6 each month.

InTheLabyrinth · 06/12/2021 07:19

We are going with three in a similar situation. DH has checked it (it's his carrier - I'm with virgin, which don't do PAYG) and says the only think we need to do is make a call every 4 (or maybe 6) months.
I only have a £6/month contract. I can't see DS hammering through more than me!

We will upgrade to a contract in September, but for various reasons, the ability to make calls in Jan would be very useful.

MenaiMna · 06/12/2021 08:13

I had my now 13yo on IDmobile for £5/month for four years. It was definitely enough for her. It's now £6 but it's unlimited calls and texts and a reasonable amount of data if you train the child/set up phone to switch it on only in an emergency and use wi-fi at home and free wi-fi where available. Very easy to manage to setting cut off online. DC has just now joined us on a massive BT SIM in a family deal. But ID was always easy to manage. I also used Kaspersky kids £10/yr) for tracking and monitoring but it's quite easy for a smart kid to hack around.

annababbie · 09/12/2021 12:02

Yep, we use parentshield and couldn't be happier, it really does remove the worry.
A.

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