O2 is shutting down its pay-as-you-go data only SIM services.
These SIMs allow you to connect to the internet with mobile data when you don’t have WiFi. The service provides a data allowance and a specific timeframe for how long your data will last. For example, customers could get 1GB for 24 hours for £3, or for £10, you get 2GB for 90 days, while £20 would get you 8GB for 90 days, and £30 would get you 12GB for a whole year.
But O2 has now confirmed its data only SIMs for pay-as-you-go customers will be discontinued on January 31, 2025. If you’ve already purchased one of these longer-term options, you’ll need to use up your data before the service is discontinued on January 31, 2025, or apply for a refund by contacting O2 customer services on 0344 8090222.
If you want to stay with O2, you’ll need to switch to a pay monthly data SIM, either on a 30-day rolling contract, a 12-month deal, or a 24-month plan. It comes after ISPreview revealed O2 had stopped selling these SIMs to new customers in August.
O2 customers who are affected have been sent the following email: "We're sorry to let you know that we're removing our Pay As You Go Mobile Broadband & iPad services from our portfolio on January 31, 2025. Our customer account management portal will be closing on December 17, 2024. You can continue to use your service until January 31, 2025, after which time your service shall cease."
An O2 spokesperson said: “On 31 January we are removing our PAYG Mobile Broadband and iPad services, which have not been available for new customers since August. We have recently written to the small proportion of customers who will be impacted by this change and they can contact us directly should they require any further information or support. O2 customers can continue to benefit from a wide range of great-value PAYM SIMs across iPad, tablets and mobile broadband.”
It comes after Virgin Media O2 revealed the exact amount your mobile or broadband bill will rise by next April. From this January, new and re-contracting Virgin Media customers will see their prices rise by £3.50 a month, effective from each April. O2 customers will see their airtime bill increase by £1.80 but their monthly device repayments will remain frozen at a fixed price.
Mobile broadband and smart watch customers will see a price rise of 75p. But there are some customers who won’t see their bills rise at all, including customers on social tariffs and Talk Protected landline services. Pay-as-you-go customers also won't see their prices increase.
It comes after telecom firms were banned by Ofcom from using mid-contract price rises that are linked to inflation - instead, customers must now be told in "pounds and pence" how much their contract will rise by each year.