If your Pay As You Go SIM card isn’t used for a certain amount of time, your credit will expire and your account will be closed.
Pay As You Go mobile phone tariffs are often ideal for people who only use their mobile phone from time to time. Unlike on Pay Monthly SIM cards, there are no regular monthly charges on Pay As You Go: you only pay for what you actually use.
When choosing a Pay As You Go mobile network, it’s worth investigating the credit expiry and SIM card cancellation policy very closely. On most mainstream networks, your credit won’t expire providing you make a chargeable activity at least once every 6 months (e.g. an outgoing phone call, text message or using mobile data). However, on some smaller mobile networks, your credit may expire as quickly as 90 days from top-up. Your SIM card may also be cancelled automatically if you haven’t used it for as little as 84 days.
In this article, we’ll review and compare the credit expiry and SIM card cancellation policy on UK Pay As You Go mobile networks.
Contents
Overview of Inactivity Policies
In the following table, we’ve summarised the credit expiry and SIM card cancellation policy of UK Pay As You Go mobile networks. Unless otherwise stated in the table, the times listed refer to an inactivity period (your credit will only expire if your SIM card is left unused for more than a certain amount of time).
| Mobile Network | Inactivity Period (Amount of time without chargeable event) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| PAYG Credit Expiry | SIM Card Cancellation | Phone Number Deleted | |
| 1p Mobile | No expiry (minimum top-up applies) |
No expiry (minimum top-up applies) |
No expiry (minimum top-up applies) |
| ASDA Mobile | 270 days | 270 days restricted use after 180 days |
360 days |
| EE | 180 days | 180 days | 180 days |
| giffgaff | 6 months | 6 months | 6 months |
| O2 | 6 months | 6 months | 6 months |
| Tesco Mobile | 6 months | 6 months | 6 months |
| Three | 6 months | 6 months | 6 months |
| Virgin Mobile | 180 days | 180 days | 180 days |
| Vodafone | 180 days | 180 days | 180 days |
| VOXI | 270 days | 270 days | 270 days |
| Smaller Pay As You Go Networks: | |||
| Co-Operative Mobile | 180 days | 180 days | 180 days |
| Delight Mobile | 90 days from date of top-up |
120 days | 120 days |
| iD Mobile | 90 days (also 365 days from top-up) |
90 days | 90 days |
| Lebara Mobile | 90 days from date of top-up |
84 days | 84 days |
| Lycamobile | 90 days from date of top-up |
120 days | 120 days |
| Vectone Mobile | 90 days from date of top-up |
120 days | 120 days |
- PAYG Credit Expiry: When your Pay As You Go credit expires, you’ll no longer be able to use it or recover it. On most mainstream mobile networks, your credit will never expire providing your SIM card remains active. However, on some smaller mobile networks, your credit can expire just 90 days after top-up.
- SIM Card Cancellation: When your SIM card is cancelled by the network, you’ll lose coverage on your phone with an error message like “Inactive SIM” or “SIM card registration failed”. Your SIM card will be cancelled automatically if you haven’t used it for a certain amount of time (between 84 days and 270 days depending on the network).
- Phone Number Deleted: In some cases, your phone number will be retained even if your SIM card has already been cancelled. This means you’ll be able to restore service on the phone number and you’ll be able to use a PAC Code to transfer the phone number to another network. If a phone number has been deleted or “recycled” by your mobile network, it’ll no longer be possible to recover it or to transfer it to another network.
Recommended Deal For Light Users
If you’re a light user, 1pMobile currently offers the lowest Pay As You Go rates of any network in the UK. They charge just 1p/minute, 1p/text and 1p/MB, with 2G, 3G & 4G coverage from EE. Your credit on 1pMobile will never expire, as long as you top-up by at least £10 every 120 days after the first year.
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1pMobile
To join 1pMobile, you can order a SIM card online with £30 of credit. Once you’ve done this, there’s no need to top-up again for one year. After the first year, you’ll need to top-up with £10 of credit every 120 days. This will keep your SIM card active with no obligation to actually spend the credit. However, a non-refundable balance would accumulate over time if you don’t spend the credit added to your account. 1pMobile offers 2G, 3G & 4G coverage from the EE network. You can use the SIM card inside your mobile phone or tablet, or in a wide range of other devices including trackers, alarm systems and more. |
Through the rest of this article, we’ll discuss the inactivity policy of each mobile network in more depth.
Major Pay As You Go Networks
On most major Pay As You Go networks, you’ll normally be able to leave your SIM card unused for up to 6 months or 9 months at a time. Providing you use your SIM card for a chargeable activity during this time, your account will remain open and your Pay As You Go credit will never expire.
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1pMobileIn the UK, 1pMobile works a little bit differently to other Pay As You Go networks. Instead of requiring you to make a call or to send a text message every so often, they only require you to add a certain amount of credit to your account. If you order 1pMobile’s 1-year SIM card, there’ll be no need to top-up your SIM card again for one year. After your first year on 1pMobile, you’ll need to top-up your SIM card by at least £10 of credit every 120 days. This is detailed on the 1pMobile website:
Prior to the 25th April 2017, 1pMobile had a monthly minimum spend requirement. This requirement is no longer in place. Source: 1pMobile Help Pages |
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ASDA MobileOn ASDA Mobile, you should normally try to use your SIM card at least once every 180 days in order to keep it active. Providing you do this, your credit will not expire and your account will remain open. After 180 days of inactivity on your SIM card, your outgoing phone calls will be suspended, but incoming phone calls will still work. You should call ASDA Mobile’s customer services team to reinstate a full service on your SIM card. To do this, dial 0808 006 2732 (customers who’ve joined since March 2021) or 0800 079 2732 (customers who joined before March 2021). After 270 days of inactivity on the SIM card, your unused credit will be removed and your SIM card will be barred for both outgoing and incoming calls. Finally, your phone number will be deleted by ASDA after 360 days of inactivity on the account. This is described in more detail on ASDA Mobile’s help page:
The legal terms relating to this policy can be found in clause 5.2 and 5.3 of the ASDA Mobile Terms & Conditions:
Source: ASDA Mobile Terms & Conditions (dated March 2021) |
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EEEE will disconnect Pay As You Go customers if no “connection actions” are taken for 180 days. If this happens, unused credit will be removed from your account and your phone number will also be deleted from the system. You can keep your account active by topping it up (£5 minimum) or by making a chargeable activity. This includes making a chargeable phone call, sending a chargeable text message or using mobile data. From clause 6.3 of the EE Pay As You Go Terms & Conditions:
If you’re opted in to one of EE’s Pay As You Go packs, you may find that Pay As You Go credit is deducted from your account automatically every week or every month. To stop this happening, you can opt-out of the packs by texting STOP PACK to 150. This will allow you to keep the credit on your account for longer. Source: EE Pay As You Go Terms & Conditions (version 01B, dated January 2017) |
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giffgaffgiffgaff will disconnect your SIM card if your account has been inactive for six months or more. You’ll lose your unused credit and your giffgaff phone number will also be deleted from the system. There are several ways to keep your giffgaff SIM card active such as making a phone call, sending a text message, accessing the internet or topping up your phone. From clauses 13.3 to 13.4 of the giffgaff Terms & Conditions:
If you’re converting your Pay As You Go credit into a goodybag bundle, your allowances will expire one month after the goodybag purchase. For more information, see our full review of giffgaff. Do note that a stricter 3-month policy applies if you’d like to earn Payback Points from giffgaff:
Source: giffgaff Terms & Conditions (dated 16th September 2019) |
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O2On O2 Pay As You Go, customers will have their SIM card disconnected after six months of inactivity. You’ll also lose your phone number and any unused credit remaining on your account at the time. From clause 7.1 of the O2 Pay As You Go Terms and Conditions:
Customers buying an O2 Big Bundle will see their bundle allowances expiring after one month. The six month inactivity policy only applies for regular Pay As You Go credit (e.g. on the Classic Pay As You Go plan). Source: O2 Pay & Go: Terms & Conditions (dated 1st October 2018) |
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Tesco MobileCustomers on Tesco Mobile Pay As You Go will lose their service after six months of inactivity. This is stated in clause 5.4 of the Pay As You Go Terms & Conditions:
Source: Tesco Pay As You Go Terms & Conditions (dated 23rd August 2018) |
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ThreeThree will suspend your Pay As You Go account if you don’t top-up or make a chargeable event for six months. According to clause 9.1(h) of the Three Pay As You Go Terms & Conditions:
Source: Three Terms & Conditions (dated 17th July 2019) |
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Virgin MobileIf you’re on Virgin Mobile‘s legacy Pay As You Go service, there’s an inactivity period of 180 days. You’ll need to make a chargeable phone call or text message at least once during this period. According to clauses 3.7 and 7.2(g) of their terms & conditions:
If you’re on a very old price plan such as “Pay As You Go Addict” or “Simply 8p”, the inactivity period may be 90 days instead. Please refer to clause 3.8 of the old terms and conditions. Source: Virgin Mobile: Terms & Conditions for ‘Big Data & Texts’ and ‘Big Talk’ (dated July 2012) |
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VodafoneIf you’re a Vodafone Pay As You Go customer, you’ll need to top-up your phone or make a chargeable outbound activity at least once every 180 days. This is described in a FAQ on Vodafone’s website:
This is also described in the Vodafone Pay As You Go Airtime Conditions (specifically, the sub-heading titled ‘Leaving us/suspending the services’).
If you’re using one of Vodafone’s Big Value Bundles, your airtime credit will be converted automatically into a bundle each month. If you don’t want your credit to be converted automatically into a bundle, you should change to the Pay As You Go 1 price plan instead. Source: Vodafone Pay As You Go Airtime Conditions (dated January 2021) |
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VOXIVOXI is low-cost Pay As You Go sub-brand of Vodafone. Typically, the vast majority of VOXI customers will have a one-month plan where unused allowances expire with the plan. However, for customers who prefer, it’s also possible to use VOXI for calling and texting on a traditional Pay As You Go basis. On VOXI, it’s a requirement to use your SIM card at least once every 270 days. If you don’t, your service will be suspended causing the loss of your phone number and any unused credit remaining on your account. This is stated in section 5(b) and 5(c) of the VOXI terms and conditions:
Source: VOXI Terms and Conditions (version 1.8, dated 1st July 2019) |
Smaller Pay As You Go Networks
On smaller Pay As You Go networks, the inactivity policy can be much more varied. On some smaller networks, your SIM card could be cancelled after as little as 84 days of inactivity. Some of the smaller mobile networks will also expire your credit 90 days after the date of the relevant top-up. This is an important thing to watch out for when choosing a smaller network over one of the major providers.
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Co-Operative MobileCustomers of The Co-Operative Mobile will either need to use their phone for a chargeable call or top-up their account at least once every 180 days. From sections 7.1 and 7.4 of their Pay As You Go Terms & Conditions:
Source: The Co-Operative Mobile Terms & Conditions |
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Delight MobileOn Delight Mobile, your Pay As You Go credit will automatically expire 90 days from the date of the relevant top-up. For instance, if you were to top-up with £10 of credit on April 1st, any leftover credit remaining from that £10 will automatically expire on June 30th. Furthermore, if you don’t use your Delight Mobile SIM card for a period of 120 days, it will be disconnected and your phone number will be lost. For more information, see clause 12(b) of the Delight Mobile terms and conditions:
Source: Delight Mobile Terms & Conditions |
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iD MobileOn iD Mobile, your Pay As You Go account will be closed automatically after 90 days of inactivity. If this happens, you’ll also lose any unused credit on your account. This is stated within the iD Mobile Pay As You Go FAQs:
Additionally, you will also need to top-up your account at least once every 365 days. This is stated in clause 12.4 of the iD Mobile Pay As You Go terms:
If you joined iD Mobile before the 15th June 2017, individual top-ups will have a validity of 365 days (e.g. if you were to top-up by £10 on January 1st, that top-up will only be valid until December 31st). This is stated in clause 8.5(a) of the terms and conditions for customers joining before the 15th June 2017. Source: iD Mobile Pay As You Go FAQ |
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Lebara MobileOn Lebara Mobile, all Pay As You Go credit will expire 90 days from the date of the relevant top-up. For instance, if you were to top-up by £10 on April 1st, any leftover credit remaining from that £10 will expire on June 30th. In addition to their credit expiry policy, Lebara also requires you to use your SIM card at least once every 84 days. If you don’t make a chargeable phone call or text message for 84 days, your account will be closed and your SIM card will be terminated. Your phone number and your Pay As You Go credit will be lost when this happens. For more information, see clause 60 of the Lebara Mobile terms and conditions:
Source: Lebara Mobile Terms & Conditions (dated 27th September 2010) |
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LycamobileOn Lycamobile, all Pay As You Go credit will expires 90 days from the date of your top-up. For example, if you were to top-up by £10 on April 1st, any credit remaining from that £10 will expire automatically on June 30th. Further to this, customers will also need to make a chargeable event or will need to top-up their phone once every 120 days (a warning will be sent to you after 90 days). If 120 days have elapsed since the last chargeable event, your account will be closed and you’ll lose any remaining credit. Your phone number will also be reallocated to another customer. Please see clauses 3.3-3.5 and clause 4.6 of the Lycamobile Terms & Conditions:
Source: Lycamobile Terms & Conditions |
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Vectone MobileOn Vectone Mobile, your Pay As You Go credit will automatically expire 90 days from the date of the relevant top-up. For example, if you were to top-up by £10 on April 1st, any leftover credit remaining from that £10 will automatically expire on June 30th. Furthermore, in order to keep your account active, customers must use their SIM card at least once every 120 days. If more than 120 days have passed since the last chargeable activity, your account will be closed and your phone number will be lost. For more information, see clause 12(a) of the Vectone Mobile terms and conditions:
Source: Vectone Mobile Terms & Conditions |
As always, we’d strongly recommend you double-check the details here against the latest information from your mobile network’s website. Terms and conditions can change on an occasional basis so it’s important to have the latest information on credit expiry and SIM card cancellation.
More Information
For more information, please refer to your mobile network’s website. Currently, our recommended mobile network for light users is 1pMobile due to their low rates and their flexible Pay As You Go service.
If you’ve chosen a mobile network that you’d now like to join, please see our guide to the latest free SIM card offers. You can also see our Pay As You Go price comparison tables and our guide to transferring your phone number between mobile networks.
Rob said:
The terms and conditions specified, for termination of a PAYG sim because of inactivity, with the retention of any unused credit may be incompatible with the Consumer Rights Act 2015! I am currently in a dispute with Three, regarding their retention of my unused credit on a 321 plan but other service providers include similar clauses and could perhaps be challenged on the same basis?
If a termination clause is prominently displayed in the marketing of the product, which is the case with 1pmobile.com, then this may not be applicable but more often these are hidden in the small print. If anyone is in a similar position, then the link to the relevant guidance and applicable sections is provided below:
Guidance on the unfair terms provisions in the Consumer Rights Act 2015, 31st July 2015 CMA37
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/450440/Unfair_Terms_Main_Guidance.pdf
Specifically, page 94:
Trader’s right to cancel without refund – Schedule 2 (second half), Part 1,
paragraph 7
Part 1 of Schedule 2 states that the following may be unfair:
(7) A term which has the object or effect of … permitting the trader to
retain the sums paid for services not yet supplied by the trader where it is the trader who dissolves the contract.
5.17.1 Cancellation clauses which allow the trader to cancel without acknowledging any right on the part of consumers to a refund of prepayments can be particularly open to abuse. This applies equally to deposits and sums paid when (or after) the contract is entered into.
5.17.2 As with cancellation rights generally, concern arises particularly where such a term could be used at the discretion of the trader. But even a more restricted right to cancel, for example, along lines indicated in paragraph 5.16.5, is likely to be unfair if it could allow retention of prepayments for which the consumer has received no benefit.
Trader’s right to cancel without notice – Schedule 2, Part 1, paragraph 8
Part 1 of Schedule 2 states that the following may be unfair:
(8) A term which has the object or effect of enabling the trader to terminate a contract of indeterminate duration without reasonable notice except where there are serious grounds for doing so.
Bob Monkhouse said:
Great website. I was recently caught out by three disconnecting my number due to 6 months inactivity because I was stuck abroad. They sent no warning text or email. Their customer service refused to reconnect the number either though I contacted them the next day. So be careful with Three and their useless customer service. A mobile number I had for 20 years is gone forever!
Jay said:
Hi Ken,
This week, ASDA mobile has announced the start of the migration from EE to Vodafone. Looking at the new T&Cs (section 5.1.4), it appears that ASDA’s gold start may need to be replaced with a red triangle because the inactivity time has been reduced to 90 days.
Regards.
Ken replied:
Hi Jay,
Thank you for the heads up about this! I’ve just taken another look at this, and I believe they’ve decided to revert to the old 270 day policy (I presume it may have been causing a bit too much confusion for their customers). Please let me know if I’m mistaken!
Thanks,
Ken