Coverage
Rates
Calling from |
Per minute rate to call a UK landline |
Per minute rate to call a UK mobile * |
Per minute rate to call an EU mobile * |
Per minute rate to call an international landline |
Per minute rate to call a international mobile * |
Per minute rate to receive a call |
Send a local/international text message |
Per minute rate to call Customer Service or listen to voicemail |
| United Kingdom | £0.04 | £0.15 | £0.20 | £0.04 | £0.20 | FREE | £0.10/£0.15 | FREE |
| European Union | £0.30 | £0.35 | £0.35 | £0.30 | £0.55 | FREE | £0.10/£0.45 | £0.20 |
International Calls and International Roaming
Calling from |
Per minute rate to call a landline or a US Cell Phone |
Per minute rate to call a mobile * |
Per minute rate to receive a call ¶ |
Rate to send a text message |
Per minute rate to call Customer Service or listen to voicemail |
| Zone 1a | £0.30 | £0.35 -> £0.55 | FREE | £0.10 → £0.45 | £0.20 |
| Zone 1b | £0.30 | £0.55 | FREE | £0.45 | £0.20 |
| Zone 1c | £0.30 | £0.55 | £0.05 | £0.45 | £0.20 |
| Zone 2 | £0.50 | £0.75 | £0.35 | £0.45 | £0.35 |
| Zone 3 | £0.95 | £1.20 | £0.80 | £0.45 | £0.80 |
| Zone 4 | £1.55 | £1.80 | £1.40 | £0.45 | £1.40 |
| Zone 5 | £2.30 | £2.55 | £2.15 | £0.45 | £2.15 |
Determine the zone for the country you are traveling to and use the table above to find the applicable rate. A per minute surcharge applies to call some non-key countries. *View applicable countries
< Sending a text message from one European Union country (excluding the UK) to another EU country is 10p per text message. Sending a text message from outside the European Union is 45p per text message.
All rates are quoted in GBP. You are billed in 1 minute increments.
§ A 25p connection fee applies to each call made or received (except when it is free to receive calls).
¶ There is a 15p per minute surcharge to receive calls on your US +1 number in all countries.
» It costs 10p per text message to receive text messages on your US +1 number in all countries.
* The cost of calling a cell phone in the United States and Canada is the same as calling a landline.
Prepaid Data services
Prepaid Data is available for customers with applicable phones who wish to read and send emails and access the Internet using their mobile phone while traveling. Find out more about coverage and configuring your phone for data.
Rates are based on kilobytes of data used, and start from 50p per MB. The minimum charge is for 100KB and usage is charged in increments of 10KB. View rates for all countries
Sending a photo via email or MMS using phone with a VGA camera will use 100KB of data in many cases and will cost approximately 5p in United Kingdom, 15p in France and 60p in Mexico.
Tip: In order to access Prepaid Data outside the United Kingdom you need to enter 2 followed by your PIN when turning on your phone. In order to access Prepaid Data in the United States, you need to enter 3 followed by your PIN when turning on your phone. When using data in the United States you won't be able to make calls.
Features
Voicemail
Voicemail is automatically enabled. An inbound caller will be directed to voicemail if the call is not answered within 30 seconds, if the phone is switched off or if there is no coverage. A text message will be sent to notify you of a new voicemail.
To listen to voicemail, dial 121 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
The messages will be played in order of last received. No charge applies in zone 1a or zone 1b.
To change your greeting message, dial 732 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen). No charge applies.
To disable voicemail, dial 866 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
To enable voicemail, dial 869 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
Balance inquiry
Dial 187 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
The account balance will be sent in a text message.
No charge applies.
Recharge minutes
Dial 181 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
You will be connected to the Self service recharge menu. Have your credit card handy.
No charge applies.
Customer service
Dial 154 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
You will be connected to 24/7 Customer Service.
No charge applies in zone 1a or zone 1b.
Toll-free calling
This feature can be used to let your family and friends call you from landlines, payphones and US and Canada cell phones at no charge to themselves, saving them the cost of a call. To call you, they just dial a toll-free number provided by you and enter your phone number. You will be charged a 25p per minute surcharge to receive the call, in addition to the incoming per minute call rate for the country you are in.
To enable, dial 373 and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
To disable, dial 282 and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
Please note a call is not made. You will receive a message saying Toll Free Forwarding is either enabled or disabled.
Auto-recharge
Auto-recharge automatically recharges your account with £20 when your balance falls below £5. The automatic recharge is instantaneous and you receive a text message when it occurs.
Enable or disable Auto-recharge at any time by signing into your account online or by calling Customer service. You can also change the minimum balance and the charge amount.
To enable, dial 171 and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
To disable, dial 393 and press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
Please note a call is not made. You will receive a message saying Auto Recharge is either enabled or disabled.
Call forwarding
Calls to your phone number may be forwarded to any other number. You will be charged the standard rate for zone 1 landline or mobile, depending on whether the call is forwarded to a landline or mobile phone, and if a surcharge applies.
To enable, dial 102+ followed by the country code and number you wish to forward to (for example 102+18582742686), then press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
Turn disable, dial 103, then press the call, send or OK key (ignoring any messages on the screen).
Getting Started
Your service is already active for you. When you receive your package, you should:
- Remove the chip from the plastic credit card sized SIM card, and insert it into your phone.
* The SIM card is already inserted into your phone if you ordered one.
* Your phone needs to be unlocked to use this service.
- Turn the phone on.
- Enter the 4-digit PIN and press OK. Outside the United Kingdom (for example in Europe) enter 2 followed by the PIN and press OK. In the United States enter 3 followed by the PIN and press OK.
- When the phone registers with an available network (this will take 30-120 seconds) it is ready for use.
- Your PIN code is a four digit code printed on the plastic credit card sized SIM card.
- Please enter the PIN correctly. The service will be blocked if the PIN is entered incorrectly 3 times. If your SIM is blocked you will have to contact Customer service to unblock it.
Get US Number
When you turn your phone on and pick up a network in the United States for the first time using this service, your US Number will be automatically sent to you via text message. If you wish to obtain your US number prior to this you can get it in online. Visit
www.rechargeminutes.com:
- Click on "Get Number" at the top.
- Enter your UK phone number (starting with 44) and your 4 digit PIN (printed on the SIM card) and click on the "Get Number" button.
- On the next page click on the "Get US Number" button.
- Your new USA number will be displayed on the screen. Please take note of it.
Making Calls
Using this service is a little different from normal calling but so easy!
How to make a call in the United Kingdom and the United States
- Turn your phone on and when prompted for the PIN, in the UK enter the 4-digit PIN and press OK and in the USA enter 3 followed by the 4-digit PIN and press OK. When the phone registers with an available network it is ready for use.
- Dial the country code (44 for the United Kingdom, 1 for the US and Canada, 61 for Australia), area code and phone number.
Example: To call 0207-943-2772 in the United Kingdom you need to dial 442079432772
- Press the call key. The call will be connected normally.
How to make a call in countries other than the United Kingdom and the United States
- Turn your phone on and when prompted for the PIN, enter 2 followed by your 4-digit PIN and press OK.
- Dial the country code (44 for the United Kingdom, 1 for the US and Canada, 61 for Australia), area code and phone number.
Example: To call 0207-943-2772 in the United Kingdom you need to dial 442079432772
- Press the call key and please wait. Ignore any messages shown on your screen. You will be disconnected for 10 to 30 seconds, and then your phone will call back.
- Answer the call normally. Your call will be connected after a few seconds.
^ If the call back does not happen, please refer to the following section on Prefix dialing.
Prefix dialing (how to make a call when call back does not occur)
If you are trying to make a call outside the UK or USA and the call back does not occur or if you hear a message saying the call cannot be completed, please do the following:
Dial *126* followed by the country code (44 for the United Kingdom), area code and phone number, followed by #.
If you wish to call 213-337-5555 in the US, dial *126*12133375555#
If you wish to call 0207-943-2772 in the UK, dial *126*442079432772#
Receiving calls - plus how family and friends can call you toll free
How to receive a call
Just like at home - when your phone rings simply answer the call.
Family and friends can call you for free
You're about to travel overseas and your family and friends think that it will be too hard and too expensive to call you. Toll-free calling is the answer! It makes it easy for family and friends to call you from landlines, payphones and US and Canada Cell Phones at no charge to them.
Here's what to do:
- Give your family and friends your new phone number.
- They dial our toll free numbers from a landline, payphone or US or Canada Cell Phone
United Kingdom - 0800-376-5637
US & Canada - 1-866-305-6462
Australia - 1-800-261-038
France - 0805-101-177
Germany - 0800-000-6485
- They listen to the prompts and enter your number.
- Your phone will ring and you're chatting away - at no cost to your family or friends. And if you don't answer, they can leave you a voicemail.
Your family or friends will not be charged if they are using a landline, payphone or US or Canada Cell Phone. You will be charged a 25p per minute surcharge to receive the call, in addition to the incoming per minute call rate for the country where you are.
Recharging your account
Buying more calling time is simple. Use your American Express, Mastercard or VISA card to add £20, £30, £50, £100, £150 or £200 to your account.
There are five easy ways to recharge your account.
Using the website
Recharge online now!
Using a landline, hotel or payphone (toll free call)
- Dial the toll free access number for the country you are in.
- Enter your phone number then press the hash key.
- Press 1 to recharge using the Self-service phone menu.
- Follow the voice prompts to recharge your account.
Note: a per minute rate applies to call a toll-free access number from your mobile phone.
From your mobile phone (no charge applies)
- Dial 181 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key
- In the UK and the USA, this call connects directly. Outside the UK and USA, please wait for the call back (ignoring any messages on the screen), answer the call normally and after 10-15 seconds your call will be connected.
- Follow the voice prompts to recharge your account.
Via 24/7 Customer Service (the call is free in zone 1 countries)
- Dial 154 from your phone and press the call, send or OK key
- In the UK and the USA, this call connects directly. Outside the UK and USA, please wait for the call back (ignoring any messages on the screen), answer the call normally and after 10-15 seconds your call will be connected.
- Follow the voice prompts to speak with Customer Service.
Using Auto-Recharge
Auto-recharge automatically recharges your account with £20 when your balance falls below £5.
Enable or disable Auto-recharge at any time by signing into your account online, by calling Customer Service or by dialing a short number on your phone (refer to Features). You can also change the minimum balance and the charge amount.
The automatic recharge is instantaneous and you receive a text message when it occurs.
Contacting Customer service
From landlines, hotels and payphones:
- Dial the access number for the country you are in.
- Press 0# to speak to Customer Service.
Press 0 for English
Press 1 for French
Press 2 for German
Press 3 for Portuguese
Press 4 for Spanish
Press 5 for Japanese
Press 6 for Italian
Note: a per minute rate applies to call a toll-free access number from your mobile phone.
From your mobile phone (no charge applies in the United Kingdom):
- Dial 154 from your phone from your phone and press the call, send or OK key
- In the UK and the USA, this call connects directly. Outside the UK and USA, please wait for the call back (ignoring any messages on the screen), answer the call normally and after 10-15 seconds your call will be connected.
- Follow the voice prompts to speak with Customer Service
User guide
Download a print-friendly version of the user guide.
User guide (814KB PDF file)
Service life
Your Service will remain active indefinitely if you:
- add a minimum of £10 call credit at the time of purchase or within one month of your initial use of the service and
- use a charged service (such as making a call, or sending a text message) within any six month period.
We will send you an email and text message notification one week in advance of your Service becoming inactive. If you Service does become inactive, all your remaining credit (including the credit that comes included with the SIM) will expire. However, we will automatically re-instate your full expired credit balance (including any remaining initial included call credit) if you recharge your account with $30 or more via Customer Service within fifteen (15) months of last use.
After fifteen (15) months of inactivity your SIM card will be permanently deactivated. However, we will provide you with full credit for your expired credit balance (including any remaining initial included call credit) if you purchase a new SIM card via Customer Service.
After 2 months of inactivity your US number may be changed when you go to use it again. If it has changed you will receive the new US number via text message. You can ensure that you retain your US number indefinitely by paying 30p per month for each number. Simply visit www.rechargeminutes.com, click on the 'Get number' menu option, enter your number and PIN, and click on the 'Keep Number' button (in the Account status section).
Handset compatibility
This service works with all handsets in the United Kingdom and United States. In other countries this service works with the vast majority of handsets, but not all.
If you have difficulty using the service in your handset, please see our Buying Tips for information on handset frequencies and how to unlock your handset.
Tips
Making calls
- Before you go, enter all your phone numbers into the address book of your new mobile handset for quick and easy dialing when you are traveling.
- Enter all phone numbers in the international format, starting with the country code (44 for the UK), area code (without the leading 0) and phone number.
- If you are using Prefix dialing, make sure you enter # at the end of the number.
For example to call 0207-943-2772 in the UK, you would dial *126*442079432772#.
