Apple Watch cellular plan fails to activate on Koodo and Telus

[erickr]

Hello,

I received an Apple Watch Series 10 (GPS + Cellular) that was purchased directly from Apple Store as a gift during Christmas. Since then, I've been unable to activate the cellular plan through the Apple Watch app despite multiple calls with both Koodo and Telus customer support and following all troubleshooting steps, including updating the software to latest version and unpairing/re-pairing multiple times.

Both Koodo and Telus customer service seem unaware of what to do and unable to effectively resolve the issue. I've also contacted Apple and they are convinced this is a carrier issue.

Has anybody been successful at activating the cellular plan through the app in a self-service manner? If so, did you buy the watch from Koodo/Telus or from Apple/third-party? I'm trying to determine if Telus and Koodo are intentionally making it difficult to activate Apple Watch cellular plans if the watch was purchased through third-party instead of them.

Thanks!

[TELUS_Support]

Hi there, we replied to your private message. 

[iiviirv]

I’m facing the same issue. They asked me to erase my watch, which I did, but the problem persists. 

[TellMeAboutIt]

Me too. Telus is supposed to get back to me within 6 days. The watch worked fine on Bell cellular..  

[iiviirv]

They asked me to unpair my watch at least four times. It’s not good for them because they have no idea what’s happening. Still the same issue 

[erickr · Accepted solution]

My issue has been resolved after customer service opened a ticket with the back office. Apparently a new cellular line had to be provisioned manually by a technician. After the technician provided the line, he called me to perform some tests and confirm everything was working.

If customer service asks you to reset your watch and the issue persists, ask them to open a ticket for you. Customer service doesn't seem to have the tools or know-how to solve this issue on their own.

Good luck to you all. I know this issue is super frustrating but it can be resolved if you connect with the right folks at Telus. I wish it wasn't so complicated but it is what it is.