Prepaid plan is not transparent

[cuongdao]

Hi everyone,

After finishing 2 years contract with Telus, my wife and I have switched to prepaid since we do not communicate much and we have several troubles as mentioned below: 

1. Web-based my telus: cannot access and view bill and history under "Classic mobility-mobility prepaid-manage prepaid in classic". 

2. App-based my telus: unavailable to monitor "Usage" for my wife account (the second account under my registered name)

3. The second account is unavailable to make calls even though it has been topped up.  

4. Suspicious usage of call minutes with both accounts: rarely made any phone calls but had to top up 3 times in a month (each top up equal to 50 MINUTES!!!). 

5. No direct customer services via phone call for prepaid plans. All I received is automatic directions to top up or view balance, etc. 

It seems like these are tricks of Telus to discourage people using prepaid plans to switch to their high-rate plans. We used to have to pay $120 per month for 2 year just to get 1GB shared data. 

Thank you. 

[BrandonT]

Hi @cuongdao ,

I'm sorry to hear the incorrect expectations were set when migrating to Prepaid. It does require somewhat of a learning curve, and has some limitations in order to keep the prices as low as they are. With all prepaid services from any provider, they all have the same business plan structure; pay less, get less. Prepaid plans often include limited minutes, texts, and data, while also having limited phone support since this is the most costly business expense. I will do my best to address your concerns and provide you with useful information. 

1. Web-based my telus: cannot access and view bill and history under "Classic mobility-mobility prepaid-manage prepaid in classic". 

Yes, you are correct. on Prepaid, there are no bills, however you still have the ability of viewing your...

• Current balance
• view your usage
• view your transaction history. 

2. App-based my telus: unavailable to monitor "Usage" for my wife account (the second account under my registered name)

With TELUS Prepaid or Postpaid there is a feature to monitor usage across multiple accounts. I will have to assume both your wife and yourself each have your own Prepaid account with their own unique account number. Using the app, you will notice 3 horizontal lines (located on the top left corner). Once you click that, you will see an option called Link an account. Assuming you have not already created multiple online accounts, you should be able to enter your wife's account number or phone number, with the postal code. A confirmation text message will be sent to your wife's phone to confirm. Once the accounts are linked, you can login to self serve with a single email and password and manage both accounts to view the usage.

3. The second account is unavailable to make calls even though it has been topped up.  

Without looking at your account, I will not be able to confidently answer this question. If I were to assume, I would think that the account has a positive account balance, but no plan has been chosen yet, and therefore the call cannot be completed. Think of prepaid like a casino. You convert cash into chips (cash into account balance), and use chips to bet (account balance, to purchase a plan). If this is not the issue, the SIM card may not be activated, or inserted into the phone correctly. If all else fails, please open a new topic to troubleshoot this issue and one of the members here will be happy to help.

4. Suspicious usage of call minutes with both accounts: rarely made any phone calls but had to top up 3 times in a month (each top up equal to 50 MINUTES!!!). 

Unlike postpaid, prepaid minutes are used for incoming or outgoing calls. In your statement, you mentioned "rarely made any phone calls", so I assume you may not be considering incoming calls. 

5. No direct customer services via phone call for prepaid plans. All I received is automatic directions to top up or view balance, etc. 

TELUS Prepaid customers do have the ability to call customer support and speak to a live agent. You can do so by calling *611 from your TELUS prepaid cell phone. There will be an automated system just like Postpaid, to ensure you are directed to the correct department. Note, that additional charges may apply when you speak to a real agent about a change which you are able to do through self serve.

It seems like these are tricks of Telus to discourage people using prepaid plans to switch to their high-rate plans. We used to have to pay $120 per month for 2 year just to get 1GB shared data. 

I'm sorry you feel this way. TELUS is in no way tricking their customers. It's an industry standard across every business. Here is an analogy which may help: Postpaid is like First Class on an airline, whereas Prepaid is Economy Class. You may have gotten used to flying First Class with TELUS with the free meals (phone support), and bigger more comfortable seating (more phone features). 

Solution - based on your concerns (Pay less, but get the same self serve and phone support that your used to)

You could choose to migrate back to PostPaid and choose our Talk & Text Voice $35 plans instead. You will receive unlimited calling & texting across Canada, with access to data (which I strongly recommend you block by purchasing a TELUS Data Block for a few extra dollars to prevent pay-per-use expensive data charges). Your total will be around $70 a month compared to $120 which is a good middle ground with $50 in monthly savings. 

Hopefully I was able to address your concerns, although they may not be what you expected. 

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