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Mobile phones and consumer rights
Buying a cell phone handset remotely, that is to say online, over the phone, or by mail order, means that you have some extra rights as a consumer. Any complaints that you feel have not been satisfactorily resolved can be taken to an ombudsman service, who will fight your corner for free if they feel that you have a case.
Buying a phone service contract remotely entitles you to be able to cancel the order and be refunded up to 7 working days after the order was placed, with no reason having to be given. However, if you ask for your service to begin immediately, then you are waiving this right.
You can cancel the order for a handset that you have bought without a service contract up to seven days after receiving the phone, providing you have not damaged the unit or its packaging.
Nearly all new phones come with a manufacturers warranty, which guarantees that your phone will be replaced, refunded, or repaired if it develops a problem that is not of your doing.
Even if your phone does not come with a warranty, you still have some rights under the terms of the Sale of Goods Act, which entitle you to a repair, replacement, or refund if the phone develops a problem that isnt your fault. The strength of your claim will, however, depend on the circumstances of the case, and how old the phone was when the fault was noticed.
Although you may be discouraged from doing so, you do have the legal right to keep the same phone number when you switch from one network provider to another. In order to do this, you will have to ask your current provider for a Porting Authorisation Code (PAC), which you can then give to the provider you are looking to switch to. The changeover should take no longer than two days, and you will be given a temporary number in the meantime.
Before you commit to any new mobile contract, you should find out whether you can cancel the contract at any point during the term, whether there is a minimum period, and what the cancellation charge is, as these contracts can be hard to wriggle out of once you have signed them.