FAQs

What is The Co-operative Mobile?

The Co-operative Mobile is a Pay As You Go mobile service provided by The Phone Co-op Limited, an award winning phone, broadband and mobile provider with over 15 years of experience. The Phone Co-op is the only telecoms business in the UK owned by its customers.

What's the coverage like?

Our mobile service runs on the Everything Everywhere network, so coverage is excellent, as you'd expect.

How do I get a SIM card?

SIM cards are available in most Co-operative Food stores. You can also order a SIM card online.

Can I get a nano-SIM?

While we don't stock nano-SIMs in stores, you can order a nano-SIM online.

Can I get help in Co-operative Stores?

The Co-operative Mobile is provided by The Phone Co-op, so colleagues in stores won't be able to help you. If you ever need help, take a look through these questions, use the search box at the top of our web site, or call 500 from your Co-operative mobile, or 01608 434434 from any other phone. You can also use the form on our contact page.

What is Membership?

The Phone Co-op is a consumer co-operative; we are owned by our customers. Customers who have made an investment in the co-operative are called members. Membership is open to everyone - it only costs a pound to join. Members earn interest on their share capital, dividend on their call spend, and have a say in how the society is run.

I am already a member of the Co-operative Group/my local society. Is this the same as joining The Phone Co-op?

The Phone Co-op is an independent society; one of the top 20 largest consumer co-ops in the UK. Our Membership scheme is separate to The Co-operative Group's. It only costs a pound to join, and we would love to have you with us, so why not read a bit more about membership?

How do I activate my SIM card?

Just call 1250 to activate your new SIM card

Why does my phone say "blocked", "barred", "incorrect SIM", or "SP LOCK"

If your phone is showing one of these messages, it means it has been locked by your old provider - this often happens if you got your phone for free as part of a bundle. You will need to ask your old provider to unlock it, and they might charge you to do this.

Can I keep my old number?

Yes you can. You will need a PAC code from your current provider. Once they have given you this, just fill in our form, and we'll move your number to our service.

What happens when my number moves to you?

If you are keeping your current handset then continue to use it until you lose the service from your existing network. Then switch off the handset, remove the old SIM card and replace it with the new one we have provided.

If you are changing handsets, then when the existing SIM card loses service you should put our SIM card into your new phone, and switch it on.

Service will be lost for around 3 hours on the porting day. This usually happens some time between 11am and 3pm and always between 9am and 5pm at the latest.

Can I keep my contacts?

If you keep your contact list on your SIM card, you will lose it when you start using your Co-operative Mobile SIM. To avoid this, make sure all your contacts are stored on your phone, so they are still available to your Co-operative Mobile SIM. You can also store your contacts online, if you use Gmail or iCloud, and sync them to your phone.

How much are calls to local and national numbers?

Calls to landlines cost 8p per minute.

How much are calls to mobiles?

Calls to mobiles cost 8p per minute. If you are calling another Co-operative Mobile customer, the cost is only 4p per minute.

How much are calls to 08, 09 and other special numbers?

Prices can range from free, to £3 a minute. Check our dedicated page for rates to premium rate and other calls.

How much are texts and picture messages?

Text messages cost 4p each. If you are texting another Co-operative Mobile customer, that will only cost 2p. Picture messages (MMS) are 25p each.

How much does it cost to use the internet?

Data costs 5p per MB.

What bundles do you do?

We have a wide selection of bundles, ranging from 250 minutes and 30 texts for £5, up to a massive 1000 minutes, 3000 texts and 2GB for £20. All our bundles last for 30 days.

How much am I charged when I use up all my bundle?

If you use all your bundle allowance, you will be charged our standard rates for any further calls, texts or data.

Can I order more than one bundle at a time?

You can only order one bundle in any 30 day period. The exception is if you order one of our standalone data bundles alongside a text and minute bundle, but you can still only order one of those every 30 days.

If I don't use all of my bundle up in 30 days, does the remaining allowance roll over?

Our bundles only last for 30 days, so any balance that is not used during that period will be deleted from your account.

How can I order a bundle?

Visit our bundles page, select the bundle you want, and then text the code for that bundle to 1250. You must have enough credit on your account balance for the bundle that you want, otherwise the order will fail.

How do I check the balance on my phone?

Just dial *125# and press SEND, or text "BALANCE" to 1250, or call 1250 and follow the instructions.

How can I top-up my phone?

There are various ways you can add credit to your phone.

Online. Register your debit/card with us and choose from a range of automatic top-up options. We have a low-balance and auto top-up options available. You can register up to 4 debit or credit cards. The minimum top-up is £10.
In person at any store where you see the PayPoint or payzone logos displayed. Simply buy a top-up voucher with a PIN. Then dial *125*, key in the PIN, press # and SEND. Or you can call 1250 for instructions. The minimum top-up is £5.
By calling 1250 and using a debit or credit card to top-up. The minimum top-up is £10.

How do I access my voicemail?

Using voicemail, you can:

Listen to messages left for you.
Record a voicemail message.
Set your voicemail PIN so you can access voicemail from other phones.

Voicemail is automatically activated once you set up your mobile. To access voicemail and to set up a voicemail PIN, dial 555 and follow the instructions. To access voicemail from abroad or from another phone, dial your mobile number, press * and follow the instructions.

How do I divert all calls to Voicemail?

Make sure that the Voice Mailbox number stored in your phone is 07870 020 555. Any other number eg 447870020555 or just 555 will cause the divert request to fail.

Can I use The Co-operative Mobile abroad?

Your SIM card is set up to allow you to make and receive calls, texts, and use the internet while you are abroad.

What are the roaming charges?

We have six roaming "Zones," and each one has a different rate for calls, texts and data. Visit our roaming details page to see how much using your phone abroad will cost.

Do I get charged for receiving calls while I'm abroad?

Yes, there is a charge to receive calls outside the UK. Visit our roaming details page to see how much using your phone abroad will cost in the Zone you are visiting.

Can I turn off roaming?

No problem. Just call us on 500 before you go away, or on 441608434434 while you are away, and we will switch roaming off for you.

How do I top-up abroad?

Before you go abroad, make sure you register your debit or credit card details with our top-up service. Then when you are abroad, visit payg.thephone.coop/topup from a computer to buy a top-up.

Is 4G internet available from The Co-operative Mobile?

Sadly not yet, but we are working on it.

Do you do BlackBerry?

You can use one of our SIM cards in a BlackBerry handset, but we cannot provide the BlackBerry Internet Service.

Does your service work with iPhones?

Yes, but with some restrictions. If you use one of our SIM cards in an iPhone, you will be able to make calls, send texts and emails, and browse the internet. However, some iPhone features are not available with our service. These are:

MMS
Personal Hotspot
Visual Voicemail

How do I set up my phone for internet access and picture messaging?

There are various ways to set up your phone for internet access and picture messaging.

Have settings sent automatically by selecting your mobile model from our help pages (more models coming soon!).
Enter the settings manually using the details below.

iPhone

iPhone users need to download a configuration profile to set up their iPhone for internet access. Connect your phone to a wi-fi service, and tap this link in your phone's browser to download the profile. Then tap "Install" to complete the set up.

You can remove the profile at any time by going to Settings > General > Profile.

Please note that iPhones cannot be set up for picture messaging on our service.

Android

Follow these steps to set up most phones that use the Android OS:

For Internet Access

1. From the Home screen, tap the Menu key
2. Tap Settings
3. Under Wireless & networks, tap Mobile networks (you may need to tap More settings first, then Mobile networks)
4. Tap Access Point Names
5. Tap the Menu key
6. Tap New APN
7. Tap Name then tap the text box and enter TPC then tap OK
8. Tap APN then tap the text box and enter tslpaygnet then tap OK
9. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen, and tap APN Type. Enter default then tap OK
10. Tap the Menu key
11. Tap Save
12. Tap the APN you've created to make it active
13. Press the Back key four times or press the home button to return to the standby screen.
14. Turn your phone off and back on again

For MMS

1. From the Home screen, tap the Menu key
2. Tap Settings
3. Under Wireless & networks, tap Mobile networks (you may need to tap More settings first, then Mobile networks)
4. Tap Access Point Names
5. Tap the menu key
6. Tap New APN
7. Tap Name then tap the text box and enter TPCMMS then tap OK
8. Tap APN then tap the text box and enter tslmms then tap OK
9. Tap MMSC then tap the text box and enter http://mms then tap OK
10. Tap MMS proxy then tap the text box and enter 193.35.133.194 then tap OK
11. Tap MMS port then tap the text box and enter 8080 then tap OK
12. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen, and tap APN Type. Enter mms.
13. Tap the Menu key
14. Tap Save
15. Press the Back key four times or press the home button to return to the standby screen.
16. Turn your phone off and back on again

Windows Phone 8

Follow these steps to set up most phones that use Windows Phone 8:

For Internet Access

1. Swipe left from the Start screen to display your Apps list
2. Tap Settings
3. Tap Mobile network
4. Tap Add Internet APN.
5. Tap APN, then type tslpaygnet.
6. Tap the Save icon.

For MMS

1. Swipe left from the Start screen to display your Apps list
2. Tap Settings
3. Tap Mobile network
4. Tap Add MMS APN.
5. Tap APN, then type tslmms.
6. Tap WAP gateway (URL), then type 193.35.133.194.
7. Tap WAP gateway port, then type 8080.
8. Tap MMSC (URL), then type http://mms.
9. Tap IP type, then choose IPv4.
10. Tap the Save icon.

BlackBerry 10

New BlackBerries with the BlackBerry 10 OS have the BlackBerry email service built in, but you will need to set up the internet connection manually.

Internet

1. Swipe left on the main screen.
2. Scroll to and select Settings and select Network Connections.
3. Select Mobile Network.
4. Select the APN Settings icon and select Access Point Name (APN).
5. Enter tslpaygnet.
6. Select Save.
7. Press the Back button to return to the main screen.
8. Your phone has been set up for internet access.

MMS

1. Swipe left on the main screen.
2. Scroll to and select Text Messages.
3. Select the Options icon.
4. Select Settings.
5. Select Text Messages and select MMS.
6. Select Advanced.
7. Scroll to APN Settings.
8. Select APN and enter tslmms.
9. Scroll to MMSC Settings.
10. Select MMSC URL and enter http://mms
11. Select Proxy URL and enter 193.35.133.194:8080
12. Press Save.
13. Press the Back button to return to the main screen.
14. Your phone has been set up for MMS.

Nokia Asha

Follow these steps to set up most phones that use the Nokia Asha OS:

Internet

1. Go to the Start screen.
2. Select settings.
3. Scroll down.
4. Select configuration.
5. Select personal settings.
6. Select the list symbol.
7. Select web.
8. Select account name, enter Co-op Internet, and select OK.
9. Select username, leave it blank, and select OK.
10. Select password, leave it blank, and select OK. Re-enter nothing, and select OK.
11. Under use pref. acc. point, tick NO.
12. Select access point.
13. Select proxy, and tick disable.
14. Select bearer settings.
15. Select mob. data acc.point, enter tslpaygnet, and select OK.
16. Select authentication type, tick normal, and select OK.
17. Select username, leave it blank, and select OK.
18. Select password, leave it blank, and select OK. Re-enter nothing, and select OK.
19. Press the Back symbol three times.
20. Press Co-op Internet for a second, until a popup window is displayed.
21. Select activate.
22. Return to the Start screen.
23. Switch off the phone and restart it to activate the settings.

MMS

1. Go to the Start screen.
2. Select settings.
3. Scroll down.
4. Select configuration.
5. Select personal settings
6. Select the list symbol.
7. Select multimedia msg.
8. Select account name, enter Co-op MMS, and select OK.
9. Select Server address, enter http://mms, and Select OK.
10. Select use pref. acc. point., and tick NO.
11. Select access point.
12. Select Proxy.
13. Tick enable.
14. Select Proxy address, enter 193.35.133.194, and select OK.
15. Select Proxy port, enter 8080, and select OK.
16. Select bearer settings.
17. Select mob.data acc.point, enter tslmms, and select OK.
18. Select authentication type, and tick PAP.
19. Select username, leave it blank, and select OK.
20. Select password, leave it blank, and Select OK. Re-enter nothing, and select OK.
21. Press the Back symbol three times.
22. Press Co-op MMS for a second, until a popup window is displayed.
23. Select Activate.
24. Return to the Start screen.
25. Switch off the phone and restart it to activate the settings.

Manual settings

If you ever need to check your APN settings, or input them manually, then these are what you need:

Internet	Picture messaging
Access Point (APN): tslpaygnet Proxy: disabled There is no password	APN : tslmms MMS proxy : 193.35.133.194 MMS port : 8080 MMS url : http://mms

Why can't I access some websites?

We have signed-up to a Code of Practice to help us self-regulate the content available on phones. Certain sites and services that are deemed inappropriate for under 18s are, by default, not accessible from our service. However, content filtering is not perfect and, sometimes, it can block legitimate sites. When that happens, or for any other reason, we can turn it off. Simply call us on 500.

For more information about mobile content filtering, please visit the website of the British Board of Film Classification: http://www.bbfc.co.uk/what-classification/mobile-content

Can I use tethering?

We are happy for you to tether your phone to any other device, to share its internet connection, though we cannot guarantee that every phone will be compatible. For example, iPhone's Personal Hotspot feature does not work on our service.

How do I set up my phone for e-mail?

Compatible phones can also send and receive e-mails. You will need your e-mail address, and e-mail provider's incoming server.

If you have a Phone Co-op e-mail address the incoming server is pop3.phonecoop.coop.

For the outgoing (SMTP) server, you can generally use mail.phonecoop.coop. However, if your mail provider uses SSL, you will need to use the SMTP settings they have provided you with.

How much data do I need?

Our bundles come with a choice of 250MB, 500MB, 1GB or 2GB of mobile internet use. 1GB is ideal for regular usage. If you mostly use your connection to browse, email and check social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, 1GB should be more than enough. Various activities count towards your data usage, including browsing the web, downloading music and videos, emailing and instant messaging.

The amount of data used during these activities varies. When browsing, it depends on the type of website being viewed. A site like YouTube uses large amounts of data compared to a plainer website like Google.

As a general guide, 1GB allows you to:

view around 5000 webpages, or
send/receive about 2000 emails, or
stream about 200 songs, or
stream about 2 hours of video, or
make about 4 hours of video calls

Using a 3G connection to update applications or your Operating System is not recommended, as these are often very large downloads.

I seem to be getting through my data rather quickly. How can I make my allowance go further?

If you're using your phone to stream a lot of video or music, email photos, update apps, or make face-to-face video calls then you may find your allowance doesn't last for 30 days. Fortunately, your data already goes a bit further than other suppliers' because we don't round your usage up to the nearest MB. Additionally, if you have broadband at home via your landline, or are in a public area with accessible wi-fi, make sure your phone's wireless is switched on. Using wi-fi wherever it's available is a sure-fire way to make sure your allowance lasts longer.

Can I use the disabled operator service?

The Blind and Disabled Directory Enquiry service is provided by BT, and accessed by dialling 195. Calls to this service are free.

Can I send texts to 999 in an emergency?

The emergencySMS service (http://www.emergencysms.org.uk) has been set up so that people who cannot make voice calls because they have a hearing loss or a speech impairment can easily contact emergency services.

You need to register your mobile phone with the service in order to use it. Please visit their page for registration instructions:http://www.emergencysms.org.uk/registering_your_mobile_phone.php

Can I make free calls to charity numbers?

All calls to the Special Freephone Tariff are free. These are calls to helplines using the dial code 0808 80.

How can I keep my phone safe?

We recommended using a PIN code to lock your phone, as shown in your handset manual. If you forget your PIN and accidentally lock your phone, call 01608 434 434 for the PUK (personal unlocking) code.

What if there's a problem with the service?

If you need to talk to us about anything, you can call us from your mobile using the special short number 500. Calls to this number cost 4p per minute.

If you call from any other phone, use our regular customer service number: 01608 434 434. You can also use our contact form to send us a message.

What do I do if my phone is stolen?

Please call customer services on 01608 434 434 Mon-Fri 8am-9pm; Sat 9am-3pm, or 01608 434 072 at any other time to report your phone stolen. We will put a block on your service so that it cannot be used by anyone else.

What if I lose my SIM?

Call us from a landline, or other mobile, on 01608 434 434 Mon-Fri 8am-9pm; Sat 9am-3pm, or 01608 434 072 at any other time to report your lost SIM. We will suspend it so no-one else can make calls. Then we will send you a new SIM card, which will have the same number as your old one.

What do I do if my phone breaks?

The first thing to do is reboot your handset. This is a simple thing to do, but solves the majority of problems you are likely to encounter. To reboot:

Switch off your phone.
Remove the battery.
Wait 30 seconds.
Replace the battery and switch the phone back on.

If these steps don't rectify the issue, try our phone simulators to get help for your specific handset. If all else fails, call our customer service on 01608 434 434, and they will do their best to help you.

Where can I get help about using my phone?

With so many different handsets available, you might think it's impossible to offer support for individual phone models.

Well, we do our best - if you need help with your phone, try one of our phone simulators, and use the step by step guides to figure out how to do just about anything with your phone.

Alternatively, since most phones don't come with a paper instruction manual any more, download a manual from your phone makers' website. Here are some sites for some of the most popular handset makers: