Are you sure you are ready to travel abroad?

“Your phone is blocked by your operator company and you are not able to use different SIM card with this phone. Please contact your operator for further assistance”. I was already in the other side of the ocean not being able to use my phone with a local SIM card. Oh no! The nightmare of any traveler was happening to me.

I booked an English course in UK and after months of longing to be there and lots of searches and preparation I was finally in Hastings, ready to start a new adventure and chapter in my life. Just with one problem: no internet connection in my mobile. Oops!

Mmm, oook. I am in UK already! How can I contact my operator now? No phone number, no signal, no local telephone to use. I asked for help in local stores and they told me only my operator company could unblock my phone B Mexico because it was purchased

I inserted the new SIM card, and there it was, the scary massage: “your phone is blocked by your operator company and you are not able to use different SIM card with this phone, contact your operator for further assistance” (or something very similar).

Mmm, oook. I am in UK already! How can I contact my operator now? No phone number, no signal, no local telephone to use. I asked for help in local stores and they told me only my operator company could unblock my phone from Mexico because it was purchased

with them.

After a lot of troubles, the help of my parents in Mexico and almost FOUR WEEKS LATER, my operator finally unblocked my phone and I was able to use a new SIM card on my unblocked phone with an internet plan from a local operator in the UK, Yeii!!

How I did it? By contacting my 'operator', Movistar Mexico, through social media (phone calls were not possible for me as they were super expensive and I didn't have more ideas in how to contact them). Everything was by messages on Twitter and WhatsApp calls through my Mum and Dad to contact customer services.

If you want to avoid this to happened to you, this is why I went trough the nightmare and hopefully you can avoid the same situation:

I bought my phone two years ago with Movistar Mexico, the operator company on my phone. At that time, they offered me a plan with data, unlimited calls and text messages and a ´brand new ultimate model phone´ -for a little difference in cash, of course- and it seemed to be like a great opportunity to change my old phone and have a good contract plan, all in one payment bill. I was happy with my new phone and the ‘great deal’ with my operator company but no one ever tell us the true.

This kind of purchases have a limitation on the device, the company blocks them so the devices can only be used with them because your are "under contract" and unless you go though all the payments in your contract, the phone is not actually yours. It belongs to the company providing your telecommunication services and the only way to be the actual owner is, of course, finishing with your contract (meaning: pay for the device). Only then you can request to unblock the device.

Well, the lesson in this story is: If you have plans to travel anywhere abroad make sure your phone is 'unblocked', not limited to use with only one provider or operator, and that you are going to be able to use the device with different SIM cards no matter the company. And... not like me, please do it BEFORE you leave your home town or city ;)

Love, Ana Hope

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*This post was written from personal experience and shouldn't be taken as the current process to unlock your phone. The process described happened in 2019.