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Returning customer - cannot register against old account


I am a returning customer to ID mobile after 9 months.

I have my new sim, but I am unable to create my account as my email address is still registered to the old expired contract. I get a message saying there’s been use for 6 months.

How can get my account activated with my email, or release my email from being tied to the old contract so that I can create an account for the new contract I have just taken out.

 

Thanks

Best answer by Ryan

Hi @sangstar5,

Welcome back! As your email address has already been used as the username for a previous account, you will need to use a different email address as the username for the new account. You can still use the old email address for contact purposes however; this affects the username only.

Ryan

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Ryan
iD Mobile Employee
  • iD Mobile Employee
  • 4570 replies
  • Answer
  • August 12, 2020

Hi @sangstar5,

Welcome back! As your email address has already been used as the username for a previous account, you will need to use a different email address as the username for the new account. You can still use the old email address for contact purposes however; this affects the username only.

Ryan


  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • January 23, 2021

@Ryan , Hi

just wondered how is this a resolution? When you’re asking  customers to create a new email to manage their ID account? What if a customer doesn’t want to create  new email solely to manage their ID account, and wishes to use their existing email? The old account linked to this email is obviously not accessible as it is 6 months or more old, then why hold onto customers’ email addresses like that?

I have the exact issue and cannot believe that ID Mobile are doing this to their customers?

Any thoughts?

Thanks


Mohsin
iD Mobile Employee
  • iD Mobile Employee
  • 2173 replies
  • January 27, 2021

HI @SP1 

We have sent you a Private Message to help with this. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

-Mohsin


MillieG76
Community Member
  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • March 31, 2021

I have the exact same problem. I need to register my temporary number from the new SIM and send a PAC code to port the number you have listed against my account from the last time I was a customer. 

I don't have another email address and don't want to create one just to manage my id account. Please advise your solution. Thanks 


Mohsin
iD Mobile Employee
  • iD Mobile Employee
  • 2173 replies
  • March 31, 2021

Hi @MillieG76 

You can not port your existing iD number to a new iD sim as we do not support internal migrations. Do you currently have two iD sims? We would advise canceling the new one and upgrading the existing iD plan in order to keep your number.

-Mohsin


  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • April 14, 2021

Just returned to ID on sim only plan after 2 years, I also cant sign in or register with the ONLY email address I have because it is ‘already registered to an ID account’  After an online chat I was also told to obtain another email address, why should I just for ID.

T’s and C’s 4.8 By default, billing is provided through your iD online account at my.idmobile.co.uk/ and in the iD app. Therefore, it is a condition of this Agreement that you provide us with a current email address for billing purposes and that you maintain this address.  I have provided this so what is the problem.

I have lodged a complaint and am awaiting a response


Mohammed
iD Mobile Employee
  • iD Mobile Employee
  • 7962 replies
  • April 15, 2021

Hello Steve,

The username is a text username and when we refer to: “Therefore, it is a condition of this Agreement that you provide us with a current email address for billing purposes and that you maintain this address. “

We’re referring to the contact details.

Due the the email being linked with a previous account the system holds this on record.

 

If you register and put a full stop in the email this should work, as it’s only a text field.

Once registered, you can update your contact email to the correct one without the full stop.

But will always log-in to the one with the full stop.

 

e.g. if your email was:

 

SteveC1955@gmail.com

Then you would register as:  SteveC.1955@gmail.com  or even Steve.C1955@gmail.com 

Then update your contact email after registering back to SteveC1955@gmail.com

But you’d always use the username with the full stop to log-in.

 

Mohammed


Alexander Dodd
Community Member

Wow, this is bad bad bad, if I known this was the case I would have chosen a completely different operator, in fact I'm still in my cooling off period (12 days to go in fact) And I might actually consider switching because of this 😂


Kash
iD Mobile Employee
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  • October 31, 2021

@Alexander Dodd,

If there is anything that we can help with, please let us know.

 

Kash


ohmy21
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  • New
 Contributor
  • 2 replies
  • March 16, 2022

This is all a computer system nonsense. My wife and I left ID when a trip to the USA was imminent, cancelled as it happens because of covid, as the roaming by ID doesn’t cover the USA. Returned 12 months later and as I have another email address, I used that but my wife refuses to have a second account, so she had to go elsewhere. 


Kash
iD Mobile Employee
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  • March 21, 2022

Hi @ohmy21,

Unfortunately a new email address would need to be used for a new account.

Sorry to hear that she had to go elsewhere.

 

Kash


  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • July 11, 2023

I was with ID for 9 months on a monthly contract after the 9 months I wanted a new phone and the upgrade was no good ££££ so I moved to smarty mobile for 1 month so I could keep my number then moved back to ID through mobiles.co.uk where I got a much better deal, now I can’t log on to my new account as it opens my old one so I now can’t see anything online. Any ideas please.


andewhite
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  • 11680 replies
  • July 11, 2023

Okay @jim., you’ll need to register again, using a different email address (username) for your new iD account.

Unfortunately, with iD Mobile your iD account can only have one mobile number, and must have a unique sign-in email address (username).

 


  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • July 11, 2023

Bit of a pain creating a new email address but thanks anyway.


andewhite
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  • July 11, 2023

Some email service providers allow you to create an alias, or if you’ve got a Gmail email address the following works:

another@gmail.com

a.n.other@gmail.com

an.other@gmail.com

 


Meryvn
New
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  • New
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  • 1 reply
  • July 12, 2023

I can’t believe this same issue is still in place 2 years after the first query on this! I’ve had to request a data protection deletion of all my details to be able to register with my only email address, this should really be a simple fix to either let people reactivate an account when rejoining or when people leave the account should be automatically deleted rather than just deactivated.


WelshPaul
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  • July 12, 2023
Meryvn wrote:

I’ve had to request a data protection deletion of all my details to be able to register with my only email address

Did it work? One could argue that iD Mobile are required by law to process individuals’ personal data, and so the right to erasure does not apply.

https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/uk-gdpr-guidance-and-resources/individual-rights/individual-rights/right-to-erasure/

When does the right to erasure not apply?

The right to erasure does not apply if processing is necessary for one of the following reasons:

  • to exercise the right of freedom of expression and information;
  • to comply with a legal obligation;
  • for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority;
  • for archiving purposes in the public interest, scientific research, historical research or statistical purposes where erasure is likely to render impossible or seriously impair the achievement of that processing; or
  • for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.

If you are required by law to process individuals’ personal data, then the right to erasure will not apply.

The UK GDPR also specifies two circumstances where the right to erasure will not apply to special category data:

  • if the processing is necessary for public health purposes in the public interest (eg protecting against serious cross-border threats to health, or ensuring high standards of quality and safety of health care and of medicinal products or medical devices); or
  • if the processing is necessary for the purposes of preventative or occupational medicine; for the working capacity of an employee; for medical diagnosis; for the provision of health or social care; or for the management of health or social care systems or services. This only applies where the data is being processed by or under the responsibility of a professional subject to a legal obligation of professional secrecy (eg a health professional).

For more information about special categories of data please see our Guide to the UK GDPR.


Mohammed
iD Mobile Employee
  • iD Mobile Employee
  • 7962 replies
  • July 13, 2023
Meryvn wrote:

I can’t believe this same issue is still in place 2 years after the first query on this! I’ve had to request a data protection deletion of all my details to be able to register with my only email address, this should really be a simple fix to either let people reactivate an account when rejoining or when people leave the account should be automatically deleted rather than just deactivated.

Hey @Meryvn,

I understand your frustruation and it’s definitely something we’ve fed back regarding usernames.

I do hope it’s something that can be changed soon.

Whilst it may seem simple, these things are often alot more complicated when taking into account how systems work in the background and numerous changes required to implement them.

Mohammed

 


DB3
Community Member
  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • August 7, 2023

@Mohammed please do keep feeding this back to your managers as this is a really frustrating. Either allow customers to reactivate old accounts, or delete the old account.

ID Mobile might be in breach of GDPR law (specifically the right to erasure) if you are keeping people’s details after their accounts have expired

https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/uk-gdpr-guidance-and-resources/individual-rights/individual-rights/right-to-erasure/


Mohammed
iD Mobile Employee
  • iD Mobile Employee
  • 7962 replies
  • August 7, 2023

Hey @DB3,

You can find a copy of our Privacy Policy here: https://www.idmobile.co.uk/legal/privacy-and-cookies

If you wish to query deleting your account or any details for an old account, you can contact the Team by submitting a request.

 

Mohammed


Mark J Colly
Community Member
  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • August 19, 2023

I have the same issue. Been on a contract for a couple of years now but cannot access my account details online or on idmobile app. It still brings up my old contract that I closed in 2020!!!

I see this post status is set to ‘solved’ yet the problem still remains. It is not conceivable that idmobile expects customers to create new email addresses purely for their system because they are incapable of managing accounts properly for returning customers. 

besides it doesn’t even allow you to do so because you are asked to enter the mobile number first and if ported links back to the old account and creates an error. 
 

come on idmobile. This has been a problem for years and still not resolved!!!

I just want to be able to see my account and billing details which by law you are obliged to allow!!! 


Kash
iD Mobile Employee
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  • iD Mobile Employee
  • 7745 replies
  • August 21, 2023

Hi @Mark J Colly,

Welcome to the Community!

You’ll need to register your account under a new email address.

As advised you can’t register with an email that has been used in the past, even if the account is closed.

Please click HERE and you can register your account.

If you require assistance or still have issues, please let us know and we will PM you.

 

Kash


Mark J Colly
Community Member
  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • August 21, 2023

Again doesn’t solve the issue. I would like my previous details removed from the system so I can re-register using the same email address. I don’t need the inconvenience of having to use a different email address. 
And as previous stated you need to enter the mobile number first with your name and it then fails. I assume because it recognises the mobile number is assigned to the first account. 
It’s ok though. I’ll just find another provider if idmobile systems are incapable of being updated to allow returning customers. 


andewhite
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  • August 21, 2023
Mark J Colly wrote:

Again doesn’t solve the issue. I would like my previous details removed from the system so I can re-register using the same email address. I don’t need the inconvenience of having to use a different email address. 
And as previous stated you need to enter the mobile number first with your name and it then fails. I assume because it recognises the mobile number is assigned to the first account. 
It’s ok though. I’ll just find another provider if idmobile systems are incapable of being updated to allow returning customers. 

I don’t think your mobile number being linked to two different iD accounts is an issue @Mark J Colly
I joined iD Mobile, then left, then rejoined, and on both occasions used the same mobile number with my different iD accounts online. 

Unfortunately @Mark J Colly, iD Mobile can’t or won’t delete an old iD account from their systems. If you want to manage your iD account online, you’ll need to reregister, using a different email address. 

If you’ve got an Android phone you could use the Gmail address in a different format, for example the following are all treated as one mailbox with Google Mail:

If you haven’t got a Gmail address, your email service provider might allow you to create an alias for your mailbox. You can do this with an outlook.com mailbox.

 


Mark J Colly
Community Member
  • Community Member
  • 0 replies
  • August 21, 2023

Thanks. Then they lose custom. End of. And I will send an email asking them to remove my details because they shouldn’t just be holding peoples data for the hell of it.