A subscriber of any mobile operator can restore his SIM card if it fails, is lost, or is blocked. Nowadays, most operators do not charge money for obtaining a duplicate SIM card, and it is available completely free of charge. Additionally, delivery of a new SIM card is offered, and the cost of such a service depends on the region, as well as the speed of delivery.
Today we’ll tell you everything about how to restore a SIM card from the Big Four operators: how long it takes, how to speed up the process, and whether it can be done in another region.
SIM card recovery
If the card is lost, it will not be a disaster at all. It is easy to replace, and this service is provided free of charge by the operator. He is interested in further cooperation with the subscriber and will do everything to prevent him from going to competitors. Therefore, the restoration will be free.
The first step is to immediately block the lost SIM card. Of course, when restored, it will be blocked automatically, but it remains to be seen when you will reach the communication store. For the sake of safety, it is better to first contact the operator and perform the block. Otherwise, someone will suddenly find your card and use it, including for criminal purposes. Then you still have to prove that you have nothing to do with it.
What to do if you lose your SIM card, step by step process:
- Call the hotline operator and perform a voluntary block. You can call from someone else's phone; the operation is performed after personal identification. If you use your personal account or the operator’s mobile application, everything can be done there.
- SIM card recovery. You need to personally contact the communication center with your passport and fill out an application for restoration. A new card is issued immediately, and access to it is usually provided within 24 hours. But in practice, it usually takes 1-2 hours, and it can be used.
You must have a passport for this procedure. When performing this, an identity verification is carried out. Operators are very strict with this; they are concerned about the safety of the client’s personal data. The only exception is replacement by proxy.
How to restore your MTS number if you haven’t used it for a long time?
If a SIM card has not been used for a long time, it will be blocked within six months if there are no funds on the balance. The number of the dishonest client goes on sale again after some time. When checking the balance on your phone, you can independently see the period during which the number will be active. When you replenish your balance, it increases.
If no actions were taken on the card and no funds were received into the account, it will be blocked after 180 days. The subscriber has 3 months after the expiration of this period to unblock. Otherwise, the number will go on sale again.
Remote SIM card recovery
Some operators offer their customers a convenient service - remote SIM card replacement. That is, the procedure is carried out for the subscriber without leaving home. For example, such a service is offered by MTS.
To perform a remote replacement, the client contacts the operator by calling the hotline or filling out an application for replacement on the organization’s official website. After some time, the courier will arrive and deliver the order.
The service is paid. In the case of the same MTS, the price directly depends on the speed of order fulfillment. Simple delivery within 3 working days costs 200 rubles, expedited delivery within one working day costs 350 rubles. If you need the card extremely urgently, then pay 500 rubles. and get it in 3 hours.
It is necessary to take into account the time of acceptance of applications and the cities where the service operates. This is usually true in more or less large cities. If you live in a small town or other small town, restoration will only be possible in the standard way - in a salon.
Other ways to find a phone at home and on the street
One of the easiest ways to find a phone is to return to the place where the device was found lost. There is a possibility that it was in this place that the device fell out of the pocket onto the ground. If your phone was lost in the office, you can look for it on your desktop, in drawers, or in your colleagues’ offices.
You can use the service when your smartphone is lost within the house. You can activate a call to quickly find the location where the phone is located.
In addition, you can simply call your number from someone else's device. This will also reveal the location using an audible signal, but the sound must be turned on on the device.
If the SIM card was issued to another person
It also happens. Sometimes our cards are issued to relatives, friends, husbands and wives, both current and former. And in such a situation, a serious difficulty arises - only the person for whom it is issued can replace the SIM card.
Well, if you have the opportunity to bring this person to the salon for a replacement, then there will be no problem. But if this is not possible, then things are bad, recovery will be impossible. No matter how much you beg the operator’s employee to do this, he will refuse - the regulations on this are very strict. You'll have to buy a new card.
If there is “access” to that person, it is better to re-register along with the replacement. To do this, both participants in the procedure come to the communication center with a passport and fill out an application. The service is paid, the exact price depends on the operator and the region where the operation is performed. The cost varies from 50 to 350 rubles. That is, you can perform both restoration and re-registration at the same time. And in the future, such problems will no longer arise.
Geolocation
A lost phone that is turned on with active functions such as the Internet and GPS can be easily found by geolocation. For this, each operator has a corresponding service:
- MTS and Beeline have Lakator.
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- Megafon has “Navigator”.
The service is activated by sending an SMS to a specific short number or in a communication salon; it is paid. In order for “locators” or “navigator” to be useful in case of loss of a gadget, they must be activated in advance. Tracking must be carried out on another device, but with confirmation of consent from the tracked phone. Location results can be sent in the form of SMS or displayed on a map in a special application, which also must first be installed. This is convenient when you need to know about a child’s movements; by the way, children lose gadgets more often than adults. You can also control the movements of adults, but will they agree, and it is impossible to track the phone in this way if geolocation is turned off.
The same principles are used in existing tracking programs. If the smartphone is turned off, then it is definitely not possible to track it by any special means; if it is turned on, the Internet and GPS are working, it is possible, but subject to a number of conditions, which I will discuss below.
What you need to buy a SIM card
You may have to purchase a new card instead of restoring it. As a result, you will have a new number, and this will cause some inconveniences. In general, buying a new card is not difficult; they are now sold on every corner.
We recommend making your purchase in a showroom rather than from a street stall. In the latter case, there is a risk that the card will not be issued properly and problems will arise in the future.
What you need to buy a SIM card, step by step process:
- Original passport required. It must be provided to the employee at the salon. The document is valid and not expired.
- It is better to decide in advance which tariff is right for you. It is possible that the one that was assigned to the lost card no longer exists. Information about current tariffs can be found on the operator’s website.
- Come to the salon and express your desire to buy a SIM card. If you have decided on a tariff, tell us which one you need. If you are undecided, the manager will help you choose the best service option.
- Ask for your choice of room. You will be given a pack of SIM cards with numbers, you can choose the one that is more convenient for you and easy to remember. Usually managers give you a choice without any problems.
- You provide your passport, the employee of the communication store enters your data into the program, registers the purchased card in your name. You immediately receive an envelope with a card, you can insert it into your phone and use it.
SIM cards are not issued free of charge, but their cost is low, usually in the range of 100-300 rubles, depending on the operator and the tariff you choose. But even then, most of these funds are usually already in the account.
If we consider how many SIM cards can be bought for one passport, then today there are no restrictions on this matter. You can buy as much as you want. There is talk about limiting it to a maximum of 10 pieces, but so far no regulations have been introduced regarding this.
Lost contacts can be stored in Google Contacts
Contacts from the address book are usually stored not only on the SIM card. On your phone (Android, iOS, etc.) you can export recordings to a local VCF file or make a backup copy. Look for this file in your memory card or device memory.
If you synchronized your phone with your Google account, the contacts from your address book are located on this service. Check your contacts via Contacts by logging in with your Google account. To restore contacts, use the Undo Changes section (translated as “Optimistic” way to recover the contents of a lost SIM card, in particular, phone numbers - find it. Stretch your brain and remember where you put it or where you might have accidentally dropped it by removing the phone cover.
Here you need to understand what is easier and faster - to restore all contacts through a mobile operator or to engage in a grueling search, essentially, for a needle in a haystack.
How to forward from a lost SIM card
We have looked at what is needed to buy a SIM card, but there is another important point that is significant for many subscribers. If a person is forced to purchase a new number instead of replacing it, then he risks being left without communication for important contacts that were “attached” to the old SIM card.
As a standard, forwarding is configured in the phone where the SIM card is inserted, that is, it must be available. If the card is lost, then you can complete the procedure without it. But only if you have access to your personal account or operator’s mobile application.
You log in to the system using your credentials, you need the settings section. Usually the forwarding setting is located there. Select “All calls” and enter the new card number. Save everything. The operation is completed. Now calls incoming to the old lost card will be sent to the new one. If desired, you can later cancel the redirection in your personal account.
about the author
Irina Rusanova - higher education at the International East European University in the direction of "Banking". Graduated with honors from the Russian Economic Institute named after G.V. Plekhanov with a major in Finance and Credit. Ten years of experience in leading Russian banks: Alfa-Bank, Renaissance Credit, Home Credit Bank, Delta Credit, ATB, Svyaznoy (closed). He is an analyst and expert of the Brobank service on banking and financial stability. [email protected]
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