Cancelling a contract with Vodafone could come with early exit fees. Here’s how to cancel and switch to a new brand of phone plan.
Whatever phone plan or contract you have, you’ll need to inform Vodafone if you plan to switch to another provider. Below, I’ll explain the fees involved depending on the type of plan you have.
Steps for cancelling your Vodafone plan:
- Use the 24/7 live chat in the My Vodafone app
- Call 1555 if you’re using your mobile phone
- Call 1300 650 410 if you’re using a phone that’s not your mobile
- If you’re not in Australia, you can call +61 426 320 000.
Cancelling your month-to-month contract
The beauty of month-to-month prepaid or postpaid plans is you can freely switch whenever your plan expires. So, you can compare other phone plans and buy one you like online.
A new SIM card will be mailed to you (or you’ll get a text or email if you’re buying an eSIM) with instructions for activation.
It’s free to cancel a phone plan with no lock-in contract.
Cancelling your long-expiry Vodafone contract
If you’re in a longer-term plan (12, 24 or 36 months) you’ll pay an early exit fee if you cancel before the expiry. The fee is 50% of your monthly instalments, multiplied by the remaining months in your contract.
Vodafone’s 24-month Tablet Plans have an exit fee of 65% of your monthly instalments, multiplied by the remaining months.
Cancelling your phone and plan contract
If you purchased a Vodafone Infinite, Red Plus or Red Plan with a Mobile Payment Plan for a device, you’ll have to pay off the remainder of the mobile phone plan and accessories plan. The good news is that once you own your phone outright, you’re free to shop for better deals.
Keeping your Vodafone number when you switch to a new provider
Cancelling your Vodafone plan doesn’t mean you automatically get to keep your phone number. Instead, you would have to “port” your phone number to your new telco.
When activating your new plan, you’ll be asked if you want to keep your old number. The new plan provider will launch the porting process on your behalf.
Meanwhile, here are a few important things to note when transferring your number:
- Vodafone will charge you $8 to port your number to your new telco, even though the new telco has to handle the porting process (a low blow!).
- You must be the accountholder to port your number to another telco.
Final words
Your phone plan is one of the simplest ways to save money. Telcos are always dropping great discounts and bonus data, so it makes sense to get off a contract as soon as possible.
The good news is that contracts today aren’t as concrete as they used to be. If you sign up for a device contract with Vodafone, you can cancel the SIM plan any time you want, as long as you pay out the phone before you leave.
The best thing to do is to call Vodafone and talk through the concept of cancelling your plan. It’s likely Vodafone will offer you better data or a reduced monthly fee to entice you to stay.
Our advice is to compare plans first to see what kind of deal you’d rather be getting. It’ll help with negotiations, or give you the fuel to cancel your contract and save money with a different brand.