Site Totals

61162 Questions Answered 267 Categories

Apple iPhone 15 eSIM states "eSIM Capable" but the eSIM is locked

I purchased an Apple 15Pro from Verizon. I initially elected to pay over time based on the suggestions from Verizon during the purchase. Knowing that our daughter would be using this phone while living in the UK for the next two and a half years, we checked in the Verizon App and saw that the phone is eSIM capable. When she got to the UK and tried to activate an eSIM with a UK network (while still maintaining our Verizon plan), she found that the eSIM was locked. When I called Verizon tech support, I was initially told that the eSIM was not locked and it wasn't until I mentioned that the phone itself showed the eSIM as locked that the tech person searched deeper to find that it was, in fact, locked.

I have been told by tech support over multiple calls now that the eSIM can't be unlocked until she comes back to the US and connects to the Verizon network (so we would have to pay for round-trip airfare just to unlock the eSIM) and that there is no nothing else that Verizon can do to help me.

I have also read online that Verzon's policy is to lock the eSIM for 60 days after purchase of the phone (which sounds like a highly anti-competitive and predatory practice to me). It is not clear to me whether the 60 days starts from the time of purchase or from the time the phone is paid off (remember that I initially chose to pay over time - when I stumbled onto the eSIM 60-day lock policy, I paid off the phon immediately) - but it has been more than 60 days since we purchased the phone so likely it is 60 days from paid off.

So I am extremely frustrated because I am stuck paying $10 per day for Travel Pass (or $100 a month for international service) for a locked eSIM. But if my Verizon App had accurately represented the eSIM capability of this phone on my device management page, I could've addressed this problem literally months ago. In the end, I just feel that Verizon is more interested in taking money from me than helping me, and am considering my options with other carriers after being with Verizon for more than 20 years. This has been an incredibly disappointing experience.

Comments

Verizon_Support

Before anything, thanks for your 20 years of loyalty to the company, Verizon values your business. Dealing with device lock issues while traveling can be frustrating. Our goal is to help you in the best way possible.

Here is our Unlock Policy: https://www.verizon.com/about/consumer-safety/device-unlocking-policy.

Sent you a Private Message. Please review at your earliest convenience.

~Gilbert

SynthpopAddict

Sorry to hear about the phone being locked, but it's actually not a SIM or eSIM issue. If you buy a phone through a carrier, the phone will have carrier software installed on it, which locks it to the carrier's network. Every carrier has a policy on how/when a device can be unlocked. A locked phone will not accept a SIM or eSIM from some other carrier until the phone is unlocked.

The only way to not have to deal with this type of problem is to buy factory unlocked devices directly from the manufacturers.

rtoddr

Thanks for the clarification and information (i mean that very sincerely). I consider myself to be reasonably tech-savvy and also a decent planner - I spent hours preparing for this, but the underlying policies and processes were not at all transparent (in my experience) beforehand. In the end, I am paying way more money than I had budgeted and spent way more time than I should've. Lessons learned

SynthpopAddict

You're welcome. The locking thing had to be explained to me too when I first got a cell phone and then tried to switch carriers. Don't know if that's just something the carriers think everybody already knows or they just don't want to let on about it. There's advantages and disadvantages both ways regarding locked or unlocked devices, but that's another discussion altogether.

Child Item