Cannot disable Verizon while overseas using local eSIM

[BwwG]

Last October (2023) while in Australia, I downloaded an Australian Telstra eSIM to my Verizon Google Pixel 6 so that I had the convenience of a local Australian phone number. It worked well with one major exception. Whenever I turned on my phone to make an Australian phone call, the phone automatically logged on to the Verizon network. And so for the two weeks I was in Australia, Verizon charged me $10 per day for the overseas connection, even though I did not use the Verizon service during that period.

My wife had a similar arrangement except that she uses a Verizon iPhone. The iPhone has a simple easily-accessible switch (in the menus) that turns off the Verizon SIM, so that she could make and receive Australian phone calls without incurring the $10 per day Verizon charge. We compared the iPhone and Pixel 6 carefully, and concluded that the Android system in my Pixel 6 did not have that capability. Is this correct? Or is there a mechanism within the Pixel 6 that I did not discover?

So, have I missed a feature within the Pixel 6 (I don’t think so) or has Google updated the Pixel 6 since October with a feature allowing me to disable the Verizon connection? Maybe it is a fundamental difference between the iPhone and Android phones? I ask because I’ll shortly be visiting Australia again and would appreciate not having to pay for a feature that I do not need.

Thanks for any assistance with this.

[vzw_customer_support · Accepted solution]

Hello BwwG, thank you for reaching out to us. We're sorry for the issues you're having with your dual SIM on your Google Pixel 6 device. Here's some information that may help you out. You can also use the following link to get all these details: https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/9449293?hl=en#zippy=%2Cuse-esim-profiles 

To enable 2 eSim profiles on your eligible device:

1. Open your phone's Settings app.
2. Tap Network & Internet  SIMs.
3. Tap Download a SIM instead?
4. Follow the instructions.

~Ivone

[BwwG]

Thank you, that is a good reference. I checked my Pixel 6 and it now does have the ability to deactivate individual SIMs.

[vzw_customer_support]

Thank you for following up! Please let us know if you ever need any other additional assistance. 

-Melissa