Porting - what to do if both sides blame each other?

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KiwiSurfer

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#315799 17-Aug-2024 07:45

For the last 3 weeks I have been playing chat/email tag with Full Flavour/Devoli (previous mobile provider) and Skinny (mobile provider I want to port to) over porting a number I have had for a long time.

Basically Devoli claims they are not seeing any port requests from Skinny at all, while Skinny says Devoli aren't accepting their port requests.

I've confirmed with Full Flavour (who resells Deovli's service) several times the details I should be using for the port request -- the Devoli provided details are the same ones I have given to Skinny. I have submitted the same details several times (copied over from an email from Full Flavour) and still they keep getting rejected.

And yes the details are correct. I have triple checked the details every time -- and I have a screen shot of my most recent non-manual port request as proof Skinny has been given the correct details.

Devoli suggested a manual port -- which Skinny (after many chat converstations) eventually they should try and I did that yesterday after 45mins on the phone to Skinny helpdesk. Still no success with the manual port.

Skinny asked me to check whether there are any open service requests on the Devoli side. Devoli claims they have no open service requests.

(As an aside I have just out of intrerest also tried a port to One NZ -- their website threw an exception when I submitted the port request. Not sure if this is a red herring and just a One NZ issue unrelated to porting).

I suspect it's an issue on Devoli's side but they pretty much swear they're not done anything to prevent a port request.

Any ideas? I am thinking my next step is to try a port to 2degrees as if that also fails it will squarely point to an issue on the Devoli side.

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Max
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#3272773 17-Aug-2024 08:15

Did you ever get a text from the TCF?

If you did not then the port failed at account validation and it's the LSP problem for providing the incorrect details (this should be available on your bill but if it's different from the bill then they need to give you the correct details and they have to match).

If you did then the GSP needs to close the port and complete the order.

Ramblings from a mysterious lady who's into tech. Warning I may often create zingers.

KiwiSurfer

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#3272774 17-Aug-2024 08:23

Thanks that is very helpful info.

Never recevied a text from the TCF, so that's another indication against Full Flavour/Deovoli.

Account number on Full Flavour bill is not the account number for porting. But they have provided me with the Deovli account number which they have made very clear is the one that should be used for porting.

It is that Devoli account number that they have provded to me several times and it is that one that I have attempted several ports with over the last two weeks or so.

Don't think I'll get that 2degrees SIM now as I feel more confident now that Full Flavour/Devoli is the guilty party.

Will wait and see what Full Flavour says -- I emailed them this morning re the most recent Skinny manual port failing.

nztim

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#3272778 17-Aug-2024 08:47

If MFF are consuming mobile from Devoli You need to give Skinny MFF’s Devoli account number which you wont know..

Your account number with MFF is irrelevant

You are in a pickle here.

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.

quickymart

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#3272779 17-Aug-2024 08:51

@myfullflavour

KiwiSurfer

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#3272780 17-Aug-2024 08:56

nztim: If MFF are consuming mobile from Devoli You need to give Skinny MFF’s Devoli account number which you wont know..

Your account number with MFF is irrelevant

You are in a pickle here.

I am not using my FF account details. FF have provided the Devoli account number associated to my moible number -- and that is the one I have been giving to Skinny. FF has confirmed to me that Devoli has confirmed that the Devoli account number is the one I should be using for port requests.

KiwiSurfer

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#3272781 17-Aug-2024 08:57

quickymart:

@myfullflavour

Thanks for mentioning them, but they are already aware of this issue (both here on Geekzone and also via regular emails to/from their helpdesk).

RunningMan

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#3272846 17-Aug-2024 12:43

nztim: If MFF are consuming mobile from Devoli You need to give Skinny MFF’s Devoli account number which you wont know...

KiwiSurfer:It is that Devoli account number that they have provded to me several times and it is that one that I have attempted several ports with over the last two weeks or so.

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Hephaestus

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#3273320 18-Aug-2024 23:56

MaxineN: Did you ever get a text from the TCF?

If you did not then the port failed at account validation and it's the LSP problem for providing the incorrect details (this should be available on your bill but if it's different from the bill then they need to give you the correct details and they have to match).

If you did then the GSP needs to close the port and complete the order.

I think TCF issue the SMS regardless of LSP validation, you can get valid SMS Confirmation Received for the SMS 2FA and still get account information rejections. No SMS from TCF on 2542 sounds more like no port request is being created at all, you should even get a SMS from TCF if the port is rejected eventually, saying that your number transfer is cancelled.

MaxineN

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#3273324 19-Aug-2024 06:15

Hephaestus:
MaxineN: Did you ever get a text from the TCF?

If you did not then the port failed at account validation and it's the LSP problem for providing the incorrect details (this should be available on your bill but if it's different from the bill then they need to give you the correct details and they have to match).

If you did then the GSP needs to close the port and complete the order.

I think TCF issue the SMS regardless of LSP validation, you can get valid SMS Confirmation Received for the SMS 2FA and still get account information rejections. No SMS from TCF on 2542 sounds more like no port request is being created at all, you should even get a SMS from TCF if the port is rejected eventually, saying that your number transfer is cancelled.

They don't send the text out if they can't validate who the number belongs to.

I saw this plenty of times in the work that I did and as well this happened recently when I was going from one provider to another. Staff botched it by marking it as postpay rather than prepay. Immediately failed, no text was sent.

Ramblings from a mysterious lady who's into tech. Warning I may often create zingers.

KiwiSurfer

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#3273354 19-Aug-2024 09:07

Thanks for the help both in this thread and via PM. FF has passed this issue on to Devoli product manager who is apparently going to raise this with Spark (and ironically they're the host provider for both side of this issue). I haven't heard a word from Skinny since the most recent port requesrt -- 3pm on Friday so have sent them another message today. Comments on this thread and also via PM has led me to now suspect it's Skinny at fault. While frustrating it is fascinating how bad a simple request can go wrong. Is there an award for the longest port request ever? :) But seriously if I was just a normal person I wouldn't have gotten this far. Hopefully today brings good news!

KiwiSurfer

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#3273404 19-Aug-2024 11:33

Skinny have come back to me and they have made it very clear they do not think they are at fault. They said I haven't responded to the TCF text, while in the next sentence they say they understand I haven't received a text confirmation. They have pretty much pushed back to me saying I have to follow this up with Devoli.

FF/Devoli to their credit seem to be trying to sort this out from their end.

Is there anyone here from Skinny/Spark who could look into this? I have some suggestions that it looks like their system may not have placed the port request correctly for whatever reason.

KiwiSurfer

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#3273542 19-Aug-2024 17:07

OK the plot thickens.

I did try a port to One NZ a week or so back but it failed due to some unspecified error on their website. One NZ chat said I should pop into their store and try the port from there. Yeah nah I thought at the time and put that aside thinking it was just a One NZ issue -- the error I got from One was incredibly vague.

Today I thought might as well try a port to 2degrees. Bought a $1 2degrees sim from Pak'n'Save during my after work supermarket run.

Activated the SIM and all that with no trouble. Arrived at the 2degrees 'Bring a number' form and found they don't even have Devoli listed in their porting form. Dang.

Phoned 2degrees and inquired. Poor agent had never heard of Devoli and literally googled them. But the agent also had the idea of looking up who currently holds that number -- and it turns out to be Spark and not Devoli(!).

So they suggested to me I try submitting the form using Spark as the LSP. Hung up and went back to the form and selected Spark as the LSP.

Entered my Devoli account number and it was immediately rejected -- apparently account numbers are meant to be 8-17 digits.

The account number I have been trying for the last three weeks is in fact a 6 digit number.

I wonder... if this is the reason the One website rejected the details with an unspecified error, the 2degrees website rejected the account number specifically due to it failing the account number check, and Skinny's system failing somewhere in the bowels of their porting processes.

So... who the heck do i chase up to fix this. Should I just add two leading zeros to make it eight digits?

MaxineN

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#3273543 19-Aug-2024 17:12

LSP really needs to be providing the correct details to ensure the port moves past account validation and it actually sends the SMS.

Without that you're stuffed.

Ramblings from a mysterious lady who's into tech. Warning I may often create zingers.

KiwiSurfer

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#3273545 19-Aug-2024 17:19

MaxineN: LSP really needs to be providing the correct details to ensure the port moves past account validation and it actually sends the SMS.

Without that you're stuffed.

Agreed.

Have replied back to FF saying I have tried porting to three provides and all have failed. Be interesting to see their response as hard to see how it could be a GSP issue if no less than three are struggling.

evnafets

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#3273547 19-Aug-2024 17:27

KiwiSurfer:

Have replied back to FF saying I have tried porting to three provides and all have failed. Be interesting to see their response as hard to see how it could be a GSP issue if no less than three are struggling.

Account number on Full Flavour bill is not the account number for porting. But they have provided me with the Deovli account number which they have made very clear is the one that should be used for porting.

Entered my Devoli account number and it was immediately rejected -- apparently account numbers are meant to be 8-17 digits.

Maybe mention to them explicitly your findings re the account number that they have provided you with (the one they made very clear is the one that should be used for porting), and that you are looking for more than 6 digits. Though maybe thats for Spark only?

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