Rogers is shutting down prepaid services for it and its Fido brand in December, according to notices on the wireless providers’ websites.
Rogers and Fido will shut down prepaid services on December 16th and are directing customers to switch to postpaid plans or head to Chatr to continue using prepaid service. The full notice from Rogers can be found below:
“To focus on providing the best 5G coverage across Canada, Rogers Prepaid services will be shut down on December 16. To help you stay connected to the Rogers network, we have exclusive 5G plans that suit your needs. If you prefer a prepaid service, our chatr brand has plan options for you. To keep your phone number and avoid losing service, contact us at 1-844-235-3766 or visit a Rogers store near you.”
And here’s the Fido notice, which differs slightly:
“On December 16, Fido Prepaid services will be shut down. To help you stay connected with Fido, we have exclusive monthly plans that suit your needs. If you prefer a prepaid service, our chatr brand has plan options for you. To keep your phone number and avoid losing service, contact us at 1-844-235-3766 or visit a Fido store near you.”
MobileSyrup has contacted Rogers about Fido’s prepaid shutdown and will update this story with any additional information it provides.
As it stands, there are a few unknowns about the prepaid shutdown. For one, it’s not clear what kind of plans will be available to prepaid customers or what will happen to customers’ existing balances. A commenter in a Reddit thread about the shutdown who claims to work for “retail ops” said that there are Chatr migration plans for all prepaid customers and prepaid to postpaid migration offers starting at $5/mo.
It also remains unclear what will happen to any customers who haven’t migrated by December 16th.
Current Rogers and Fido prepaid customers should review their options quickly and make a plan. Thankfully, there’s some time to sort things out before the shutdown on December 16th. It’s worth noting there are options beyond just going to Chatr or switching to postpaid (though depending on what Rogers offers customers, those might be the best choices).
Alternatives include switching to Koodo, Lucky Mobile, Public Mobile or Freedom, all of which still offer prepaid options. Update Oct. 15, 2024 at 3:18pm ET: Virgin Plus’ support site notes that it no longer offers prepaid activations.
Moreover, it might be worth waiting before making a switch. Carriers often have deals on plans during the holidays, with some of the best offers happening on Black Friday in November. I’d advise holding off and waiting until Black Friday to see what sales and deals happen before switching.
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