Yoigo Tarjeta 2

[petkow]

The Spanish Yoigo data tariff of €1.20 (plus tax) per day is excellent... but for a casual traveller like me the €6 monthly minimum use is no good!

However their "Tarjeta 2" has no monthly minimum in exchange for a higher daytime rate. This I do not mind at all as I will mainly be using the card for incoming, text and data.

See:
http://www.yoigo.es/tarifas/especiales.php

Now my problem: How on earth do I get onto Tarjeta 2 when I buy the card. Do I just buy any card and then get it converted later? If I buy it online, I can get the card for free (with €20 credit!!!) provided I have an old Spanish SIM and a Spanish NIE number but how do I select "Tarjeta 2"??? Has anyone done this?

https://tienda.yoigo.com/selforder/device

[Pitch]

The 6€ monthly fee only applies if you have a contract. You can only get a contract if you have a Spanish bank account. Otherwise, you need the prepaid SIM, which also has the 1.20€ max. data tariff a day, .12€ for national calls & .30€ for international calls. I'm living in Spain this semester to study & have Yoigo & it's been great! However, you can only buy online if you're a Spanish national (otherwise, you need to wait in a long line in stores). If you want the prepaid card, however, you're in luck. I dropped my first phone in the sea & it died, but the Yoigo SIM still worked. To buy a new phone I needed to buy a new SIM, which I have not used. The SIM has 20€ on it & is rechargeable. If you want it I'll send it to you for the 20€ plus shipping cost. The card can be recharged at almost any bank, any Carrefour, Alcampo or The Phone House. Please let me know, otherwise I'll just transfer the credit to my current SIM.

[petkow]

Thanks for the offer Pitch, but as I said only above, I can buy a SIM (with €20 credit) for €0 online, so theres no point in me paying €20 plus shipping for one. By the way, I note you really are desperate to sell that card! Every single one of your 4 posts is about selling your Yoigo card. Good luck!

Unfortunately making a sale on false claims will not really help you sell it any quicker:
1. You do not need to be Spanish National to buy online. You only need a NIE number (which I have)
2. There is a €6 minimum monthly charge (not a monthly fee) on prepaid as well. It is called consumo minimo (check: http://www.yoigo.es/tarifas/index.php) Only Tarjeta 2 does not have this. (By the way I think the contract is €60 per month and not €6 as you state!)
3. The "queue" depends on which shop you go to and when! I won't queue anyhow as it is cheaper buying online!

Does anyone else have an answer to my question (and not a sales pitch?)

[Pitch]

On the prepaid card there's no 6€ fee a month. You only have to spend at least 6€ a month in phone calls. You're not charged that in addition to the calls as long as you spend 6€.

The NIE number is for Spanish nationals or for those residing in Spain for prolonged periods of time (i.e. those w/ a residence). You can apply for it at a city hall or a police station provided you have your passport & copies of the housing documents. To buy a contract w/ any Spanish phone company you also need to have a Spanish bank account, from which the charges are automatically withdrawn. This is not the case w/ a rechargeable card.

There ARE long lines almost anywhere Yoigo's sold, given it's limited retail availability (especially compared to Vodafone, Movistar and Orange, which have their own stores). I was trying to help though, so I'd appreciate if you'd lay off the accusations. Yoigo's customer service can be reached at: +34 622 622 622. If you're not a current customer you can call at (1)-800-622-800. Good luck!

[Richard10002]

No queues at TPH in Rota when I bought mine. And they answered the phone in a couple of rings when I called with a query.

On the 6 euros per month - presumably if you go to Spain for say, a, few weeks every few months, then in the months you arent there, (so making no calls), they deduct 6 euros from your credit. What do they do when your credit runs out? are the 6 euros taken when you recharge?

[Pitch]

Yeah, they're good w/ customer service. But you're lucky you had no line - I've been to various TPH in Sevilla, Barcelona & Madrid & the lines have been massive everywhere.

So, for your questions, let's go to their SIM card conditions, provided on their site:
"El cargo en concepto de Consumo MÃ*nimo Obligatorio se efectuará a mes vencido, el primer dÃ*a hábil de cada mes. Si, en el momento de efectuarse el cargo, el saldo
disponible del Cliente no es suficiente para cubrir el importe del Consumo MÃ*nimo Obligatorio, YOIGO detraerá de su Cuenta únicamente el saldo que esté disponible."
So, approximately: "The Minimum Obligatory Consumption charge will be drawn after the month is over, the first working day of each month. If, upon the moment of withdrawing the charge, your available credit is not sufficient to cover the MOC, Yoigo will withdraw from your account only the credit which is available.

"En caso de que el consumo efectuado por el Cliente durante un mes natural sea inferior al Consumo MÃ*nimo Obligatorio, YOIGO detraerá de su Cuenta
la diferencia entre el consumo efectivamente realizado y el importe del Consumo MÃ*nimo Obligatorio. Asimismo, el importe Ã*ntegro del Consumo MÃ*nimo Obligatorio
será cargado en la Cuenta del Cliente en caso de que éste no haya efectuado consumo alguno durante un mes natural."
"In cases in which the minimum consumption used by the client during a month is less than the MOC, Yoigo will withdraw from your account the difference between the actual consumption and teh MOC. At the same time, the withdrawal will be charged in cases in which the client has not consumed any credit during the month." So yes, they'll be deducting from your account. In another section it says if you stop using the card for over 6 months Yoigo'll desactivate. I don't however, see anything about MOC withdrawals on accounts w/ no credit upon recharge. All translations provided are my own. You can see the document at: http://www.yoigo.com/pdf/condiciones_tarjeta.pdf

[petkow]

Thanks Pitch and Richard! I too had the option of buying at the TPH whilst I was in Madrid a while ago (and there was no queue at the time... I went just before closing time) however since I can get it for 'free' online I thought there was little point getting it there. I forgot to ask the question I mentioned above though (about Tarjeta 2).

Pitch, I know you were trying to help me... and I thanked you for that and wished you luck. I only tried to point out a few of your comments that I felt were unsubstantiated. I just felt you may end up misleading other users on these. I am sorry if you have taken offence at me. The most important factor is as I said in my initial post, I am fully aware that it is a €6 minimum monthly useage (and not a charge) and that it does not only apply to contracts as you pointed out! However, as Richard pointed out if I am not there for longer periods then that €6 does become a charge and eats away any credit I have. This was the problem I was adressing and hence the motivation for the first post!


As a further aside... just in case anyone is interested: As an EU citizen, you do not need to have a Spanish residence to get a NIE. You can actually apply for one at any Spanish embassy in the world. The process takes about 3 months. Though this may sound ironic, the reason for this is that you need a NIE even if you want to buy a property in Spain. After all, you cannot have 'residency' until you have bought the property. You also need a NIE to open a Spanish bank account which is handy if you want to transfer money into Spain in the first place. To apply for one at an embassy, you need only your passport (not any housing documents).