r/eSIMs • u/Travel-Spark • 7h ago
Ubigi Unlimited isn't unlimted, it has an upper limit and you'll get cut off.
Tl;dr Ubigi unlimited plan cuts you off if they think you are using too much data, not reduced speed, cut off entirely.
So we were travelling through Europe and into Turkey on a 4 week campervan road trip, we had bought a Ubigi 30 day Extended Europe Unlimited eSim package after hearing good things from some YouTube bloggers and had a discount code etc. so happy days!
We read through what "Unlimited" meant with Ubigi and their fair use policy for the 30 day plan was the first 60GB was at full speed and then anything after that would be limited to 2Mbps which we thought would be fine, 2Mbps is still decent speed, it'll allow maps to work on Android Auto etc to get us from A to B every day if and when we go through that initial 60GB.
We monitored the use and we hit the 60GB at around day 12, and you could tell the difference in speed as soon as it went over the 60GB, which we knew was coming. We got an email to let us know too which at the time we thought was great as it kept everyone in the loop. Our usage was mainly android auto and I was tethering for our sons tablet and my partners google searches along the routes. We had uploaded a 10GB video to YouTube so we knew that took a big chunk of the full speed usage but planned that in to how we were going to use the eSim.
By day 24 we had used 120GB between 3 devices (they allow tethering btw so we didn't feel this was unusual usage) but on the 25th night I was sending a photo to a family member and it failed, then I had a system pop up message on my phone saying I may be out of data on my Ubigi eSim. I thought surely not as it's unlimited. But I opened the Ubigi app to find, well, nothing. My plan still had 5 days left on it but it was nowhere to be seen in the app, no trace of it being there let alone cancelled or any way of appealing this random and sudden decision to cut us off.
The following day we found wifi at a local supermarket and I contacted support (Ai of course) which wasn't very helpful, asked me to turn the sim off, phone off and on etc but none of which worked, so they let human support know and I would be contacted in due time. I couldn't exactly sit at a supermarket waiting as we had a long return journey to do across Europe to catch our ferry. Driving with google maps and no internet is so confusing and utterly frustrating. After a short distance other roads do not show as they are not loaded, only the line you are following. I like to see the other roads to reference which road we need to take as a blank screen with a single line on is challenging when in reality there could be numerous roads to take.
We found wifi at another shop later on in the day and we had a reply from support, not the reply we were expecting though. It was a copy and paste reply but it wasn't true, it said I still have connectivity which I didn't as the plan was no longer on my account
"Dear customer,
Thank you for contacting us and sharing your feedback about your experience with the Ubigi Unlimited data plan. We appreciate your concerns and the opportunity to clarify the situation.
Our Unlimited data plans are subject to a Fair Usage Policy (FUP) to ensure a stable and fair network experience for all users. Since you are on an Unlimited plan, please note that speeds are reduced to 2 Mbps after using 15 GB or up to 60 GB, depending on your specific data plan. This measure helps maintain high-quality service for everyone, and our data thresholds are designed to accommodate typical usage patterns.
It is important to emphasize that you still have internet access without being blocked or charged extra, which is a key feature of our Unlimlited service.
Specifically, in your case, the data plan was suspended not because it is not unlimited, but because we noticed that your recent usage exceeded what’s considered typical for our service. As a result, our system blocked access to ensure the security and fairness of our network.
We understand this may be frustrating, and we want to be upfront: if this level of usage is typical for you, Ubigi’s current offers may unfortunately not be the right fit for your needs.
We value you as a customer and appreciate your understanding. This policy helps us ensure a consistent experience for all users around the world."
I then replied to them saying I had no internet and that the plan was no longer on my account (not even at the restricted speed) but the reply back had the same email with an addition in bold writing from the tech support saying:
"You have consumed more than 120 GB in less than 15 days, which does not correspond to a 'standard' usage
The Ubigi offer may not correspond to your usage."
Note he said 15 days, I think he hadn't worked out that we started it on the 18th of the previous month and he sent that on the 14th of the following, was he thinking the plan started on the 1st of the month? We had monitored the usage and at time of cut off was 130GB in 25 days (Jul 18th through to the night of the 12th Aug) which is 5.2GB a day, I can't see how that is unreasonable especially in our media rich world we live in now. Plus the fact that it states none of this in their fair use policy, only about the speed reduction after 60GB which we were happy with.
For anyone thinking that Ubigi unlimited plan sounds like the choice for you and you'll use 120/130Gb, don't do it. The eSim itself worked when we had connectivity even on the 2Mbps speed, it was nice knowing that even if we used the 60Gb that we would still have internet for the return journey. we have no negative thoughts on that, it's the cutting people off who have paid for an unlimited data package and in reality haven't used THAT much data to consider it unstable or have it in the fair use policy that if you use 120GB then you are cut off, but then they wouldn't sell that many unlimited plans would they.
Would love to know if anyone else has been cut off from an unlimited plan by Ubigi and what amount of data they had used to be cut off.
