when does a contract start?

A question about : when does a contract start?

If I buy a contract phone and it comes but I do not open the box and use it, does the contract still start from when I purchased it? I found a great deal but I dont want to use my PAC until the the PAC is about to expire in 2 weeks time. I just dont want to be paying for 2 lines for 2 weeks.

Best answers:

• A contract starts as soon as you order the contract whether you open the box or not
• wow...................
• When i ordered my mobile contract from Tesco Mobile it started as soon as i completed the order, but it took 3 working days to arrive, as soon as it arrived i informed Tesco Mobile on live chat s it was 5 days before i got the phone due to weekend and they without question credited my account with 2 weeks rental, even though only waited 5 days for the phone
• It varies according to when the network or dealer activates the sim. Most of mine start when the phone is despatched, even though the dealers in question say it'll be a few days later.
  If the deal is THAT good, why quibble about 2 weeks overlap on paying??
• mobilejunkie, no i am just shocked they start charging even before it gets in your hands! also in the past i have placed the box somewhere until i was ready to faff with it and get used to it, not knowing the charging had started already lol. it is good to be aware.
• Why is it shocking?
  In fact it's very understandable. If you were allowed to postpone it, what would stop you from never 'starting' the contract and using the phone with some other sim?
• In my experience once you use the pac code the old account is terminated as soon as the number ports out so you should only be charged line rental up until that point.
• I can be missing something, but your bill doesn't prove anything. It all depends on when exactly you get the PAC.
  E.g. if you get the PAC on your billing date, the next 30 days will be paid on the payment date, so you don't have to pay anything extra.