Code of Practice

Here you'll find general information about us, the services we offer and how to get in touch with us. In this code of practice we tell you about your rights as a UK mobile customer as well as your responsibilities when joining us. And we explain our commitment to you as a customer.

We always strive to deliver the highest standards of service possible. Apart from anything else, it simply makes good business sense. So one of the main reasons for publishing this code is to assure you of our good intentions and explain clearly what you can expect from us. There's another reason, too. Legally, we have to provide certain information to meet the requirements of the communications regulator, Ofcom.

We hope that we've made this code as clear as possible. If not just get in touch and we'll be happy to run through things. This code of practice is available on our website, three.co.uk, and on request by contacting customer services. Copies are available in some alternative formats.

We also produce supplementary codes on specific services and other mobile issues; if you want a copy of our codes or more general information please visit our website.

Who we are and what we offer

Three is the trading name for Hutchison 3G UK Limited. We are a UK mobile network operator; our head office is in Reading.

We provide 3G (third generation) and 4G (fourth generation) mobile communications, incorporating mobile internet, voice, text and data services and 5G (fifth generation) mobile communications including fixed wireless access. See three.co.uk/5g for more info.

Our Commitment to you

Customer Services

We want to deliver a service that you use, enjoy, and value. That’s why we provide clear, concise answers to questions, publish information that’s relevant and easy to understand at three.co.uk, respond to complaints as quickly as possible, and give you control of your account with My3. 

We want to give our customers a great service, so we’re always looking for ways to improve. 

If you feel we’re not achieving this, please let us know. Contacting us is easy. You can fill in our online form, call, or send us a letter. If you prefer to talk face-to-face, head to one of our stores.

Want to find out how we’re doing? Check our complaint report.

Online

You'll find lots of useful information about Three and our services at www.three.co.uk

By webchat

You can contact us online by chatting to an advisor using our webchat service at www.three.co.uk/support/contact-us - just select what it is you’d like to talk to us about and click on “Live Chat”.

By phone - Pay Monthly

In the UK, you can call from your Three mobile on 333 (this will be free unless you’re on one of Essential plans, in which case it will come out of any available minutes allowance you have or if not, you’ll be charged our standard out of allowance rates).

You can also get in touch from abroad by calling +44 7782 333 333 - calls are charged at the current roaming rate or will come out of any available voice allowance if you are calling from a Roam Like at Home country.

By phone - Pay As You Go

In the UK, you can call free from your Three mobile on 444.

You can also get in touch from abroad by calling +44 7782 333 444 - calls are charged at the current roaming rate or will come out of any available voice allowance if you are calling from a Roam Like at Home country.

By phone - Mobile Broadband

In the UK, you can call free from a Three mobile on 500. You can also get in touch from abroad by calling +44 7782 333 500 - calls are charged at the current roaming rate or will come out of any available voice allowance if you are calling from a Roam Like at Home country using a Three phone.

By phone – Business customers

In the UK, you can call free from your Three mobile on 337.

You can also get in touch from abroad by calling +44 7782 333 337 - calls are charged at the current roaming rate or will come out of any available voice allowance if you are calling from a Roam Like at Home country.

By phone from a non-Three mobile

If you are a phone customer, dial 0333 300 3333 (calls are charged at your standard rate). If you are a mobile broadband customer, dial 0333 300 0500 (call are charged at your standard rate).

By post

You can write to us at:

Three Customer Services
Hutchison 3G UK Ltd
PO Box No. 333
GLASGOW
G2 9AG

Ways to join Three

Price Plans & ways to pay

We aim to be highly competitive when it comes to our rates. Our prices vary depending on the plan you choose. The most up-to-date prices on our products and services are always available on our website and through Three stores and authorised retailers.

Pay Monthly price plans (packages including a device and SIM Only) usually have a minimum contract term, for example 24 months. If you are on a Pay Monthly plan you will have committed to remain connected to Three until the term has been completed. At Three we have the right to stop your service if you fail to pay money owed or breach our Terms and Conditions.

Some SIM Only Pay Monthly plans have a minimum term of one month and then continue to “roll” until you terminate these SIM only contracts at any time by giving us one month’s notice.

If you're on a Pay Monthly contract, we bill you for the services you use on a monthly basis. Every month we send you either an electronic bill or a paper bill in the post. Your bill can be either a fully itemised bill or a summary statement. If you have opted for a paper bill and you want a fully itemised bill, you will pay a charge for the itemised bill (or you can choose a free of charge summary statement) If you have opted for an electronic bill, you can choose to receive a fully itemised bill or a summary bill free of charge. Our bills will show your usage, charges and the date that a payment is due.

As far as payment is concerned, new customers can only join pay monthly plans on direct debit and our plans’ prices include a discount for paying by this efficient means. Direct debit is brilliant for you as payment will be taken automatically and your account will not be suspended if you forget to pay. It is also the most efficient method for us. You should maintain your direct debit whilst you stay as a pay monthly customer. You can change your bank details at any time, just let us know.

We cannot prevent you from cancelling your direct debit, and if you do, you are still required to pay your bills by the due date. We will retain your discount if you give us any of the following given means of payment provided that you simply allow us to store your selected payment method so that we can charge you on your billing date each month. Don’t worry, you can swap these details at any time and on multiple occasions. If you do not permit us to store payment details, you will lose the recurring payment discount. You can choose any of the following given means of payment. Simply allow us to store details and you will remain eligible for the £5 monthly recurring discount.

• Visa
• Mastercard
• American Express
• Direct Debit

If you're on a Pay Monthly price plan, you can check which calls, texts and services are included in your plan. Pay as You Go means just that - there’s no minimum term contract and no monthly bills; just buy a Pay as You Go SIM from us and start using it straight away. When you run out of credit you just buy a Top-up voucher.

Pay As You Go Top-up vouchers can be purchased from a range of outlets across the UK including places you can purchase Three phones. If you register a credit or debit card, you can also top up using My3 online, My3 on your handset, and by calling 444 free from your Three phone. Further details on how it all works are available at three.co.uk. You can check Three's network coverage by going to Network Coverage at three.co.uk or by contacting customer services.

Keeping you up to date

We use customer bills, leaflets, emails, letters, text, picture and video messages to keep you up to date with our news, services, products and exclusive deals. The latest Information is also available online at our website.

Your privacy

We'll only use your personal information in accordance with our Privacy Policy and relevant UK data protection and privacy legislation. You’ll find our Privacy Policy on our website and in our Terms and Conditions. An up to date copy of our Privacy Policy can be viewed at three.co.uk/Privacy_Cookies and Terms and Conditions can be viewed at three.co.uk/Terms .

By agreeing to the terms of our Privacy Policy, you give us permission to collect information about how, when and where you use our services. With your consent, we may from time to time contact you for marketing purposes (see the section called 'Keeping you up to date') and share your information with members of the Three group – but not with anyone else. If we collect sensitive information, we'll seek your permission first before sharing it.

Subject to your preferences and only where you have given us permission, we may enter your name, address and telephone number in a publicly available directory enquiry service and directories operated by us or by a licensed third party operator such as BT.

For further information, or answers to queries, please send an email to dpa.officer@three.co.uk or write to:

DPA Officer
Three
450 Longwater Avenue
Green Park
Reading
Berkshire
RG2 6GF

Warranty, repairs and insurance

Your mobile will be covered by a warranty covering defects in material or workmanship. If you experience a problem with your device, just get in touch with us and we will tell you what to do next.

If your device needs to be repaired, you may need to get in contact with the manufacturer so that it can be sent for repair. The device is normally repaired and returned back to you within 5 days.

If you purchased a refurbished handset from us, and you experience a problem with it, just get in touch with us and we will tell you what to do next.

We also offer insurance which can protect your device against the risk of loss, theft and accidental damage. You'll have a Three Rescue™ policy if you took out insurance with us before 6 March 2020 and you can find out more about it or make a claim by visiting our Three Rescue™ Support.

On 5 May 2020 we launched a new insurance product, called Three Insurance. Take a look at www.three.co.uk/three-insurance to find out more.

Returns & Exchanges policy

We always hope you’re happy with your new purchase, whether it’s a Device or Accessory, and/or a service agreement for our Network Services, but just in case you’re not, here’s what you can do.

Purchases from Three Stores

We’re sorry, but if you bought a Device or Accessory from a Three Store and you change your mind, you’ll be unable to return or exchange it, except in accordance with your statutory rights.

Purchases from Three.co.uk and Telesales

If you change your mind, you can return or exchange your purchase within 14 days of receiving your Device or SIM card (where no Device was purchased). If you use any services during the returns period, you could be charged for those services and any reduction in value of the Device - you can turn on and use your Device to inspect it and to make sure you’ve received what you thought you were buying, but if any damage is caused, or it is used beyond what’s reasonable, we have the right to charge you for any loss in value to the goods as a result of your use or damage. You’re allowed to do what is reasonable to ensure you’ve received what you thought you were buying and that it works as expected. All Devices must be returned, together with all packaging, manuals, accessories, any free gifts and your proof of payment.

You’ll also need to provide your receipt or delivery note as proof of purchase. If you are unsure what to do, please:

1. contact the retailer that sold it to you (if you didn’t purchase your device directly from Three); or

2. return to the Three Store that sold it to you (if you purchased your device from a Three store; or

3. call 0333 300 3333 (your standard call charges will apply) if you purchased your device from Three’s telephone sales team or three.co.uk.

Purchases from other retailers that aren’t Three

You’ll need to check with them to see what their returns and exchanges policy is. If you are given an exchange or refund but have connected to Three and used any of our services then we may charge you for these. A full copy of our Returns & Exchange policy can be found at three.co.uk/returns

Our Network reliability

The network may cease to function if there is a power cut or failure that affects the Three network. These failures may be caused by reasons outside our control. There can also be instances where service has to be stopped for a short period while essential maintenance is carried out. We try to keep these periods as infrequent and brief as possible and try to warn you if we think you will be affected.

Emergency Services

You can make free calls to emergency services from your Three mobile in the UK by calling 999 or 112. When you’re outside of coverage on our network, your phone will try to locate another mobile network so that you can make emergency calls. Emergency service calls should not be made using voice over IP (“VoIP”) services, such as Skype, on your Three mobile as your location data will not be shared with the Emergency Services and VoIP calls may cease if there is a power cut or power failure or a failure of the Internet Connection on which the service relies. If you need to call Emergency Services, you should do so by making a normal voice call from your mobile.

The Key Small Print

Terms & Conditions

If your Price Plan has a minimum term, then you are committed to remain connected to Three until the expiry of that minimum term. If you sign up to a Pay Monthly Package, the Monthly Charge for this is the minimum price you agree to pay us for Three Services provided to you under your agreement, for the Minimum Term. If you joined us or upgraded your phone, SIM only, mobile broadband or home broadband plan between 29 May 2015 and 28 October 2020, your Monthly Charge will increase each May by an amount up to the January RPI rate, published in February of that year. If you joined us or upgraded your phone, SIM only, mobile broadband or home broadband plan on or after 29 October 2020, your Monthly Charge will increase each April by 4.5%. Alternatively, if you joined us or upgraded your phone, SIM only, mobile broadband or home broadband plan on or after 1 November 2022, your Monthly Charge will increase each April by an amount up to the December CPI Rate, published in January of that year, plus 3.9%. Three reserves the right to terminate service to a customer at any time if a customer fails to pay money owed to Three or breaches Three's Terms and Conditions.

If you are on a minimum term contract, you are expected to pay any outstanding sums owed to the end of the minimum term of the contract.

Whether you're thinking about Pay As You Go or Pay Monthly, it's important you read and agree to stick to our Terms & Conditions. You'll find these wherever Three devices are sold. A copy of our latest Terms and Conditions can also be viewed on our website at www.three.co.uk/terms .

About this code

We review and update it regularly to make sure that it meets current requirements. If you've got a question about our compliance with this code, please write to:

General Counsel
Three
450 Longwater Avenue
Green Park
Reading
Berkshire
RG2 6GF

Or email your question to regulatory@three.co.uk