Carrier can't unlock my iphone

Hi

I am in the UK and have an iphone 3GS which I purchased as a Pay as You Go in November 2009 from Orange. I ported my number from my previous carrier on the day I registered the phone. I later decided to move to a contract, & after various problems was issued with a replacement sim.

Yesterday I asked Orange to unlocked my phone (cost is £20). They said I can't get it unlocked unless I can tell them the original phone number that was issued with the PAYG sim. I don't have that sim anymore so can't give them the information. They say Apple won't let them unlock with out this original phone number.

They say their records don't show the original phone number, even though I have given them the imei & serial numbers and I purchased from their online store.

Has anyone come across this before? I feel I am being fobbed off, but knowing how funny Apple can be, am not sure whether to believe Orange or not.

Any advice to get this resolved would be appreciated.

Yvonne

That seems a bit odd to me.

I have a couple spare 'emergency' PAYG sims and for each one I had to register all my details with the carrier so they should have this on file?

Perhaps you know of someone with an old message from your original phone number?

Oliver

Call Apple and see what they can do. They can unlock it themselves, from what I understand.

Just got off of the phone to Orange and this time they managed to find the original number. They have put the unlock request through to Apple, so just got to wait now.

Why they couldn't do that first time round I will never know.

Yve