Bell says it introduced a new phone-locking policy last year to deal with a surge in violent store robberies, device theft, and fraud across Canada, and the company claims it’s already making a difference.
That’s what the company said on Friday, releasing a graphic titled, “Protecting Canadians: Why Preventing Device Trafficking Matters.”
Last April, Bell began automatically keeping newly activated phones locked for 60 days. Customers can still unlock their devices at any time for free if they ask, but the default delay is meant to make stolen phones harder to resell.
Bell says the move was designed to cut down on organized device trafficking, which had been driving hundreds of thefts and robberies at Bell stores each year and pushing fraud costs into the hundreds of millions across the telecom industry.
According to Bell, the impact goes beyond stolen phones. The company says device theft has been linked to rising safety risks for retail employees and customers, increased identity theft, and higher wireless costs for everyone as fraud losses pile up.
Bell says the 60-day lock has helped reduce fraud, improve in-store safety, and prevent tens of millions of dollars in losses that would otherwise be passed on to customers. But that locking policy looks circumvent the CRTC Wireless Code of Conduct.
The company adds that it plans to keep working with industry partners and other stakeholders, saying the focus is on practical measures that protect employees, customers, and the broader wireless system without limiting legitimate phone use.
Now, you’ll remember this phone locking policy was slammed by the CRTC earlier this month, which ordered Bell to stop locking phones immediately.
“We’re carefully reviewing the CRTC’s letter to determine our next steps and will respond to the CRTC by their deadline of January 9. Our priority remains protecting our employees and customers from rising criminal activity and fraud targeting wireless devices,” said a Bell spokesperson to iPhone in Canada on December 4, in response.
Bell has to reply to the CRTC by January 9, 2026, and share exactly how many locked phones it has sold since April 2024, and detail unlocking stats for these devices. This isn’t over, so stay tuned, folks.
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If you want to buy your phone outright do NOT purchase it from a Bell / Telus / Rogers store. Devices are always marked up slightly to avoid selling outright. For example. iPhones are usually about $30-80 cheaper if you buy from Apple direct, Amazon or even Best Buy.
If you are financing your phone at 0% with Bell / Telus / Rogers, make sure you have a good plan offer and a device credit if possible. I dropped my plan down from $80 a month to $55.
this means that financing I am saving in the long run even if the phone is not on sale.
The biggest savings would be moving to a prepaid carrier such as Public, Lucky or Chatr. Pay $29-40 for a plan with at least 20GB and then either finance the phone for 0% through Apple or buy it outright from them.
Lots of options. Plans aren’t the problem nowadays, the phones being 1k to 2k is the real issue.
Do your research, go into a store and talk to a rep that knows how to do their job (not over the phone or carrier website)
Merry Christmas! 🎄
The solution is the store shouldn’t keep any stock at all. Get the phone in the mail overnight. Problem solved.