“Is It Even Legal?”: Mzansi Reacts As SA Gent Shares How To Cancel Phone Contracts in TikTok Video
- A South African TikToker broke down the steps for cancelling a cell phone contract after noticing widespread confusion online
- He warned viewers that networks may try to delay cancellations and put customers on costly month-to-month billing
- South Africans flooded the comments with their own frustrating cancellation experiences
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Source: TikTok
A South African TikToker is going viral after sharing a step-by-step breakdown of how to cancel a cell phone contract. He posted the clip on 22 August 2026 under the handle @him, after noticing how many people were struggling with something that should, according to him, be straightforward.
The video was sparked by a clip he had seen of another person listing things he had finally managed to cancel, with a cell phone contract making the list. The comment section on that video was filled with people sharing the same struggle, and @him decided enough was enough.
What to do before your contract ends
His first piece of advice: do not wait until the contract is over. Customers need to call the cancellations department at least 30 days before the contract end date to give formal notice. He was clear that going into a store will not work. Networks, he said, tend to make the in-person route deliberately difficult. Briefly News could not verify this claim before the stipulated deadline of this report.
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He also flagged what happens when things do not go to plan. If the cancellation does not go through and a 25th month's debit goes off, that amount will differ from the original because the device portion has already been paid off. At that point, customers are only being charged for data and minutes, which he described as the month-to-month trap.
@him's advice for getting out of it: call the cancellation department directly, hold firm when they try to retain you with offers, and expect one final charge before the account is closed.
Watch the full video to see exactly how he breaks it down:
Mzansi weighs
South Africans in the comments had plenty to add:
@Qiniso Majola said:
“I hate the fact that I can walk into the store and get the contract, but we can't cancel in person. 🥺😤”
@Hlaluko V advised:
“Always send a cancellation email, don’t just call.”
@NaMathibela said:
“This thing of putting you on month-to-month is so wrong. The whole contract should be terminated on the day the contract ends. Period.”
@NuttynycNuttynyc added:
“If they give you the runaround, just report them to ICASA, and it’s done. 🤞”
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Source: Briefly News
