Hi there,
I see related questions but none of the answers seem to answer my questions directly:
My 2-year mobile phone contract (phone+service) expires on Sept 4, 2020. I have been very happy with Fido (first-time with Fido!) and am now looking to switch to a Bring-your-own-device plan. My contract had the phone 'price' imbedded in the monthly fee so I definitely do not want to proceed with the same monthly. My phone should be paid off on Sept 4.
(1) I am planning on switching my plan online via the Fido website. In my case, should I switch on Sept 3, Sept 4, or Sept 5?
(2) My understanding is if you switch online via the Fido website, you will not incur any switching fees...can someone please confirm this? I read something about a downgrade fee from Large to Medium, but didn't understand if this applies.
(3) My guess is that I'll probably get a message from Fido prior to my expiration date, to guide me through this painlessly...? 
I'm really not uncomfortable with clicking through all the options at this point, for fear of accidentally triggering a change, so I'd greatly appreciate any help!
Please and Thanks in advance!
Lhl1
Hello Lhl1,
Firstly, you should note that the bill due date and billing cycle are not the same (see here). If your billing cycle starts September 4th, your bill due date would be mid-to-late September. You should also note that if you change plans in the middle of a billing cycle, your monthly fees for both old and new plans will be prorated (see here).
If your last phone payment is included with your September 4th billing cycle, you're better off waiting until your following billing cycle to change plans. Changing before your next cycle would prorate fees going towards your phone. You might consider changing plans after October 4th.
You are correct in that the Setup Service Fee is waived through self-serve on fido.ca (see full details here). If you change plans after your contract has completed, there would be no downgrade fees to switch plans. The downgrade fees noted in other threads refers to changing plans while still under contract with a subsidised plan.The downgrade fees would be the amount owed on the phone which was not covered by the other plans.
You should note that Fido recently switched to a financed payment program. With this model, the costs of devices is separate from plan costs. There are no more Large, Medium, etc plans.
You should also note that Fido will not likely notify you when your contract ends. It would be up to customers to change plans once their contracts ended if they so chose.
If you're searching plans using your account before your contract has ended, you'll likely be offered other subsidised plans and possibly a downgrade fee because you still have a balance on your phone.
Hope this helps 😀
Cheers
