Cannot add Secondary Sky ID

[Ish68]

It should be like other things online eg Netflix, Spotify, Amazon and others.  They have a simple section under your main profile, which is easy to find and use.  Sky have had this major problem for years and done nothing to fix it.

[Big+Nose · Accepted solution]

I'll post this here, as it seems the best place to leave information for others trying to add secondary IDs to their account. Obviously, Sky aren't keen to have people do this otherwise they would make it easier. These instructions are working as tested on 17th December 2022.

1. Create a new account with Sky. To do this, head to https://sky.com. Make sure that you are not logged in with any other ID and click on Sign In. At the prompt for your username, type in the email address for the new Secondary ID. Assuming that this is an email address that Sky have not seen and registered before, you will then be prompted to create a password. Once you have done this, the new account will exist but will not be linked to anything.
2. When the new user ID has been verified and logged in, the "Details" section will offer a link to associate the ID with a Sky Account. DO NOT CLICK ON THAT LINK. It will make the new user ID an Authorised ID on your account and the owner of the new ID will be able to subscribe to new products, change billing details and do all the things that you probably don;t want them to do.
3. Logged in as the new user ID, head to https://www.sky.com/pages/sky-id-setup. On this page, there should be three options. The first is "Watch Only". This is the link that you need to add a Secondary Account. Clicking through that link takes you to a page that requires the Postcode of the address of the Sky account, and one of either the Account number, the last digits of the bank account that pays the bills or the Viewing Card number. I have seen it suggested that using the account number or bank details will generate an Authorised ID but I haven't tried that. I do know that using the Viewing Card number on this form did successfully generate a Seondary ID
4. When the new user id is associated with your account, the main account authorised user will receive an email telling them about it. That email contains a link which says that you can manage your account additional users by following it. Naturally that link does not work. To manage the additional users on your account (which means view and/or remove rather than anything that I would interpret "manage" to mean) you need to head to https://www.sky.com/myaccount/my-details and scroll down until you reach the "Additional Users" section. If using the mobile App, click on the profile picture icon and choose My Details...

I hope this helps someone and that Sky don't decide to move everything and hide it all from us again.

[telscombe]

Brilliant - worked for me today (29 Jan 23) - thank you.  I mean in what world do you click on 'create secondary Sky id' and it creates an authorised/primary user?  Doh!

[Johnners1969]

You GENIUS! Thank you.

I've been trying for God knows how long to do this for my daughter and this has worked! Aren't Sky so kind and helpful to make this such a challenge for us! **bleep** 

[Musselwhite]

 I still can't add my son to my account with a Secondary ID, so he can watch Sky Go. I followed all the steps, put in my viewing card number, selected 'Watch content' but he keeps being added with an  Authorised ID which obviously I don't want. 

Please, can anyone help? It's driving me nuts

[telscombe]

I know it's stupid to ask but I take it you followed the instructions exactly?  I fouled up on a couple of steps at my first attempt (naturally it didn't work) but when I followed them precisely it worked first time.  This probably doesn't help but thought I would risk stating the obvious anyway ...

[Johnners1969]

That doesn't make sense. 🤔  All I can say is that I followed all the instructions and it worked perfectly. Hope you can get it working. 😕

[Musselwhite]

Not stupid at all. All help very gratefully received! Some questions:

When I create a new account, who inputs the email address for the Secondary ID and creates a password? Me or my son? (Not as daft as it sounds.)

'When the new user has been verified and logged in',  the instructions say. How does this happen? Who verifies the new user, me or my son?

I typed in the viewing card number but it still gave my son an Authorised Sky ID.  

[SKY1992bf]

@Musselwhite  You are completely signed out of any existing account before you start aren't you and using a different email address?See point 1 of instructions 

your not supposed to add him to your account 

1. Create a new account with Sky. To do this, head to https://sky.com. Make sure that you are not logged in with any other ID and click on Sign In. At the prompt for your username, type in the email address for the new Secondary ID. Assuming that this is an email address that Sky have not seen and registered before, you will then be prompted to create a password. Once you have done this, the new account will exist but will not be linked to anything.

[telscombe]

Just echoing SKUY1992bf's reply below, you must be logged out completely - make sure you aren't inadvertently still logged in via other windows on your browser (easily done as lots tend to pop up when you're running through this process).  Then what you effectively do it start the whole log-in process AS THE NEW USER, using his (in this case) email address - which will (or should) not be recognised by Sky.

[telscombe]

I'm trying to cast my mind back - I'm pretty sure there comes a point where you need to liaise with your nominated new user in order to complete part of the process - can't exactly recall the moment but, when I was doing it for my nominee, she was in the room at the time - I am pretty sure there was an email link which needed to be followed.  Sorry to be rather vague.

[caesarome]

You are correct @telscombe as I believe they get sent an email to the address you have used and they have to click on the link in it to confirm that the address is correct.

[Musselwhite]

Helpful advice, thank you. I'll start the whole tedious process again, with my son on the phone so we're in tandem! No idea why Sky make it so complicated... 

[Musselwhite]

Thanks for your help. I thought I did all that but maybe not. I'll have another go! 

[Big+Nose]

Good Luck.