Ofcom secure BT changes to protect vulnerable UK users during digital phone switch
The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has closed a compliance remediation process it had for broadband and phone provider BT, which reflected some weaknesses that the regulator found in the provider’s handling of vulnerable customers during the switch from analogue to digital (IP-based) phone services. Changes have now been made to fix this.
The switch-off on the old Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is currently due to reach its conclusion on 31st January 2027. As a result broadband ISPs, phone, telecare providers, councils and consumers have been working to migrate everybody across (details). But the main focus of this remains on the people who use vital home telecare systems (e.g. elderly, disabled – vulnerable users), which aren’t always compatible with newer IP-based digital phone services (telecare providers were slow to adapt).
Ofcom has naturally been busy monitoring the wider industry’s compliance with this process and in February 2026 they raised some concerns over BT’s own migration programme, specifically an outbound calling campaign that the provider was using to migrate customers (i.e. where BT proactively contacts customers to help with the switch).
Advertisement
The regulator identified several problems with this campaign, including that BT’s published policy for protecting vulnerable customers wasn’t sufficiently clear and their staff could incorrectly identify whether a customer used telecare equipment. In addition, if a telecare customer’s service stopped working after migration, restoration could potentially be delayed or handled inconsistently.
The good news is Ofcom are now satisfied that BT has made positive changes to tackle all this, which they say “sufficiently [addresses] the concerns we identified and [secures] meaningful additional protections for vulnerable customers“. The case has now been closed after BT made the following improvements:
BT’s Digital Phone Switchover Campaign Improvements
➤ Introducing further safeguards to better verify migrating telecare customers before orders are progressed. This includes additional system alerts and improved agent training to ensure greater consistency of agent behaviour.
➤ Strengthening welfare restoration processes for vulnerable customers, ensuring that support is provided consistently and without unnecessary delay. These include:
a. incorporating new system alerts to prompt agents where internal escalation and restoration of service for vulnerable customers are required;
b. strengthening post-migration checks for telecare customers;
c. introducing new measures to support proactive review and (where necessary) escalation where there has been a fault on a customer’s line; and
d. refreshing and delivering improved agent training.
➤ Reviewing and updating BT’s published vulnerability policy to provide greater clarity on how the impact and effectiveness of its policies and procedures for vulnerable customers are monitored and evaluated.
Finally, the regulator confirmed that BT had already “implemented the majority of these measures“, with final systems and policy changes due to be implemented by the end of November 2026. Ofcom will of course continue to monitor all of this to make sure that the changes are effective. Other providers, such as Virgin Media, have also faced scrutiny for mistakes made during the digital phone switchover.
Most UK people have already been transitioned to newer products, with Openreach reporting at the end of July 2026 that just 1.5 million UK lines (down from 1.9m in June 2026) are still operating on legacy phone services, including roughly 350,000 business premises.
Advertisement
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
« Amazon Leo buys 6 more Arianespace rocket launches for broadband satellites
Connected Britain reveals 2026 UK broadband award winners »
Advertisement
Leave a Reply
Privacy Notice: Please note that news comments are anonymous, which means that we do NOT require you to enter any real personal details to post a message and display names can be almost anything you like (provided they do not contain offensive language or impersonate a real person's legal name). By clicking to submit a post you agree to storing your entries for comment content, display name, IP and email in our database, for as long as the post remains live.
Only the submitted name and comment will be displayed in public, while the rest will be kept private (we will never share this outside of ISPreview, regardless of whether the data is real or fake). This comment system uses submitted IP, email and website address data to spot abuse and spammers. All data is transferred via an encrypted (https secure) session.
It’s been months now, and I’ve never heard any provider say something like “our outbound communications already include informing those of our customers who would still have a WLR service after January, and we are contacting them with a series of personalised mail-shots, as well as personalised outbound calls from a UK call agent using a freephone outbound number which accepts incoming calls being returned, and includes helpline numbers for other agencies who can help.”
There’s not many months left, and there’s a lot of people out there who are, so far, steadfastly refusing to heed the general-public awareness campaign.
My local Salvation Army has a analogue line, it’s used to receive local calls and for them to make card payments, they don’t need Broadband, they just need something cheap! Digital Voice is probably too expensive and mobile coverage could be iffy.
Mobile coverage should be good in the town centre, but the local Telephone Exchange is partly lower than the town centre and coverage is effectively in a shadow, I have even written to Vodafone for a higher new mast location and nothing has happened and for now the centre has iffy 4g, no 5g coverage at all. It’s possible the exchange will be demolished(for flat’s), it’s not had any repairs done for ages and wooden exterior boards has passed from rotten, to having lage holes in.
Mandatory Digital Voice (including required minimum install of broadband) won’t cost any more in terms of monthly subscription.
Marginal increase in utility bills to power in-premises equipment.
The bigger problem is whether the current equipment for card payments will continue to work with Digital voice phone line, or needs replacement. (Ditto any other phone line connected equipent e.g. alarms)
Cost effective replacement may require a full broadband/wifi installation to allow a tablet or phone to be used for card payments (potentially linked to a Chip&Pin/Contactless reader, although higher end phones/tablets can do contactless without extra hardware (a phone may need a PAYG SIM but not use any credit if connected to local wifi).
Users of the facility may appreciate access to WiFi (access controlled by keeping the WiFi key private).
I do hope that Ofcom REALLY have closed this off. My experience of having to make a ~400 mile round trip, thinking that an elderly relatives fall alarm had activated, only to find that it had been disconnected during the switch to VOIP, was a complete nightmare.
The only viable fix was for me to go out an buy a complete replacement system, plus a backup battery unit. Getting either the relative’s supplier or OR to deal with it turned into a game of pass the parcel. Worst element of the whole saga was that it was done with zero notice. The lady’s supplier said they’d emailed her (she doesn’t use the internet and has no email address) and likewise OR said they’d sent notification via the lady’s supplier.
When I checked with the alarm service provider they denied having been contacted by either the lady’s supplier or OR. We ended up having to spend a great deal of money getting this sorted out. The only company that came out of it well were the alarm system supplier. Can’t fault them; the moment I got down there, saw what OR had done and called them for help they were excellent.
Luckily no harm was done (other than to my bank balance) but that’s more by luck than judgement. There was a whole secondary saga in getting the lady’s “big button” phone to work, though. She needs this as she’s partially sighted, and as she wasn’t keen on trying to learn to use a replacement I ended up buying a VOIP ATA and setting it up to work with her old phone.
We’ve not so much as had an apology, let alone compensation for the worry, time and cost incurred. Goes without saying that she’s changed her phone provider now.
Hi,
Good to know that things are sorted but:
1. I don’t know why you keep referring to Openreach, they are not involved in this process, other than setting the timescale for analogue line withdrawal. Any omissions in communication are with your relatives supplier (who you don’t mention).
2. I don’t know why you are singing the praises of the alarm company, they are the most at fault here for allowing your relative to continue operating an obsolete alarm system when they have known for a decade that it will stop working sometime around 2025/2026. They should have communicated with your relative to get this resolved about 18 months ago.
When you “saw what Openreach had done and called [the alarm company] for help”, you’re actually saying that you think that it was Openreach who disconnected an alarm system and left it out of service “during the switch to VoIP”. This would be big (if true). The only actions taken by Openreach were the ones the occupier’s phone provider had ordered Openreach to do.
“Goes without saying that she’s changed her phone provider now”.
Considering how a potentially very serious situation was avoided by your actions caused entirely through the phone provider / CP / ISP’s lack of duty of care, then like Dassa above, I’m also mystified why you’re not naming and shaming the former supplier.
I am going Fibre at the end of this month at the moment I am with PlusNet but I am being moved to EE at the moment my call charge is unlimited phone calls for an extra £8.00 per month will this continue with EE. Thanks
People here may struggle to answer specific transitional queries such as this.
You will need to ask this directly to EE, but start with the assumption the answer is No, and use online comparison sites to find a better deal as soon as you are released from contract (also need to confirm directly with EE) or change to a supplier that will pay your contract exit fees.
Fibre + Voice transitions from PlusNet have caused some complaints.
They’ve not got good systems and processes from my experience. My mother in law was forced to move from Plusnet to EE to maintain a landline. Her analogue line was cut off as soon as she plugged in the new router randomly sent to her. They emailed her in advance but she doesn’t really check emails. After I complained EE they sent new dect phone, battery backup and dect/analogue converters but no instructions. I’ve worked in tech for 40 years so was able to get things working but think it would stress out most people and leave them disconnected, especially the vulnerable.
If she isn’t registered as a vulnerable user then they won’t do any specific monitoring.
I’m not sure it’s EE’s fault that she doesn’t check her email or that she didn’t phone up to question why they’d sent her a router before plugging it in.
Previous wide reaching technology changes have had better on the ground delivery to end consumer, IMO e.g. initial launch of Channel 5 needing some video recorders to be retuned, end of service of Analogue TV, various frequency shuffles freeview, phONEday–when a 1 was added to UK dialling codes, etc.
Openreach and major ISPs have been allowed by Ofcom to try and do this change management “on the cheap” multiple times rather than doing it once, properly.
Starting with a campaign to replace automatic equipment connected to phone lines (with government subsidy for some use cases e.g. safety pendants). Clear statement of supplier liability for maintaining service and fining suppliers if necessary to grab attention.
And requiring “like for like” service to be maintained in all cases including when line is changed to fibre (PlusNet forcing transition to EE on change to fibre for voice enabled customers is especially egregious; the belated addition of PDPL capability to manage some use cases also poor.)