I don't need my landline, do I have to take a new router?

[soquas]

Hi all - I hope that you're well.

I've just received an email from VM saying that my landline will soon be moved over to VoIP and that I need to upgrade my router. I don't use my landline, indeed I don't even have a phone connected, I only keep the service to qualify for a discount.

I don't want to upgrade my router (SH2) as it's simple, reliable, fit for purpose and because I've gone to the trouble of locking it down in all respects from a security perspective.

The email isn't clear as to what will happen if I don't take the new router, it says:

"What happens if I don’t arrange for the new Hub to be delivered or installed by a technician?  
If you don’t book before 22nd September 2023, you’ll only be able to receive inbound calls or dial 999, and your connected devices won’t work. If you try to make an outbound call, you’ll be diverted to our contact centre to arrange the Hub swap that way. After 14th November 2023, your services will stop working completely."

It isn't clear if 'services' just relates to phone services or everything else (TV, broadband etc).

Does anyone have any idea? Am I being forced to take a new SH or will everything keep working except for the phone?

Cheers!

[nodrogd]

Yes, you can drop your landline. But be aware it will have a significant negative effect on the pricing of your package. When you take all three services, this attracts a huge discount, which will be lost if you drop any of the three services. Many customers keep the landline but don’t plug a phone in just in order to keep the discount as they don’t want to pay higher prices for less services.

All landlines are being migrated to 21CV & then later VoIP so that the ageing PSTN technology that runs the current phone networks can be switched off. This is affecting all providers that offer landline services

[Tudor]

The SuperHub 2 is well past its use by date, even Hub 3s are EOL and are not being given to new customers. Best to change in a controlled manner, not in haste when the old hub fails.

[Roger_Gooner]

VM supports seven hubs which is silly, and the first four have to be withdrawn - including yours. Take the upgrade which will make it easier to get support if something goes wrong. The phone is good for calling VM for free, all you have to do is connect the handset to the hub via an adapter which VM provides.

[soquas]

Yes, so I plan to keep the phone as far as my contract is concerned, to get the discount, as you suggest. I just don't use it and my query is, will anything other than the phone stop working when my phone line is switched over to fibre?

[goslow]

A general observation, based on a lot of past topics on here, would be that if you are paying VM for a phone line, you should keep it in an operational condition as give it a test every so often to make sure it is in working order.

The reason for this is to do with 'phantom call' charges (where the customer starts getting billed for phone calls that they have not made). Quite often these seem to happen on lines which are never used/checked or lines which are not operational (even though the customer is paying for the service).

If the line is not checked every so often, a fault can occur and the customer would have no way of knowing this until phantom call charges start appearing on the monthly bill. VM's position is that the call charges stand until proven otherwise which can involve a lot of communication with VM to resolve.

If you are paying for a VM landline, get the hub upgrade as well as a cheap corded phone (usually sub-£10 from the likes of Argos etc.). You don't need to phone plugged in permanently but you can use it to check the line periodically as well as to call VM for free if you ever need to.