Switching from copper

[AlphaTangoKilo]

My concerns about this ill thought out change.

I am a vulnerable person

I am on a priority repair telephone service.

If there is a local Power cut the mobile mast is also affected

If there is a power cut my cordless phones don't work

on a power cut my wired handset does work

If I am changed over to an ip phone connected to my modem if the modem is powered down I presume the phone will not work ?

How am I supposed so seek assistance when my medical equipment powers off (oxygen) (ventilator)

These are life threatening situations

is there a solution 

[Tom_W1]

Hi @AlphaTangoKilo thanks for your post here, although I'm sorry to hear of your concerns regarding the switchover.

It is correct that if there is a power cut, or an outage affecting broadband that the landline will cease to work until things are resolved.

We do however, have an Emergency Backup Line which can be used to call emergency services if you need this, while an outage is present.

We can definitely help to arrange this for you, at the same time as the switchover - have you received communications yet about the switchover and a possible date for this? 

Many thanks

[AlphaTangoKilo]

They offered to switch my phone over when my 360 upgrade was done as the auto update failed and they sent an engineer out to resolve. When I explained my situation he said it would not suit me to change. If you are referring to a 999 call  this is not what I require as I would need to talk to hospital teams directly and by current wait times on 999 calls would possibly be too slow

[Tom_W1]

Hi @AlphaTangoKilo thanks for your reply.

So the Emergency Back Up Lines are only designed to call 999, so we can't arrange for them to directly call specific numbers. If you do need more help on how the EBUL's work though, please see here.

Many thanks

[AlphaTangoKilo]

Wont work for me at all, I would need to contact either the Oxygen provider, The ventilation at home team , or the energy provider to provide me with some sort of backup or generator or all 3. I wonder what the legality of cutting off my lifeline is I will resist this change as it stands in court if need be

[Tom_W1]

Hi @AlphaTangoKilo thanks for your reply, I'm sorry you feel this way.

All care services will be aware of the 21CV changeover - this isn't just happening with Virgin Media, it's happening with all UK providers by the end of 2025 so this will become completely standard across all of the whole country in a few years time.

If you need further support with the switchover, please don't hesitate to let us know.

Many thanks

[AlphaTangoKilo]

The EBUL v3 looks more practical however
Mobile network back-up
In the event of a power cut and you can’t use your home
phone like normal, the Emergency Backup Line will
automatically switch you over to our mobile network, so you
can carry on making emergency calls to 999 and 112 or to
UK-based emergency contacts over a reliable connection
(see virginmedia.com/callcosts for full call allowance details).
8-hour back-up battery
The Emergency Backup Line V3 comes with a battery
that lasts up to 8 hours.
9 programmable speed-dial keys
It’s important you can call emergency services and any
personal contacts quickly and easily. With 9 speed-dial keys
available, you can pop your key contacts in and get in touch
with them at the press of a button

The mobile network has not worked with a local power cut however as the tower is only 50 m from my home

[Tom_W1]

Hi @AlphaTangoKilo thanks for your reply here.

I'm afraid if the local mobile network would be affected by a power cut, we aren't responsible for this and can't help with this matter, but would strongly urge you to consider taking up the EBUL that we have on offer here.

Many thanks

[AlphaTangoKilo]

One more question , my virgin media router is run in bridge mode as I use a 3rd party product for the router. Am I correct in saying that the EBUL phone wouldn't work with my setup anyway ?

[Tom_W1]

Hi @AlphaTangoKilo thanks for your reply here.

If your Hub is in Modem Mode, it still will work for the 21CV Network, quite a few of our customers have our Hubs this way and this does not impact their landline in anyway.

Many thanks