BT phone upgrade meant no one could call my aunt

An elderly woman in London was left unable to receive incoming calls for more than two months after BT switched her analogue phone line to its Digital Voice service without consent, disrupting her care arrangements and social contact. The woman, identified only by the initials GG, lives alone and relies on a rota of relatives to coordinate medical appointments and in-home help. The loss of incoming calls meant she missed regular social meet-ups and went weeks without seeing friends, according to a letter published by the Guardian’s Consumer Champions column [1]. The problem began when a relative noticed the woman was paying £97.50 a month for her phone line and requested a cheaper tariff. BT insisted the move required a switch to Digital Voice, its internet-based phone service, and sent engineers to install it without prior agreement [1]. The installation was later found to have been botched and was subsequently rectified, but the fault persisted for over two months [1]. Relatives contacted BT more than 20 times during that period without a resolution. The company only dispatched a technician after the Guardian questioned its handling of the case [1]. Under Ofcom rules, telecoms customers are entitled to £10.34 in compensation for each day a line remains unfixed beyond two working days of a complaint being lodged. BT agreed to pay that sum and added an additional goodwill payment [1]. BT Group, which traces its roots to the 1846 founding of the Electric Telegraph Company, is the UK’s largest provider of fixed-line, broadband and mobile services, serving around 18 million consumer customers through its BT Consumer division [3]. The company has been migrating customers from the traditional public switched telephone network to all-IP Digital Voice services as part of a nationwide upgrade programme. The case highlights the risks of forced digital transitions for vulnerable customers who depend on reliable phone access for care and social connection. GG’s family said they are trying to keep her living independently, and that being reachable by phone is essential to that goal [1].