Two died after UK shift from analogue to digital phone lines

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The telecoms industry’s transition from an analogue to a digital telephone system was partially paused after two Virgin Media O2 customers died following the failure of their telecare devices after the upgrade process.

The incidents last year triggered the government’s announcement in December that it had secured industry commitments to protect vulnerable customers, according to a response to a Financial Times Freedom of Information request.

The revelation of the deaths follows warnings from local government and campaigners about the risks posed by the industry-led switch-over, which affects landlines and devices such as personal alarms. 

The telecare users died approximately six to eight, and four to six days, respectively, after the failure of the devices in June and November 2023, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology response said.

Virgin Media O2 said it did not provide the telecare devices themselves. The FOI response did not specify the cause of the failure or the device maker.

But the department said that after being notified of the incidents from November, it took steps, including meeting the chief executive of Virgin Media O2, Lutz Schüler, and UK communications regulator Ofcom.

The watchdog in February opened an investigation into Virgin Media O2’s compliance with its obligations while migrating customers from analogue to digital landlines.

A December charter agreed by industry resulted in a pause of non-voluntary migrations to digital landlines.

The Department of Health and Social Care last year estimated that 1.8mn people used telecare services in the UK.

Industry has said the switch-over to a digital network is necessary to improve reliability and resilience compared with old analogue phone lines, which risk increased outages.

Both of the deceased were understood to have underlying health conditions, according to the response. One lived in Greater Manchester and the other in Greater London, it said.

DSIT cautioned that it did not hold information on whether the device failure was “a significant contributing factor or cause of death” and that a fully operational device may “have made no significant difference in the circumstances”.

Providers including Virgin Media O2 and BT in December made commitments under a charter to not undertake non-voluntary migrations until all possible steps were taken to protect vulnerable consumers.

The charter stipulated that no telecare users would be migrated to digital landline services without confirmation that a functioning solution was in place.

Virgin Media O2 said it paused all landline migrations in December as “we reviewed our processes and made improvements”.

The company said this included checking the phone lines of those who had already been migrated, enhancing communications and working more closely with the UK’s telecare trade body.

It added “at this time no vulnerable or telecare customers are being migrated”, and upon resumption “additional checks will take place in the home to ensure landlines are active and that telecare providers are aware of any alarm unit issues”.

Virgin Media O2 said it was “essential that all parties including local authorities and telecare companies step up and meet their responsibilities”.

It also called on the government to establish a “telecare charter to help facilitate better data sharing, equipment operability and in-home support”.

 BT said the “tragic incidents serve to highlight why collaboration among key players is critical to ensuring the UK’s digital landline switch is done safely”.

DSIT in a separate statement said it was “shocked and saddened to learn of these fatalities” and its “thoughts remain with the families affected”.

The department added it had been “clear these provider failings are unacceptable” and that was “why we stepped in to secure agreements with the biggest network providers and operators and strengthen protections for vulnerable consumers”.

The department said it continued “to monitor providers closely to ensure they adhere to these new measures”.