Changes to landlines and your Lifeline alarm
What’s happening?
Telephone lines in the UK are going digital. Between now and the end of 2025, telephone providers such as BT and Virgin Media will be moving customers from older analogue lines to new digital telephone lines.
If you have a telephone line coming into your property, the way in which your home phone connects to the network will be changing.
Rather than being plugged into a socket on the wall, you’ll receive a broadband router (you may already have one) and your telephone will plug into the back of this instead.
Your calls will then be carried over the internet (broadband), rather than the traditional analogue telephone network.
How will this affect my Lifeline?
Your Lifeline currently operates through an analogue telephone line. Once your telephone line is upgraded to digital, your Lifeline may need reconnecting to the phone socket in the back of the broadband router or replacing with a new digital Lifeline unit.
It’ll depend on your provider as to whether your broadband router will work with your Lifeline, which is why we can’t provide one set of instructions that apply to everybody.
When appropriate, we’ll guide you through any necessary changes to your Lifeline equipment and charges.
What happens if there’s a power cut after the digital upgrade?
In the event of a power cut, your Lifeline unit will not work if it’s connected to a router, unless you have a battery back-up.
Your telephone provider should provide you with a free battery back-up, which’ll ensure your Lifeline will continue to work for an additional hour in a power cut. If your telephone provider doesn’t automatically provide this to you, you should request it.
If you don’t have an alternative method of summoning help – for example a mobile phone – your telephone provider must offer you a solution to make sure you can make emergency calls when a power cut happens.
Any back-up solution should be provided free of charge. Please contact your telephone provider to discuss the options available to you.
When will I be upgraded?
The changeover has started, and some customers have already been moved to the digital system.
Your telephone provider will contact you in advance to let you know when your system is changing. In some cases, an engineer will need to visit to make changes.
You may also be moved to the new digital system if you decide to move to a new phone and broadband package.
What do I need to do?
These changes may affect the way your Lifeline works, so it’s important that you:
- Contact your telephone provider to let them know if you:
- Have a Lifeline that uses the telephone line
- Don’t have a mobile phone and depend on your landline
- Need help to set up any equipment they may send to you
- Notify us when you have your switchover date from your telephone provider
Email us at lifeline@longhurst-group.org.uk or call on 0800 111 4013. If you don’t notify us in advance of any changes to your telephone line it could result in your Lifeline not working. - Remind the telephone engineer that you have a Lifeline if they come to visit for the switchover
Remember to test your Lifeline before the engineer leaves to make sure it works.
If you have any questions or problems relating to your Lifeline and the digital switchover, please contact us
0800 111 4013