Ofcom allows emergency roaming

19 Oct 2009

Ofcom has announced that mobile phone users will now be able to call emergency service numbers 999 and 112 from another network if their own network is unavailable. As a part of the company's strategy to ensure availability, take-up and effective use of communications services, the regulator is also looking into text services for disabled users.

The decision to make emergency numbers accessible in areas where a user's network is not available follows proposals set out earlier this year. The phone will automatically switch over to whichever network operator has the best signal in the area the person is calling from.
According to Ofcom this would provide added reassurance to consumers should they need to call 999 or 112 and will be of particular benefit to those in rural areas across the UK. It is the result of a joint effort between Ofcom, the mobile networks, emergency authorities and the fixed networks who act as call handling agents.

Ofcom's next initiative is to evaluate the existing text relay service which enables hearing and speech impaired people to use a telephone. Also addressing mobile coverage "not-spots", which appear in some rural areas in the UK, the company is up to investigate their causes of and undertakes research to explore the quality of mobile broadband services.

The public campaign for the promotion of "Digital Participation" is launched as part of a Government plan to increase uptake of digital services, in line with recommendations.

According to Digital Britain Minister Stephen Timms, the benefits to being online - access to online health, financial, recruitment and communication services - could significantly enhance a person's quality of life both economically and socially."

Later this year Ofcom will publish a review on the implementation of the existing universal service obligation for fixed-line services to determine whether the way in which the services are offered and funded are meeting the needs of consumers.