BT to pause broadband for customers who ignore the landline switch

What BT said

Source: BT Group, 16 September 2026.

Lucy Baker, Consumer Digital Voice Director at BT, published a post on the BT Group newsroom on 16 September 2026 setting out the company's position on the remaining customers who have not yet moved to a digital landline. The Public Switched Telephone Network is being retired as part of an industry-wide upgrade set to be completed in January 2027. BT says the analogue copper network has become increasingly unreliable and no longer meets today's connectivity standards, and that the move is being made working with Government and Ofcom.

BT says more than 95 percent of its Consumer customers have already moved to a digital landline. With less than six months before the network is phased out, BT says it is focused on moving the remaining minority. The company says it has been raising awareness of the switchover for more than three years through local customer events, advertising campaigns and charity partnerships. Baker's post urges the remaining customers to respond promptly to avoid service disruption. The message is that the deadline is fixed and the number of households still to move is now small, which is why BT is turning to more direct methods to prompt a response.

The broadband pause

BT says that in a recent controlled trial it temporarily paused broadband service for a small group of customers who had not responded to multiple letters, emails, texts and calls over the last two years. In its own words: "in a recent controlled trial, we temporarily paused broadband service for a small group of customers who had not responded to multiple letters, emails, texts and calls over the last two years. We did this safely, keeping customer's landline services running, and giving them notice in advance." The company says the trial prompted more than 80 percent of previously unresponsive customers to get in touch and take the steps needed for their switchover.

BT also says that in many cases customers engaged after advance warning of the pause, so did not experience one. The company is now expanding the trial to include all customers who have not yet engaged, with clear warning and support. The practical effect for a household that has ignored every previous contact is that broadband could be suspended temporarily, while the landline continues to work, and the pause would follow a warning. BT frames the measure as a last resort aimed at a group that has not responded to two years of attempts to make contact.

Telecare, power cuts and extra support

BT says some households have telecare systems, health pendants, personal alarms or other devices connected to the landline that may need checking before the switch, and that protecting customers who need extra help remains its top priority. It works with local authorities, telecare providers, charities and government through the PSTN Charter of Commitments. BT offers free in-home engineer visits for customers who need extra support and backup power solutions to help customers make calls during power cuts. These are the routes a household with a health pendant or alarm should use before any switch takes place.

In practice, a digital landline needs mains power and a working broadband connection. That is why battery backup matters, and why Ofcom expects providers to protect customers who depend on a landline. A power cut that takes out the router or the hub will also take out the phone unless backup is in place, which is a different situation from the old analogue line that carried its own power. For anyone with a telecare alarm, a pendant or a personal alarm attached to the line, the check should happen before the switch rather than after it, and BT says it will provide support to those who need it.

What to do, and your rights

BT sets out three steps for customers. First, read the information sent by post or email, or respond to calls. Second, contact BT if asked to, especially where telecare, a health pendant, a personal alarm or another device is attached to the landline. Third, confirm any Openreach appointments. The contact details given are www.bt.com/connected-together and 0330 1234 150. BT says similar upgrades are already underway or complete in countries including Australia, Germany, France and the Netherlands.

On rights, customers generally keep their number, and most homes simply plug the phone into the broadband hub. If a service pause causes loss of service, the complaint route is the provider first. Complaints about a communications provider can be taken to an approved alternative dispute resolution scheme, the Communications Ombudsman or CISAS, after eight weeks or on receipt of a deadlock letter. That route applies to the service issue itself, so a household that has been left without the service it pays for can escalate once the provider has had the chance to resolve it or has issued a deadlock letter.

Source: BT Group newsroom, 16 September 2026.

Related coverage on Kael Tripton: Broadband and mobile price rises: the pounds and pence rule and when you can leave, Broadband Complaints Hit Record Low: Ofcom Best and Worst Providers, Q1 2026, UK Telecoms Complaints Q4 2025: The Full Ofcom Data for Broadband, Mobile, Landline and Pay-TV, Three Broadband Review 2026: 5G Home Broadband, No Landline Required and Where It Fits, Telecare Alarms and the PSTN Switchover UK: What You Need to Do.

Frequently asked questions

How many BT customers have already moved to a digital landline?

BT says more than 95 percent of its Consumer customers have already moved to a digital landline.

When is the Public Switched Telephone Network being retired?

The Public Switched Telephone Network is being retired as part of an industry-wide upgrade set to be completed in January 2027.

What did BT's broadband pause trial involve?

BT says that in a recent controlled trial it temporarily paused broadband service for a small group of customers who had not responded to multiple letters, emails, texts and calls over the last two years. BT says it did this safely, keeping customer's landline services running, and giving them notice in advance.

How many customers responded after the trial?

BT says the trial prompted more than 80 percent of previously unresponsive customers to get in touch and take the steps needed for their switchover, and that in many cases customers engaged after advance warning of the pause so did not experience one.

Is the trial being expanded?

Yes. BT says it is now expanding the trial to include all customers who have not yet engaged, with clear warning and support.