Before cancelling a landline, check what depends on it: alarm systems, telecare alerts, 999 resilience in a power cut, and elderly relatives. This guide sets out a dependency checklist and the alternatives.
Deciding between keeping a landline or going mobile-only depends on coverage, cost, how you use calls, and 999 resilience in a power cut. This guide weighs the factors and explains who should think twice.
Millions of UK households still rely on a landline, often older, rural or in poor mobile-coverage areas. Ofcom research explains who keeps a fixed line and why some have no realistic mobile alternative.
Ofcom requires landline providers to identify and support vulnerable consumers. This guide explains the General Conditions, the support that must be offered, what counts as vulnerable, and how to access extra help.
Priority fault repair gives some landline customers faster restoration when their line fails. This guide explains who qualifies, including disabled and elderly people and telecare users, and how to register with a provider.
Relay UK is the national text-to-speech relay service that lets deaf and speech-impaired landline users hold phone conversations. This guide explains how it works, what it costs, and why every UK operator must support it.
A textphone (often called a minicom) lets deaf and speech-impaired users type and read text over a landline. This guide explains how the technology works, why Relay UK now replaces it, and what providers must support.
Big button phones and hearing aid compatible handsets make landline calls easier for users with sight, dexterity or hearing needs. This guide explains the features, telecoil and M ratings, and what providers must offer.
Landline accessibility options help older users stay connected with confidence. This guide covers big button phones, hearing aid compatible handsets, Relay UK, priority fault repair and what providers must offer under Ofcom rules.
Moving home raises a common question: can you take your landline number with you? This guide explains how geographic numbers are tied to location, when you can keep your number, and how VoIP offers a location-neutral alternative.
Switching provider does not have to mean losing your landline number. This guide explains the One Touch Switch process, number porting timelines, what your new provider must confirm, and what to do if a number goes missing.
How landline number portability lets you keep your phone number when changing provider, how it differs from the mobile PAC process, how long porting takes, and what to do if a port fails.
070 personal numbers look like mobiles but are forwarding numbers that can cost a great deal to call. An explainer on how they work, how fraudsters exploit them, and how to recognise the warning signs.
How UK freephone 0800 and 0808 numbers work: why they are free to callers including from mobiles, how businesses pay for them, what calling from abroad costs, and the Ofcom rules that govern them.
An explainer on UK 03 phone numbers: how they cost the same as 01 and 02 calls, why public bodies and charities use them, and how they differ from 08 numbers under Ofcom rules.
01 and 02 numbers are geographic UK telephone numbers tied to a local area code. This guide explains how the area coding works, what they cost from landlines and mobiles, why businesses keep them, and what the all-IP migration means.
118 directory enquiry calls carry an access charge plus a service charge, with a per-call price cap introduced by Ofcom in 2019. This guide explains how the charges work, the cap, and the cheaper alternatives.
084 and 087 numbers carry a service charge set by the organisation you call plus your provider's access charge. This guide explains the rules on transparency, what the service charge covers, and how to find the cost before you dial.
Calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers are billed as an access charge set by your phone provider plus a service charge set by the organisation you call. This guide explains the split, the rules, and what to do if you think you have been overcharged.
0800 and 0808 freephone numbers explained: the 2015 rule change that made them free from mobiles, who actually pays, how the cost is funded and why businesses use them.
Premium rate 09 numbers explained: what they are, how they are charged through an access charge and a service charge, the disclosure rules, and how to report overcharging.
How UK landline call costs are built: tariff structure, inclusive minutes, what happens when they run out, off-peak timing and international charges explained in plain terms.
UK call recording law explained: the RIPA one-party consent rule, GDPR duties for businesses, MiFID II obligations in financial services, and what employees and employers can lawfully record.
Recording VoIP calls means handling personal data, so UK GDPR applies. This guide explains the lawful basis, retention limits, what to tell callers and the access rights they hold over recordings.
Toll fraud lets criminals run up huge call charges on a compromised VoIP system, often overnight. This guide explains how it happens, the typical losses, and the configuration steps that keep a UK business protected.
VoIP calls use far less bandwidth than most people expect, and upload speed often matters more than download. This guide explains how much broadband a call needs by codec, and how to test whether your connection can cope.
VoIP runs over an ordinary broadband connection, but call quality depends on how the router handles traffic. This guide covers QoS, traffic prioritisation and the router features that keep UK VoIP calls clear.
An analogue telephone adapter lets an old corded or cordless phone keep working over a VoIP service by converting between the analogue signal and digital voice. This guide explains what an ATA does, when you need one, and its limitations.
DECT cordless phones connect to the phone network through a base station, and most older base stations plug into the analogue line that is being retired. This guide explains what changes at the switch-off and how to keep your handsets working.
Many door entry and audio-handset systems in blocks of flats route the audio link over the analogue PSTN, which is being retired as the UK moves to all-IP. Residents and managing agents need to know the migration options and who pays.
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