BT to restart rollout of 'dangerous' new phone lines

BT to restart rollout of 'dangerous' new phone lines

BT to restart the release of 'dangerous' phone lines BT was texting customers as part of the release of a controversial phone system that could put millions of people at risk in the event of a crash.

Following an investigation late last year by The Mail on Sunday to identify major technological errors, the communications giant was forced to turn into a disgrace. It has set aside plans to put all 29 million homes in the UK in the so-called 'digital voice lines'. Our investigation was commended by the telecom operator Ofcom for highlighting how the '999 'emergency services could not be connected to them using a digital voice system in the event of a power outage - as phones are powered only by electricity. © Bad Money Signed: Earlier this month BT sent a message to customers via digital voice system: 'We want to make sure you are ready to go overseas' An estimated 1.5million offline households are also left over and dry as phones must be connected to broadband sockets in order to work. BT wants to switch copper phone lines into internet cables - forcing all calls to be made using 'Voice over Internet Protocol' (VoIP) instead of analogue signals. Gallery: Advanced Secret Spy (Live Science) Earlier this month BT sent customers a text message about the digital voice system saying: 'We want to make sure you're ready to go overseas.' Customers are told to respond 'OK' to confirm the change - or check out the 'We are upgrading you to digital voice' website. No shipping dates provided. BT offers a free handset in homes before the change that comes with the new system as many older phones will expire. BT says debts will not increase as a result. Dennis Reed of the Silver Voices seniority campaign group asks: 'What if you want to call an ambulance and stop working? This technology is dangerous and can cost lives. ' BT said it had 'slowed down the forced customer migration' but acknowledged 'something different', adding: 'We found a mistake as soon as we left. We aim to restart the system once we are more confident that the right products and solutions are in place. ' Learn more