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A new OnePoll survey of 2,000 UK adults with a landline telephone at home, commissioned by London-focused alternative broadband ISP CommunityFibre, has claimed that 45% of respondents are still unclear about what the looming switch-off of the country’s ageing analogue telephone network means for them.
Just to recap. The legacy phone switch-off on the old Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is currently due to take place on 31st January 2027. As a result broadband ISPs, phone, telecare providers, councils and consumers have been working to migrate everybody across (details). But the main focus of this remains on the people who use vital home telecare systems (e.g. elderly, disabled – vulnerable users), which aren’t always compatible with newer IP-based digital phone services (telecare providers were slow to adapt).
According to CommunityFibre’s new survey, half of respondents say their home phone is important to them, while 49% of those who value their landline say it is important in case of an emergency and 36% rely on it when their mobile phone has no signal. Similarly, 57% of respondents agree landlines provide older people with peace of mind in case of an emergency.