BT announced a revised timeline for the digital phone switchover. This changes the end date for the upgrade work from December 2025 to January 2027, adding 13 months to the programme. We look at what this means in practice – and why you should still prioritise your own digital switchover.
On the face of it, BT’s revised timeline may appear to be a welcome reprieve for those yet to begin the transition to digital telecare.
But there are three crucial reasons why this is not the time to press pause on your digital telecare project:
1. The digital switchover is ongoing – and it’s not slowing down
2. First time call failures are already an issue and the risk is these will only get worse
3. The December 2025 deadline still applies for other communication providers
1. The digital switchover is ongoing – and it’s not slowing down
The switchover deadline is slightly misleading, as it implies there will be one nationwide ‘switch on’ date.
In reality, the rollout of the digital network began back in 2018 and is well underway. A large proportion of the UK’s telecoms infrastructure is actually already digital and an estimated third of phone lines have been moved onto the new network.
BT’s announcement is not a sign the digital switchover is slowing down. If anything, the plan is to pick up the pace! The revised deadline simply gives BT an additional 13 months to complete the process.
This is partially in response to the pause in non-voluntary migrations at the end of 2023, while the telecoms industry looked at the needs of vulnerable customers. But so-called forced migrations restarted in spring 2024 and BT has confirmed these will be ramped up over the coming months, including focusing on vulnerable customers from spring 2025.
BT has also launched a regional campaign in 2024 to raise awareness of the digital switchover with the general public – you may have heard the radio adverts in your own local area.
In BT’s own words: “The urgency for switching customers onto digital services grows by the day because the 40-year-old analogue landline technology is increasingly fragile. Managing customer migrations… is critically important.”
2. First time call failures are already an issue – and will only get worse
The digital switchover is impacting telecare services that still use analogue equipment.
Compatibility issues are leading to a rise in first time call failures, when a telecare alarm call fails to connect to the monitoring centre on the first attempt. This can happen even if your area is not on the digital network, due to the way alarm calls are routed.
The first time call failure rate currently stands at an average of 20%. But some sites have reported a leap from a 20% failure rate to over 90% almost overnight as the network changes. This represents hundreds of thousands of delayed alarm calls, putting people at risk.
BT’s revised deadline does not reverse this trend. As more of the network is moved to digital each month, the failure rates will only increase unless action is taken to mitigate these risks.
3. The December 2025 deadline remains relevant
BT may have revised its migration deadline but other communication providers responsible for parts of the UK telecoms network have not followed suit.
This includes Virgin Media O2, Sky and TalkTalk, who are all still working to the original end date of December 2025. It’s therefore counterproductive to focus solely on what BT is doing as any telecare call can touch any part of the network.
Setting a digital strategy that works for you
Alongside the revised deadline, BT is launching two new ‘transitional’ products for industries that currently rely on the analogue network. The Pre-Digital Phone Line (PDPL) is intended to partially emulate PTSN – however, BT’s own information notes it’s not a like-for-like replacement and some services “may not be fully replicable”.
Importantly, it’s not clear whether these products can properly support telecare services, particularly considering the extensive variations in telecare equipment, protocols and monitoring centres.
BT’s revised timeline and the introduction of stop-gap products are part of a bigger, more complex picture. These moves highlight how crucial it is for housing providers to take control of their digital strategy to avoid the uncertainty of shifting goalposts.
The challenges for housing providers
In reality, BT’s plans change little overall. Housing providers can’t afford to become complacent about the need to move to digital telecare.
The telecare industry still needs to complete a mass migration within a tight timeframe. There are approximately 25,000 sites yet to upgrade, with the current industry capacity around 2,000 sites per year. Appello has previously highlighted the challenges this poses.
As the digital switchover continues to progress, prioritising your move to digital telecare is the only way to be certain of the safety of your services.
This is why the TSA has said: “We emphasise the importance of maintaining momentum in migration efforts. This new timeline should not be perceived as a pause but as a strategic extension to ensure that the migration process is comprehensive and minimally disruptive.”
Our goal at Appello is to provide all the facts on the digital phone switchover, so you can make decisions with confidence. Talk to us about your next steps for a pain-free transition to digital telecare.
Don’t forget to check out our latest video on the topic, click here to watch.
