Porting Desk Contact Number

[#1]

Before anyone else points it out, CPs do not actually have licences, they have:

Schedule to the notification under section 48(1) of the Communications Act 2003
Under the regulatory regime set out in the Communications Act 2003, communications providers do not require a licence to operate in the UK, but can be made subject to conditions of general application. This approach of authorisation subject to general conditions reflects the common European regulatory framework for electronic communications services and networks. This document sets out the general conditions which all communications providers (or all communications providers of a particular description) must comply with if they wish to provide services in the UK.
Broadly, the general conditions fall into three main categories: conditions relating to network functioning requirements (Part A); numbering and other technical conditions (Part B); and consumer protection conditions (Part C).

[#2]

... and nowhere therein is there any requirement to keep any service (associated with the number being ported) operational on a different number.  That is where the rub is.

Straightforward porting out of the number is not an issue - it is keeping the existing account and all of its characteristics WHILST ALSO porting out the number.

In short, those regulations do not help here - anyone is free to port their number to anywhere at anytime albeit with the consequence that associated services will be terminated.

[#3]

I think common sense and reasonableness in the application of the "rules" would trump any clever narrow restrictive practices if it ever came to a test at law.  Setting up a Catch 22 situation and just saying tough luck is not my idea of playing fair.

To achieve the objectives of getting full fibre and retaining your old number, you need to do the following, I think.

1) Contract with another ISP to provide a new additional FTTP service without any telephony.

2) Contract with a VoIP (SIP channel) provider using a new spare telephone number and ATA device.

3) Make sure the Plusnet ADSL with telephony contract remains live for its full term.

4) In the last month of the Plusnet contract, get the SIP provider to request a port of your old number.

This will cause Plusnet to port the number and cease the telephony and ADSL.

Can anyone see any loopholes in this please ?

[#4]

One would not disagree with you that this could be done differently ... but you chose to read the letter of the law and nowhere therein is there an OBLIGATION to do what you / we are looking for.

The big hole in your approach is that one loses everything one has with the existing account (particularly if it is one which has lasted a long time)

• Email
• A domain name
• A website
• Referrals

[#5]

Can anyone see any loopholes in this please ?

In principle, no. You can even do it by ordering a new FTTP service ( as opposed to upgrading any existing one ) from Plusnet rather than a different ISP.

The only fly in the ointment may be that Openreach seem to like removing the existing copper line when installing FTTP. They shouldn't do it if the line is to remain active but this is Openreac...

[#6]

After being made to jump through hoops and costing me extra, I am not about to reward Plusnet with my custom if I can possibly help it.  Having said that, if their FTTP offering was still the cheapest, I would be silly to cut off my nose to spite my face.

If Openreach or Plusnet were to make errors and I ended up without service, then that would be their breach of contract and not mine.  I would expect them to put it right.  My procedure is foolproof, not idiotproof as they say.

Does the Plusnet website let me create a new additional account and procure a new service at the same address without conjoining them and screwing it up. I think that may be another good reason not to go with Plusnet for the new service.

[#7]

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@Townman wrote:

One would not disagree with you that this could be done differently ... but you chose to read the letter of the law and nowhere therein is there an OBLIGATION to do what you / we are looking for.

The big hole in your approach is that one loses everything one has with the existing account (particularly if it is one which has lasted a long time)

• Email
• A domain name
• A website
• Referrals

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A long time ago, I made all the services you list independent of my ISP.   So removing the telephony is the last piece of the jigsaw.

[#8]

So for YOU there is nothing amiss with YOUR solution. That though is not a workable solution for many users.

[#9]

Such a shame 4 months later no Staff member has had the decency to even make an appearance in the post, I understand they are busy, but 'that' busy?

[#10]

I am leaving and going to Vodafone Full Fibre with VoIP / ATM telephony port included.

In two years time, I will port the number again to an Independent SIP provider, and move to another ISP.

What a hoop jumping nightmare, just to achieve what most people would think is a reasonable objective.

The fact that Plusnet do not feature in my future plans, is their loss of business, because their business model is not attractive any longer.  Is that because Plusnet (BT) are short-sighted, incompetent or very clever ?  Time will tell.

[#11]

@Spire or are blinkeredly focused on research from a limited demographic who see no necessity for “fixed line” telephone services. I suspect that if the whole of the user based had been asked if “would the loss of your landline telephone service AND the associated number be of no concern to you…” the position might be different.

No staff comment - I wound not want to be in the position of having to defend the indefensible no choice on losing your phone number position. Better to duck that get one’s head shot off!

[#12]

Document that is going around currently to all CP's I wonder how Plusnet are going to react to this requirement.

5. There are some additional new regulatory changes (aside from the new switching process
rules), which come into force on 3rd April 2023. These include compensation requirements
for delayed or failed switches, a customer's right to port their number up to one month
after switching, and general information requirements.

[#13]

@Phaeton  It appears that until they announce any changes to the switching process that Plusnet are ignoring it.

[#14]

As I read the document that has been circulated they don't have the option to ignore, at risk of being reported to Ofcom

[#15]

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@Phaeton wrote:

As I read the document that has been circulated they don't have the option to ignore, at risk of being reported to Ofcom

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I first saw an article in The Scotsman but it isn't on their website but with a bit of searching I found it on the Independent site.

Ofcom opens industry-wide action over delayed broadband ‘One Touch Switch’