Millions of people in the UK have been urged to check that they will not be affected by a planned switchover that will render many life-saving devices useless.
Around 1.8 million older adults and people with disabilities or health conditions use personal alarms in the UK. The potentially life-saving device gives owners a means to call for assistance if they have an accident at home.
They are typically worn on the wrist, around the neck, on a keyring.
However, thousands of these alarms may have stopped working, or will soon, as network providers make the switch from analogue landlines to digital telephone systems.
The deadline for this is January 2027, but many households have already made the move.
The many devices that require a traditional landline to work will become useless after the switch.
Consumer rights group Which? is now warning that three major personal alarm sellers are potentially putting lives at risk by selling devices that will not work after the transition.
Most concerning was SureSafe they said, which was selling three devices requiring an analogue line. Concerningly, none of the product listing mention the digital transition or risk.
Careline365 and LifeConnect24 also continued to sell analogue products, but explain on the listings that they will soon no longer be compatible. Which? asked why they are continuing to sell them at all.
Sue Davies, Which? Head of Consumer Protection Policy, said: “The deadline for the switch-over is fast approaching, and the vast majority of the UK has been migrated to digital networks. It is shocking that certain telecare providers continue to sell analogue products when they could be putting lives at risk.
“Which? has informed these sellers that their products should be removed from sale immediately. The government and regulators, including Trading Standards and the Office for Product Safety and Standards, must take decisive action to prevent the sale of these devices and act if companies continue to do so.”
Last year, the Conservative government required all providers to pause non-voluntary network migrations following the deaths of two vulnerable people whose personal alarms failed when their landlines were switched off.
This means anyone who has an affected device should inform their network provider of this when they look to make the transition. The provider will then be obligated wait until they are confident the person will have a functional and compatible device after the switch.
A spokesperson for SureSafe said: “SureSafe has been a mobile-first alarm provider since 2015, with 99% of all alarms sold being SIM-based and fully digital-ready. We shifted to mobile both to support the digital switchover and because mobile offers features unavailable with in-home devices.
“The remaining need for analogue devices is very limited, only where no mobile signal or internet exists and an analogue line remains. We welcome Which’s efforts to highlight the switchover’s importance and have refined our messaging in response to make this clearer for our customers using analogue as their only option.”
A spokesperson for Careline365 and LifeConnect24 said: “We have been preparing for the digital switchover for many years, and as a result, the vast majority of products we sell are digital devices.”
“However, there remains a small minority of vulnerable consumers for whom an analogue device may be the only way to ensure their safety and that they remain protected during the transition to digital.”
