Improvements in technology have made it feasible for many phone users to switch from traditional ‘plain old telephone service’ (POTS). Thanks to high-speed Internet and better wireless technology, these people have chosen to go wireless, use VoIP or both for their phone service.
While mobile and VoIP service have the added flexibility of being able to take a phone number with you wherever you go, this feature can put VoIP users at a disadvantage when it comes to 911 emergency service.
Emergency calls made to 911 through a POTS line are generally routed to a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), typically a call center for a city, county or region. The caller’s phone number appears on the screen and also their address, making it easier to dispatch the correct law enforcement or closest fire or EMS station. With mobile calls, the cell tower information combined with the phone’s GPS data routes the call to the correct PSAP.
Either method of routing the call to the PSAP is what makes it possible for people to be able to call 911 anywhere in the U.S. without having to remember unique local seven-digit numbers for the different emergency agencies in the surrounding area.
With VoIP service it is not possible to use either technique to route the call to the right PSAP. It’s possible to make a VoIP with a phone number local to Philadelphia from a laptop using a WiFi (News - Alert) connection from a Starbucks in Denver.
Recognizing this problem, the FCC imposed a regulation requiring interconnected VoIP providers (IVP) to set up an enhanced 911 (E911) system that delivers calls to the right PSAP and gives the caller’s phone number and location. IVPs must also inform customers of the capabilities and limitations of their E911 service.
A recent Q & A article in the Boston Globe offers some useful advice on E911 service. Customers should find out first how E911 service will operate with a given provider before subscribing to a service plan. Many of these plans give customers the ability to change their address. As a result, customers must remember to update that information when they take their VoIP service with them on a trip.
VoIP has given residential and business customers cost savings and flexibility with their phone service, except when it comes to 911 service. As with any emergency plan, these users must know in advance what their system is capable of supporting in an emergency and be diligent about following whatever steps they need to ensure that emergency service will be available when they need it.
Edited by Alisen Downey