VOIP etc > Voice Over IP - VOIP > Vonage > POTS 911 vs Vonage 911

POTS 911 vs Vonage 911

I have a cell phone. Is dialing 911 from a cell phone just as reliable as dialing 911 from a POTS line? sorry for going a little off topic of VOIP...

reply to CybermatriX
in almost all locations you can keep an old pots connection for 911 dialing only even without purchasing any dial tone for it - the 911 call will still go through.

reply to penbay

both upstate NY (syracuse) and MA (boston).. in both cases the cancelled line did have (unpurchased) dialtone - but only 911 calls connected (used once in each case). It wasn't attached to a bill of any sort. I have an old verizon line here in Maine that also isn't attached to a bill and it too had a dialtone last I checked it - I've never tried to dial any number on it.

I guess it isn't universal - but it was true in those cases and I believed I had read it was common. Obviously not worth relying on if other people have different experiences.

reply to penbay
Not true anywhere in Michigan. Dead is dead.

But for the OP, we have VoIP 911 with several wireless phones as backup (one dedicated to the house as the failover phone). Probably all together not as reliable as POTS 911 here, but still enough for me.

reply to CybermatriX
In the 7 years that I've solely used Vonage, I've had to call 911 twice. Both times it worked just fine. That's probably because my internet (first Optimum Online, and now Comcast) has been rock solid.
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1/20/09 = The final day of our Retarded Cowboy President!

reply to sonofjay
Here in Western Mass (Verizon) my dead POTS has 911 available to it. My kid was playing with a old phone and placed a call to 911 I found out when the police came knocking. I was dumbfounded.
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dream your dreams with open eyes and make them come true...

reply to CybermatriX
With VOIP e911, when your power goes out so does your e911. If you have POTS, I bet you still have a dial tone (if you use the old style phones).

reply to CybermatriX
The one and only time I used e911 with Vonage, resulted in Vonage transferring me to the wrong 911 centre. Caused a delay of over ~4-5 minutes. From there on, I've used my cell.
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said by habskilla :

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The one and only time I used e911 with Vonage, resulted in Vonage transferring me to the wrong 911 centre. Caused a delay of over ~4-5 minutes. From there on, I've used my cell.

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reply to CybermatriX
Here in NJ, my Verizon line has been dead since 2006. No 911 calls possible.

reply to CybermatriX
DO NOT CALL 9-1-1 from ANY VOIP LINE.

In February, I had to call 9-1-1 after my neighbour collapsed outside in sub-freezing weather. I had to talk to TWO Vonage operators before they could connect me to my local 9-1-1 Center. They all asked the same questions and forced me to repeat the answers and they repeated all the answers to each other. IT took approx. 4 minutes until I was talking to the local 9-1-1. By the time the Fire Dept and EMS arrived, my neighbour had died. My local EMS told me that their average response time for the whole city (45,000) is 3 minutes. I live two blocks from Fire Station #1, response time averages less than 90 seconds. My neighbour might have been revived had it not been for Vonage's inefficient system.

I have changed my home plan for emergency calls and sent copies to at least 5 people that I know that all have Vonage. I now have a sheet with all of the local emergency numbers on it. In fact, the local Fire Department helped me put it together and supplied me with most of the numbers I needed. I now have posters near each phone and at the doors that specifically say in huge red print, "In Emergency, DO NOT CALL 9-1-1, use the local numbers below". Anybody that visits me is made aware of the posters and not to call 9-1-1 if something happens.

Anyone that knows anything about first aid is trained that when someone stops breathing, they have 4 minutes to revive before brain damage. It took this long just to get to my own 9-1-1. Had it been faster, my neighbour might still be alive.

AND to add INSULT TO INJURY...I called Vonage and filed a formal complaint. I HAD to talk to a customer service rep in the Phillipines who was not sympathetic and said there was nothing they could do. I demanded to speak to a manager, they said essentially the same thing. I then demanded that an executive from Vonage Canada in Mississauga, Ontario Head Office (near Toronto) call me within 3 days to discuss the issue. I'm still waiting for this call 11 weeks later. In other words, the people in the Phillipines DON'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT US!

VONAGE - YOU MUST HIRE AMERICANS AND CANADIANS BACK AND STOP OUTSOURCING TO ASIA WHERE THEY HAVE NO CLUE ABOUT OUR CULTURE!

reply to snolsen

reply to CybermatriX

reply to WiMax
You should file a complaint with your Canadian CRTC over Vonage's 911 failure:

»www.crtc.gc.ca/RapidsCCM/Register.asp?lang=E

Perhaps also contact your local newspaper and TV stations.

Seriously.

At least file the CRTC complaint.

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If anyone has such a 911 issue with a VoIP provider in the USA, complain to the FCC:

»esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm