using 112 on mobile phone

[kippers26]

useful video on utube, I was not aware of the pre registered text facility , if it was on before my apologies
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPZv_8dABfU&feature=youtu.be

 

[Alpha22]

999 and 112 are the same, have the same priority and features and work through exactly the same call handlers in the UK.

112 having "special powers" is an urban myth. This is confirmed on Ofcom's own website.

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/oftel/publications/ind_guidelines/emer1002.htm

 

[lpdsn]

999 and 112 are the same, have the same priority and features and work through exactly the same call handlers in the UK.

112 having "special powers" is an urban myth. This is confirmed on Ofcom's own website.

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/oftel/publications/ind_guidelines/emer1002.htm

Exactly. There was a similar thread a good few month ago - might even be a year - with all sorts of theories. A few weeks after that, I had the opportunity to confirm with a Core Design Engineer at a mobile phone company that they are routed in exactly the same way on the switches.

 

[knuterikt]

I had to check this, on this web page (in Norwegian http://www.helseleksikon.no/Nødnummer)

Translation by me.

The GSM mobile standard define 112 as an emergency number.
In countries where 112 is not the standard emergency number, a call to this number (112) will automatically be routed to the local emergency number if one exists.

Most GSM phones can dial 112 without a SIM card in the phone, even when the keypad is locked!

It is not guaranteed that your GSM cell phone is so adapted to Norwegian conditions that 113 and 110 will work the same way in Norway (and these numbers will normally not act as an emergency abroad).

Remember: If you are abroad and do not know the local emergency number, or if you need to make an emergency call without a SIM card in the phone, it may therefore be best to try with 112

For UK replace 113 and 110 with 999
The linked ofcom article does not say anything about GSM phones... http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/oftel/publications/ind_guidelines/emer1002.htm

I guess the same considerations apply in UK as bypassing the the phone/sim lock is a feature of the phone/sim not the phone network.

 

[GrahamM376]

999 and 112 are the same, have the same priority and features and work through exactly the same call handlers in the UK.

But not in other countries. Guy fell off his boat at 4am in our yard and smashed his ankle . 999 got UK emergency services and they liaised with Portuguese to locate him by GSM signal as he didn't know where he was, just that he was in a boat yard somewhere in the Algarve.

 

[25931]

But not in other countries. Guy fell off his boat at 4am in our yard and smashed his ankle . 999 got UK emergency services and they liaised with Portuguese to locate him by GSM signal as he didn't know where he was, just that he was in a boat yard somewhere in the Algarve.

Am I right in assuming that it would be better if everyone stuck to 112 and forgot 999 ?

 

[GrahamM376]

Am I right in assuming that it would be better if everyone stuck to 112 and forgot 999 ?

I think it would be a good idea worldwide but I can't see (for instance) the EC imposing it across Europe, they only want to make life more difficult.

 

[JumbleDuck]

I think it would be a good idea worldwide but I can't see (for instance) the EC imposing it across Europe, they only want to make life more difficult.

Did you know that 112 is an initiative of the European Council and has been imposed across Europe to make life simpler?

 

[nigelmercier]

Interesting that the Ofcom page mentions nuisance calls to 112 from LD systems, I didn't realise this still worked. I remember tapping out a number on a phone with a locked dial, mind you they were only 3 digit then.

 

[GrahamM376]

Did you know that 112 is an initiative of the European Council and has been imposed across Europe to make life simpler?

Some EC countries still have their own emergency landline number and some have both working in parallel.

 

[DaveRo]

Here's what the ITU recommendation for GSM and UMTS (3G) says:

For mobile equipment (ME) based on the GSM/UMTS system there is a built-in recognition of the emergency numbers 112 and 911. If the SIM/USIM/ISIM card is not present in the ME then in addition to 112 and 911 the following national numbers will act in a similar way as national emergency numbers; 000, 08, 110, 999, 118 and 119 [3PP TS 22.101]. It will be left to the Member State to decide whether the public telecommunications network accept emergency calls without the SIM/USIM/ISIM.

(From https://datatracker.ietf.org/documents/LIAISON/file562.pdf '3PP TS 22.101' is the standard document ref. )

So a phone with no SIM may or may not accept 999 outside the UK - the phone may accept it but the local operator may not. Whether a phone with, say, a Greek SIM will accept 999 I doubt - but I've never tested it!

I have 112 on a dymo label on the back of my phone - it's easy to get confused in times of stress.

 

[BurnitBlue]

999 is a brilliant emergency number because it also works for those folk (dyslexic) who cannot recall whether it is 112 or 211. IMHO an emergency number should not be reliant on a cool head and should be an unthinking process in a panic in the dark. 111 or 222 is ok. Some phones will repeat the number pressed and held pressed so there is even a case for 9999999 or 11111111 etc to trigger the emergency services.

 

[25931]

I seem to remember that when I was a child the emergency nº was 1212 and was changed to 999 because on the dial phones it was quicker and easier to remember ( or something like that )

 

[BurnitBlue]

I seem to remember that when I was a child the emergency nº was 1212 and was changed to 999 because on the dial phones it was quicker and easier to remember ( or something like that )

It was Whitehall 1212 and was used as an information number to respond to a Radio emergency call from the BBC for a (for instance) a broadcast for a relative of a someone who was dying and not expected to last out the day. Folk on holiday for instance

 

[DaveRo]

It was Whitehall 1212 ...

That was Scotland Yard. New Scotland yard is 020 7230 1212.

 

[nigelmercier]

I seem to remember that when I was a child the emergency nº was 1212 and was changed to 999 because on the dial phones it was quicker and easier to remember ( or something like that )

WHI 1212 Scotland Yard. The number 999 was chosen as it was unlikely to be dialled by accident, even though it took longer to dial it. If you don't know why, it's past your bedtime.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Some EC countries still have their own emergency landline number and some have both working in parallel.

Indeed. But 112 works everywhere in the EU, and introducing it is a condition of membership, so it's a good example of something done by the EC to make life simpler.