No SIM & 999.
 

Saw an outtake last night when the actor who plays Andy Sugden in Emmerdale had to dial 999 as part of a scene.

He was shocked when it actually connected him to the emergency services!

After immediately disconnecting he protested that it wasn't his fault as nobody had told him that a SIM card was in the phone.

This got me wondering if mobile phones work with the 999 number regardless of there being a SIM present or not.

I don't want to try it for obvious reasons, but it might be useful one day to know the answer to this.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

No, they can't

http://www.redcross.org.uk/What-we-d...activities/999

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

Thanks Hugh, it's useful to know the correct position.

Sometimes (I guess due to a poor signal) mobile phones say '999 calls only'.

I've always wondered how this could be achieved in an emergency as if it can't pick up enough signal to make a normal phone call, how is it able to connect to 999? :confused:

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

Because it'll use someone else's network. (So an O2 Sim can use an EE signal for 999/112 for example).

If there's no signal available at of course you wont be able to phone the emergency services.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

So presumably a backup phone with a SIM in it won't be usable for emergency calls if the SIM has been disabled due to it being inactive for 90 days or whatever. I wasn't too worried because of the 'emergency calls only' option which is displayed but I didn't realise is SIM dependent.

I'd wager a whole lot of folks have rarely used phones they think will be able to make emergency calls but won't, especially older folk like my MIL.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

Well it would need a SIM in it so it can lock on or connect to a network.

So no SIM at all would have no authorisation to access any networks.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

But if the SIM is present but has been deactivated the same will apply won't it? Therein is the problem for anyone who's using an old phone with a non-functioning SIM and thinks they'll be able to call 999 but won't. I've just put an old deactivated SIM in a very old Samsung phone and up has come the 'emergency calls only' option. Presumably it won't work.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

you do need an active sim but all providers by law have to allow all carriers to use either there network or mast to connect an emergency call

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

I thought that they all worked together like this for normal calls anyway :confused:

Exactly.

Worth noting that this only applies in the UK due to the fear of hoax calls. Anyone caught out abroad should be fine to contact the relevant emergency number.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

I wish.

I work in a building with 1ft thick walls, and a few areas get a 1/2 decent signal.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

In my experience there's a big problem with 3. Whereas most networks can utilise both 2g and 3g for basics like calls and texts, 3 can't so where there's no 3G signal '3' users get nothing at all.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

there are phones out there that you can duel sim so if one network gets no signal the other will kick in.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

Whilst travelling we noticed that our mobile phones automatically changed from the UK provider to the operator in the new location.

I honestly assumed that they all worked together and piggy backed into each other's networks for everybody's mutual benefit.

Re: No SIM & 999.
 

as of last year Vodafone and 02 are doing a mast share in certain areas and will be extended in the future, i have also heard that virgin and 3 are doing a mast share. but they will never all band together (unless ofcom tell them they have to) as coverage is one of the main reasons people go to that provider.