- Investigation finds Virgin Media failed to protect vulnerable telecare customers during their programme to migrate them from analogue to digital landlines
- Virgin Media has since introduced further safeguards to help avoid any repeat occurrence
Ofcom has today fined Virgin Media £23.8 million, after it disconnected telecare customers during its programme to migrate customers to digital landlines.
Landline phone calls have traditionally been delivered over a copper-based network known as the public switched telephone network (PSTN). This network is beyond its intended lifespan and is becoming increasing unreliable, so needs to be upgraded.
The industry-led process of transitioning customers from analogue to digital landlines is a necessary and important step in ensuring modern, reliable and resilient home phone services in the UK. But Ofcom has been clear that, during this migration process, telecoms companies must ensure they identify, protect and support vulnerable customers.
Migration of customers with telecare alarms must be undertaken with appropriate care and tailored support, as any disruption to their device’s connection could have material impacts on their safety.
Virgin Media notified Ofcom about a number of serious incidents related to the migration of telecare customers in November and December 2023. As a result, Ofcom launched an investigation to establish whether the company had failed to comply with its duties to treat vulnerable customers fairly.
What our investigation found
Our investigation uncovered serious systemic failures in Virgin Media’s migration process between August 2022 and December 2023. In summary:
- Virgin Media failed properly to identify and record the status of telecare customers, resulting in significant gaps in the screening process. This meant that those affected did not receive the appropriate level of tailored support through the migration process.
- Virgin Media’s approach to disconnecting Telecare customers who did not engage in the migration process, despite being aware of the risks posed, put thousands of vulnerable customers at a direct risk of harm and prevented their devices from connecting to alarm monitoring centres while the disconnection was in place.
As a result, we have concluded that Virgin Media failed to comply with its own policies and procedures for the fair and appropriate treatment of vulnerable consumers – and in doing so broke Ofcom’s consumer protection rules.[1]
Financial penalty
As a result of Virgin Media’s serious failures, Ofcom has fined the company £23,800,000, which will be passed on to HM Treasury.[2]
In setting the penalty amount we took into consideration the vulnerability of the customers affected; the significant duration of the contraventions; the seriousness of the breach; and the significant degree of potential harm caused.
The penalty also takes into account that Virgin Media to Ofcom, admitted its failings by entering into a settlement process, and cooperated with our investigation. The company has also taken significant steps to remedy the issues. Following a pause on migrations in December 2023, Virgin Media has updated its policies and procedures and introduced a number of further safeguards.[3]
Ian Strawhorne, Ofcom’s Director of Enforcement, said: “It’s unacceptable that vulnerable customers were put at direct risk of harm and left without appropriate support by Virgin Media, during what should have been a safe and straightforward upgrade to their landline services.
“Today’s fine makes clear to companies that, if they fail to protect their vulnerable customers, they can expect to face similar enforcement action.”
Notes to editors
- General Condition C5.2 states that regulated companies “must establish, publish and comply with clear and effective policies and procedures for the fair and appropriate treatment of consumers whose circumstances may make them vulnerable”.
- Virgin Media must pay the fine within four weeks of this decision, and it will then be passed on to HM Treasury. It includes a 30% discount as a result of Virgin Media’s admission of liability and its completion of Ofcom’s settlement process.
- The remedies Virgin Media has put in place include:
- conducting manual reviews of customer service records to further identify Telecare Customers and incorporating this into operational best practice for the remainder of Virgin Media’s digital phone switchover;
- conducting an assurance campaign, contacting 42,991 identified Telecare Customers to support them in migration;
- developing a new engagement plan for Telecare users, which includes keeping non-engaging Telecare users in a continuous loop of engagement rather than disconnecting them; and
- working with local authorities to establish an “end of process” for Telecare customers who have not engaged by the time Virgin Media decommissions the analogue network.
- Signatory to the UK Government’s, Public Switched Telephone Network charter, (18 December 2023), including the PSTN non-voluntary migration checklist (18 November 2024).