About one million phone lines still to leave the analogue network, Openreach says
The total includes roughly 300,000 business premises, with the old telephone network due to close on 31 January 2027.
Around one million UK phone lines are still running on the old analogue network, according to the latest estimate from Openreach, with the network due to be retired on 31 January 2027.
About 300,000 of those lines are at business premises. In July, Openreach put the totals at 1.5 million lines and about 350,000 business premises.
The Public Switched Telephone Network, or PSTN, carries traditional landline calls. Openreach says all traditional lines will go digital on the January date, which has already moved once, from 2025, and that there will be no extension this time.
Alarms, pendants and payment terminals
For most households the change means the phone plugs into a broadband router rather than a wall socket. The harder cases are the devices that share the line. Openreach lists alarms, health pendants, CCTV and payment terminals among the things to check for compatibility.
Businesses have a longer list. Openreach said complex connections, including those linked to payment terminals, lift phones, fire alarm panels and building access systems, need planning and testing now. The company said the straightforward moves had largely been done.
What customers should do
The advice on the Openreach website is to call your service provider rather than wait, and to respond if the provider has already been in touch. The provider will explain what has to happen and help choose a digital option. Openreach says leaving it too late risks losing service.
From 31 January 2027, customers still on the old lines may be moved automatically to EVAc, which Openreach describes as a limited, temporary, last-resort phone service for essential calls.
