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Verizon Wireless 911 Calls Setting Off Alarms

by Tim Stevens on November 26, 2007 at 01:17 PM



We're more than a little sick of Verizon's "Can you hear me now?" commercials, but a new report from Consumerist puts such an interesting spin on the company's tag-line that we can't help but report it. It seems Verizon is making an effort to ensure that criminals can hear 911 callers from anywhere within earshot. The company is equipping some of its phones with loud alarms that are triggered whenever 911 is dialed.

Recently, a woman in Texas was forced to hang up after dialing 911, thanks to the unexpectedly shrill alarm. She had dialed after noticing her security chain was removed from her property, and was afraid that possible miscreants were still lurking about. Obviously, in this sort of situation, a loud noise pinpointing a 911 caller's location is not exactly ideal.

Verizon claims the alarms are part of an FCC mandate that requires the provider to "offer service that is accessible and usable by individuals with disabilities." However, the FCC itself has said Verizon has misinterpreted the requirement, saying, quite clearly: "The Commission has not implemented any rules pursuant to Section 255 that would require the use of any tones concerning 911 calls."

So, here's hoping these tones go the way of brick-sized handsets soon, even though we're betting Iowa 911 operators wish such an alarm were installed on that mystery phone that won't stop calling them.

From Consumerist

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Tags: 911, cell phones, CellPhones, disaster tech, DisasterTech, Verizon

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