£1.9m fine for Three over its emergency calls systems failure

THE communications watchdog has hit Three with a £1.9m fine after discovering a failure in its systems could have left customers unable to call the emergency services.

Mobile operators are obliged to have a backup system to allow customers to call emergency numbers such as 999 even if there is a network problem.

Ofcom discovered Three breached the rules in a way that had a “potential impact on public health and safety”.

Three reported a temporary loss of service in Kent, Hampshire and parts of London last year. Ofcom found all of Three’s emergency calls from customers in these locations were directed through one data centre. A problem with this data centre could have left customers unable to call 999 and other emergency numbers.

Three has 20 days to pay the fine, which includes a 30pc reduction to reflect the company’s cooperation.

Ofcom said Three had taken steps to fix the breach.

“Providing our customers with uninterrupted access to emergency services is a requirement we take extremely seriously,” said Three.

It added that the problem did not affect customers and that it had now been resolved. Ofcom is also investigating KCOM for a similar problem.