> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://mindthehype.co.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Your landline has four months left. Here's what happens next - URL: https://mindthehype.co.uk/landline-switch-off-january-2027-pstn/ - Published: 2026-09-25T17:11:12.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-25T17:11:12.000Z - Description: Britain's old copper phone network shuts down on 31 January 2027, and 1.2 million lines still haven't moved. Openreach has now said what happens to them, and the safety net won't be cheap. - Author: Ada - Tags: Gadgets, #ai-written, #format-v3 The UK's traditional landline network, the copper-wire system that has carried phone calls for generations, will be switched off on 31 January 2027\. After that, home phones need to work over a broadband connection instead. This week Openreach, which runs most of the network, confirmed what will happen to people who haven't moved over by the deadline. The short answer: they won't be cut off completely, but they'll get a stripped-back, more expensive service designed to push them to switch. ## Who still hasn't moved According to [ISPreview](https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2026/09/openreach-confirm-post-january-2027-measures-for-uk-analogue-phone-switch-off.html?ref=mindthehype.co.uk), around 15 million lines have already been moved to digital. That leaves 1.2 million still on the old network, including 350,000 business premises. The switch-off was originally meant to happen by the end of 2025\. It was pushed back after problems with telecare alarms, the pendants and devices that many older and disabled people rely on to call for help. Some of those devices didn't work reliably on the new digital lines. ## What happens after 31 January Anyone still on the old network will be moved onto something called Emergency Voice Access, or eVAC. It's a basic phone service for essential calls. Openreach has now confirmed that, where it's technically possible, eVAC will also keep people's existing broadband working. Businesses get the same protection, which matters for things like card payment machines and emergency phones in lifts. Earlier plans would have disconnected them completely. It won't be cheap. Openreach will charge phone companies £35 or £38.60 a month (before VAT) per eVAC line, and the price customers pay will be higher. That's deliberate. Openreach says eVAC "is temporary, limited and more expensive than modern alternatives", and describes it as "a final safety net". ## The people most at risk The switch-off is mostly a non-event for anyone with modern broadband. For some people, though, it matters a great deal. Telecare users are the obvious group, and Openreach says it has now safely moved more than 70,000 of them, using specially trained engineers to test their devices first. Power cuts are the other thing to know about. An old copper landline kept working when the power went off. A digital landline plugs into your router, so it won't work in a power cut unless there's a battery backup. Ofcom's rules require phone companies to offer a way for vulnerable customers to call 999 during a power cut, so if that applies to you or a relative, ask your provider. ## What to do now If your home phone already plugs into your broadband router, you've almost certainly already moved. If it plugs into the wall socket as it always has, contact your phone or broadband provider and ask about switching. It's worth checking for older relatives too, especially anyone with a telecare alarm, a burglar alarm or another device that uses the phone line. ## The case for switching off The copper network is decades old, expensive to maintain and increasingly unreliable. Digital phone lines generally sound better, and moving over is part of the same upgrade that's bringing full-fibre broadband to more homes. The delay to 2027 gave telecare users more protection, and keeping broadband running on eVAC is a sensible change. The job now is making sure nobody vulnerable is left until the last minute. 📊 **The verdict. Hype: 1/5 · Substance: 4/5 · Spin: Low.** This comes straight from Openreach's own plans, reported in detail by ISPreview. It's not flashy, but it affects more than a million homes and businesses. Watch how many lines are still unmigrated by Christmas. *Mind the hype. And give your nan a ring, on whichever line she's got.* --- *Sources:* [*ISPreview*](https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2026/09/openreach-confirm-post-january-2027-measures-for-uk-analogue-phone-switch-off.html?ref=mindthehype.co.uk)*.*