Three UK investigating wifi call issue after reports of 999 connection failures

24 January 2025, 09:34

The Three logo displayed on a smartphone
UK mobile phone networks stock. Picture: PA

The mobile operator also warned customers to expect disruption on Friday as Storm Eowyn hits the UK.

Mobile operator Three UK has said its services have “almost returned to normal” following an issue with users making calls on Thursday, adding it is continuing to investigate reports some people were unable to make 999 calls.

The company said it is now “urgently investigating” an issue its monitoring team had picked up with calls connected through wifi following the outage.

In a statement, the company said it had seen a “normal volume of 999 calls” be connected on Thursday, and its internal monitoring said the service is “working fully” on Friday, but it is investigating reports from some users that they had failed to be connected when trying to dial 999.

The operator also warned customers they could experience further service issues on Friday as Storm Eowyn hits the UK and Ireland.

In a statement on X, Three UK said: “Following an issue affecting voice calls yesterday, services have almost returned to normal overnight.

“Our monitoring has picked up an issue with calls connected via WiFI which we’re investigating urgently.

“Today, we also expect to see an additional impact on our service due to Storm Eowyn in some areas.

“We’ve deployed extra engineering resources & planning for these areas, so we can bring sites that are impacted back online as soon as it’s safe to do so.

“A normal volume of 999 calls were connected yesterday and monitoring confirms the service is working fully this morning. We continue to investigate the small number of reports we received about 999 call failures.

“We apologise sincerely for the inconvenience caused by the issues on our voice network.”

On Thursday, DownDetector, a website that monitors outages, showed more than 10,000 people reported problems from around 1pm.

By Press Association

More Technology News

See more More Technology News

Meta’s Orion glasses

Smart glasses will be future of computing, Meta executives say

A man in a hoodie in front of several computer monitors

Warning issued about social media and email account hacking after reports jump

Walton Aubrey Webson smiling, wearing grey suit jacket

Blind and partially sighted risk exclusion from AI revolution, diplomat warns

Apps on a mobile phone

Critics say Ofcom is too weak on illegal social media content as new rules start

Technology firms must tackle illegal content on their platforms under new rules, but there are concerns that the changes are too weak.

New Ofcom powers for online safety come into force as charities warn of 'major gaps' in legislation

Exclusive
Jordan Stephens, Rizzle Kicks star.

Rizzle Kicks star says children 'rely' on online communities for connection as he says 'boredom' to blame for rising crime

A message on an iPhone

Media denied entry to tribunal thought to be about Apple and Government data row

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson (PA)

Disruptive phones have no place in schools, Education Secretary says

A finger hovering over a phone screen with the Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp logos

Fact check: Hoax posts about killers and stabbings in local Facebook groups

A drone in the air with countryside behind

Drones used to sow tree seeds in scheme to restore lost South West rainforests

ASCL president Manny Botwe

Technology ‘being weaponised’ against schools and teachers – union leader

A woman using a laptop as she holds a bank card

Phishing campaign impersonating Booking.com targeting UK hospitality

Crypto regulation

NCA officer charged following alleged Bitcoin theft

Sir Keir Starmer walking out the door of 10 Downing Street carrying folders under his left arm

Starmer’s plans to shape up ‘flabby’ Civil Service could trigger union clash

A person holds an iphone showing the app for Google chrome search engine

Apple and Google browser dominance harming consumer choice, says watchdog

A. Lunar Eclipse, Red supermoon, Blood moon / 
on 28th September 2015.

Blood moon 2025: Rare lunar eclipse to be visible in the UK this week - here's how to see it