Text 999 in an emergency?

Emergency, which service?

Everyone in the UK is familiar with our “999” service.  Police, ambulance, fire brigade, and even the coastguard, are all available through this simple number.  999 is the worlds oldest emergency service contact number, having been brought into existence in London in 1937 and eventually rolled out across the whole of the UK by 1976.

That’s great for those that can communicate by sound, but there are some accessibility concerns for those that are deaf or hard of hearing, and safeguarding concerns for those unable to speak at the time.

That’s where the 999 SMS or “text” service comes in.

A simple relay offered by BT allows you to send an SMS text message to 999 where it will be picked up by a handler and dealt with accordingly.

But, you have to register!

Register your phone number

You must register for the service in order to use it.

It’s a simple process that involves texting 999 with the words “Register” to get you set up on their system, the full steps are listed below.  Once registered your’e able to use the 999 SMS service in the event of an emergency.

Of course, if you’re able to make a phone call you really should, but for those with issues hearing, speaking or in a situation where they do not want to draw attention to the fact they are making an emergency call, being registered already can save valuable time and potentially save lives.

It’s not a system that should be abused though.  The service is provided for those that genuinely need it.  In this age of texting or instant messaging, rather than speaking on the phone, it’s important to note that an emergency is still an emergency and the quickest and most definite way of raising the alarm is by calling 999.

How to Register

This simple step by step guide will show you how to register.  It’s fully automated, so don’t worry about impacting the service, and it only takes a minute to do.

1. Register your mobile

Text the word ‘register’ to 999.

You’ll need to register again if you change your phone number.

2. Read the message

You’ll get an automatic text reply. Please read it all.

3. Reply to the message

Read the message and then reply by texting ‘yes’.

4. Get a ‘success’ text

You’ll then get a text telling you that your mobile is now registered – or if there’s been a problem…

5. Check it

Text ‘register’ to 999 and you’ll get a message telling you if it’s registered or not. Don’t text anything else – there’s no need to make a test call.  You’re now set up.

Can’t register?

If you try to register  but don’t get the ‘success’ text, check with your mobile provider to  make sure they support the emergencySMS service.

Litenet