1471 - we do not have the callers number to return the call??

daniellaoxox

What does this message mean?? I keep getting called 3 times a day on my home phone normally at the same time, they never leave a message. When I ring 1471 it just says we do not have the callers number to return the call. On the few times I've awnsered it is just silent.

HappyMJ

The caller has either withheld the number or has called from a number which BT cannot recognize such as a number from another country.

Bizzie_Lizzie

Just tagging on to say that my 1471 message tells me when a caller withheld their number, so it's likely your caller is an autodialler from overseas, Danielle.

System

HappyMJ wrote: »

The caller has ... called from a number which BT cannot recognize such as a number from another country.

As I understand it, calling line identity is (usually?) transmitted with foreign numbers - and therefore will (usually?) display if the call is to a mobile phone. But BT elects not to reveal it, on the ultra-cautious grounds that BT cannot be sure whether the caller wished to withhold their number, because there is no (reliable?) international standard for the 'withhold calling line identity' flag.

Buzby

Not so. BT is not the only telco where inbound international calls are routed to. Indeed BT would be foolish to block all inbound CLI because someone might not want their number shown!

It is true BT used to block International CLI, but this was due to formatting issues (some displays failed to show the country code, making it possible to confuse with a UK number). I now get International CLI from BT and C&W also the International flag is also showing.

It's a bonus when you get it, but only mobiles display it reliably.

Katgrit

Could be from a hospital, or someone else who's calls are routed (even automatically) through a switchboard. I think this is because the hospital "buys" the lines somehow from openreach, but the numbers don't show. Our department make approx 200 out going calls each day to patients, and I constantly get people staying silent when they answer, pretending the person I'm asking for isn't home, swearing at me, all because they think I'm selling double glazing. Surprising the numbers of people who as soon as I say "I'm calling from the hospital" will go and pretend to fetch the person I'm asking for, only to come back on the phone with exactly the same voice! Ha ha ha. I'm also usually advised "Sorry love for telling you to **** off, but you shouldn't withhold your number". I don't! It happens by itself. And no I can't alter anything to make it say "HOSPITAL" on your police either! Grrrr! (rant over!)

EDIT: Mind you, that wouldn't account for the silent bit. Hmmm.

Buzby

What nonsense! Withholding a number doesn't 'happen by itself' - a comms system has to be installed, and by default the line number is always shown.

CLI has been with us for over 10 years - the usual excuse of switches being unable to 'support' the technology is no longer valid. Call recipients have every right to know who is calling them, EVEN hospitals.

Suggest it the powers that be.

Katgrit

Buzby wrote: »

What nonsense! Withholding a number doesn't 'happen by itself' - a comms system has to be installed, and by default the line number is always shown.

CLI has been with us for over 10 years - the usual excuse of switches being unable to 'support' the technology is no longer valid. Call recipients have every right to know who is calling them, EVEN hospitals.

Suggest it the powers that be.

Durrr! Read it again before you label my post as nonsense. What I was saying was that *I* don't do it myself when I phone the patient. I can't change that. It happens automatically when I dial. Someone somewhere might be able to change it but I can't at my end. I've had the nouse to speak to the powers that be as far up as I can, and both the hospital telecoms engineer and the switchboard manager have said it's not possible. Neither am I saying the patients don't have a right to know, I'm saying that *I* can't do anything about it.

There is also data protection, which our hospital is VERY (probably overly) hot on. If i ring a patient and they aren't in, and I'm not allowed to leave a message with a relative because of confidentiality, or say where I'm calling from, surely to have CI flash up with HOSPITAL could land that patient with a barrage of questions when they get home from work: "The hospital phoned but wouldn't say why. Are you ill? You're ill and not telling me aren't you? I knew it..." Now I'm not saying that not daft, because I agree it is, logic with these things has gone out of the window, but it happens. It's just not as straight forward as you'd think.

It's also highly possible that NHS switchboards are over 10 years old. In our new office with our shiny shiny new phones we have JUST got the ability to transfer calls to other phones! Whoop whoop!!

Buzby

So many assumptions!
1. Many switches accept the code to release the line CLI in much the same way as an individual can override permanent blocking by prefixing with the code 1470 before dialling the number. Try it.

2. Data protection is a spurious issue - nobody is saying you need to discuss matters with the call recipient. DCA's do it all the time! As for CLI flashing up anything other than the switchboard number is fanciful. Where would 'Hospital' come from, unless already pre stored by be recipient? CLI only supports numerical codes, not text.

3. New PABX systems should now all be CAT5 compliant and use VOiP (the name BT do not use or their replacement 2CN technology). Analogue switching is/should be redundant for all upgraded sites.

DaveAA

If the CLI shows the number, then it can be called back and the identity of the caller and/or their organisation established.

That's one of the reasons why some organisations want to leave no trace of the call origination when the phone is inadvertantly answered by other occupants.

redux

Some outgoing calls, particularly from VoIP providers, do not actually have a phone number.

If a phone number is separately attached to the account for incoming calls, this might be used as a caller ID for outgoing, but it's not compulsory to do so, and indeed if there are two or more providers involved it may or may not be possible

Some incoming call systems will show any numbers at all in the username or account (not phone) number, for instance someone I call from time to time sees a three digit number from the middle of my alphanumeric username. I imagine if I called him with a certain other provider it might show a 7 digit number.

Presumably BT doesn't bother to show some of these formats even when it has them.

My brother phoned here earlier,using a prefix-selected cheap calls provider in another country. "We do not have the caller's number"

Similarly, using 18185 from here, sometimes the number is shown at the destination, sometimes not