This topic

How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Roy12345 — Mon, 03 Nov 2025 19:16:31 GMT

When I renewed my Broadband Package, under the 'BT Call Protect & Voicemail Services' choices I selected only Call Protect, and not the two subsequent options for VoiceMail Essential (or non-essential) with Call Protect. I have a home answerphone already.

But now the dialling tone is the intermittent one I'm told means there's a VoiceMail message waiting. I cannot find any way to cancel a service I haven't signed up for?

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

imjolly — Mon, 03 Nov 2025 21:50:47 GMT

If you search forum there are posts about turning off voicemail and here is one

https://community.bt.com/t5/Home-phone-including-Digital/Turning-Voicemail-off-on-digital-voice/m-p/2444405

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Roy12345 — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 18:46:04 GMT

Sorry but that doesn't work. I login as you suggest, and it tells me I only have Call Protect; No Voicemail radio button is selected. Meanwhile my intermittent dialling tone says I do have Call Minder.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

licquorice — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 18:53:13 GMT

Interrupted dial tone means you have a message. Just call 1571 to retrieve messages and remove interrupted dial tone.

You can set the number of rings to maximum on Voicemail and set your own answering machine to fewer rings.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Roy12345 — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 19:03:43 GMT

Tried that. But got the message 'Sorry but your call cannot be connected at this time, please call customer services if the problem persists'. I also still have the intermittent tone.

From your comment about getting my answerphone to cut in before CallMinder, are you saying I cannot turn the latter off?

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

licquorice — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 19:15:37 GMT

No, I'm suggesting it is a workaround if a glitch is preventing you disabling it.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Roy12345 — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 19:18:46 GMT

Oh I see. Ok will keep that as a last resort. If no other ideas surface here, I will try the call centre option.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Roy12345 — Thu, 06 Nov 2025 18:20:20 GMT

I've just spent some time on the phone to BT, they are saying that the intermittent dialling tone is just what Digital Voice gives. Googling suggests this is not correct, that it's a voicemail waiting in CallMinder. But if BT are correct, how would a Digital Voice customer with CallMinder know they have a voicemail message? It would always be an intermittent tone.

Can any Digital Voice customers confirm if their dialling tone is normally intermittent?

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

licquorice — Thu, 06 Nov 2025 18:32:48 GMT

No, of course it isn't. I really do despair of the level of knowledge of the call centre staff.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Roy12345 — Thu, 06 Nov 2025 18:57:01 GMT

Thank you. I was 99% sure I was just being fobbed off the line. This despite keeping me being put on hold for minutes whilst she sought expert advice. I'll try again tomorrow.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Kimberlin — Thu, 06 Nov 2025 19:15:43 GMT

@licquoricewrote:
No, of course it isn't. I really do despair of the level of knowledge of the call centre staff.

I wonder? Are call centre staff actually BT employees or are they outsourcing staff employed merely to sit there and listen to people but are on the whole as useful as a chocolate fireguard because they don't actually have a clue about the products on which they are there to give advice on? Or is that an utterly cynical view? I mean, if you read through the plethora of threads on this forum, it appears to be littered with accounts of just how poor call centre staff seemingly deal with complaints.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

licquorice — Thu, 06 Nov 2025 20:10:37 GMT

I really don't know but they don't seem to have had any training whatsoever.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Linzi_H — Fri, 07 Nov 2025 08:47:12 GMT

Hi @Roy12345

I'm disappointed the advice you've been given so far hasn't helped resolve things.

I'll send over a Private Message so we can help further.

Linzi

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

bratman91 — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 17:00:00 GMT

@Roy12345

I have just replaced an old analogue phone with a BT8600 digital one with its own voicemail. The dial tone was intermittent but, after dialling 1571 and deleting all voicemail messages on the BT server, the dial tone is now steady. I have set the BT8600 voicemail to start before the BT one so I am hoping that there will be no interrupted dial tones in future.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Roy12345 — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:31:21 GMT

OK, so BT Complaints helpfully contacted me after being contacted by a forum moderator. It transpired that CallMinder was turned on a year ago when the DigitalVoice upgrade happened. I had no knowledge of this. Anyway, when I renewed my Phone/Broadband package just weeks ago, I as stated before did not choose any CallMinder, whereupon it was removed. But somehow a phantom message remained, which BT could not delete, and so the intermittent dialling tone stayed.

The BT lady suggested turning CallMinder back on temporarily, in case I could then delete the non-existent message. However this did not work, because to the reinstated CallMinder, there was no message to delete...

So trying to escape this Catch 22, I rang my landline from my mobile, waited for CallMinder to answer, then left a short test message. I then dialled Callminder from the landline, listened to the new message, and deleted it.

And lo, it came to pass, that the intermittent dialling tone was no more. BT then turned off CallMinder again.

Hope this helps anyone in future who stumbles upon this thread.

Re: How do I turn off BT Voicemail I didn't ask for?

Kimberlin — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 19:18:34 GMT

@Roy12345

What an absolute utter faff which you should have not had to go through. In any case, well done for sorting it.