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Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

docdunning — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 11:22:11 GMT

Back in August, I posted here asking whether my landline paid-for Voicemail/Call Protect option would be removed by BT when I was switched to Digital Voice. This is because Digital Voice is advertised as including those two features at no cost.

See https://community.bt.com/t5/Bills-Packages/Digital-Voice-switch-currently-paid-for-features/td-p/2311321

I'm now on Digital Voice (DV). What I didn't realise however was that my Voicemail/Call Protect was the "advanced" version, and that it continues to be a chargeable extra with DV. In fact it costs more with DV, as I found when I received my first bill. Maybe I should have paid more attention to what @RIC9380 said in that original thread.

Annoyingly, there was no way on my online account to remove / downgrade this feature; and no explanation of the different options. It just seemed to confirm that Voicemail/Call Protect was all included in DV.

Anyway, I spoke with BT this morning. The agent was initially unsure about the features included in DV, but after looking into it, realised that it is the "Essential" version of Voicemail that's included at no charge. So he switched me to that instead.

I'm hoping that this has resolved things, but I'm posting here in case anyone else has a similar problem. BT's account pages for DV don't explain the options, and the agent himself wasn't too sure about it. I'll be checking when my next bill is generated.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

Jane2018 — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 11:38:22 GMT

That is very helpful as I am looking into my complex BT accounts in preparation for London's compulsory digital voice this Autumn. I only discovered this week that I no longer have my recorded message on my one of my 2 landline numbers. I do not mind that BT removed it from one landline number I do not often use but it would be nice to have been told in advance. Looking at my bills back to 2021 it seems to have been removed a long time ago.

It still is on and paid for on my other more important landline number I also use for work calls when working from home and I would like to keep it on Digital Voice once we are moved over. It sounds like they will keep my recorded message on the BT service and charge for this when we are automatically moved over so that removes one uncertainty for me regarding DV. I just checked my current bill for that line and it says "voicemail £4.03 a month" (broadband and call is 77 a month and the calls I made last month on the line are £47). They are helpfully listed on the bill - wonder if they will be after DV,

The other line with different BT account number to our home where my voice recording was removed without my consent by BT o the bll says 79 broadband and calls and line rent £26. Interesting that the second line I mention above does not have "line rental " on it . Puzzling that one account has the line rental charge and the other does not but both have a landline telephone on them used to make calls.
Both lines/accounts were taken out about 25 years ago by me. (Both are Fibre with Halo 1)

My biggest concern about DV is there is not a list of eg 20 differences so customers know what to expect on one simple page eg dial tone may sound different, you will be sent a new BT modem (we just have the old ones), you will need to change wifi code etc etc. A long list of things rather than just saying it is better, easy and plug old corded landline into back of model. I just wanted the information available up front quickly but it feels like a detective exercise to prepare myself and find out.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

docdunning — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 12:05:24 GMT

@Jane2018

In my case, switching my existing phone over was straightforward - it simply plugged into the back of the Smart Hub, and the two remote handsets continued to work as well. Wireless / broadband unaffected, as expected.

That £4.03 charge for "Voicemail with Call Protect" was indeed what I was paying on my landline, and I'd expected it to be removed when I moved to DV. As is typical with BT, they confuse the issue by putting a credit on my account for a few days of the "old service" and then adding a debit for the "new service", even though they are the same. I've ended up paying 13p more than usual because of this, which I guess I'll tolerate - more hassle than it's worth to get a refund.

But there's no indication that the £4.03 is somehow an "advanced" option and that you need to explicitly ask for it to be downgraded to the "essential" option. As @RIC9380 said in my original thread, the £4.03 gives you a VIP list and Do Not Disturb times, but in my case, that's not worth paying the extra for.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

imjolly — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 12:17:50 GMT

@docdunning

if you go to MYBT and manage products then digital voice does it not explain what free essential voicemail entails and that you can go advanced for more features at an additional fee

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

docdunning — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 16:08:24 GMT

@imjolly

if you go to MYBT and manage products then digital voice does it not explain what free essential voicemail entails and that you can go advanced for more features at an additional fee

No, I wouldn't say that it does. The only description you get on that page is "Makes sure you never miss a call again. Upgrade to help you control your incoming calls." There's an Upgrade button, which pops up a list of features, although no cost is shown at that stage, and it doesn't compare Essentials with the upgraded features.

I have now found the separate page https://www.bt.com/help/landline/all-about-voicemail-for-digital-voice-, which tells me that I get up to 20 messages on the Essential version; and it does list the additional features for Enhanced, along with the £4.03 p.m. price.

I am sure that I would have been able to deactivate the paid feature myself, when I had the conventional landline. After the Digital Voice switch, the option to downgrade was not available. Anyway, as I mentioned, the BT agent was able to do that over the phone, so I have the result I wanted.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

Jane2018 — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 15:17:34 GMT

Reading this link https://www.bt.com/help/landline/all-about-voicemail-for-digital-voice- I cannot work out if I can record my own personalised voicemail (which I have now and prefer) is only possible with enhanced or not. I think the link suggests everyone can do that but that was not m y understanding from other threads on the BT forum.

How do I record a personal greeting on my line?

If you have a Digital Voice handset supplied with the service, you can simply press the cassette key and follow the voice menu.

"If you have a phone connected to the phone socket in the rear of the hub, you can follow the below steps:

Dial 1571 from your home phone
Press 2 from the main menu to set a personal greeting
Then press 1 to record a personal greeting or 2 to choose the standard greeting
After pressing 1, you'll be able to record a greeting after the tone
Press # to finish
You'll be able to listen to what you've recorded before deciding whether to use it, or to record another version.
To cancel recording and return to the greeting menu, press star (*)2

Nor is being allowed to record your own voicemail under the list of enhanced features when contrasting it with the basic service which you would expect were that so.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

VeteranISPUser — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 15:28:01 GMT

@Jane2018wrote:
I cannot work out if I can record my own personalised voicemail (which I have now and prefer) is only possible with enhanced or not. I think the link suggests everyone can do that but that was not m y understanding from other threads on the BT forum.

Hi @Jane2018 I have just tried it using the free essentials voicemail with DV. You can record your own personal greeting or use the standard one. I prefer the standard one, so as to not provide any information to cold callers.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

Jane2018 — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 15:32:52 GMT

That is very helpful. In that case I would rather not pay the £4 a month. I do like my own voicemail as it tells people email is the fastest way to get me and a few other things (for work reasons and I work from home a lot)

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

northshields — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 16:24:17 GMT

According to NeilO in this thread there is no longer any such thing as advanced voicemail.

https://community.bt.com/t5/Home-phone-including-Digital/Voicemail/m-p/2312775#M90848

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

VeteranISPUser — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 17:12:06 GMT

@northshieldswrote:
According to NeilO in this thread there is no longer any such thing as advanced voicemail.

Hi @northshields

Perhaps the confusion is in the name. There is no such thing as enhanced or advanced voicemail, the name is simply Voicemail with the free version called Voicemail Essentials.

I have voicemail essentials, so I just checked my options:

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

Jane2018 — Fri, 20 Oct 2023 09:58:10 GMT

I have had the "CallMinder" service for 25 plus years. On my recent bills I just noticed they call it something else. It looks like from the helpful recent posts above that the list for the superior "Voicemail" rather than inferior essential service none of those enhancements in my case are needed so "essentials" is the one for me. Unfortunately the list says nothing about personal recorded messages so it sounds like if I want to keep the one feature I find useful - the personalised message I can have that with the basic essentials so could save the £4 a month I pay once I am moved to Digital Voice.

Once I am moved to Digital Voice I will check how the pre existing recorded message etc is working or not and then I suspect I will have to call BT to remove voicemail and move to essentials voicemail and save the £4.

As ever I find the forum very useful so thanks for all the answers.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

northshields — Fri, 20 Oct 2023 10:02:35 GMT

According to this site, you do not need enhanced voicemail to record your own message.

https://www.bt.com/help/landline/all-about-voicemail-for-digital-voice-

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

Jane2018 — Fri, 20 Oct 2023 11:28:14 GMT

Perfect, thanks. I will migrate to DV later this year and once I am sure the internet and landlines are working then move on to tackle any voicemail issues.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

Jane2018 — Thu, 25 Sep 2025 13:44:32 GMT

My first bill after digital voice has the charge. So I waited until this month (1st full m onth of digital voice) and it still has the charge but no way other than having to speak to someone I suppose with all the risks that entails of the human dealing wrongly with one of my 2 BT accounts and three lines. I presume unless I bite the bullet I am locked into the £4.34 a month for life Bill says "Voicemail with Call Protect: £4.34/month". I just logged in and there is no option to switch. Basically if you want to remove anything they make it like moving a huge mountain by hand. If you want to add something and pay the more it is dead easy.

Re: Digital Voice - Voicemail and Call Protect

imjolly — Thu, 25 Sep 2025 14:00:51 GMT

@Jane2018

have you tried contacting billing using message now and see if they can help https://www.bt.com/help/contact-bt/account-and-billing/broadband