Caller Display not allowed

[cschumbley]

I have a new bt phone with a bt line. I get the  message online "sorry there's been a technical error' when I try to get Caller Display. It is hailed as free and easy to install.  I've also tried by phoning. The first time  I was told it was now installed and would be active in 15 minutes. Next day in my next  phone call I was asked a ridiculous lot of security eg 'mothers maiden name' and finally I would have to sign up to a new package. I wonder what tomorrow's call will bring.

I have entered a list of likely callers in the phone book, so expected Caller Display to show number and name. 

I phone 150  and the voice tells me "the service requested is not available".  The booklet with the new phone includes provision of Caller Display. A case of misleading selling. Any help appreciated. 

[welshgit]

try dialling  * # 234 # to see if it is switched on 

[cschumbley]

Thanks. I had already tried that, from a previous community suggestion,  and get 'Sorry, the service requested is not available'. Where to go from here, I know not.

[iniltous]

Just for clarity, you are a BT Consumer customer....is this a new line , or a recent migration from another provider to BT, or has the line been installed ( and rented from BT ) for a while and it’s just a ‘new’ phone ?

If you dial 17070 , does the number read out match the phone number on your BT bill ?

[cschumbley]

The phone is new, a bt phone. The line has been bt for many years.

[iniltous]

So has caller display never worked , or you haven’t been aware as previous handsets didn’t have a display ?

[cschumbley]

The Caller Display has never worked since I bought this phone BT 4600 just last week.

I bought it because my previous , another BT one, didn't have Caller Display possible.

[iniltous]

TBH, the phone brand is irrelevant, it could be Panasonic or Binatone or whatever, if the line hasn’t changed recently ( either a new provide  or migrated from another provider ) presumably Caller Display has never been set up at the exchange level since it was installed , but you didn’t know or care because you didn’t have a phone handset with caller line identification ( CLI ) but now you do have a compatible phone, it’s apparent it’s not ‘working’.
Calling 150 is the short number for ‘BT’ hence my questioning you about which company you pay for line rental , and dialing 17070 to confirm the phone number ...as an aside , you can also call 0800800150 for BT , but for example, a Sky customer , who knows , 150 isn’t universal, a Sky customer wouldn’t necessarily have 150 as short cut to Sky  customer service, but if I dial 150 on my BT line I get BT customer service, so it begs the question, why if you are a BT customer , don’t you get BT when calling 150 .
If caller display isn’t set up on your line at the exchange then obviously it won’t work, if you are a BT customer you should be able to invoke caller display from your on line account, otherwise call customer service, if you have tried this and it didn’t work, all you can do is try again.
The BT Mod may offer to help

[pottyperson]

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@cschumbley wrote:

The line has been bt for many years.

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That's what people often say when it's actually Openreach who own the line. The important thing is who you pay for your service. If you're with BT then 150 should work but if you are and it doesn't, try 0800 800150 instead.

[cschumbley]

Many thanks for new suggestions