Under the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) “local number portability” (LNP) rules, so long as you remain in the same geographic area, you can switch telephone service providers, including interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers, and keep your existing phone number. If you are moving from one geographic area to another, however, you may not be able to take your number with you.
Therefore, subscribers remaining in the same geographic area can now switch from a wireless, wireline, or VoIP provider to any other wireless, wireline, or VoIP provider and still keep their existing phone numbers.
Initiating the Process
If you want to change companies: Do not terminate your service with your existing company before initiating service with the prospective new company. Contact the new company, which will start the process of porting your number by contacting your current company. Be prepared to provide the new company with your 10-digit phone number, customer account number, five-digit zip code, and passcode, if applicable.
Be aware that when terminating service with a wireless company, you may be obligated to pay any early termination fees under your existing contract. Also, when terminating service with any company, you are usually required to pay any outstanding balance owed. Review your bill or contract to determine what fees or charges apply. Once you request service from the new company, however, your old company may not refuse to port your number, even if you owe money for an outstanding balance or termination fee.
You may request service from a new company at any time.
Fees and Charges
Companies may assess fees to recover the costs that they incur in providing number portability. Fees may vary between companies, and some companies may not charge any fees.
Companies may not refuse to port a number because a consumer has not paid for porting. When considering a switch, consumers should ask the new company whether it charges any number portability fees and whether those fees can be waived.
The Porting Period
Your new telephone company can usually give you a good idea about how long the process will take. To keep the process as short as possible, the FCC recently clarified that companies may not obstruct or delay number porting by requiring you to provide excessive personal information before porting your existing telephone number. In addition, the FCC clarified that validation for a simple number port should require no more than the following information: (1) 10-digit telephone number; (2) customer account number; (3) 5-digit zip code; and (4) pass code, if it applies.
The FCC is also considering imposing additional requirements to make LNP more efficient, including shortening porting periods for simple ports. For a wireless-to-wireless transfer, your phone number should work within a few hours of your request to change wireless providers.
A wireline-to-wireless transfer may take several business days to complete. Ask your new wireless company whether you will be able to continue using your current wireline number during the transfer process. There may be a period of “mixed service,” when you essentially have two telephones with the same number during the adjustment period.
If you port from a wireline phone to a wireless phone, your wireline long distance company will not move with you. Your long distance service will generally be provided by your new wireless company, but you should verify this with the new wireless company before changing service providers.
Note: Certain small wireline companies may have an exemption from the porting requirements if they have received a waiver from their state public service commission. Customers who want to port a wireline number to a wireless phone, and are told that they cannot, should contact their state public service commission to find out whether their wireline company has been granted a waiver. A directory of state public service commissions can be found at www.naruc.org/commissions.cfm.
Emergency Services
Emergency Services
In some areas, 911 operators automatically receive the phone number or location of a wireless call, but in many areas, that is not the case. Technology that will provide that information – Enhanced 911 or “E911” – is currently being implemented, but is not yet available using many wireless phones and in many parts of the country.
As noted above, during the porting process from the old company to the new company, there may be a period of “mixed service” - when you may have two telephones with the same number. During this time period, your E911 service may be affected. The call should go through, but the 911 operator may not be able to call you back if the call gets disconnected. For this reason, before porting either a wireless or a wireline number, ask the new company how long the porting process will take and how it will affect a 911 call.
Filing a Complaint with the FCC
If you have a problem porting your phone number from one service provider to another, first try to resolve it with the responsible provider. If you cannot resolve the problem directly, you can file a complaint with the FCC. There is no charge for filing a complaint. You can file your complaint using an FCC on-line complaint form found at esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm. You can also file your complaint with the FCC’s Consumer Center by e-mailing fccinfo@fcc.gov; calling 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322) voice or 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322) TTY; faxing 1-866-418-0232; or writing to:
Federal Communications Commission Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau Consumer Inquiries and Complaints Division 445 12th Street, SW Washington, D.C. 20554.
