In reply to a post by MHC:

"Executive Complaints"

A small team in each of BT Corporate, OpenReach, Consumer/Retail, Business. Any complaint email that goes to the Chairman, CEO, COO, CFO, CTO and similar is passed on to them. So, in reallity you have had a reply from the top.

Internally when "Executive Complaints" calls, you pull out the stops and comply with them.

If the householder is elderly and wants further help from you, she can always nminate you as her alternate contact - you may understand things better and be able to help her out.

That's very helpful advice for the op.

Hopefully they will be able to progress things for them.

The Executive Complaints team was the team I expected to reply when you emailed Marc (I know it is Marc auto correct caught me out!). My past experiences of that team have been very positive, they seem to have access to the right systems, experts and more importantly the authority to get things done.

They worked with the Number Porting experts to get my old copper number over to my FTTP last year after many issues getting it all working.

I have had the same problem getting a BT Retail number ported to Digital Voice with Zen. BT basically blocked it with an excuse saying there was another order provisioned (Which there isnt)

No skin of my nose, as I have been getting nothing but spam and scammer calls on the number anyway, anyone that reaches me that needs to contacts my mobile so I didnt really care and just got a new number.

I can now report a total failure to get the old number ported over. BT's Executive Customer Resolution Team member Lee Sales has said it cannot be done. Quoting from the message the householder has just sent me:

"He called back and it’s a final NO for getting the number back. BT have a 30 day retention policy for porting over a number. I asked the reason for this, as I fail to understand any reason for having such a policy, he couldn’t answer and said senior management have to make decisions and this is one of their decisions. It’s an across the board policy so we can’t make an exception and nothing can be done! After 30 days the number goes into quarantine – and just sits there until BT reallocate it."

I cannot understand why the 30 day mention is of any relevance. The lady concerned has being trying to get the old number back since the fibre was connected. I also can't understand why an unallocated number cannot be allocated back. Apart from a complaint to the Telecommunications Adjudicator does anyone have any suggestions of what else we could try?
Lee did offer a token financial compensation which was not accepted.

She needs to respond stating that an attempt was made before the 30 day period expired - assuming she complained immediately.

The Telecom Adjudicator should be involved after the above.

So its possible but they won't do it because they won't make an exception for your friend.

As MHC says time to get the Telecom Adjudicator involved

In reply to a post by Pheasant:

If the escalations within BT fail, then I’d suggest next taking it up with the Telecommunications Adjudicator.

The new industry wide 30-day “Right to Port” protection against losing a pre-existing landline number is due to come in April next year, but they may be able to assist, although in this case the port is all within BTs remit, rather than across vendors.

Escalations at the most senior level have failed. I’d get it taken up with the adjudicator asap.

Try sticking in a port request with a VoIP provider and supplying the details as if it's an active service, I've had this work once.

…from BT land? Who was the gaining voice provider out of interest?

In that instance it was Gamma