I discovered this site last week - fantastic! I'll always check here first before phoning any non-geographical numbers.

I immediately set about finding the "real" number for rooms in student accommodation at the University of Leicester, by finding which numbers were allocated to NTL from the Ofcom website, as suggested in one of the forums.

NTL were allocated 18 different blocks of numbers, and a quick Google showed that most of these were used by 1000s of companies, so were clearly not correct. So in a few minutes, success! So numbers in the form 0870 015 xxxx become 0116 005 xxxx

I tried calling one such number from my office in the university, and it worked as long as I included the national code. (Note that the main Uni phone system is completely separate from the accommodation system - operated by BT I presume).

My rejoicing was short-lived, however. Calling from a mobile gave "number not recognised", as did a standard BT landline.

Local numbers starting 0 or 1 are for "national dialling only" according to Ofcom. As such, they are seemingly blocked by service providers, but somehow the internal exchange system we have at the university seems to bypass that and allow it to be dialled. There's no reason why the number shouldn't be available as long as you dial the national code before it, but it seems it isn't.

I called the BT operator and asked to be put through to one of those numbers. At first she said I must have got it wrong, but when I insisted I had called it from work, she checked and said it was a valid number, commenting, "I haven't seen one like that before." She said it might be that NTL's network was down, and claimed they don't check these things and are impossible to contact. She was quite nice about it, but didn't have a clue really.

If this site becomes popular, how long until companies request "national dialling only" numbers that most people can't access, forcing us to use the rip-off ones? In that case, aren't we sunk?

Sorry this is a long post. If anyone has any idea how to unblock these numbers, I'd be pleased to hear about it. Also, if you want to try it (perhaps someone outside Leicester could try) you should be able to reach NTL customer services on 0116 005 5555.


Jonathan

After a discussion on uk.telecom, various people tried this number. Success was reported when calling from NTL phonelines in other parts of the country, and from Orange mobile phones (which someone said are routed via NTL's network).

There doesn't seem to be a way to add comments once I have submitted a number for verification. The geographical number won't work universally, but would be of use to people on NTL or Orange.

Having followed this link, I find that you should be able to dial any UK number from a BT landline.  

It says that "Only BT and Kingston Communications (Hull), however, are obliged to ensure that their customers can dial all numbers within the UK", so  I would suggest you contact BT to find out why they are not allowing access to NTL 0116 015 numbers.

But Ofcom also say, "National-Dialling-Only Number means a Geographic Number that can only be Adopted or otherwise used with its Geographic Area Code and for purposes where End-Users will not dial it."

So maybe BT will just say I should be using the 0870 number - they are not blocking my access to a particular line, just to one of the numbers used to access it.

However, it does say "all numbers within the UK", not "all subscribers..." or "all lines..."

Who should I contact at BT? I've already tried the operator, who didn't seem to know much and just suggested it might be a problem with NTL's network.

I just spoke to Ofcom (020 7981 3040) and briefly explained problems people have dialling 0116 005 xxxx and they said they know of no reason why BT should block access to this numbering range.  They advised ringing BT on 0800 671502 and asking them to investigate why this is happening.

The guy at Ofcom wanted the complete number to investigate this, but obviously you can supply this when calling BT.

Good luck.

Jonathan (or are you like my brother & use Jon?)

Can you let me know of any of the numbers (or the number range) so that I can complete the Unverified entry for this.

I talked to the BT number suggested by Paul but they also need the number (range) to investigate.

So if you would be so kind !

I do apologise, I've only just noticed that there were some more replies to this thread!

A number that should definitely work is 0116 005 5555. That's NTL customer services (it rings from my office phone).

You can also try 0116 005 2579, which belonged to a friend who left some weeks ago (you should get an answerphone with a message from the room's previous occupant).

I don't know the exact number range, and I don't think anyone would give it to me! As far as I know, all 10000 numbers are potentially available to the University. I can only ever recall seeing internal numbers beginning 2, 5 or 6, though. (i.e. 0116 005 2xxx, etc.)

A check of the Ofcom site shows that these numbers beginning 0 (following STD code) are being introduced. I don't know why, there's plenty of other numbers.

See here:
http://www.ofcom.org.uk/licensing_numbering/numbers/numbers_administered/#geog1

wrote on Sep 14^th, 2004 at 11:34am:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/licensing_numbering/numbers/numbers_administered/#geog1

That's where I found the 0116 005 code in the first place! They say these numbers are only for instances where the end user will not need to dial them.

Maybe they are using these numbers to avoid wasting numbers that can be dialled without the code that they think may be needed in the future.

But my suspicion is that they are deliberately using these numbers so that the geographical number can't be used, forcing people to dial 0870. If this trend spreads to other companies or organisations who currently use non-geographical numbers, this site could eventually become useless. :(

It seems that these numbers are blocked by BT to force callers to use the 0870 NGNs. Instead of calling the 0870 number provided, you could get your own NGN (maybe 0845 cause it's cheaper) and point it at the 0116 number.

wrote on Oct 21^st, 2004 at 12:40am:

It seems that these numbers are blocked by BT to force callers to use the 0870 NGNs. Instead of calling the 0870 number provided, you could get your own NGN (maybe 0845 cause it's cheaper) and point it at the 0116 number.

The poster above suggests that BT and Kingston are obliged to allow customers to call all numbers in the UK, though. So should they allow people to access these geographical numbers?

As for getting my own NGN, the companies offering these numbers usually phone up to check that the number is correct and belongs to the person ordering the number. If they can't dial the geographical number, it won't be possible to set it up.
Anyway, I might occasionally call a number of people who have numbers on this system, and I can't set up 0845 numbers for all of them! I want to use a 0116 number to make use of the 5.5p for an hour tariff that BT force me to use!

wrote on Oct 21^st, 2004 at 9:25am:

I want to use a 0116 number to make use of the 5.5p for an hour tariff that BT force me to use!

Or the 1p per call flat rate 18866 charge.

Perhaps complaining to BT about blocking the numbers is missing the point, as they are one of the most expensive for geographic calls. Why should the cheaper companies block them? Forcing use of 0870 pushes you back to BT, who are generally the cheapest for non-geographic calls.

So do all companies other than NTL and Orange block? What about the various companies that allow you to make cheap calls on 084 numbers? You can call UK landlines (and some international destinations) for about 1p a minute. Then you are technically going through a non-geographic number as required.

wrote on Oct 21^st, 2004 at 12:40am:

you could get your own NGN (maybe 0845 cause it's cheaper) and point it at the 0116 number.

Anyone tried this with success? Who is the best supplier of free 0845 numbers, in terms of ease of setup? What about even cheaper to dial 0844 numbers? I presume it wouldn't be possible to earn revenue. If the companies must call you to check initially, it would best to have one where you could freely change the destination number, like Personal Numbering. This would be of use if you have many of these numbers to dial.

wrote on Nov 24^th, 2004 at 1:26am:

Anyone tried this with success? Who is the best supplier of free 0845 numbers, in terms of ease of setup? What about even cheaper to dial 0844 numbers? I presume it wouldn't be possible to earn revenue. If the companies must call you to check initially, it would best to have one where you could freely change the destination number, like Personal Numbering. This would be of use if you have many of these numbers to dial.

The latter point is a problem. I never know who I might want to call on this system. This might be an option if there was one number I called regularly. But at best, to change the destination of an 0845 number, you have to contact the company, and they do it within the hour. Hardly convenient just for making a call! Personal numbering uses 07 numbers and costs a fortune to call.

But anyway, 0845 is still not good enough! I pay BT for "Option 1" which means I can talk for an hour in the evening or at weekends for 5.5p. On 0845 I get 5.5 minutes for 5.5p!


Note to anyone in Leicester reading this thread: the problem is with phones in the University-managed Halls and self-catering residences where they have NTL phones. In Opal Court they have a different system, and the geographical number works fine from all phones, including BT lines. The number is 0116 214 xxxx. (It is currently in the "unverified" list as DaveM wants to test a number before adding it to the main list!)

A couple of years ago I visited a friend staying in Student accomodation on campus at Surrey Uni.  His phone in his room was provided through NTL. His inbound number was an 0870 number and he couldn't use dialup internet like AOL with an 0800 number, he was forced to use NTL Dialup  >:(

These national dialling numbers can now be called using BT, or at least the one I tried can be. There was talk on here that they were only accessible from NTL cable lines and Orange mobiles. I have just called the Alpharooms number: 020 02009366

Quote:

Also, if you want to try it (perhaps someone outside Leicester could try) you should be able to reach NTL customer services on 0116 005 5555.

Have just tried this number from my NTL line and it was just ringing, then went to a Voicemail !

No problems calling this number....  ;)

Just tried 0116 005 5555 via BT and it is not recognised. Call via 1899 and it works.

So BT is acting anti-competitively in preventing callers from talking to a competitor's staff?

When I lived at Leicester Univ Halls four years ago my no was 0116 215 4018. The following year they were changed to 0870 & the 0116 numbers were blocked.
The 0116 0055555 or something similar used to be our CLID.

I tried a number other than customer services from a BT line, and it says I have dialled incorrectly as soon as I've dialled 0116 005. I'm not registered with any of the 1899 type companies. How about dial-through (0844) operators?

I'm sure the CLI used to be 0116 215 5555 befor they introduced rip-off numbers.

As an aside, tomorrow will mark my second anniversary on the site, and also of me beginning this thread! [smiley=birthdays.gif]

Finally remembered to try this today. Leicester accommodation numbers starting 0116 005 just get the BT lady saying the number has not been recognised.

However, I tried Dave's number for AlphaRooms, and it went through. I see this is the number they give as an international alternative.

I wonder why some "national dialling only" numbers are obtainable, while others aren't. Is it something to do with two-digit area codes such as the London one? Perhaps BT's system sees 0200 200 and allows it as the local number starts with 2...

Anyway, it shows it's worth trying national dialling numbers if they are found as an alternative.

jrawle wrote on Aug 9^th, 2006 at 11:51am:

I wonder why some "national dialling only" numbers are obtainable, while others aren't.

I wonder if it is because they are set as part of a "closed user group". An interesting use if access via the 087X scamming number then makes them part of the group...
Any C7 experts out there?

Some national dialling only numbers work from BT lines.

I can call Virgin Media on 01642 191402 but not 0141 0034101. The latter is "not recognised".

I don't know whether this is a sign that BT is allowing these numbers to be dialled. I can remember trying some and find that the "not recognised" message kicks in after the first few digits. This is not the case with 0141 0034101. Perhaps it is a wrong number; can someone on Virgin Media call it?

I noticed this morning (turned tv on) that Real Estate TV is was advertising their wares with a variety of 0871 716 xxxx numbers, but "International callers, call +44 200 200 8999" for all of them ...

I was under the impression that companies wern't allowed to promote e.g. London 020 0xxx xxxx numbers because they couldn't be dialed as local numbers - or does this not apply to international callers?

In any case, it's a useful alternative should anybody wish to call them ...

I don't know if they are "not allowed" to promote them. The problem is that they are not guaranteed to work from landlines in the UK. I remember the geographical number for University of Leicester halls, 0116 005, used to be unobtainable from BT lines, despite BT having an obligation to allow all number to be reached from their lines. There is no such obligation on other operators.

Have you tried the number in question?

02002008999 works from my BT line.

Heinz wrote on Oct 26^th, 2008 at 1:48pm:

02002008999 works from my BT line.

And from my o2 mobile

Quote:

A check of the Ofcom site shows that these numbers beginning 0 (following STD code) are being introduced.

NDO numbers have been around for decades.

Wikipedia has a list showing the migration of London 0171 and 0181 NDO numbers to new 020 ranges in 1999 in their Big Number Change article.


Quote:

Perhaps BT's system sees 0200 200 and allows it as the local number starts with 2...

The local number starts with a 0. The number is 020  0200 xxxx.

By definition, NDO numbers always start with a 0 or a 1.