Attorney General provides Consumer Alert on 911 phone

A new kind of phone service heavily advertised in Michigan offers inexpensive "Voice Over the Internet" telephone calling, also known as "VoIP." VoIP technology allows you to make telephone calls using a broadband Internet connection instead of a regular phone line. While VoIP may offer less expensive calling, consumers need to educate themselves before replacing their traditional telephone service with VoIP. There are many important differences between VoIP and traditional telephone services, including some that are less than obvious.

One of the most important differences, because it may be the difference between life and death, is that not all VoIP services provide emergency 9-1-1 service. Some VoIP services do not provide access to emergency 9-1-1 at all. If the advertising, brochure, or other VoIP marketing materials are silent on this issue, it is likely that 9-1-1 is NOT being provided