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Thousands of Samsung mobile phone users risk being out of pocket to replace devices that can’t connect to triple-zero, after the federal government decided not to help.
Testing by Telstra found that more than 70 older model Samsung handsets weren’t connecting correctly to the emergency number.
The telecommunications giant advised that 11 models will need to be completely replaced. The rest need immediate software updates to fix the problem.
Affected customers will be notified by email or text message about what to do next.
Individuals have been alerted about their legal responsibilities, specifically noting that certain phone models must be replaced within 28 days to avoid being disconnected from the Telstra network.
Asked if there would be any government funding for people needing replacement phones, federal Emergency Management Minister Kristy McBain said responsibility lay with the companies.
“The telcos have contracts with customers and those customers … pay for a service which includes a triple-zero service for their handsets,” she told ABC radio on Friday.
“This presents a challenge that telecommunication companies will need to tackle,” experts have stated.
McBain said the government had been told up to 10,000 devices might be affected.
Samsung is yet to confirm if it will help affected customers, or what kind of support might be available.
Telstra is reportedly offering customers “low cost” handsets, but not trade-ins or discounts for new devices.
In a related development, Optus has announced the resignation of two senior executives following last month’s emergency call outage, which has been associated with three fatalities.
