Broadband fine, but when landline rings I am not able to answer, though it will take messages.

[Burnet1]

After many problems since February this year when broadband was upgraded, I was assured that an engineer had fixed the problem that I was unable to turn off my television without losing broadband and landlines. I didn't trust them and left it on standby. Switched off when I went on holiday, I discovered when I returned that it had switched off Sky and broadband. Sky broadband will work if I leave the television on standby (which I have learned to live with) but the landline will ring and the caller is unable to get through and I am unable to answer. I need my landline and bought new phones which the last engineer set up for me, so the phone is not the problem.

[Mark39 · Accepted solution]

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@Burnet1 wrote:

After many problems since February this year when broadband was upgraded, I was assured that an engineer had fixed the problem that I was unable to turn off my television without losing broadband and landlines. 

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That's very odd. I've not heard of it before. Does your broadband Hub actually turn off, that is all the lights go out? Is your Hub located close to the tv, and plugged into a socket near to the one used by the tv?

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@Burnet1 wrote:

Switched off when I went on holiday, I discovered when I returned that it had switched off Sky and broadband. 

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What do you mean by Sky and broadband?

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@Burnet1 wrote:

...the landline will ring and the caller is unable to get through and I am unable to answer. I need my landline and bought new phones which the last engineer set up for me, so the phone is not the problem.

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Is your phone plugged into your Hub? Do you have a white Hub or black? When was your broadband upgrade completed? Can you make calls ok?

[Burnet1]

Thanks for your help. My mistake - the broadband didn't switch off - it's a separate plug I never touch which in theory should control everything except the television. The plug which should only control the television also switches off SKY television and the landlines. Getting SKY television back was no problem but the landlines, though to all appearances look fully functional, will ring but not allow me to answer or to make a call. And the television has to be on permanent standby - again. The SKY engineer set up the new landline phones so unlikely to be a problem there. The hub is black. The upgrade was 3 February 2025, Sky full fibre 150 and has been a constant source of problems, especially as regards the landlines. 

[Mark39]

@Burnet1 it wouldn't be the first time a Sky or Openreach engineer has connected phones incorrectly. A quick look at the rear of your Sky Hub should show whether or not your phone is plugged into the UK telephone socket.

There's an LED labelled 'Voice' on the front panel of your Hub - is it illuminated? Amber? Or Green?

[Burnet1]

Thanks for reply. Hub has voice okay on green light and is connected at the back of the hub. I have checked and there are no line faults. Even more irritating when told everything is working perfectly! Since February I have had 2 engineers and still the landline is connected to the television plug and not the broadband plug so everything has to stay on standby. I never turn off the broadband. My mistake was turning off the television when I went on holiday.

[Mark39]

@Burnet1 I think I can see what's happening. I'm guessing your phone is mains powered, or needs to be charged. From your posts it would appear that your phone and your TV are plugged into the same mains socket, so when you switch off your tv at the plug, you're also switching off your phone.

That has nothing to do with Sky and is not a fault. The solution is simple. Plug your phone into a different mains socket. 

In relation to the problem with receiving calls, that IS a fault. The first thing to do is to restart your broadband Hub, by switching it off at the plug for 30 seconds. If that doesn't fix it, you'll need to report it to Sky. Call them on 150 and tell them you can make calls but can't  receive them.

[Burnet1]

Thanks for answering. On receiving this, I checked the extensions on the television plug and the broadband plug and found one attached to the hub and one attached to the television extension. I moved the latter to the broadband cable, hoping this might work, but unfortunately not. The landlines still look as if they're fully functioning but now I can't even get through, no ring tone, never mind get an answer. It was worth a try though. 

[Mark39]

Do you have to recharge your lamdline phones? Are the handsets cordless?

[Mark39]

@Burnet1 thank you for your private message to which I am replying here (I don't reply to PMs directly)

Some BT phones won't work with Sky's landline service - they only work with BT's Digital Voice service. If yours is one of those bearing in mind you mentioned it's digital), you'll need to replace it, I'm afraid, with a standard DECT cordless phone. If you can post the exact model name/number I'll try to check for you whether it's suitable for Sky..

The base station's power plug needs to be plugged into the same mains extension lead as your broadband Hub

[Burnet1]

1. Phone is BT8500 advanced call blocker. It is exactly the same as the one I replaced and both the old one and the new were working perfectly until I had problems with the other bits attached to the broadband. I noticed, thanks to your suggestion, that the landline wire was linked to the hub and to the extension cable from the television socket and changed it yesterday to the extension cable from the broadband socket - and now, where before I couldn't answer, there's not even a tone. The engineer assured me that the phone was not the problem when he connected it up, and indeed it worked perfectly until I switched off the television plug to go on holiday (but left the broadband on). I should point out that, with all the problems I have had since the broadband was upgraded, I had no faith that the problem would not return and therefore had always left the television on standby until then. My lack of faith was not misplaced.

[Mark39]

The BT8500 phones are ok - they're standard DECT phones which will work fine with Sky Talk.

You're going to have to contact Sky again, I'm afraid, to report the landline fault.