A major network outage that disrupted services for thousands of EE and BT customers has been resolved, according to a company spokesperson.

Customers across the UK had reported being unable to make or receive calls on both mobile and landline networks. Some also faced difficulties contacting emergency services via 999. The government later confirmed that access to 999 had been fully restored.

BT, which owns EE, apologised for the disruption and said the issue was caused by a technical fault that affected voice services. “We’ve resolved the problem and service is running as normal,” the spokesperson said on Thursday evening.

Outage tracking site Downdetector showed over 2,500 EE users reporting problems around 14:00 BST. Though Vodafone and Three confirmed their networks were operating normally, customers from other providers also reported issues—likely due to difficulties connecting to BT or EE numbers.

Users took to social media to express frustration over the outage, with both EE and BT mobile and landline services affected. Some customers also reported problems reaching BT and EE customer service phone lines during the disruption.

In Devon and Somerset, the local fire and rescue service posted on social media about a fault affecting mobile networks and 999 calls, but confirmed at 15:01 BST that emergency calls were working again. South Western Ambulance Service also acknowledged the issue on X (formerly Twitter).

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology confirmed the outage impacted some customers' ability to connect between EE and other networks, but said 999 services had since been restored. “Communications providers have statutory obligations to ensure their networks and services are appropriately resilient,” a spokesperson added.

Some customers of smaller mobile operators that use EE’s network also experienced problems. 1pMobile acknowledged limited issues and apologised for the inconvenience, noting that EE engineers were working to resolve them. Lyca Mobile and Spusu have been contacted for comment.

Meanwhile, Ofcom said it was in contact with BT to assess the scope and cause of the incident. Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at Uswitch, stressed the importance of rapid restoration and clear communication during outages. He added that landline users may be entitled to compensation if problems persist beyond two days.

BT Group serves over 30 million customers across the UK and reported £20.4 billion in revenue in its most recent financial year.

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