BT accused of 'unacceptable pressure' amid digital switchover after threatening to remove broadband for pensioner, 91, with dementia despite him relying on life-saving medical alarm

BT threatened to turn off a vulnerable 91-year-old dementia sufferer's broadband despite him relying on it for life-saving medical care alarms, the Daily Mail can reveal.Alan, who lives in South Wales, lives independently thanks to a range of devices and alert systems put in place by his daughter Anne Hanscomb, 57, who resides 100 miles away in Wiltshire.These include a telecare alarm connected to his landline, cameras around the home and an alarm on the front door.Ms Hanscomb followed all BT's safety procedures designed to protect vulnerable people during the digital switchover, which is a nationwide initiative to replace increasingly unreliable copper landlines with internet-reliant services.She informed them he is classed as a vulnerable person, that she has power of attorney, and provided her details for any contact needed over her father's account with BT.But last week she received an email from the company threatening to completely cut off her father's service in days.The email claimed BT had attempted to contact Ms Hanscomb and her father 'several times through emails, letters and phone calls' but had not heard anything back, and that as a result 'your broadband service will temporarily stop within the next five days'.But Ms Hanscomb told the Daily Mail she had received no contact before the email, and BT has now been forced to admit it did not actually get in touch with the family prior to issuing it automatically. Alan, 91, has dementia and relies on a telecare alarm and other devices to maintain his independence (Pictured with daughter Anne Hanscomb) Ms Hanscomb received an automated email last week threatening to cut off her father's BT services'I think to use the threat of a service disconnection as a pressure tactic is completely unethical,' Ms Hanscomb said.'I have worked so hard to keep my dad safe and independent at home, caring for him is my priority. 'BT know that he is vulnerable, they know I have power of attorney, I’ve spoken to them before, he’s got a lifeline button.'Sending that letter to my dad is unacceptable pressure. Don’t they have a duty of care under Ofcom to protect vulnerable customers?'Ms Hanscomb immediately contacted BT who have now cancelled plans to turn off Alan's broadband service.The operator was made aware that her father was vulnerable and had a telecare alarm that was linked to his landline.The alarms are designed to be linked to a phone so that they can phone for help in the case of an emergency.BT is understood to have paused his transfer to a digital landline until his telecare alarm had been upgraded to be compatible with it. The firm is said to have tried to contact the family by sending a letter, but Ms Hanscomb said this was never received.She also said she had not been contacted in any other way.BT has now apologised for telling the family that his broadband would be stopped 'without contacting them previously'.But Ms Hanscomb raised concerns about the tactics used by the firm and the language of the auto-generated email.It's not the first time telecoms have been criticised for how they have treated vulnerable customers.In December, Virgin Media was fined £23.8million over failures to adhere to Ofcom's consumer protection rules after it did not adequately identify and record telecare users, and also disconnected telecare users who had not engaged with the switchover process.Ofcom ruled Virgin had done this 'despite being aware of the risks posed' and this 'put thousands of vulnerable customers at a direct risk of harm'.Two people are known to have died after telecare alarms failed to function properly following households being switched from analogue to digital landline services.The government has stressed no causality has been definitively established between their subsequent deaths and the 'serious incidents' of the alarms not working, and it has not been confirmed which telecoms firms were involved. It also says these deaths occurred prior to additional safeguards being introduced.The change from traditional copper wires to internet-based services is necessary due to ageing infrastructure increasingly failing, resulting in blackouts and service outages, telecoms firms say.The industry had to pause its rollout and delay it by two years after a series of incidents which saw vulnerable customers unable to call emergency services when required.This was because unlike analogue phones, internet-based services do not stay functioning for any period of time in the case of a blackout or internet outage. Many medical devices including wearable alarms were also left not working after households were switched over.After government intervention, more safeguards including back up handsets and greater support for vulnerable people were introduced, but there have still been some reports of problems. A BT spokesperson said: 'We're very sorry that Mr Barrow received communication about his broadband being paused without being contacted previously. We have reached out to him and his daughter to apologise and reassured them that his broadband service will remain connected. 'We have arranged an appointment to provide a digital landline service at the end of October and will be monitoring this to ensure the transition goes smoothly.' Got a story? Email elizabeth.haigh@dailymail.co.uk