What to Do If You Dial 999 but Cannot Speak

Dialling 999 when you cannot speak is frightening, but the system is built for it. If you can make any sound at all, do: the London Ambulance Service says it is always best to speak to the operator if you can, even by whispering, and you may be asked to cough or tap the keys on your phone in response to questions¹. If you are calling from a mobile and cannot speak, you may be prompted to press 55. If you do not press 55, the call will be terminated¹.

If you cannot make a voice call at all, the emergencySMS service lets you text 999 from a mobile phone, but you must register your phone beforehand². For British Sign Language users there is 999 BSL, and for others who cannot use voice telephony there is the BT Relay service³. The key is to know which route suits you and to set it up before an emergency, not during one.

Tap SOS: what to do when speaking on a 999 call is impossible

The first thing to understand is that a silent 999 call is not automatically a failed one. The Bath and North East Somerset guidance sets out what happens on a mobile: if you are prompted to press 55 and you do not, the call will be terminated¹. Pressing 55 tells the system that the call is genuine even though the caller cannot speak. On a landline the handling is different: if there is no request for an emergency, no answers to questions or only background noise, you will be connected to a police call handler, as doubt exists¹.

If you can make any noise, use it. The same guidance says it is always best to speak to the operator if you can, even by whispering, and that you may also be asked to cough or tap the keys on your phone in response to questions¹. The East of England Ambulance Service gives the same core instruction for a terror incident: if you cannot speak or make a noise, listen to the instructions given to you by the call taker⁶. Listening is an action. The call taker will ask questions that can be answered by tapping.

If you cannot use voice telephony at all, the alternatives are the emergencySMS text service, 999 BSL for British Sign Language users, and the BT Relay service³. The emergencySMS service is designed specifically for people with hearing loss or difficulty with speech, for contacting the 999 emergency services by SMS text when unable to make voice calls². It is not a substitute for a voice call when you can make one: the Welsh ambulance service says text 999 should only be used when you cannot make a voice call⁷.

When Tap SOS applies: hearing or speech difficulties and sudden medical events

The text and press 55 routes exist for two broad groups: people with hearing or speech difficulties, and people who lose the ability to speak suddenly through illness or injury.

For people who are deaf or hard of hearing, the emergencySMS service allows you to text 999, and the Scottish preparedness guidance lists it as a way to sign up before an emergency⁸. The service is designed specifically for people with hearing loss or difficulty with speech². In Wales, 999 BSL is available for people who are deaf, British Sign Language users or hard of hearing and who have a medical emergency and need an ambulance⁷. The Surrey Police Herbert Protocol guidance also points deaf or hard of hearing people to the textphone service 18000 or to texting 999 if pre-registered with emergencySMS¹⁰. Drivers who are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired are advised to register for the 999 text service before making a journey¹¹.

For sudden medical events, the trigger is the emergency itself, not a registered disability. The ambulance services list difficulty breathing as a reason to call 999¹², and the North East Ambulance Service says to call 999 if someone is seriously ill or injured, unconscious, having difficulty breathing, or has symptoms of heat stroke¹⁴. The South Western Ambulance Service lists loss of consciousness among the situations its service applies to¹⁵. Pregnant women are advised to call 999 if they have a seizure, are unable to speak, have a sudden onset of the worst headache ever, suffer loss of consciousness, or are confused or not alert¹⁶. In these cases you may be able to dial but not form words, which is exactly when pressing 55 or tapping matters.

What to do if you cannot speak during a 999 call

The sequence is short and worth knowing by heart.

1. Dial 999. Do not worry that you cannot speak; the call handler is trained for this¹.
2. If you can make any sound, whisper, cough or tap the keys in answer to questions¹.
3. If you are on a mobile and are prompted, press 55. If you do not, the call will be terminated¹.
4. If you cannot speak or make a noise, listen to the instructions given to you by the call taker⁶.
5. Give as much information as you can, including whether anyone is trapped and what room they are in¹⁸.
6. Do not hang up if the line goes quiet. The phone line may go quiet when you are being connected to a translator, and you should not end the call⁵.

If English is not your first language, you can still call 999; interpreters are available over the phone in multiple languages, and telling the call handler will not delay your care¹⁹. That matters for a household where the person who can speak is not the person who dialled.

Getting ready before an emergency

The most useful preparation is done calmly, well before anything happens.

• Register for emergencySMS now. You need to register your mobile phone in advance². Do this before a journey if you are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired¹¹.
• Know the alternatives. If you cannot use voice telephony, the options are the emergencySMS service via BT Relay, or 999 BSL for British Sign Language users³.
• Keep a phone by the bed if you are older or have mobility issues, so you can call 999 if you cannot get out²⁰.
• Ask a trusted neighbour to assist in an emergency if calling 999 is difficult²¹.
• Plan how help will reach you. If you are trapped, open a window and shout for help until someone calls 999 for the Fire Service²². Find somewhere safe to wait²³.
• Lock away family pets before help arrives²⁴.
• Speak slowly and clearly when you do call, and have your address ready²⁰.

A household plan helps here as much as any phone setting. The Scottish preparedness guidance recommends an emergency plan for the household⁹, and the same principle applies across the UK: agree who calls whom, keep the number for the non-emergency route to hand, and make sure everyone knows that a silent call is not a wasted one. For the wider picture of how calls are handled, see Calling 999 and 112: What Happens When You Ring, and for the text service in detail, emergencySMS: How to Register and Text 999. If you use British Sign Language, 999 BSL and Relay UK: Contacting 999 If You Are Deaf explains the relay routes. Households with someone who may not be able to speak should also look at Extra Help in an Emergency and keep a paper list of numbers from Emergency and Non-Emergency Numbers to Keep on Paper.