When you need to call 999 but can't talk

When you need to call 999 but can't talk - the ‘silent solution’ can help.

Press 55 on your mobile when prompted, to confirm you are in a genuine emergency.

Emergency calls in the UK are answered by a BT operator, who will ask a few questions to determine the most appropriate emergency service for your situation.

If they get no response to these questions, the operator will ask the caller to press 55 on their mobile phone keypad. The call can then be transferred to the relevant police force.

“There are a number of situations where a caller may be in a genuine emergency but is too afraid to speak for fear of putting themselves or another person in danger”, said Superintendent Adam Wilkins, who leads our Contact Management department.

“In these cases, knowing about the ‘silent solution’ could potentially save a life.

“Anyone in Derbyshire who dials 55 on the BT operator’s instruction, will be put through to our Force Control Room, and we will work to establish their location and the nature of the emergency.

“It’s important to note that we won’t automatically have their location details, so we will need ask a series of yes or no questions to establish this.

“If you can't speak, listen carefully to the questions and instructions from our contact handler so they can arrange the help you need.

“We can also follow up with your network supplier to get an approximate location. We routinely do this with abandoned calls so we can check on the caller’s welfare. We can’t assume that the person is okay – and every second counts in an emergency.”

Please note, the silent solution is not available on landlines. However, when 999 calls are made from landlines, information about where you’re calling from should be automatically available to call handlers to help provide a response if needed.

Read more: How to make a silent 999 call | Derbyshire Constabulary