Description:VoIP services allow you to make or receive telephone calls over the Internet to or from the public switched telephone network. The nature of VoIP telephone calls, while appearing similar to traditional telephone calling services, create unique limitations and circumstances, and you acknowledge and agree that differences exist between traditional telephone service and VoIP telephone services, including the lack of traditional 9-1-1 emergency services
9-1-1 service: Because of the unique nature of VoIP telephone calls, emergency calls to 9-1-1 through your VoIP service will be handled differently than traditional phone service. The following provisions describe the differences and limitations of 9-1-1 emergency calls, and you hereby acknowledge and understand the differences between traditional 9-1-1 service and VoIP calls with respect to 9-1-1 calls placed to emergency services from your account as described below
E911 - Enhanced 911: For most of our customer we have E911 or Enhanced 911 services enabled. E 9-1-1 is enhanced version of the 911 system to get help fast during emergencies. With E911 service, when you dial 911, your telephone number and registered address is simultaneously sent to the local emergency center assigned to your location, and emergency operators have access to the information they need to send help and call you back if necessary. Customers in locations where the emergency center is not equipped to receive your telephone number and address have basic 911. With basic 911, the local emergency operator answering the call will not have your call back number or your exact location, so you must be prepared to give them this information. Until you give the operator your phone number, he/she may not be able to call you back or dispatch help if the call is not completed or is not forwarded, is dropped or disconnected, or if you are unable to speak
Placing 9-1-1 calls: When you make a 9-1-1 emergency call, the VoIP service will attempt to automatically route your 9-1-1 call through a third-party service provider to the Public Safety Answering Point (“PSAP”) corresponding to your address of record on your account. However, due to the limitations of the VoIP telephone services, your 9-1-1 call may be routed to a different location than that which would be used for traditional 9-1-1 dialling. For example, your call may be forwarded to a third-party specialized call centre that handles emergency calls. This call centre is different from the PSAP that would answer a traditional 9-1-1 call which has automatically generated your address information, and consequently, you may be required to provide your name, address, and telephone number to the call centre.
How your information is provided: The VoIP service will attempt to automatically provide the PSAP dispatcher or emergency service operator with the name, address and telephone number associated with your account. However, for technical reasons, the dispatcher receiving the call may not be able to capture or retain your name, phone number or physical location. Therefore, when making a 9-1-1 emergency call, you must immediately inform the dispatcher of your location (or the location of the emergency, if different). If you are unable to speak, the dispatcher may not be able to locate you if your location information is not up to date.
Correctness of information: You are responsible for providing, maintaining, and updating correct contact information (including name, residential address and telephone number) with your account. If you do not correctly identify the actual location where you are located, or if your account information has recently changed or has otherwise not been updated, 9-1-1 calls may be misdirected to an incorrect emergency response site.
Registration of Physical Location: For each phone number that you use for the Service, you must register with eFone the primary physical location where you will be using the Service with that phone number. When you move the Device to another location, you must register your new location. If you do not register your new location, any call you make using the 911 Dialing feature may be sent to an emergency center near your old address. You will register your initial location of use when you subscribe to the Service. Thereafter, you may register a new location on your efone.ca account address page or by completing contact us form at efone.ca/contactus. For purposes of the 911 Dialing feature, you may only register one location at a time for each phone line you use with the Service.
Disconnections: You must not disconnect the 9-1-1 emergency call until told to do so by the dispatcher, as the dispatcher may not have your number or contact information. If you are inadvertently disconnected, you must call back immediately.
Connection time: For technical reasons, including network congestion, it is possible that a 9-1-1 emergency call will produce a busy signal or will take longer to connect when compared with traditional 9-1-1 calls.
9-1-1 calls may not function: For technical reasons, the functionality of 9-1-1 VoIP emergency calls may cease or be curtailed in various circumstances, including but not limited to: Failure of service or your service access device - if your system access equipment fails or is not configured correctly, or if your VoIP service is not functioning correctly for any reason, including power outages, VoIP service outage, suspension or disconnection of your service due to billing issues, network or Internet congestion, or network or Internet outage in the event of a power, network or Internet outage; you may need to reset or reconfigure the system access equipment before being able to use the VoIP service, including for 9-1-1 emergency calls; and changing locations - if you move your system access equipment to a location other than that described in your account information or otherwise on record with eFone
Alternate services: If you are not comfortable with the limitations of 9-1-1 emergency calls, eFone recommends that you terminate the VoIP services or consider an alternate means for accessing traditional 9-1-1 emergency services.
Inform other users: You are responsible for notifying, and you agree to notify, any user or potential users of your VoIP services of the nature and limitations of 9-1-1 emergency calls on the VoIP services as described
Disclaimer of Liability and Indemnification: Customers are advised to review this section with respect to eFone’s limitations of liability. We do not have any control over whether, or the manner in which, calls using our 911 Dialing service are answered or addressed by any local emergency response center. We disclaim any and all responsibility for the conduct of local emergency response centers and the national emergency calling center. We rely on third parties to assist us in routing 911 Dialing calls to local emergency response centers and to a national emergency calling center. We disclaim any and all liability or responsibility in the event such third party data used to route calls is incorrect or yields an erroneous result. Neither eFone nor its officers or employees may be held liable for any claim, damage, or loss, and you hereby waive any and all such claims or causes of action arising from or relating to our 911 Dialing service unless such claims or causes of action arose from our gross negligence, recklessness or willful misconduct. You shall defend, indemnify, and hold harmless eFone, its officers, directors, employees, affiliates and agents and any other service provider who furnishes services to you in connection the Service, from any and all claims, losses, damages, fines, penalties, costs and expenses (including, without limitation, attorneys fees) by, or on behalf of, you or any third party relating to the absence, failure or outage of the Service, including 911 Dialing, incorrectly routed 911 Dialing calls, and/or the inability of any user of the Service to be able to use 911 Dialing or access emergency service personnel.
E911 Call Volume If the number of 911 calls from Customer's End Users exceeds ten percent (10%) of the total Subscriber Records managed on behalf of Customer in Provider's Database in any applicable month, eFone may charge Customer a $5.00 surcharge per call. For example, normal call volume per month per Customer typically is approximately one to two (1-2%) of the total Customer's Subscriber Records.