The details have come to light following a Freedom of Information (FOI) obtained by the Financial Times.
Both were customers of Virgin Media O2. One died in June six to eight days after their device failed, while the other died in November four to six days following their device failing.
Their deaths have not been formally linked to non-functioning devices or landline switches. However, it is understood the incidents caused the company to halt its rollout of digital lines and sparked the government to seek assurances from telecoms companies regarding their support for vulnerable customers during the transition.
After the second death, ministers held meetings with Lutz Schüler, the chief executive of Virgin Media O2, and Ofcom.
The government said it was “shocked and saddened” to learn of the fatalities, with the Department for Science Innovation and Technology (DSIT) adding that it does not hold information on whether the device failures were a “a significant contributing factor or cause of death”.
Virgin Media O2 said it did not provide the telecare devices to the deceased customers and that it had no reason to believe that their being disconnected played any role in the deaths. Both customers had underlying health conditions.
A Virgin Media O2 spokesperson said it was complying with government measures on the digital phone rollout that were agreed in December. Seven additional providers committed to those measures in March.
The Virgin Media O2 spokesperson added, “At the point these types of migrations do resume, additional checks will take place in the home to ensure landlines are active and that telecare providers are aware of any alarm unit issues.”
BT, Virgin Media O2, and other telecoms providers are switching customers away from Britain’s copper landline phone network to move to digital phones that work over the internet by the end of 2025.