Virgin Media has been fined £23.8m for leaving thousands of customers without access to lifesaving telecare alarms during the digital switchover.
Communications watchdog Ofcom fined the telecoms giant after ruling it failed to protect vulnerable users of the devices, typically elderly and disabled people, during the transition from analogue to digital.
The industry is currently changing landline services from analogue to digital, with Ofcom describing the copper-based network as "beyond its intended lifespan and increasingly unreliable".
Virgin Media said it had not got everything right in the transition but added it has launched "a comprehensive package of improvements" for customers.
Ofcom has raised concerns about telecare users being left disconnected during the transition, warning "any disruption to their device's connection could have material impacts on their safety".
