There are fears for the safety of residents in a remote Perthshire village after a key mobile phone network was knocked out.
Kinloch Rannoch’s Vodafone users have been unable to make or receive calls, or get on the internet via their device, since June 15.
The company has not stated when signal will return, with some residents reportedly being told by staff that the outage will last three months.
There is also no phone box in a village that is located in one of Perthshire’s most isolated spots.
The outage has resulted in lost earnings, missed hospital appointments and isolation among residents.
It is also understood that some village firefighters are reliant on the Vodafone network, presenting safety fears.
Villagers missing out on work and appointments
Resident Carol Paterson has been with Vodafone for the past 20 years because she says it is the company that offers the best coverage in the village.
EE is the only other provider whose network is also considered acceptable in the area, she says.
“At the moment you can pick up the signal if you go towards Tummel Bridge and the same distance up the lochside in the other direction,” she said.
“But since June 15 there’s been a big swathe in the middle, which includes the village, where there is nothing at all.
“It has far-reaching consequences.”
She explained that village firefighters are notified of callouts by their mobile phones.
“If you rely on that to call for an emergency then you are in trouble,” she said.
“A lot of people who work in the village get calls on their mobile phone.
“People are missing out on work and unable to phone the surgery for appointments or call to get a taxi – all those type of things.”
Four frustrating hours on webchat
Her frustration was compounded by the complaints procedure.
Unable to talk to a company representative on her phone, she attempted to use the webchat on her laptop at home.
“I was on the live webchat for four hours and I was so frustrated because all they did was pass me from one adviser to another,” she said.
“At one point they said it should be on within three months. That’s not very helpful for anybody.
“They also kept wanting to send a code via text as part of the security thing.
“I was thinking ‘are you winding me up? Which part of, I have no network coverage here, do you not understand?'”
Vodafone users ‘irate’
Vodafone has given no explanation for the outage.
But it does coincide with the company’s plan to turn off the area’s 3G signal for 4G.
Highland ward Cllr John Duff says he has been contacted by “several irate” Vodaphone users from the area.
“Many of them are local businesses who have lost access to their customers, internet services and online banking and are finding it extremely difficult to conduct their business,” he said.
“No one seems to be able to get a satisfactory response from Vodaphone and, somewhat ironically, it is nigh on impossible to speak with anyone from the communications company.
“I have been trying for about a week to get an answer to what is causing the problem without any joy.
“The area is remote enough without Vodaphone adding to the difficulties.
“I will continue to try to speak with someone who knows what the issue is and can get it sorted.”
The Courier contacted Vodafone for comment but received no response.
