Question

Thousands of patients with T-Mobile unable to use our IVR (DTMF tones not transmitting, requires multiple calls)

9 months ago
10 August 2023
6 replies
572 views

BeeeRick
Rookie
4 replies

I work for medical clinic with about 600 users. For almost 2 years now, we have been having issues where wireless callers from T-Mobile/Mint/Metro PCS and all of their MVNOs, have the inability to get through our IVR system. They will push options in our main auto attendant IVR and it will not register anything they press. Sometimes it will take multiple calls before finally, they are able to transmit tones. I am able to duplicate this issue on my T-Mobile test line on my iphone (signed up for the 90 day evaluation) as well as a test android phone. Wifi calling disabled, strong LTE or 5G signal. Issue happens all over our City, and some of the surrounding cities. Both phones (iphone 14 Pro Max and T-Mobile Revl and OnePlus N200, all the latest ios and carrier updates). Our support vendor for our phone system and our SIP carrier keep telling us the issue is on T-Mobile's side. I had worked with T-Mobile support for several weeks, and they tried to blame the issue on iPhone, stating that ever since iOS 13, the DTMF Long tones are no longer a thing, and to verify that our system can handle short tones. I don't buy the DTMF thing, because why would Verizon and AT&T iphones not have any issues with our IVR. Plus, I can duplicate the same issue, multiple times, on an Android phone. They have now proceeded to kick the can down the road and told me to have our patients reach directly out to their support. Ok, we have done that, for 8+ months, and it got us nowhere, except 100s of angry clients with T-Mobile. I know at least 50 of our patients have switched carriers because of this issue.

I am literally at my wits end with this issue. Does anyone else out there have a similar experience or issue? If you did and solved it, please tell me what you did so we can try it. We have tried the whole Network reset, Wifi calling on and off, etc. I have made about 200 test calls in the past 72 hours, on both my T-Mobile phone, and another carrier. The other carrier, all 200 calls transmit DTMF without issue, the T-Mobile phones, its absolutely hit and miss.

6 replies

Buck0
First activity
1 reply
7 months ago
6 October 2023

Same problem for me today with the California Franchise Tax Board. Hadn’t had a problem with like this in so many year I forgot about it. By the time the automated voice asked me to put my Social Security # in I was caught in limbo. Couldn’t “enter” my number and it hung up on me for not putting it in. Locked out. Then I remembered how often I used to have this problem. Went back in and used deliberate long touches on the keyboard and it worked. I am thinking that I called T-moble way too many years ago and they may have switched a setting for me on T-mobile’s side. The setting changed a predetermined time for a tone to a tone that lasted as long as the key was pressed on my phone. Maybe happened.

Oscarp70
First activity
2 replies
4 months ago
28 December 2023

Same issue here for over a year. I thought it was an iPhone issue, but after researching it appears to be specific to T Mobile. Its a hit and miss and more of a hit lately. So bad at times, I have to call using Google Voice number just to get through the prompts. Is there any fix in sight???

Userlevel 7

+11

Seeing that this is an issue (for some?) I’d recommend filing a FCC complaint ‘if’ this is specific to T-Mobile and its MVNO + DTMF not functioning.

I know DTMF in general on T-Mobile does work (have to enter it for access to T-Mobile technical support), and for various other calls.

DTMF not working for Gov services would be considered a huge issue

I have a Samsung A15. I have seen at least a dozen different ways to turn on DTMF tones (why they have to be turned on I don’t understand--shouldn’t they just be on?) and none of them work because none of the options presented exist on my phone. I even have the chat “person” at Samsung stumped.