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112, the single European emergency number - guide — EUbusiness.com ...
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According to this February's Eurobarometer survey,9 out of 10 EU citizens agree that access to emergency services for disabledusers should be improved.The European Commission wants to make 112 more easily accessible by peoplewith disabilities. Any citizen in the EU should beable to reach emergency services when dialling 112, either from their fixed orfrom their mobile phone.Why is the European Commission advocating 112?European citizens are increasingly travelling to other countries, forbusiness or pleasure. As far as mobile 112 calls are concerned,the normally available caller location just points to the mobile network cell(antenna), from which the 112 call originates. As of on 3 June 2008, the new website ec.europa.eu/112 tells citizens how to use 112 and what to expect from it, particularly when they travel within the EU. At least a part of national emergency centres can handle calls inGerman in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands,Slovenia and Spain. Availability of caller location information can greatly increase the speedand efficiency of emergency services' response to an accident. Calls in French can be handled in Bulgaria, Greece andSpain. Even in countries wherepeople generally know 112 as a national emergency number, few are awarethat it is the number that can also be used in other EU countries. In April 2008, Bulgaria was sent a formal warning by the EuropeanCommission in this regard.Even though 112 has been operational for a number of years already, itsexistence needs to be better promoted among citizens. In particular, people withhearing or speech impairments or people with serious injuries may find itdifficult to call and explain what has happened. In the case of afixed 112 call, the emergency services should normally receive the address wherethe telephone concerned is registered. Inpractice, this means that the quality of response to emergency calls should bethe same, irrespective of whether 112 or a national emergency number is used.Member States must also ensure that emergency services are able to establishthe location of the person calling 112. Instead of having to remember different numbers in differentcountries, citizens now need only one, wherever they go in the EU. It also shows how 112 functions in each EU Member State: how quickly calls are answered and in which languages. Member States are responsible for the organisation of the emergency servicesand their response to 112 calls. Moreover, 7 countries informed the Commission that their 112 callcentres, in particular those located in border areas, can answer in the languageof a bordering Member State (Bulgaria, Germany, Estonia, Spain, Lithuania,Hungary, and Slovenia). Since 2003, EU Telecoms rules have set out specificobligations for Member States, which the Commission is monitoring and enforcingwith infringement proceedings where necessary. The EU legislation requires Member States toensure that any citizen in the EU should be able to reach emergency servicesfree of charge when dialling 112, either from their fixed or from their mobilephonesIn addition, 112 calls must be appropriately answered and handled. The Eurobarometer surveypublished by the European Commission on 11 February 2008showed that only 22% of Europeans are aware that they can callthis number for all emergency services across the EU. The European Commission follows the implementation of 112 in Member States inparticular through the "Communication Committee", a body that unites therepresentatives of Member State authorities responsible for electroniccommunications. The European single emergency number 112 was introduced by the EuropeanCommission as early as 1991. The intention is that 112 should operate alongside existing nationalemergency numbers. The survey also showed that two out of three respondentsbelieves that people are not adequately informed about 112.What is "caller location"? TheCommission is therefore encouraging Member States to step up their awarenessraising efforts. There are exceptions:Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden use 112 as their only emergency number.When was 112 created? There may be situations where a mobile user is not able to use the mobilenetwork to which he or she has subscribed, because of lack of coverage ortechnical problems, but it can still be possible to call emergency services byusing another available mobile network. There was a need for a single number across the EU thatcitizens will be able to remember even under the pressure of an emergencysituation. This group seeks practical solutions to problemsexperienced by the emergency services at local, regional or national levels anddeals with issues related to the application of new technologies forcommunication with emergency services.And the role of the Member States? You must enable cookies before you can log in.