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Network access provider Openreach (BT) has begun to trial panic alarms for their staff after revealing that UK engineers reported 450 incidents of abuse and assault in the year to the end of March 2025, which is up 8% in the last year and represents a shocking 40% increase when compared with 2022-23. Other providers have seen a similar trend.
The incidents themselves tend to vary – covering everything from verbal abuse to threats with scissors, assault (e.g. being pushed down some stairs, punched or shaken off ladders), racism, spitting, swearing, homeowners preventing staff from leaving, as well as inappropriate or threatening behaviour toward female engineers etc.
Similarly, Virgin Media and O2 reported 26 incidents last year that involved physical or verbal abuse and threatening behaviour, although they’re already predicting that this could double for the current year. Sky (Sky Broadband Sky TV etc.) reported 99 incidents involving engineers last year, although the figure for this year appears to be about the same. Vodafone and Three UK also suffered about 40 to 50 incidents in total.
Openreach has now been placed in the unenviable position of feeling as if it needs to trial panic alarms, which in this case reflects an app on engineers’ mobile phones. The alarm can connect them in seconds to a monitoring centre and even dispatch the emergency services, if required.
Adam Elsworth, Openreach Health & Safety Director, said:
“I used to be worried about people falling off ladders, road traffic accidents or tripping over potholes. But actually we have seen a steady increase in violence and abuse. A quarter of all the accidents we record are now someone being attacked or abused, and it is continuing to rise. And when I look at these incidents I struggle to see the rationale behind the level of escalation.”
Some of the cases do get reported to police, although it’s unclear how many people have ever been prosecuted as a result. Either way, the rise in abuse is incredibly disturbing, although it’s possible that some of this might be related to the fact that Openreach’s engineers are currently much more active and visible due to being in the peak phase of the operator’s national full fibre (FTTP) broadband roll-out.
According to The Guardian, telecoms providers recently joined 100 other utility firms, major retailers and transport providers in supporting an Open Letter from the Institute of Customer Service (ICS), which called on the UK government to amend its Crime and Policing Bill to better protect workers.
At present the bill does make it a standalone offence to assault a retail worker, but the ICS wants to see this being extended to “include all those in public-facing roles, not only those working in retail.” We support that proposal.