No early porting of fixed-line number

When switching telecommunications service providers, customers typically want to transfer their telephone number to the new provider as quickly as possible. But can this be demanded before the contract with the previous provider expires? The Local Court (AG) Aurich has commented on this matter.

The customer had terminated the contract with his previous telecommunications provider and simultaneously concluded a contract with the new provider. Against the backdrop of the contracts running in parallel, he therefore requested the porting of his telephone number (number portability). The previous provider relied on the remaining contract term and stated that the number would only be transferred to the new provider at the end of the contract.

Court decision

In its judgment of 14.08.2014 – Az. 12 C 321/14, the Local Court (AG) Aurich decided that the refusal to port was lawful. The porting of numbers from still active fixed-line contracts could not be demanded. The law expressly provided for mobile phone contracts that mobile numbers must be ported at the customer's request before the end of the contract term. It follows from this that this is precisely not the case for fixed-line contracts. The legislator decided against the possibility of early porting for fixed-line numbers. The court considered it irrelevant whether the transfer of the telephone number to the new provider would have been technically and administratively possible. Something else – and thus porting before the end of the contract – could only apply if this had been previously promised to the customer in the fixed-line contract.

Conclusion

The statutory wording on provider switching is clear. Early porting while the contract with the previous provider still exists can only be successfully demanded for mobile phone numbers, unless something else has been agreed. The decision of the Local Court (AG) Aurich confirms this.