We considered guidance alongside our limited resource and experience of results from this guidance and agreed:

• Cases without a mobile no. that are 12 months +  delete.
• If you notice several recent issues with the same service provider, contact VISAV for support.
• Check for simple errors on emails if new registration/update such as incorrect punctuation.

Tips provided by Derek Pratt, representing the NWN IT Working Group (ITWG) include:

• Watch out for transient errors which often just need a reset - typically they are indicated by Status 5.7.1 but there are other indicators too.
• On Incommunicado cases, I have learnt that the best way to address a pile is to get them all onto a list (which will then show the phone nos.), and patch those first.
• Look out for any brand-new registrations. Far too often simple things like Gmail and internet are mis-spelt, or a letter dropped out of the user’s name, all of which it is best to simply guess the correction and see what happens later. If the correction later fails, then you can always delete them then.
• I also look for brand new cases showing as Unsubscribed (check both the Comms log and the Audit trail). I assume an error has occurred (system or user) and simply reset them to receive messages, and at the same time make sure that if they have a mobile it is set to receive texts between 0859-2059 (that reduces the no. of Incommunicado cases), and that all the obvious IPs have been selected.  
• Inform VISAV if several failures occur in a given area (say a town). It is not unusual in Devon & Cornwall to see a cluster of voice recipients suddenly going down. They often need manual reset – my rule of thumb is that if they fail twice in one month then they get deleted, especially for old cases like 2011 registrations.

VISAV actions taken since our November meeting:

• Records with comms issues plus landline only over 12 months old have been cleared.