911 Limitations and Service Terms

RackNine’s 9-1-1 service is available upon Service activation. Applicable 9-1-1 fees are charged as of the service activation date. Because of the unique nature of VoIP telephone calls, emergency calls to 9-1-1 through your VoIP service will be handled differently than traditional phone service. The following provisions describe the differences and limitations of 9-1-1 emergency calls, and you hereby acknowledge and understand the differences between traditional 9-1-1 service and VoIP calls with respect to 9-1-1 calls placed to emergency services from your account as described below.

When placing a call to emergency services with E9-1-1 or Enhanced 9-1-1 the user’s telephone number and location are automatically transmitted to the operator during the call.

With Basic 9-1-1 the user’s telephone number and location are not automatically transmitted to the operator. The operator at the answering location verbally obtains the pertinent information that identifies the caller’s need and physical location. The operator then determines the appropriate agency and transfers the caller.

RackNine provides the caller’s telephone number where available, and will transmit contact and address information as provided by the customer. Customers may update contact and address information using the online 911 portal at:

http://e911.racknine.ca

When the user dials 9-1-1 the user’s call is routed from the RackNine network to our emergency services operator. The user will need to confirm with the operator that they are still located at the address the Customer has registered with RackNine. If the user calls from a location other than the address registered with RackNine, the user will need to provide our operator with a current address or location. The operator will then determine the appropriate emergency agency and transfer the user’s call accordingly. There may be an additional delay to transfer the user’s emergency service call to areas not served by traditional 9-1-1.

When the user dials 911, they are not to hang up unless told to do so by our operator or the emergency service attendant. If the call is disconnected prematurely the user will need to call back to re-establish a connection with the emergency services. The Customer must provide RackNine with the service address for each activated and/or ported DID and/or charge number as applicable and ensure each location information is kept current at all times. Only DIDs and/or charge numbers that are provisioned with RackNine and have applicable fees paid may be used as the Calling Party ID for 9-1-1 calls. The use of any other DID or charge number  constitutes  a  violation  of  this  Agreement  and  a  public  safety  hazard. In the event the user is unable to speak during a 9-1-1 call our operator will automatically dispatch emergency services to the address registered on file. If the user dials 911 when they are outside of Canada or the United States our emergency services operator will advise them to hang up and find a local phone line and dial the appropriate emergency services (it may not be 911).

When you make a 9-1-1 emergency call, RackNine will attempt to automatically route your 9-1-1 call through through our Emergency Services Operator to the Public Safety Answering Point (“PSAP”) corresponding to your address of record on your account. However, due to the limitations of the VoIP telephone services, your 9-1-1 call may be routed to a different location than that which would be used for traditional 9-1-1 dialling. For example, your call may be forwarded to a third-party specialized call centre that handles emergency calls. This call centre is different from the PSAP that would answer a traditional 9-1-1 call which has automatically generated your address information, and consequently, you may be required to provide your name, address, and telephone number to the call centre.

The VoIP service will attempt to automatically provide the PSAP dispatcher or emergency service operator with the name, address and telephone number associated with your account.  However, for technical reasons, the dispatcher receiving the call may not be able to capture or retain your name, phone number or physical location. Therefore, when making a 9-1-1 emergency call, you must immediately inform the dispatcher of your location (or the location of the emergency, if different). If you are unable to speak, the dispatcher may not be able to locate you if your location information is not up to date.

You are responsible for providing, maintaining, and updating correct contact information (including name, residential/business address and telephone number) with your account. If you do not correctly identify the actual location where you are located, or if your account information has recently changed or has otherwise not been updated, 9-1-1 calls may be misdirected to an incorrect emergency response site.

To update contact information for your telephone number(s), please visit RackNine’s e911 portal  at:

http://e911.racknine.ca

You must not disconnect the 9-1-1 emergency call until told to do so by the dispatcher, as the dispatcher may not have your number or contact information. If you are inadvertently disconnected, you must call back immediately.

For technical reasons, including network congestion, it is possible that a 9-1-1 emergency call will produce a busy signal or will take longer to connect when compared with traditional 9-1-1 calls.

For technical reasons, the functionality of 9-1-1 VoIP emergency calls may cease or be curtailed in various circumstances, including but not limited to:

Failure of service or your service access device – if your system access equipment fails or is not configured correctly, or if your VoIP service is not functioning correctly for any reason, including power outages, VoIP service outage, suspension or disconnection of your service due to billing issues, network or Internet congestion, or network or Internet outage in the event of a power, network or Internet outage; you may need to reset or reconfigure the system access equipment before being able to use the VoIP service, including for 9-1-1 emergency calls; and changing locations – if you move your system access equipment to a location other than that described in your account information or otherwise on record with RackNine.

A power failure or disruption may require The Customer to reset or reconfigure equipment prior to using the service. Power disruptions or failures or ISP (Internet Service provider) outages or partial outages or service suspension / disconnection, are likely to prevent dialing to emergency service numbers including 911. In the events listed above a user may need to access a traditional phone or cellular phone to make an emergency call. The Customer acknowledges that in the event of an outage, malfunction or any other unavailability of their Internet connection or related equipment, including without limitations, improper modification or any tampering with their computer or related software or hardware, the service may not function; the Customer will continue to be billed for the service until the Customer or RackNine terminate the service in accordance with this Agreement.

The Customer must inform users and potential users of the limitations of RackNine’s 911 service as compared with traditional 911 service, as set out above. If a user is not comfortable with the limitations of RackNine’s 911 service The Customer should arrange an alternate means of accessing traditional 911 services.

Neither RackNine, its affiliates or any of their respective officers, directors, employees, or agents may be held liable for (i) any claim, damage, or loss (including but not limited to profit loss), or (ii) any damage as a result of service outage, data loss. The Customer hereby waives any and all such claims or causes of action, arising from or relating to any service outage and/or inability to dial 911 from his Customer phone line or to access emergency service personnel unless it is proven that the act or omission proximately causing the claim, damage, or loss constitutes gross negligence, recklessness, or intentional misconduct on the part of RackNine. Subject to the provisions of this agreement, RackNine does not provide any other warranties of any kind either express or implied, including without limitation the warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.

The Customer agrees to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless RackNine, its affiliates, and their respective officers, directors, employees, agents, legal representatives and any other service provider that offers services to the Customer or RackNine in relation with the present agreement or the service provided, from any and all claims, losses, damages, fines, penalties, costs, expenses, legal fees, etc., by, or on behalf of, the Customer, any third party or user of the Customers’ service relating to the absence, failure or outage of the service, including 911 dialling and/or inability of the Customer or any third party or user of their service to be able to dial 911 or to have access to emergency service personnel, as well as any misroutes of 911 calls.

In an emergency, dial 9-1-1 to reach an emergency centre operator.

Be prepared to provide your physical location, call-back number, and nature of the emergency.

Do not hang up unless instructed by the call centre operator.

If you get disconnected, please redial 9-1-1. The operator, if they have your number will also attempt to call you back.

Ensure that your VoIP service and Internet service is configured and initialized correctly.

Inform all other users and potential users of the limitations of VoIP 9-1-1 service and about these user tips.

Display the VoIP 9-1-1 warning sticker on the phone set or in a location that is clearly visible to all users and potential users.