What is an LOA?
A Letter of Agency (LOA) is a document authorizing a telecommunications provider to act on a consumer's behalf. Some vendors may also call this a Letter of Authorization. This is generally required in the United States when switching a telephone service provider while keeping the current telephone number or any other service which requires transfer of information from one provider to another. The regulations governing this are maintained by the Federal Communications Commission.
What is the difference between partial and full port?
In a full port, all numbers in the account will port over to the new carrier. In a ‘Partial Port’, there are remaining numbers in the account that needs to stay with the current carrier.
What is a “new BTN”?
This is applicable on a ‘Partial Port’ request only. Partial ports require the gaining carrier to inform the losing carrier of a replacement BTN at the time of order submission. This is typically chosen and documented in the LOA from one of the remaining TN(s) left behind on the customer's account.
Note: In the event that all numbers are being ported and you want to keep other services (e.g. DSL, Fax, Postage Meter), you will need to order a new phone number to be used as the new BTN for the remaining services.
What is a short notice FOC request?
Short notice FOC request typically occurs with an off-net losing carrier port requests. Occasionally, this can happen with an on-net port requests as well. The cause of this is usually due to either an electronic or human error during the port process between carriers. The error can cause a delay in timely FOC notification or no notice at all of FOC in which the losing carrier mistakenly releases the numbers to us. In either scenario we will notify you asap and work with you in activating them for service on SpectrumVoIP or requesting a new FOC date.
When is a PIN and SSN?
Wireless accounts require a PIN or the last 4 digits of the SSN to port the number. Occasionally, business accounts also have a PIN assigned with the losing carrier. It's good practice to submit the PIN with the initial order request for timely processing.
What is a CSR?
A Customer Service Record (CSR) contains important information about your phone number. This information is primarily used to port your phone number from one phone service to another. Your old phone service and new phone service will reference the CSR for technical details so they can ensure a smooth transfer of your phone number.
A CSR generally contains important account information, such as:
- Authorizing name - The person in charge of the account (admin on the account)
- Business name - The name of your business
- Account type - Business or residential
- Service address - The physical location you make calls from
- Billing telephone number (BTN) - The primary 10 digit phone number that references how the account is billed and set up
- Current service provider name - The name of the phone company you're porting the number from
- Current service provider account number - Your account number at the phone company you're porting from
What can I do if the losing carrier is not being helpful or providing accurate information to successfully process a LNP request?
As a last resort, you can file an FCC complaint for a telecom billing or service issue against your current provider. The FCC we will serve your complaint to your provider. Your provider has 30 days to send you a response to your complaint. FCC encourages you to contact your provider to resolve your issue prior to filing a complaint. Here is the FCC Telecom Complaint Link.
Why is my port order being split?
LNP order requests are split for several reasons:
If the TN’s requested to be ported are:
- assigned to more than one losing carrier
- assigned to more than one business location with different BTN’s or address of record information
If you are unsure how to group the numbers, you can submit it under one request and our carrier will attempt to split the numbers for you but this is not always the case. It's best practice to split the order before it’s submitted to achieve timely FOC.
Can we expedite a port request?
Customers may request to expedite an LNP order but this is considered best effort. Some losing carriers do not support expedite service requests. Expedite request timelines also vary on the losing carrier. Please check with our LNP / Porting team for further info.
Can we add/remove a DID in an existing order?
Yes. However, changes to an existing order, such as adding or removing of numbers, typically result in the order being canceled and resubmitted. Before submitting the port request, make sure that you provided the correct information to prevent any delays in the port request.
What is the difference between RDD and FOC?
RDD (Requested Due Date) is the requested date by the reseller for FOC. FOC (Firm Order Confirmation) is the confirmed or granted port activation date.
The LNP team will submit the port request with the requested FOC date or the first available date if the RDD date cannot be met. The carrier will confirm the RDD submission and send out a FOC notification with the granted date.
What is a snapback?
Snapback is a term used by the losing carrier to request the immediate return of the number(s) ported away by the newly assigned carrier of record. Typically, snapback requests must be made within 24-48 hours of the port out occurrence. The newly assigned carrier has 24 hours to respond but if the newly assigned carrier realizes it was their mistake services can be restored sooner to the out-of-service customer. This process causes significant extra charges to be incurred.
What is residual routing?
Residual routing left behind in a losing carrier's network is a common aftereffect of LNP process with some carriers. It happens when the losing carrier of a newly ported out TN does not remove the TN from their On-Net routing tables in their network. This causes On-Net calls originating on their network to fail when the caller is calling the newly ported TN (located Off-net). In essence, calls originating on their network need to be routed out to the public telephone network for termination. This can be confirmed by calls from all other networks are reaching the customers newly ported TN successfully. Be aware, residual routing problems can be system-wide or limited to specific regions.
How soon will CNAM/DL be updated?
For CNAM, it usually takes 48-72 hours for the carrier to update their records. DL takes 3 weeks minimum to get updated.
Common Abbreviations:
BTN – Billing Telephone Number
CSR – Customer Service Record
FOC – Firm Order Confirmation
RDD – Requested Due Date
EU – End User
LOA – Letter of Authorization
SSN – Social Security Number
RESPORG - Responsible Organization
CNAM - Caller Name
DL - Directory Listing
PON – Port Order Number
This is fascinating, I want to know more!!
Number Portability Administration Center (NPAC) How LNP Works