With the aim of promoting the use of the European emergency number ''112'', the European Commission (EC) has launched a new website which shows citizens how to use the ''112'' number and which services it can be used to reach, above all when they are travelling in the EU.
The site also describes how the 112 number works in each Member State, particularly in terms of accessibility, time taken to answer calls, languages available and caller localisation. For example in the Czech Republic, Spain and United Kingdom, at least 97 per cent of ''112'' calls are answered within 20 seconds; while in the Netherlands and Finland, at least 71 per cent are answered in 10 seconds.
Meanwhile, the site also reveals shortcomings in some Member States, such as Bulgaria, currently the subject of legal proceedings given that the ''112'' number is not available throughout this country's territory. Other issues include the inability to locate callers when calls to ''112'' are made from mobiles, which has given rise to proceedings against 6 countries (Slovakia, Italy, Netherlands, Poland and Romania), or the lack of information in 9 countries on the time taken to answer calls once the connection has been established.
The EC initiative comes after it was revealed by a survey that just 22 per cent of EU citizens know that, in case of emergency, they can call ''112'' from anywhere in Europe. This led the Commission to ask the national authorities to better inform the public as to the European dimension of the ''112'' number.
Further information:
- 112: The European emergency number http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/112/index_en.htm
- EU puts European emergency number 112 on the map before the summer holidays http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/836&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en
- ''Emergency while travelling in the EU? Call 112'' http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/newsroom/cf/document.cfm?action=display&doc_id=481
- Factsheet 44 : 112 - the single European emergency number http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/newsroom/cf/itemlongdetail.cfm?item_id=2218
- 112 FAQ http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/08/358&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en
Related information on ANACOM's website:
- Survey on the 112 European emergency number https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=557603
