Mobile phone signal 'a nightmare', villager says

A woman has described the mobile phone signal in her village as an "absolute nightmare".

Pat Ferguson, 75, lives in Preston, just three miles east of Hull, but said she had to call people back on her landline, which added to her costs.

"It's always been a poor signal and that's 26 years I would think," she said. "It's constricting in so many ways."

A government spokesperson said the East Riding of Yorkshire had 97% geographical 4G coverage from all four mobile operators, "but we know there is more to do to improve connectivity in every area".

Graham Stuart, the Conservative MP for Beverley and Holderness, which includes Preston, said he had raised concerns about poor coverage across his constituency.

"Residents have been telling me about missed calls, unreliable data and the problems poor signals create for their businesses," he said.

"I'm meeting the major mobile networks to find out exactly where the problems are, what is causing them and what they are going to do to fix them."

Coverage is inconsistent in Beverley town centre, according to MP Graham Stuart [BBC]

Pamela Nicholson is a volunteer at a charity shop in Beverley, but lives in a rural village nearby.

She said her mobile phone signal could be hit and miss.

"Sometimes you have to go outside, where you live, and walk a little to pick up a signal.

"I texted my son earlier and it was only when I got into Beverley, the circle was was still going round, and then the message got sent."

Andy Bell, a Butcher in Beverley, says he cannot make calls when he leaves his shop [BBC]

Andy Bell, a Butcher at Rose Cottage Butchers in Beverley, said he sometimes suffered problems with the mobile payment process for customers.

"They'll try to pay with a mobile phone and they can't get a signal. So they'll have to get a card out and pay by card," he said.

"All I know is, as soon as I walk out of this shop, I can't make a phone call."

Gareth Elliot, the director of policy and communications at Mobile UK, which is the representative body for the three main mobile operators, said mobile coverage should be prioritised by government and local authorities as "critical national infrastructure".

"In some places, especially in rural areas where it is less economic, we want to work with the government to look at where the public investment is needed," he added.

Ofcom, the communications regulator, said mobile networks had made "real progress" on coverage, "but the quality of people's experience isn't consistently good enough".

A spokesperson said Ofcom was "making more airwaves available to boost reception, holding mobile operators to account for meeting their legal commitments, and helping people make informed choices through our Map Your Mobile tool".

The watchdog was also calling "a joined-up national effort" between the industry, authorities, developers and major landlords to help improve mobile service.

The government spokesperson said people should be able to rely on fast, high-quality mobile coverage wherever they lived, adding: "That's why we are working with industry to deliver our ambition for higher-quality, standalone 5G coverage across all populated areas of the UK by 2030."

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