A BROUGHTON Gifford family has been left in limbo for almost two weeks after BT accidentally switched their number with the one used by a fax machine.

The problem began on January 15 when BT tried to replace an old cable that carries landlines to the village and replaced the wires leading to the houses incorrectly.

Diane Hawkins, 74, of The Common, is frustrated by delays to her phone network and her 95-year-old step-mother is now unable to contact her through her care home Lifeline system.

Mrs Hawkins said: “Our landline was cut when I was on the phone to a neighbour Sara Korkus on January 15.

“We have called six or seven times to try and get things done. I discovered from another neighbour that there are a lot of people in the village with the same problem.

“After assurances from BT that it would be fixed, it will be two weeks by Friday and we still have a crossed line with a fax machine.

“Last week they told me Thursday midnight and then changed that to Tuesday but they have changed it again to Friday.

“We are unable to get a signal indoors for our mobile phone, which does not help.

“Last Saturday (Jan 23), while we were out, BT sent us a text on our mobile to say it had been fixed. It had not.

“In this day and age to take this long to fix a crossed line is totally unacceptable.”

Jason Mann, for BT, said: “The original fault was fixed on January 23.

"However, a small number of customers are experiencing residual problems.

“We are sorry for the problems experienced by this customer and we are looking into the issue.”