Why was my port rejected?

Understanding rejections

There is a common misconception that we (Bright PBX) are the ones rejecting the port. This is not actually the case. It is actually the current provider who is rejecting the port. We are simply messengers relaying the rejection from the current provider.

In the next section, we have included a list of standard rejection reasons and tips to address them. If you need more clarity, ask your customer to contact their current provider to find out why the port was rejected. We cannot ask for more details, as we don’t own the phone number. Only the owner of the phone number can obtain these details.

Standard reasons

ADDRESS MISMATCH

The address provided for the number being ported does not match the service address on the customer’s account.

NAME MISMATCH

This rejection generally only happens with business number ports. The business name on the porting request must exactly match the name on the account.

MISSING RESELLER

ILECs (Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers – typically own the infrastructure) and CLECs (Competitive Local Exchange Carriers – establish local network interconnection with the ILECs) both sell numbers to Resellers. If the number being ported has been provided by a Reseller, the Reseller must be listed on the port request in the Reseller Name field.

PENDING ORDER

In most cases, “Pending Order” means there is already another change to the customer’s account in progress. It could be an address change, service change, or perhaps the customer has already issued a disconnect request on the service. It is always best to advise your customers to close their account AFTER the port has been completed.

TN NOT ACTIVE

(TN = Telephone Number): The number is out of service and cannot be ported. This is usually because the current provider has suspended the account, or the customer has cancelled their number.

ACCOUNT SUSPENDED

Accounts are usually suspended for non-payment.

MRA (MORE RECENT AUTHORIZATION)

This typically means that a more recent request for service has come into the losing carrier. In most cases this means the customer may have decided to go with another provider or decided to stay with their current provider.

STRANDED SERVICES

This is arguably the most frustrating rejection reason as it will require a bit of detective work on your part to find out why it happened and how to fix it. It frequently happens with business numbers that have older services, hunt groups, or traditional, fixed circuits where the customer doesn’t always know all the numbers associated with their account. A Stranded Services rejection specifically means that if the main number (typically referred to as the PILOT or BTN) is being ported, any additional lines or reserved numbers associated with that account will be stranded. The number cannot be ported until all the associated numbers on that account are accounted for and direction for each phone number, as well as the circuit, is outlined on the order (ie, port, disconnect).

Mobile Port Rejections

Mobile orders have different rules from landlines. The most frequent rejections are due to “incorrect or missing account numbers”, or “no response to authorization SMS”. Here are our best tips for avoiding mobile order rejections

ACCOUNT NUMBER IS REQUIRED

Account numbers are always required on mobile orders so get a copy of your customer’s invoice. Ensure that information is provided in your port request. Our system will require it.

IMEI REQUIRED

On the rare occasion that your client does not receive invoices but is using a “pay as you go phone”, they will need to provide you with the IMEI (the International Mobile Equipment Identity number). This number is specific to each phone and is found on the back of the battery cover.

2FA NOT AUTHORIZED/NO RESPONSE TO AUTHORIZATION SMS

Due to the influx of fraudulent activity on mobile porting, the mobile carriers implemented a ruling that customers must confirm via text that they have requested to port out their number. The customer has 90 minutes from the time they receive the text to confirm the porting, otherwise the port request is cancelled. This is for your customer’s safety and they must follow this rule in order to port their number.