Are you a big fan of the Emergency SOS feature on your iPhone? We’re betting you are since it’s there for a good reason. It’s there to help you in times of crisis and make things easier should the need arise to call for help in an emergency. But what if that ‘need’ arises frequently, like when you’re tired of hearing that notification sound and would rather not have it pop up again? If so, we can help. We bet you don’t know how many ways there are to activate the Emergency SOS feature on your iPhone. So whether you want to disable it completely or just get out of its irritating Call-Only mode, keep reading to find out all the details.
Why does my phone say emergency calls only?
The Emergency SOS feature allows you to call for help in an emergency. But, if you don’t use it frequently, the iPhone will automatically put it into Call-Only mode. This means that all other calls will be blocked and your phone won’t allow any incoming calls except those from the Emergency SOS number.
How To Disable Emergency Calls Only
Open the Settings app
At first, launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
Go to the ‘Notifications’ page
After that, tap on the Notifications option in the Settings app.
Disable Emergency SOS from appearing on your screen
You can do this by tapping on the switch next to Emergency SOS to turn it off.
Disable Call-Only mode (optional)
If you don’t want your phone to put Emergency SOS into Call-Only mode, simply scroll down and deselect it under the ‘Emergency SOS’ option in the same settings menu.
Save changes and close the Settings app
Tap on the ‘Done’ button at the top right corner of the screen when you are done making all changes and then tap on the ‘Home’ button or simply press the Home button twice at once to save all changes and exit the settings menu completely.
Benefits of using emergency call-only mode:
You don’t have to deal with the annoying Call-Only notification sound
When you enable Emergency SOS on your iPhone, it sends a notification sound to your phone to alert you that you have an incoming call from the Emergency SOS number. And if you ignore that, then every time another person calls or messages you, it will pop up again on your screen. But if you turn off Emergency SOS and disable Call-Only mode, then there won’t be any notification sounds at all.
You can disable the call-only feature for all numbers
If your contacts are constantly calling or messaging you even when they know that it’s an emergency and not a routine call, then disabling the Call-Only feature may be ideal for them as well. So whether they want to use their usual phone number or just want to make a quick call in case of an emergency, disabling this feature will allow them to do so.
You can prevent calls from going through to voicemail
If someone is trying to reach someone else while they are trying to reach you and vice versa, but neither of them is available at the moment due to busy schedules or anything else; then by turning off Emergency SOS and disabling Call-Only mode on their phones, both of their phones will not allow any incoming calls except those from the Emergency SOS number which will ensure that no one disturbs each other during an emergency situation.
You can prevent calls from going through to voicemail when you’re unavailable
If you want to prevent calls from going through to voicemail when you are unavailable, then simply turn off Emergency SOS and disable Call-Only mode on your phone. Then if anyone tries calling you, the call will go straight to voicemail. This will prevent others from bothering you when you are busy doing something important like taking a shower or whatever else.
It’s a handy way of dealing with emergency situations
If someone is in an emergency situation and needs immediate help, then by enabling Emergency SOS and disabling Call-Only mode on both their phones, they can call the person who has activated Emergency SOS and get help from him/her in case of an emergency situation.
Disadvantages Of Emergency Call-Only Mode:
You may not be able to get a hold of your contacts when there is an emergency situation
In case of emergencies, it is important for you to be able to contact your contacts and family members quickly in order to let them know about the situation and remind them of the instructions that they should follow while dealing with the emergency. But if they don’t have their phones handy or if they are out on an important trip and can’t reach their phones, then you may not be able to reach them at all. So make sure that you keep your phone handy at all times so that if there is an emergency situation, then you will easily be able to contact people who are important enough to you in such situations.
You may not be able to call someone who has activated Emergency SOS (even though they have given their consent)
When someone activates Emergency SOS on their phone, it means that they want everyone else around them or anyone else who finds out about it, including family members or friends, not to call them from any other number except the one given by them in which case the number will ring only once and then go straight into voicemail. So if someone has activated Emergency SOS on his/her phone but doesn’t want anyone calling him/her from other numbers except his/her own mobile number, then he/she will have to keep their phone handy all the time.
You may not be able to call anyone who has activated Emergency SOS
If you want to call someone who has activated Emergency SOS on their phone, then you will have to follow his/her instructions and wait for him/her to pick up the phone. However, if you are in the same situation where someone has activated Emergency SOS on his/her phone and doesn’t want any other number except his own mobile number being called from, then this may not be possible for you as well because if you call someone who has activated Emergency SOS on his/her phone, then they will be forced to pick up the phone after waiting for a few rings and once they do so, they will immediately go into voicemail and you won’t be able to talk with them anymore.
It can get annoying for people around you when one person uses it all the time
If more than one person around you has activated Emergency SOS on their phones and doesn’t want anyone else calling them except their own mobile numbers, then it can get annoying for everyone else around them because everyone is getting calls from a particular person whose mobile number is always busy or unavailable whenever they need or want to contact that person urgently. So make sure that if someone around you activates Emergency SOS on his/her phone and doesn’t want anyone else calling him/her except his/her own mobile number, that he/she doesn’t activate Emergency SOS on his/her phone again or at least activate it for a limited period of times.
You can’t use the emergency services when someone has activated Emergency SOS
When someone has activated Emergency SOS on their phone, then the person will be forced to pick up the phone only when he/she receives a call from an emergency number such as 999 or 112 (or 911 in some regions) and if that happens, then he/she will have to listen to what the operator says and if they don’t want any other number except his/her own one being called from, then they should let the operator know that by saying something like “I’m not here now”. But if someone has activated Emergency SOS on his/her phone and doesn’t want anyone else calling him/her from other numbers except his/her own mobile number, then this is not possible for him/her because no matter whether he/she picks up the phone or not, someone will always be able to call him once he activates Emergency SOS on his phone. So make sure that if you are one of those people who have been using the emergency services too often because you have activated Emergency SOS on your mobile phone without knowing that it is a restricted service, then you should stop using them together until you find out more about this service.
Conclusion
All in all, Emergency SOS is a great feature to have on your iPhone, but it can be annoying if you have to deal with it on a regular basis. If you often find yourself in a situation where you’d rather not have the feature enabled, then the best thing you can do is to take advantage of the various ways you can temporarily or permanently disable it. With that, you’ll no longer have to worry about having to deal with it every time you’re in a stressful or otherwise unpleasant situation.
