1 800 number caller id's

[cliff]

Is Fido's caller ID not always accurate? When I call a 1-800 in Canada it says "United States" above the number.

I also wonder if not all incoming caller ID's are always accurate either?

[cliff]

@cliff I'm pretty sure that's your phone trying to guess the location. Since 1-800 can be all over North America, it's bound to be wrong from time to time.

Fido's (or any carrier's) caller ID only provides a phone number and/or a name, not a location.

[Cawtau]

Hello Cliff,

  Are you sure the end destination is in Canada? Is it possible that the call centre might actually be in the US? There have been many times I've called the 1800 numbers for Canadian companies only to have them routed to a call centre in the US.

  While toll-free numbers are normally specific to each country, Canadian numbers are an exception as they are drawn from the same SMS/800 pool as other North American Numbering Plan countries. In many cases, the 1800 accessibility is shared between Canada and the US. That is, toll-free numbers can normally be called from any phone from either country -- though there may occasionally be some restrictions on their use (see here).

  In addition, toll-free numbers are non-geographic. That is, the owners of the toll-free numbers could be physically located anywhere in the world. Some call centres might be elsewhere in other countries. However, since those 1800 numbers are likely routed through the US before going abroad, the caller ID would still say 'United States'.

Hope this helps

Cheers

[cliff]

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" In many cases, the 1800 accessibility is shared between Canada and the US. That is, toll-free numbers can normally be called from any phone from either country -- though there may occasionally be some restrictions on their use (see here)."

This could be why.

Thanks

[zyx · Accepted solution]

@cliff I'm pretty sure that's your phone trying to guess the location. Since 1-800 can be all over North America, it's bound to be wrong from time to time.

Fido's (or any carrier's) caller ID only provides a phone number and/or a name, not a location.