When does the UK PSTN switch off?

BT Openreach is retiring the UK PSTN (WLR 2) on 31 January 2027. Every UK business landline must move to a digital service such as VoIP or full-fibre voice before that date.

What is the cheapest UK business VoIP?

Silux Call offers a free seat tier (1 user, 1 UK DDI, 30 minutes/month) and Pay-as-you-go from £0/month + £0.02 per UK landline minute, with no contract. Paid plans start at £6.95/user/month and come with a 30-day free trial.

Does Silux Call have a free trial, and do I need a credit card?

Yes. Every paid plan comes with a 30-day free trial and no credit card is required to start — most UK rivals offer only a 7 or 14-day trial, and several require a card up front. You can also stay on a permanently free seat with no card at all. Signing up takes about 60 seconds.

How quickly can I get a UK virtual landline number?

You can sign up in about 60 seconds and choose a UK virtual landline number (020, 0161, 03 or 0800) instantly — no engineer visit, no hardware and no contract. Existing numbers port across free on Plus and above, typically within 24 hours.

Can I keep my existing phone number?

Yes — Silux Call offers free UK number porting on Plus and above, typically completing in 24 hours. We support PAC and STAC porting workflows.

Does Silux Call work with Microsoft Teams?

Yes — Silux Call supports Microsoft Teams Direct Routing on the Pro tier, including a self-service onboarding wizard that issues the PowerShell snippet for your Teams admin.

Is Silux Call GDPR and HIPAA compliant?

Silux Call ships UK GDPR-compliant call recording with two-party consent flows, plus one-click HIPAA enrolment that locks 6-year retention, KMS-backed encryption, and PCI DTMF redaction. A one-click compliance report exports an auditor-ready PDF.

How does Silux Call block scam calls?

Silux Call screens every inbound call with an AI scam shield in under 0.5 seconds. Known HMRC, parcel, and account-spoof patterns are blocked before your phone rings — a feature no other UK business VoIP provider ships.

Free tier

The free business phone number every UK sole trader should grab

Free2026-05-265 min readBy Silux Call team

Stop giving out your personal mobile. A free second number keeps work and life separate on one phone — no second SIM, no contract.

If you run a business off your personal mobile, every customer has your private number forever. A free business phone number fixes that — a separate UK line on the same handset, free on the Silux Call free seat.

Why a separate number matters

Customers see your business number, not your personal mobile.
Work calls obey business hours; personal time stays personal.
You can hand the number to staff later without changing your SIM.
It looks professional on quotes, invoices and your website.

What it costs: nothing to start

The free seat includes one UK number, free voicemail-to-email and free call divert, with 30 outbound minutes a month and no card. Many sole traders pair it with Pay-as-you-go at £0.02/min so they only pay for the calls they make. Grab it on the free business number page, or read the sole-trader guide.