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Within the US, you should be able to make a 911 call with a phone that has no service as long as it's able to connect to the cell tower at all.
I don't really have any recommendations on how to test this, though. If you have a phone with service, or a phone that once had service but doesn't anymore, then those would be the devices I'd recommend reaching for in an emergency.
I'm confused what you think a better alternative would be? If there was a test number, what if that worked, but you couldn't call the real 911? There's no way around it: to be absolutely sure your phone can contact 911, you have to... dial 911. They simply recommend you give them a heads-up on the non-emergency line to make sure they're not too busy at the moment.
I’m confused what you think a better alternative would be? If there was a test number, what if that worked, but you couldn’t call the real 911?
A test number would suffice in some situations. When an incompetent VOIP provider takes an action to block calls “for security purposes”, they cannot legally block /all/ calls. 911 calls must be permitted. And 911 test calls would obviously require the same status. I do not trust their competency. But if their call blocking allows a 911 test number through, it proves that their blockade is not a simple crude block on /everything/.
A test number would not be the only solution. With some services you can set the CID to whatever you want. So in principle a CID of 555-1212 could have special meaning to 911 receiptionists. So a tester would set the CID info to that number before calling 911.
911 is not always instantly answered by humans. When answered by a machine, there could be a cancel code. E.g. dial “119” after connecting to cancel it.
There’s no way around it: to be absolutely sure your phone can contact 911, you have to… dial 911.
Sure, if you need that extra level of certainty. In the typical cases that I mentioned (no GSM subscription), a test number would be sufficient. It would show that the dialed number reaches a switch that treats it.
You’ve complicated this. They say to contact them on non-emergent line to make sure it’s a good time for a test. What problem do you think you’re solving?
Sounds like a bunch of good ideas. Have you considered proposing those to the people who can actually implement them?
Well, I don't think you need to make that first call from the same phone so it should be fine. How often have you had to test a 911 call with absolutely no other phones available that you can borrow for a moment?
Sorry maybe I don’t understand… but why do you want to make a 911 test call? Why do you want to call the emergency line if there is no emergency?
To be sure that your (possibly rather unusual) phone or connection will work. Maybe you have an automated home security system, an emergency call button or your own GSM antenna that gives you access in a very remote area. That's totally legit and many emergency hotlines have scheduled times when you can do that. They make sure they have additional staff during those times so test calls don't interrupt regular operations. If you need to do a test outside those scheduled times, it's polite to call a non-emergency line first to make sure they have the capacity to handle your test call. You wouldn't want to bother them when they're already understaffed or some large event causes a high call volume.
In the end, an unannounced test call isn't a big deal either. Just let them know right away what's happening and they should be fine with it. Just make sure to stick to what you actually need to test. Calling once a week or "testing" a phone that could also make regular calls could be considered disruption of emergency services.
Disclaimer: I'm not professionally affiliated with any emergency service operator, just speaking from personal experience. I've had a couple of situations where I wasn't sure if calling 112 (the European 911) was the right thing, always politely explained the situation and was always told that I had done the right thing. Operators would rather have you call than not call when you're not sure.
I sympathize somewhat, but there many documented ways to test the functionality of a phone and its ability to make calls that would validate its ability to call 911 without actually calling it.
Gotta reference? Or can you elaborate? At the moment, I have a VOIP phone I need to test (as normal calls are blocked).
To be clear, it’s more about testing the phone network and services, not the hardware or software you use to dial numbers. I know my device on my side of the transaction functions fine.