Why prison calls cut off
The line goes dead mid-word. It's almost never personal. Prison calls cut off for three reasons. The money ran out. The prison ended the slot. Or the next person needed the phone. One of those you can change.
Checked against the published rates and HMPPS policy.
Reason 1
The credit ran out.
Their phone account pays as they talk.
When the money hits zero, the call ends. It just stops.
On the standard level, the most they can spend is £21.75 a week. A prison may set it lower.[7]
On a weekday, a minute to a mobile is 5.50p. To a landline it is 2.48p. What calls cost them
Calls and canteen (the prison shop) come from the same money. Once they hit the weekly limit, money you send waits until next week.
The limit is on money, not minutes. So the rate they dial is the one thing a family can change. Make credit last
Reason 2
The slot ended.
Each prison sets its own time limits.
Shared wing phones often have a time limit, so more people get a turn. No published national policy sets that limit in minutes. We won't make one up.
A phone in the cell, where a prison has them, usually allows longer calls. It still follows the prison’s daily timetable. A lock-down can end it sooner.
Reason 3
Someone else needed the phone.
That isn't a punishment. It's how shared phones work.
A wing shares a few phones, and the queue can be long. Staff end a call so the next person can go.
You can't buy your way past that queue. A cheaper rate only means the same money lasts longer when they do get through.
Common questions.
Why did the call stop mid-sentence?
The credit may have run out. Their phone account pays as they talk. When it hits zero, the line drops. A prison can also set a time limit on each call. Or staff may end a call so the next person can use the phone. None of these means they hung up on you.
Is there a national time limit on prison calls?
No. No published HMPPS policy sets one for every prison. Each prison sets its own daily timetable. Some wings limit shared phones so more people get a turn. Ask them, or the prison, what applies. Don't trust a guide that gives a number of minutes with no source.
Can I stop the calls cutting off?
Not the queue or the timetable. You can change the rate they dial. A weekday minute to a mobile costs 5.50p. The same minute to a landline costs 2.48p. So on a weekday the same weekly limit buys twice the talk.
They had credit yesterday. Why is it gone?
Their weekly spending has a limit. On the standard level, the published limit is £21.75. Calls, the prison shop and other spending all come out of it. A few long calls to a mobile can use it up. Money sent in after that waits until the next week.
Check us
- Incentives policy framework. HM Prison and Probation Service / Ministry of Justice, current version. Read 30 August 2026. Sets the weekly spending limit for each incentive level. The figures on this site are the most allowed. A governor can set a lower limit, never a higher one. Read it yourself
How a call goes
They ring. You pick up. That’s it.
Evening They pick up the prison phone.
Straight away Your mobile rings. Like any call.
Half an hour in It's cost them 74p, not £1.65.HMPPS weekday rates
Tomorrow They ring again.
The same cap. Twice the talk.
A landline number rings the phone you have. Every call to it costs the landline rate. Their money lasts longer. It doesn't get them past the queue.
£20 a month · No risk · Stop any time