I can't answer / pick up incoming calls...

[jimmy409]

This has happened twice now, both after updates.

The phone rings, shows the incoming number, and I slide to answer and it shows the number as connected, however the caller continues to hear ringing and it will not go to voicemail. It just rings on their end. If I slide left to ignore, it *will* send them to voicemail. I can still make outgoing calls.

The first time, I saw an Evernote update around the same time so I unistalled and reinstalled and the phone functioned fine. This time that did not work.

Here are all the steps I've tried:

- Turning off, removing the SIM, re-inserting and rebooting.

- Soft restart.

- Hard restart (off / volume down)

- Cache cleanout

- Rebooting in Safe Mode

- Turning Airplane Mode off and on

- Turning HD voice off and on

None of these has worked. please help.

[jimmy409 · Accepted solution]

Okay, I solved my own issue, but I'm leaving this solution up in case it helps other users. While I had tried removing the SIM and reinserting it, I didn't do anything else.

Then I remembered an old hack for bad electrical contacts.

Power down the phone, make sure the power is off! Using a SIM card removal tool or small pin/paperclip, open the SIM card tray. Here's what I did differently this time: remove the SIM card from it's slot and clean the back contacts with a pencil eraser. Reinsert into the tray and insert the phone. Power up.

After cleaning with the eraser (their was a noticeable film on the contacts) the phone was able to receive calls.

[Fallline]

I've had this issue on and off for 6 months. Verizon has no idea. They even sent me a new SIM card but still the same problem. Can't figure out a pattern. It just seems to be random. Sometimes the person tries calling me a second time and I can answer. Since it won't even go to voice mail I lose the contact. If I buy a new phone and it still happens I won't be very happy

[vzw_customer_support]

I want to make sure that you have a working device at all times and I apologize that you are having trouble even after the sim was switched out. Do you have a case or screen protector on your phone? Has the operating software for both the device and all downloaded applications been updated? Is there any cosmetic damage to your device? Just to give you some insight on what a problem like this alludes to without having answers to these questions: something like this would suggest a touch screen/motherboard/software issue. This can also be a result of water damage, dropping your device, substance on your screen preventing the phone from understanding your request to accept the call, etc. We will be standing by to help!

NicholeK_VZW

[Fallline]

No damage to the phone. All updates have been done. I do not have a screen protector. When I swipe to answer the call it goes to the anwser screen but no one is there. It sits there with the red buttoin as if I could press it to hang up but when I press it nothing happens - I can't hang up. I have to wait until the caller hangs up. The person on the other end just gets ringing. Nothing obvious on my end. But here's an issue I have with all the solutions. If I don't answer a call the call is suppsoed to go to voicemail. If Verizon is continually sending the caller a ringing sound then Verizon thinks the call is not answered. If Verizon thinks the call is not answered why doesn't Verizon send the call to voicemail? Voicemail is not done on the phone. It's done at the Verizon computers. It seems like a software issue on Verizon's end or some kind of "handshake" failure between my phone and Verizon.

[vzw_customer_support]

Fallline, let's go ahead and make sure that everything is acting normal on your device. What is the make and model of your device? Is the device fully up to date and what troublehsooting have you preformed?

JoseL_VZW

[ctrmac3698]

I am having the same exact issue as well.  It is very frustrating.  No help from Verizon.  Please update if there has been any good answer to solve this problem. Thank you for your help.

[Lauren33A]

I have had the same problem for months!   Went through a lot of trouble shooting with Verizon.  They finally replaced the phone.   Guess what? It's still happening!!!  

Samsung Galaxy S7

[Fallline]

That's why I'm reluctant to buy a new phone. I'd spend the money and all the time rebuilding the phone and then it might still happen. If only someone in the know would say "I know what that is and you need to get a new phone" then I'd get a phone but everyone at Verizon is guessing and I'm not going to go through the work and expense of a new phone on a guess.

[vzw_customer_support]

Lauren33A, being able to answer your incoming calls is essential and I want to help get to the bottom of your device concerns. To gain a better understanding, does the problem persist on a specific number or any number that calls you? Does this happen periodically or every call that comes through? Please ensure your device software is currently up to date: http://spr.ly/6600EwxC8;

ChakiaH_VZW

[Fallline]

Yes, the software is up to date and even if it wasn't, cell phones were still supposed to asnwer calls with last week's software or last year's software.

Again, it does not happen all the time. Maybe about 25% of my calls. I have tried to figure out a pattern but have not been able to identify one. It is not from specific numbers as one person can call me and it doesn't go through and then he tries again and it works on the second or third try. If it was a specifc number it would be each time that person calls me. I have tried to think of all kinds of patterns such as specific number, time of day, area code, in my address book or not and there are no patterns...that I've been able to spot.

[vzw_customer_support]

Thanks for asking ctrmac3698. It seems as though a handful of people here are experiencing the same issue, but what we really need to know is the make and model of the device? I saw a couple of people have a Samsung Galaxy S7 and others didn't answer that important question. We are here for your support but just need your help by providing more information. In the meantime, please use this self-guided troubleshooting link that will allow you to input all makes and models of phones, and it will walk you through the steps needed to correct the issue: http://spr.ly/6602Ewaey. TinaN_VZW

[Fallline]

Mine is a Samsung S7, Model SM-G930V

[vzw_customer_support]

Thank you for the additional information, Fallline. Let's continue to dig into this. When this started, do you remember if there were any changes to the phone such as new apps or updates? Have you every noticed if you are in the same location when this happens? 

DanielleR_VZW

[Fallline]

It's been going on for at least 6 months. There is no way to remember what I did the day it fist started. I wouldn't even remember the actual day it first started. I'm sure at first I took it as a fluke. Over time I realized the problem was repeating.

As far as location, it can be anywhere - at home or work. My work is roofing so I am at all different lcoations each day. Any being on roofs I am high up so signal quality is not an issue.

[vzw_customer_support]

We would never want you not to be able to answer your call Falline. We do want to get this figured out. Are you using any third party Visual Voice Mail services? The reason we as this question as by default calls are sent to voice mail between 8 rings (calling parties end) or 30 seconds. Are your calls being forwarded? Dial *73 to disable any call forwarding or no answer transfers. AlbertoR_VZW

[Fallline]

I never accused you of not wanting my calls to be answerd. I'm not blaming anyone or getting mad. I'm just trying to figure my situation out. It appears others have this too.

I am not using a 3rd party voice mail. I use Verizon's voice mail.

My voice mail answers around the 5th ring...when it works. I guess that was a setting I put in 20 years ago.

My calls are not being forwarded. I have never used that feature. I understand that if a call is forwarded and the forwarding location does not have voice mail then it will never answer but again that logic does not hold when a call fails and if they call right back it works. If my calls were forwarded then they'd be forwarded for all calls until I cancel the feature.

[vzw_customer_support]

I'm sorry to hear the calls aren't making it to the voicemail box. Let's continue to work and find out why your callers can't leave a message. Let's go ahead and restore the phone's settings. Here's a link that'll show you how to perform that. https://www.verizonwireless.com/support/knowledge-base-16958/ Please tell me, do you use a 3rd party app for your voicemail?

VanetrisC_VZW

If my response answered your question please click the _Correct Answer_ button under my response. This ensures others can benefit from our conversation. Thanks in advance for your help with this!!

[Fallline]

You asked the same question a second time in an hour. Then I got the feeling that you don't understand the original problem so I went back to look at all the Verizon repsonses and they are all from different people. I'm getting a new person each time that then has to learn the problem. That's not going to work. You probably think that we NEVER get calls going to voicemail. That's not the issue. I don't want to work with a new perosn every 5 minutes. Each person has to start a new learning curve of the problem and apparnetly you're not going back to read it all and are not familiar with the details of the problem. I can tell you don't know the details and I'm not going to start all over again explaining this.

[Fallline]

I still think there's a good chance it's a Verizon issue. The person calling me just keeps getting a rigging sound and it never goes to voice mail. If Verizon knows to transmit back a ringging sound why doesn't Verizon eventually send that caler to my voice mail. Verizon knows that after 5, 10 or 20 rings that it's supposed to go to voice mail. Voice mail is not on a phone. It is at the Verizon computers.

[Fallline]

I went to the link you gave me and it's just a genric list of things to do. Nothing specific to my problem. I whent through the list under troubleshooting and there is no title that matches my problem. So you're just guessing too. But I can't spend days tryng every link and wind up wasting my time and getting nowhere. I need someone who says "I know what it is and this is what you have to do". One person even responded that they bought a new phone and it still does it. That's kind of the "ultimate" repair and that still doesn't work. I'm not convinced it's not a Verizon problem since Verizon will not send the calls to voicemail. It's possible it's an App causing a problem and the person that bought a new phone would have reinstalled all their apps on the new phone. But it doesn't always happen so you can't test one app at atime.