Telcos seek to 'rebuild trust' with mobile roaming during disasters

Mobile users will be able to text and make calls if disaster roaming is enabled. ( Supplied: Telstra )

From October 1, telcos will activate temporary disaster roaming (TDR) when one network goes down during a severe weather event.

It will only be available in areas outside major cities where there is an alternative network, meaning it won't work in large parts of regional Australia serviced by one provider.

The telcos will decide when to switch roaming on and off, but neither the industry nor government has outlined accountability measures.

After years of testing, Australia's three major telcos are ready to switch on a system that would give customers access to a rival network if their own goes down during a weather emergency.

Known as temporary disaster roaming (TDR), Telstra, Optus and TPG will work together to decide when to activate it in regional areas where a mobile service has been disrupted by severe weather.

"You'll continue to be able to make phone calls, send text messages, and you'll have limited capacity data services," the chief executive of Australian Telecommunications Alliance, Luke Coleman, said.

"You can't expect to have your full usual high-speed data, but you will still have enough data to send a WhatsApp or an iMessage, maybe even to check an emergency service website like Fires Near Me, for example."

Copyright for this text belongs to ABC Australia.