Out of Order

The out of order survey disposition is used in telephone surveys when the telephone number dialed by an interviewer is nonworking or not in service. Although each local telephone company in the United States handles out-of-order telephone numbers differently, most companies in urban and suburban areas include a recording on these numbers that says something like, “The number you have dialed is a nonworking number,” or “The number you dialed is not in service at this time.” Some telephone companies in rural areas also include these recordings as standard practice. Thus, interviewers dialing out-of-order numbers in these areas may hear nothing, or the number may ring and ring, making it difficult to determine whether these numbers should be coded using the out of order disposition or as a ring-no answer noncontact.

In most telephone surveys, a case with an out of order disposition would be considered ineligible. Out of order dispositions are considered final dispositions and typically are not redialed again during the field period of a survey.

One other exception to these rules occurs if a telephone number in the sampling pool is temporarily disconnected or temporarily out of service, or if the number has a recording that indicates that the line is being checked for trouble. If there is clear evidence that a number in the sampling pool is temporarily out of order, this number should not be considered ineligible but instead should be considered a case of unknown eligibility. Assuming the field period permits it, most survey organizations will wait a few days and attempt to redial numbers that appear to be temporarily out of service.