How to change the number of rings before voice mail picks up

My iPhone 12 goes to voice mail in 20 seconds. I have called ATT tech support twice to change that to 40 seconds, which I am told is the max. Both phone calls have taken about 45 minutes to both reach the right tech person and give them time to make the settings. I was told the first time that the change would take up to 24 to 48 hours. I waited and the calls still picked up after 20 seconds. On the second try I was told that the change was made and would be effective immediately. After I ended the call with the tech I tried the phone again several times and it still picked up after 20 seconds. Apple’s instruction is to call the carrier. In this case that is ATT. So I guess I will try once again, but I would love to hear from anyone else if they have resolved this issue successfully.

Posted on Nov 6, 2023 11:56 AM

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Posted on Nov 7, 2023 9:33 AM

Just to further clarify. The carrier must adjust the time before vm pickup between 20 and 40 seconds — as long as “Live Voicemail” is set to “off”.


If it is set to “on” then vm picks up after 20 seconds even if ATT has sets the time to 40 seconds, although you can pick up to talk to the caller when vm is on. I found this out thru trial and error. So the answer seems to be (1) the carrier sets the amount of time before vm, and (2) if you want more rings the “Live Voicemail” setting on the phone must be turned off.

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How to change the number of rings before voice mail picks up

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