Issue:

You have a flashing Voice Mail Light but you have no messages.

There can be several reasons for your phone to have a flashing message waiting lamp.   Usually it's flashing because you have a voice mail message waiting for you.

But not always.

The Mitel product line has existed for decades.   It actually pre-dates the general availability of voice mail itself.  (Can you remember those days?)  In the good 'ol days, if you wanted to have someone in your office call you, you would call them and while their phone was ringing or while you were listening to a busy tone, you would press the message waiting button and the message waiting light of the person you were calling would light.  This would alert the person that someone wanted a call back.  They would then pickup their handset and press the message waiting button and it would call the person who light the light.  Once the other person answered the light would go out.

This isn't generally the way we use this button any longer.  Now when we see the light lit we expect to have a voice mail message waiting for us.

Resolution:

Here's how to solve this problem and get your MWI light to go out.  

If you have a display phone, hit your message waiting button.  Then push the "Read Messages" button then the "Call Back" button.  This will show you who lit the light.  Press the call button and it will ring their phone.   Once the person answers the light will go out.  You may have the option to, rather than hitting the "Call" button, to hit the "Erase" button.   This will turn out the light without calling the other person.

There are some other reasons your light may be on without you having voice mail messages.

1- You have buttons on your phone that have a voice mail box.

Resolution: Add a specific "Message Waiting" Button on your phone for those lines.  Then you'll know you have a VM for those numbers and not your phone.

2 - You have keys on your phone that belong to a hunt group of keys.  This hunt group has a voice mail box.  Your phone just happens to be the phone with the 1st appearance of the first member of the hunt group.

Resolution: This is a much more involved programming effort.   There are several steps that the Mitel tech will have to do. 

(A) Delete the hunt group

(B) Renumber the 1st member of the original hunt group on all phones to be the number of the original hunt group.

(C) Create another hunt group with a new non-DID number.   Put all members in this new hunt group starting with the member that was renumbered.

(D) Create a new call rerouting 1st alternative index to forward all calls to the new hunt group on a busy condition.  Set all the No Answer condition fields to say "Last"

(E) In the Call Rerouting Attributes form find the original number and assign in the 1st alternative field the new 1st alternative index number and in the 2nd alternative put the index number from your "Call Rerouting Second Alternative" form (usually '2').

(F) Program a Message Waiting Indicator key on your phone for the original number (not the new hunt group number).

There are some other things that may cause your MWI light to be lit but in general the ones mentioned above are the most likely suspects.

One thing you can also try if the above doesn't work for you is to enter the message waiting MWI On Code  along with your own extension number and then the MWI Off code plus your own extension number.  This sometimes works where all else fails.

Click Here to Return to the Mitel Forum

Please join our forum and follow our newsletter.  Your participation may help others.

If you've found this article useful please Tweet