Frequently asked
questions

No, additional participants cannot be added to a video call after it has already been scheduled. Only the approved participants on the call list are allowed to be present during the video call. The presence of any other unapproved individuals may disrupt your video call.

Yes, all children under the age of 18 can join a call if they are registered as extra participants in your Prison Video account and approved by prison staff on the call list. This means you will need to add details of the children who wish to take part in the video calls, and a clear photo of each child’s face. No ID is required for children unless requested by the prison.

Of course! All furry (and/or non-furry) friends are welcome to appear alongside you during video calls. They do not need to be registered as additional participants, or have their own account.

No, video calls are managed by the prison, and we cannot book, change or amend a video call or video call details. You can reject a scheduled video call via the app.

Yes, the account holder must be present during a call and all participants need to be in the same location.

The process for booking video calls is dependent on the establishment, some prisons require you to contact them directly, some require the prisoner to book on your behalf, and others accept bookings made via the app.

You can cancel a video call appointment by clicking on the call details on the Schedule page of your app.

UK Prisons operate in their local time (GMT/BST). The time of your video call appointment will be shown within the app in your local time zone.

In most cases, video call appointments are not transferred to the new establishment.

All of your scheduled video calls will be shown within the app when they have been approved by the prison, and you will be notified when new video calls are added to your schedule. The prisoner may have applied for a video call but it will not show on your schedule until it has been approved by the prison.

Call details can be found via the Schedule on your app.

The booking of video calls is entirely down to the individual prisons, we cannot be sure as to what the reason for these rejections is.

It is not advisable to take video calls when you are in a public space. The presence of strangers and individuals who are not approved on the video call list can cause disruption to your call. Additionally, taking calls in public or in moving vehicles can make your internet connection unreliable which will disrupt your call.

No, video calls are separate to in person visits.

The number of calls the prisoner is allowed each month is dependent on the prison.

Yes. The service will work on most modern tablets running Android or iOS. When registering for the service please put in your landline phone number when it asks for your mobile number. Our service does not support registrations on PC or laptop.

We at Prison Video are not able to help with the reconnection of an ongoing video call as the service is operated by prison staff.

No, but don’t worry, face photos are only used for in call identity verification and will not be seen by the prisoner before, during, or after a video call.

You can delete your account via your Prison Video App, click on ‘More’ > ‘Settings’ > ‘Delete Account’. Alternatively, you can reach out to us on support@prisonvideo.com

Please reach out to us at support@prisonvideo.com so that we can support you in updating your personal details. Please include your mobile number (old and new if applicable), name on registration, prisoner name and prisoner location when doing so.

In most cases, face photos and/or ID will be approved within 2 working days. You will be notified via the app when a face photo/ID is either approved or rejected.

Photo ID is required for registration, and we cannot accept any form of ID that is not an accepted form of ID. Accepted forms of ID include driver’s license, passport, national identity card, biometric residence permit, and Citizen Card UK (PASS) card.

Please make sure your head is straight and your face is looking directly at the camera. Use the on-screen guides to help you. If you are still having difficulties, please contact our support team by calling us on (+44)1666333760 (does not receive texts) or emailing us at support@prisonvideo.com.

Prisoner details are processed by the individual prisons, how long this may take is entirely dependent on the establishment and outside of our control. You will be notified via the app when a prisoner’s details are either approved or rejected.