If you’re having trouble receiving text messages from iPhone users, the issue is likely with Apple’s iMessage service. This problem is especially common if you recently switched from an iPhone to an Android device or another type of smartphone. Even if you’ve never owned an iPhone, if you have a new phone number, that number could have been registered with Apple’s iMessage by its previous owner.
Apple’s Messages app tries to be smart. If an iPhone user opens the Messages app and tries to send a text message to a phone number, the Messages app will check with Apple to see if the phone number is registered with Apple’s iMessage service. If it is, the Messages app won’t send a standard SMS message—it’ll send an iMessage instead. This is designed to be a seamless experience between iPhone users. If you message someone and they’re using an iPhone, the message will be sent via iMessage. If they aren’t using an iPhone, Messages will send it as a standard text message.
However, this system can cause problems. This will most commonly occur if you’ve switched from an iPhone to an Android phone or another type of phone. Even after you leave your iPhone, your phone number may still be in Apple’s system and registered with iMessage. So, when an iPhone user attempts to text you, their Messages app will send an iMessage, which will just sit on Apple’s server—and never make it to you, since you no longer have an iPhone.
To solve this problem, you just need to deregister your phone number from Apple’s iMessage service. Apple began offering a tool to do this after it faced the threat of lawsuits. To deregister your phone number from iMessage, head to Apple’s Deregister and Turn Off iMessage website. Scroll down to the “No Longer Have Your iPhone?” section and follow the prompts. Similarly, if you can’t send texts to someone who recently switched away from iPhones, tell them to deregister their number using the site.
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