Some reasons for the above error include an incorrectly installed SIM card, an inactive mobile plan, blocked phone numbers, and more.
1. Correctly Install the SIM Card on Your Mobile Phone
One reason you can’t send text messages from your phone is that your SIM card isn’t properly installed. Your phone has trouble reading the SIM card contents, causing you text message and phone call issues. You can fix that by reinserting your SIM card into your phone. To do that:
2. Check Your Mobile Plan With Your Carrier
Another reason you can’t send text messages is that your mobile plan has expired or your plan doesn’t include SMS messages. In this case, your phone won’t let you send outgoing texts. You can check that by calling your carrier from another phone or visiting your carrier’s website and seeking help there. Your carrier should give you the details of your current plan as well as what you can do to resume your text messages. Once you’ve fixed your plan-related problems, you’ll have no issues sending and receiving texts on your phones.
3. Unblock the Blocked Phone Number on Your Phone
While the block feature is meant to help you prevent incoming calls and text messages from a phone number, it’s a good idea to unblock the number you’re trying to send your message to to possibly fix the issue. Later, you can re-block a phone number if you want.
On Android
On iPhone
4. Enable Premium SMS Access on Your Android Phone
Android phones offer a premium message functionality where you can send premium text messages to people. Your carrier may charge you extra for this feature. It’s worth toggling on this feature when you’re experiencing the “Message Blocking Is Active” error.
5. Turn Off iMessage on Your iPhone
iPhone’s Messages app lets you send both regular text messages and iMessages. Since both features are built into the same app, your phone may be confused about what kind of message you’re trying to send. In this case, turn off iMessage on your iPhone and see if that fixes your issue.
6. Fix Incorrect Date and Time on Your Phone
Incorrect date and time settings on your phone can cause various problems. Your “Message Blocking Is Active” may be the result of the wrongly specified date and time on your iPhone or Android device. You can fix that by enabling automatic time and date options on your cell phone.
On Android
On iPhone
7. Update Your Phone’s Operating System
Your phone’s operating system runs and manages all your installed apps and system services. This operating system may have a bug, causing you text message errors. Since you can’t fix these system-level problems, update your phone’s software to the latest version, and your issue should be resolved. It’s quick, easy, and free to update the software on both Android and iPhone.
On Android
On iPhone
8. Reset Your Phone’s Network Settings
Your network settings define how your phone connects to various networks. If these settings are corrupt or incorrectly specified, you can’t access certain network features, like the ability to send text messages. Your message error may have resulted from an issue in your network configuration. Luckily, you can fix that easily by resetting all your network settings to the defaults. This deletes your custom options and brings back the factory values.
On Android
On iPhone
9. Contact Your Cellular Carrier for Help
If your iPhone or Android phone continues to display the “Message Blocking Is Active” error, your last resort is to contact your service provider for help. There may be a carrier-specific issue that you’ll be able to resolve with the help of your carrier’s support team. You can contact your carrier, like AT&T, T-Mobile, Metro, Verizon, and others, by visiting their websites or calling them from a different phone. Once you’ve followed their guidelines, your network-related issues should be fixed.
Troubleshoot the Text Message Errors on Your iPhone or Android Phone
Multiple factors can cause your phone to display a “Message Blocking Is Active” error. If you run into this problem and aren’t sure how to fix it, use the methods described above, and your problem should be gone. You can then resume your text messaging tasks and send messages to anyone you want from your phone. Happy texting!
