The TIO recently released its complaints data for the December 2008 quarter, which identifies problem areas for ISPs and telcos – one of those is complaint handling.The report is a good opportunity to review what’s required of CSPs by the Telecommunications Consumer Protections Code.
Canberra ISP ByteCard has received a formal warning from ACMA for failing to comply with the TIO Scheme.The warning comes after disputes were alleged to have remained unresolved, as a consequence of this ISP’s refusal to comply with the TIO Scheme.
According to ACMA:
The TIO referred this matter to ACMA because Bytecard had failed to cooperate with the TIO in relation to two continuing matters. Both the TIO and ACMA have made attempts to encourage Bytecard to voluntarily comply with the TIO Scheme, without success.
With the economy stalling, some customers are turning to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) to escape their contract obligations to telcos and ISPs. Against that pressure, the TIO needs care to remain the independent dispute resolution organisation its charter requires.Obviously in many situations the TIO does a great job at resolving disputes in a fair and equitable manner.
We have recently seen a spike in the number of telco and ISP clients seeking advice on TIO disputes. Sure, they are often to blame for poor communication and poor account management (which in our view is symptomatic amongst many industry players) but we also see disputes that are manufactured by customers attempting to avoid contract obligations.
Sometimes customers are just plain dishonest.
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Optus and Crazy John’s have delivered unwelcome Christmas news to many customers. Features are being withdrawn from plans, at the same time as Optus’ web site proclaims it is ‘delivering more this season’.But allowing cancellation rights may not be the end of the matter.
There’s a myth around that industry codes, formerly known as ACIF Codes but these days generated by the Communications Alliance, are merely voluntary. They are not ‘the law’.Communications Alliance Codes sure aren’t just voluntary.
The confusion arises because the Telecommunications Act tries not to be heavy-handed on this topic. But there’s a gloved hand not far away.
We learned how to approach and assess a TIO complaint in the first part of this series.
In the first part we determined who the complainant is and what the complaint is. Now it’s time to respond to that TIO complaint. The way you respond can have a significant impact upon the final outcome.
The increasing use of peer to peer software is creating more than just a piracy problem. The use of UDP by P2P can generate new network management and legal issues for ISPs.Dealing with the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (‘TIO’) can be a long and arduous task, but it doesn’t have to be. With the right approach you can achieve successful outcomes.As the telco industry well knows, customers will regularly contact the TIO hoping to use the system to their advantage, whether it be getting out of a fixed term contract, or trying to avoid paying excess charges. The biggest mistake Telcos and ISPs make with the TIO is not dealing with the complaint in a proper and systematic way.
In this two part series you will learn how to better deal with TIO complaints, and how you can achieve better outcomes. In this part 1, we are going to look at the basic questions in dealing with TIO complaints.
Next time you chat to a phone or internet salesperson about the merits of a new product, don’t be surprised if they jot down notes as they speak.According to some bright spark in the office of the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO), every sales staffer should be able to produce a written record of every discussion with a customer if there’s a complaint. It’s red tape on steroids.
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