OTTAWA – The CRTC has denied an application by Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and the Consumers’ Association of Canada (CAC) challenging the early upgrade programs offered by Rogers and Telus.
The Commission said Thursday that the programs, known respectively as Rogers “Next” and Telus “T-Up”, do not violate the Wireless Code, as the two consumer groups alleged in their complaint filed in June 2014. Rather, the CRTC continued, the programs are consistent with the Wireless Code’s contract cancellation and extension rules, and are “examples of innovative plans and services that respond to the needs of consumers who value the convenience of an early device trade-in and upgrade program.”
PIAC’s external counsel Geoffrey White said that the CRTC’s decision “sends a “buyer beware” message to consumers, and that Canadians should therefore be very careful when pre-paying money to their wireless service providers”.
“Although the CRTC admitted… that there were some “alternative, arguable interpretations of early upgrade programs” – ultimately consumers will pay the price if they were not/are not aware of non-refundable deposits which may come as a surprise to them”, White continued. “The non-refundability of the fees is not displayed in the marketing offers, which raises a question of how aware consumers will be that their money are not actually deposits. The sunk nature of those fees will make it much more difficult to switch providers.”
In a separate decision, the CRTC approved the application by PIAC/CAC for $12,406.38 in external legal fee costs with respect to their participation in the proceeding. Telus was directed to pay 39.7% of the total, Rogers is on the hook for 37% and Bell Mobility for 23.3%.
