OTTAWA – The Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) appears to have a little work to do in order to raise its profile and public awareness.
The organization recently commissioned Environics Research to survey Canadians to determine the current level of awareness of CCTS and the ways in which consumers have learned about the organization. The survey polled 2,011 Canadians aged 18 and over on their awareness and use of the CCTS, with half of the surveys conducted online and half by telephone.
Highlights from Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services Public Awareness Survey 2016 include:
– 20% of all respondents are aware of CCTS though much of that is “aided awareness”;
– One fifth of respondents report that they have had an unresolved dispute or complaint with their telecommunications service provider, and 27% of those say they are aware of CCTS;
– Consistent with CCTS’ internal surveys, few respondents report learning about CCTS from their telecom provider. Rather, the primary sources of information about CCTS are media reports, online activities, and word of mouth.
“All ombudsmen report challenges in achieving high levels of public awareness. There is no consensus, either in the ombudsman community or among academics, as to the appropriate level,” said CCTS Commissioner Howard Maker, in the survey’s news release. “Nonetheless, levels of awareness of CCTS are similar to those reported by other ombudsmen and higher than reported in some ombudsman surveys.”
CCTS said that its approach to developing public awareness includes requiring its participating service providers to inform their customers about it, and pledged to step up its activities to monitor compliance with these obligations.
“Future polling will provide some indication of whether awareness is increasing over time and which initiatives are contributing most to this increase,” added Maker.
