44% increase in complaints
OTTAWA – The mid-year report from the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) once again doesn’t look good for Canada’s telecom and TV providers.
The report released this morning shows a 44% increase in the number of complaints it received from Canadian telecom and TV customers between August 1, 2018 and January 31, 2019. This follows a 73% increase for that same period last year, so there has at least been improvement in the rate of growth in complaints at least.
Canadians complained most often about their wireless service, followed in order by internet, TV and local phone, reads the CCTS release. The most frequently raised concerns were incorrect charges and non-disclosure (often resulting in a mismatch between what the customer was expecting and what they received), together representing 29% of all issues raised.
Anyone who followed last fall’s telecom sales practices CRTC hearing will not find that very surprising.
“This report shows that disclosure issues continue to be problematic,” said CCTS commissioner Howard Maker in the release. “We were pleased to provide vital data during the CRTC’s recent review of telecom sales practices. Our identification of a ‘mismatch’ between what many customers think they are buying and what they are getting is the focus of the CRTC’s report.”
The CCTS also reported a 42% increase in the number of Wireless Code breaches during this period, the most common one being the failure by a service provider to give the required notice before disconnecting service.
The top five most-complained about service providers – Bell, Rogers, Cogeco, Telus and Freedom Mobile (the largest service providers in English Canada)– accounted for over 60% of all the complaints the CCTS accepted in the period, says the release.
Increased complaints has strained the CCTS, too, adds the announcement. “The challenge posed by increasing complaint volumes required us to adapt in order to meet the needs of Canadians and service providers,” said Maker.
In the period, however, 92% of complaints were successfully resolved with consumers, concluded the release.
