MyCRA Specialist Credit Repair Lawyers

Tag: TCP Code

  • Slap on the wrist for Telstra under TCP Code

    global roamingTelstra customers were overcharged over $30 million on global roaming charges between 2006 and 2012 – and under the new Telecommunications Consumer Protection Code (TCP Code), the telco giant has been issued a formal warning from the Australian Communications and Media Authority rather than a fine.  Is the TCP Code effective in asserting real power over telcos? This is an issue we have been and will be watching closely, as it is of great importance to many of our credit repair clients. We examine this case in detail.

    By Graham Doessel, Founder and CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repair and www.fixmybadcredit.com.au.

    Customer complaints about telcos are astoundingly voluminous – with recent statistics showing there were 22,918 mobile complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman in the January-March 2013 quarter alone.

    The TCP Code, overseen by the ACMA was devised in order to encourage better behaviour amongst Australian telcos who were doing pretty poorly in many areas according to the ACMA’s report into their extensive telco inquiry, Reconnecting the Customer.

    Since the new TCP Code was registered in September 2012, the ACMA has been checking the compliance of telco providers with key new consumer protections – including new advertising rules, the requirement for Critical Information Statements and the requirement for providers to submit their own compliance assessments to industry body Communications Compliance.

    The ACMA reports it has:

    Made over 330 inquiries with providers about TCP compliance issues

    Issued 8 Formal Warnings and

    Given 3 Directions to Comply.

    The Telstra case is a significant example. The case in a nutshell, was reported by Adam Turner for Brisbane Times:

    Australian Communications and Media Authority has let Telstra off with a warning after the telco waited three years to investigate a billing error through which Australians travelling abroad were overcharged by about $30 million for services. About 260,000 customers were affected by the error between 2006 and 2012, caused by incorrect data-usage details being passed to Telstra by a data-clearing warehouse used by international carriers. As a result, some Telstra customers paid the 50¢ flagfall fee more than once each time they used mobile data on their phones while travelling.

    Customers raised concerns in 2009 but Telstra failed to investigate the problem until 2012, when it reported it to the ACMA.

    The ACMA report found Telstra in breach of the Telecommunications Consumer Protection Code, as the global roaming billing errors after 2009 were attributable to the telco’s failure to investigate the problem.

    ACMA found Telstra in breach of the consumer code, but it has the power to issue only a warning rather than a fine.

    Some have argued after the final TCP Code was approved by the ACMA, the end result was a fairly watered down Code with no ‘teeth’ to exert real penalties for breaches. In addition, the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) issued a statement in July criticising the ACMA for not penalising telcos who breach the code.

    “The ACMA investigation shows telcos are in breach of the TCP Code on a daily basis,” an ACCAN spokesman said.

    “We are encouraged to see the ACMA investigating these breaches. However, the regulator’s unwillingness to hand down even the most basic available penalty for confirmed breaches has the potential to create a culture of poor compliance.”

    This may pan out to be largely right, but this Telstra case may not be the one to base that judgement on. The ACMA went into detail in a release to the media about why it chose to only warn the telco:

    The ACMA’s decision on this occasion to formally warn Telstra for the breach took into account the facts that Telstra was not the original cause of the problem; that this was the first time a billing issue of this nature had been investigated under the TCP Code; that Telstra itself reported the matter; and that Telstra appears to be otherwise currently compliant with the relevant parts of the TCP Code 2012. Importantly, Telstra proactively implemented a comprehensive program of compensation that mitigated the harm for affected customers.

    However, it does highlight the culture of difficulty when it comes to customer complaints which was so evident from the ACMA’s original investigation into the behaviour of Australian telcos across the board, and which has been an issue amongst our telco credit repair customers.

    ACMA chairman Chris Chapman said in his statement to the media the situation highlights the need for telcos to take customer complaints more seriously.

    ”Our investigation makes it very clear that all telcos need to listen to their customers who report billing problems and be vigilant about any potential issues with the information provided to them by third parties,” he says.

    The ACMA’s focus over the next quarter will be on checking compliance with the new requirement that telco providers notify customers on included value plans when they have used 50%, 85% and 100% of their included allowance. This was another major complaint coming out of the ACMA’s Reconnecting the Customer report and one which has also impacted the credit files of telco customers.

    We will be watching really closely how this pans out, and reporting on the positive and negative ramifications for consumers and their credit files.

    Image: adamr/ www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net

  • Telcos to step up spend management awareness under TCP Code

    bill shockBILL SHOCK!

    We’ve discussed it frequently. We hear about it frequently as credit repairers. Next month, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is overseeing new guidelines under the Telecommunications Consumer Protection Code (TCP) designed to reduce the instances of bill shock, and hopefully the frequency of credit disputes over bill shock. The new requirements are about to take effect from 1 September. We look at what the new Code requires and what it will mean for consumers.

    By Graham Doessel, Founder and CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repair and www.fixmybadcredit.com.au.

    Botched phone plans and lack of data usage monitoring has in the past left many Australians shell shocked over their mobile and internet bills, with bills so large many can’t pay up or refuse to pay up, leading to an increased rate of defaults.

    Consumers have been confused when it comes to data allowance – particularly on their smartphones, and this was a major focus following the ACMA’s Reconnecting the Customer inquiry – which found there was a real need for improvement in consumer protection in the telco industry in the areas of Critical Information Summaries, clearer advertising and improved complaint handling.

    In the past clients claim they have gone over their allowance really quickly, sometimes without realising it, or the plan they were put on was not appropriate for what they intended to use their mobile internet for. Often they have had great difficulty in cancelling the accounts or coming to a resolution with telcos over these billing issues.

    Sometimes consumers have reluctantly paid the bill, thought the matter was settled, only to find they were defaulted anyway, and others have just refused to pay the bill until they got some resolution. Either way, they have been faced with at least 5 years of bad credit from the episode unless they have been able to make a successful complaint.

    Last year, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) surveyed its services. It counted 52,231 new complaints about telcos received between January and March 2012. Almost two-thirds were about mobile phone services.

    The TIO reports new complaints about over-commitment caused by inadequate spend controls increased to 4,282 in the January-March 2012 quarter, compared to 2,181 in the same quarter in 2011. In the same periods, new complaints about disputed internet charges increased from 981 to 2,823 (180 per cent).

    “It is well known that more internet browsing and downloads are now done on mobile phones and other mobile devices. With this change in consumer behaviour, we have seen complaints about excess data charges almost treble over the last year,” Ombudsman Simon Cohen said.  “The incidence of these complaints will reduce if consumers are only contracted for services they can afford, and where spend management tools such as notifications and usage meters are accurate and reliable”.

    SPEND MANAGEMENT TOOLS FOR TELCO CUSTOMERS

    From 1 September, 2013, spend management alerts, in addition to a range of new tools introduced for telco consumers following registration of the TCP code by the ACMA, will take effect. The changes include:

    • Residential customers on post-paid mobile and internet plans (with the potential for excess usage charges) will receive email updates when their data usage reaches 50 per cent, 85 per cent and 100 per cent of the amount included in their plan
    • Residential customers of the largest three mobile providers—Optus, Telstra and Vodafone—will also, from that date, receive SMS alerts when usage of their included value for calls and SMS reaches 50, 85 and 100 per cent.
    • The warnings at the 100 per cent usage mark must also include details of excess usage charges, which can be considerably higher than charges within the plan.

    ‘These notifications target customers most at risk of bill shock and represent an enormous industry reform by placing the power of information in the hands of consumers when they need it,’ said ACMA Chairman, Chris Chapman.

    Customers will not receive the warnings if they are on a plan which does not expose them to bill shock. This includes plans that are a pre-paid service, have a hard cap, or are an unlimited service, a dial-up internet service or are a shaped internet service, (i.e. which slows data rather than imposes excess usage charges when customers reach their data usage limit). The warnings are not mandatory for mobile plans launched prior to 1 March, 2012.

    The final element of the new TCP code, developed by Communications Alliance, rolls out in September 2014 when customers of the mid-sized and small telcos (less than 100,000 customers on included value plans) receive voice and SMS usage alerts to accompany their data alerts.

    Image: artur84/ www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net

  • Bill shock and telco complaints finally actioned: New Telco Consumer Protection Code approved by ACMA

    It has finally come to pass – telcos have a compulsory and enforceable code to govern their behaviour towards consumers. This new code is aimed at giving consumers the transparency and clarity with their telco use that has been severely lacking in the industry and which has led to bill shock, debt issues and more unfair credit listings such as credit rating defaults.  We report on the new code governing telcos, the possible benefits for the future, and explain how the previous code has impacted telco customer credit files.

    By Graham Doessel, Founder and CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repairs and www.fixmybadcredit.com.au.

    Telcos have by the skin of their teeth missed government regulation. The final draft of a new Telecommunications Consumer Protection Code (TCP) submitted by telco industry body the Communciations Allicance has been approved by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) it was announced yesterday.

    A couple of weeks ago we reported telcos had submitted their last version of the Code to the ACMA in the post Telco consumer code on third rewrite for June deadline.

    The ACMA announced in a release to the media yesterday A Better Deal For Australian Telco Customers, that it had agreed to register the telco’s version of the Code, which is aimed at giving “long-suffering telco customers materially greater protection on the big telco issues such as bill shock, confusing mobile plans and poor complaints-handling,” the ACMA says.

    A public inquiry conducted by the ACMA estimated that the annual recurring costs associated with the industry’s unsatisfactory performance under the previous code included $1.5 billion associated with consumers choosing the wrong plan, $108 million for the costs of telephone complaints and $113 million for the costs of writing off bad debts.

    “The ACMA will very closely monitor its [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][the TCP Code’s] progress and will not hesitate to communicate to industry the need for further change, if that need arises. This is an important point as the code will apply to every service provider in Australia. Compliance with the code is no longer an option. The ACMA obviously stands ready to use its powers of investigation and enforcement if participants choose not to comply with these new code obligations (which include an obligation to report their compliance performance to the industry’s new compliance monitoring body, Communications Compliance),” Mr Chapman says.

    How have telco customers been affected?

    Recently the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) surveyed its services. It counted 52,231 new complaints about telcos received between January and March 2012. Almost two-thirds were about mobile phone services.

    The TIO reports new complaints about over-commitment caused by inadequate spend controls increased to 4,282 in the January-March 2012 quarter, compared to 2,181 in the same quarter in 2011. In the same periods, new complaints about disputed internet charges increased from 981 to 2,823 (180 per cent).

    “It is well known that more internet browsing and downloads are now done on mobile phones and other mobile devices. With this change in consumer behaviour, we have seen complaints about excess data charges almost treble over the last year,” Ombudsman Simon Cohen said. “The incidence of these complaints will reduce if consumers are only contracted for services they can afford, and where spend management tools such as notifications and usage meters are accurate and reliable”.

    And customer credit files?

    Almost 26% of MyCRA’s credit repair clientele in the past 12 months were Telco customers.

    Often this was due to botched phone plans and lack of data usage monitoring. Consumers have been confused when it comes to data allowance on their smartphones, and the providers have not been helping. Often clients have claimed they have gone over their data limit really quickly, or the plan they were put on was not appropriate for what they intended to use their mobile internet for.

    The problems have also extended to complaints. Many customers can have had great difficulty in cancelling the accounts or coming to a resolution with telcos over these billing issues. Sometimes consumers have reluctantly paid the bill, thought the matter was settled, only to find they were defaulted anyway, and others have just refused to pay the bill until they got some resolution. Either way, customers have been faced with at least 5 years of bad credit from these often unfair credit listings unless they have been able to make a successful complaint.

    What the TCP Code will mean for consumers

    The Sydney Morning Herald yesterday reported in the story ‘Bill shock’ code set to save $1.5b on phone bills that the new 102 –page code will be enforced from September 1, and progressively phased in over the next two years.:

    “[We] are hopeful that its adoption will result in clearer advertising, easier comparison of products, better information about contracts and better tools to help consumers avoid bill shock,” Teresa Corbin, CEO of the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN), which proposed the code told SMH.

    It also reported on a significant change to data usage notification rules:

    “…customers will receive warning messages when they have reached 50 per cent, 85 per cent and 100 per cent of their monthly allowance for calls, messages and data,” SMH reports.

    The basic benefits are explained in more detail in the ACMA article Fair call—new telco code to benefit consumers:

    Under the new code, telco providers must be clear about what they are offering in their phone plans and stop using confusing terms like ‘cap’ (unless the offer refers to a ‘hard cap’—an amount that cannot be exceeded).

    Customers will also benefit from better spend management tools designed to avoid ‘bill shock’. These include improvements in billing processes and credit management, and the introduction of notifications about data usage and expenditure thresholds.
    Some of the changes will be phased in to help providers adjust their systems. From 27 September, customers will be able to more easily compare costs and plans, with telcos required to provide unit pricing for national calls, standard SMS and downloading 1 MB of data in advertisements…

    From 1 March2013 customers buying a new service will receive a two-page document called the ‘Critical Information Summary’. This includes essential information about service, pricing and complaints-handling, as well as volumetric information so consumers can easily understand how many two-minute calls or texts they can make under their plan.

    The new code will mean faster, better complaints-handling, with urgent complaints resolved within two days. All of these new measures will be monitored and the telcos subject to new benchmarking standards.

    For customers having difficulty paying their bills or meeting unexpectedly high bills, telcos must advise consumers about spend management tools, hardship advice and options to restrict a service.

    A new industry compliance body is being formed to ensure all industry participants comply with the new code.

    We eagerly await the September implementation of the TCP Code, and the positive impact this will have on our customer’s credit files and hopeful reduction in the number of unfair credit listings originating from telco customers.

    Image 1: Danilo Rizzuti/ www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

    Image 2: Sydney Morning Herald[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]