Ottawa (May 16, 2024) – The Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) has published its 2023 Compliance Report Cards, which identify telecom and TV service provider compliance with requirements to follow the CCTS’ complaint-handling process, tell customers about the CCTS’ ombuds services, pay CCTS fees and share financial information with the CCTS.
“The CCTS’ compliance engagement work over this past year has resulted in more service providers becoming compliant with the public awareness rules so that customers are made aware of our free complaint-resolution service,” says Janet Lo, CCTS’ Assistant Commissioner for Legal, Regulatory and Stakeholder Affairs. “However, we remain concerned with repeat non-compliance in certain areas, which is described in the latest Compliance Report Cards. Our goal is to engage with and educate telephone, TV and internet service providers about their obligations so that customers can find information about how to access CCTS’ dispute resolution service when required.”
Among the highlights in the 2023 Compliance Report Cards:
- Upward trend in service provider compliance with website requirements to provide CCTS information: 35% of audited providers were fully compliant with the requirements to inform their customers about the CCTS on their respective websites in both official languages. This is a positive result; however, there is still room for service provider improvement in this area.
- 52% of audited service providers’ websites did not have an easily accessible complaints section: The search function on a majority of service provider websites that were audited did not direct web visitors to the CCTS’ dispute resolution information. Rogers and TELUS have been non-compliant with this important requirement in 4 out of the last 5 years. Providing access to these details is important so customers know about the availability of the CCTS’ free and impartial service in the event of an unresolved complaint.
- Some service providers failed to implement complaint resolutions or Investigation Findings: The Report Cards identified approximately a dozen service providers that did not promptly implement customer redress to which they had agreed, or which was mandated by the CCTS after an investigation. The CCTS worked with these providers to rectify the issues and ensure the customers obtained the required remedies. Where a customer and service provider agree to resolve the issue, or where the CCTS issues Investigation Findings requiring the service provider to fix a problem, the service provider must implement the outcome. Service provider failure to do so deprives customers of recourse to which they are entitled, such as a service reconnection, credit or refund being issued, or a billing error correction.
“The CCTS appreciates the level of cooperation and engagement of most service providers and invests considerable time to provide reminder checklists and work with non-compliant providers to explain requirements,” states Ms. Lo. “We do find that many providers want to work with us to rectify any issues, and these actions ultimately mean better access to a fair, effective, and efficient complaint-handling process for consumers.”
About the CCTS
The CCTS is Canada’s national and independent organization dedicated to resolving customer complaints about telecommunications and television services, fairly and free of charge. Telecommunication and television service providers that offer services within the mandate of the CCTS must participate. The CCTS has handled over 175,000 complaints. Remarkably, 9 out of 10 customers find a satisfactory resolution through our service within 20 days of filing a complaint.
Media Contact: Mathieu Pierre Dagonas, Director, Communications and Stakeholder Affairs
communications@ccts-cprst.ca
Start a Live Chat