Submission: In response to the Reconnecting the Customer Inquiry

Since the introduction of competition in the telecommunication industry and the proliferation of products in the marketplace, a new range of problems has emerged regarding the ability of clients to understand the nature (including the capacity and risks) of the products they are purchasing, the extent of their obligations under their contracts, the terms of their contracts and the unfair practices in which telecommunication service providers engage in marketing those products. 

Our views in summary

RLC encouraged the ACMA to pursue the following recommendations:

• Implement new mandatory Consumer Protection Standards developed and enforced by the regulator for critical customer service issues such as internal dispute resolution, external dispute resolution, credit management and financial hardship.
• Develop a performance-reporting framework to report publicly on the extent to which retailers meet the customer service objectives and the effectiveness of their activities. 
• Improve industry code processes through stricter rules on code registration requirements including compliance, material improvement in consumer protection and consumer engagement. 
• Enshrine the principle of treating consumers fairly in the consumer protection framework.
• Expand compensation payments to consumers for breaches of industry codes and standards, for example failing to action a complaint. 
• Ensure the responsible regulator has the right enforcement tools to promptly and effectively respond to breaches of laws, codes and standards.