OTTAWA – Canadians who’ve gripes regarding their TV service providers will soon have a new watchdog to hear their complaints.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission on Thursday announced it’ll expand the required the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) to include satellite or cable disputes.
The CRTC will require all television service providers to become people in the CCTS by Sept. 1, 2017.
With the new combined structure, “if a Canadian cannot resolve a complaint having a communications service provider – whether or not it is a television service provider, Internet service provider, wireless service provider or telephone service provider – the CCTS will become the single point of contact for receiving a resolution,” the CRTC said.
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The CCTS, created in 2007 and funded through the telecom industry, already acts as is an independent watchdog on complaints concerning telephone, wireless and Internet services – although not satellite or cable TV services.
With the arrival of “bundled” services – combining TV with other telecom products – there will be a growing need for a “one-stop shop” for customer complaints, the CRTC says.
“Over 80 per cent of television subscribers obtain their television services from the licensed cable or satellite company,” the commission said.
At present, complaints about TV providers are now being handled by CRTC staff. “Any time there is a big a choice we get an increase in calls,” said a CRTC spokesperson.
Thursday’s announcement is meant to fill that regulatory gap. The CCTS watchdog already handles more than 10,000 complaints annually, based on the regulator.
“With progressively more Canadians taking advantage of bundled offers including local voice, wireless, Internet and tv services provided by the same communications company, ensuring a single reason for contact to deal with their complaints has never been more important,” CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais said inside a statement Thursday.
Even with so-called “skinny” TV packages, which arrived to effect March 1, CRTC staff have previously fielded hundreds of questions or concerns about the new $25-per-month basic TV service.
Under the brand new CCTS guidelines, if the watchdog agrees that a TV company hasn’t met its obligations to consumers, it may require provider to pay users by up to $5,000 “for losses associated with certain complaints which are in addition to any reimbursements for billing errors.”
The CCTS uses its new authority to make sure TV providers respond to direct customer complaints or billing questions.
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