On Friday, the Commissioner of Complaints for Telecommunications Services released his annual report [pdf, 1.8 MB] which shows a sizable increase in complaint volumes over last year, thanks largely to increased public awareness.
Among the sections I found most interesting was the “Summary of Complaints by Service provider.” It isn’t surprising that Bell, Rogers and TELUS have the most complaints: they are, by far, the largest service providers in the country. As such, the 85% of complaints that were directed at them appears to be roughly in line with their aggregate share. I was more interested in seeing which service providers generated fewer complaints than one might expect.
For example, Saskatchewan residents generated just 1% of the total complaints, despite having 3% of the population. On the other hand, Quebec represents 23% of the population, yet it generated 27.5% of the complaints, punching 20% above its weight. Why?
Virgin Mobile and Fido each generated about 8% of the complaints. Why? TELUS was responsible for less than half the complaints of Bell [including Virgin, Solo and Bell Aliant] and a third less than Rogers [including Fido]. On the other hand, dropping the alternate brands results in roughly the same level of complaints for TELUS and Rogers.
The aggregate data from the report may provide an interesting look at changes in buying patterns for certain services over the past 3 years or perhaps better understandings between consumers and service providers for legacy product lines. Long distance services used to generate 1 in 6 complaints – it is now responsible for just 1 in 20. Wireline voice and VoIP used to produce a quarter of complaints; they are now under 15%.
Contract disputes and billing errors are roughly 80% of the complaints to the CCTS. Mobile services continue to generate an increasing share of the contacts. Between the device, the voice plan, the messaging, data, long distance and roaming, contracting for mobile services is about as complex a transaction as consumers will face.
Are service providers and their agents doing enough to ensure that their subscribers clearly understand what they are buying and how long they are committed?