Billing and payments
This year, billing and payments generated the highest number of complaint issues. This category includes disputes about usage and administrative charges and disputes about incorrect or unauthorised direct debits. Overall, billing and payments complaint issues rose by 115%.
The main sources of billing and payments complaint issues were claims by consumers about:
- disputed usage charges; for example internet usage charges, unidentified charges on bills, timed call charges that ought to be incorporated into capped plan fees. This category formed 37.8% of all billing and payments complaint issues
- disputed recurring charges; for example, charges, which were not made clear at point of sale, for equipment bundled with services, or access charges for services that could not be accessed
- disputed administration fees; for example initial connection fees and termination charges. Consumers may dispute these charges because they claim they were not advised of them at the point of sale or before being billed
- the provider had incorrectly applied or not applied credits or adjustments to customers’ accounts where this had been promised or was part of their terms and conditions
- customers had not received print or online bills from their provider despite asking for these several times
- their bank account or credit card was direct debited without their authority or their direct debit instructions had not been cancelled after they terminated the service.
Billing and payments issues by category
|
2006/07 |
2007/08 |
2008/09 |
Disputed usage charges include disputed internet usage charges, total of bill, and timed calls |
17 012 |
47.4% |
21 119 |
40.4% |
42 457 |
37.8% |
Disputed recurring charges include disputed equipment
and service charges |
4 649 |
12.9% |
8 790 |
16.8% |
17 418 |
15.5% |
Disputed administration charges include disputed charges for initial connection and termination fees |
5 344 |
14.9% |
7 478 |
14.3% |
16 951 |
15.1% |
Credits/adjustments incorrectly applied or not applied |
2 607 |
7.3% |
4 430 |
8.5% |
11 396 |
10.1% |
Bills not received |
1 361 |
3.8% |
2 620 |
5.0% |
8 856 |
7.9% |
Direct debits not activated, not authorised, or not cancelled |
2 990 |
8.3% |
3 683 |
7.0% |
5 121 |
4.6% |
Bill details and/or format |
637 |
1.8% |
1 396 |
2.7% |
4 131 |
3.7% |
Payments incorrectly applied or not applied |
724 |
2.0% |
1 617 |
3.1% |
3 202 |
2.8% |
Others include delayed charges, charges arising upon the consolidation or deconsolidation of the consumer’s account/services, and debts arising from a pre-paid service |
594 |
1.7% |
1 171 |
2.2% |
2 918 |
2.6% |
Total |
35 918 |
|
52 304 |
|
112 450 |
|
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Reports | 2008/2009 | Complaint issue categories- Billing and payments 