What to expect

Before you begin

First try to resolve the complaint with your telco

We can’t assist until you’ve made an effort to resolve it directly with them. Here’s a guide on how to work with your telco before seeking our help.

Complaints are generally resolved quickly

Approximately 75% of complaints are resolved in the first stage of our complaint handling process. However some complaints may take some weeks or months, especially if they are complex. 

A resolution can be reached at any stage

Resolving a complaint can involve multiple stages. The journey a complaint can take depends on the circumstances of it and what we feel is fair.

Many complaints are resolved after initial referral. If a resolution can’t be reached at this point in the process, we will move the complaint to the next stage.

Start: Make a complaint

We have many ways for you to start your complaint. Choose the contact method that is easiest for you.

Be sure to tell us:

your name and contact details
the name and contact details of your authorised representative, if you have one
which telco and service your complaint is about
an identifier for the service, such as an account number, phone number or the address where the service is located
the details of the complaint, how it has impacted you and what happened when you complained to the telco
whether there are any charges from your telco you are disputing
the outcome you want.

Once you have submitted your complaint, one of our team members will review the information and be in touch.

If we can’t deal with your complaint straight away, we’ll register your contact as an enquiry so that we have your details on file.

If your complaint doesn’t fall within our area of responsibility, we may refer you to another organisation that can help.

Stage 1: We talk to the telco

If you have not previously spoken with your Telco, we may refer the complaint to them and ask them to try and resolve it directly with you. Telcos have 15 business days to resolve the issue with you.

If you have previously made reasonable attempts to resolve your complaint with your Telco and your complaint is something we can help you with, we will send details of the complaint to the telco and ask them to contact you directly. This is called a referral.

Telcos have 10 business days to respond to your complaint and try to resolve it with you. Timeframes are different for any issues that:

are urgent—telcos have 2 business days to respond. Read more about which complaints are urgent in Help for people and businesses at risk
you became aware of more than two years ago—telcos have 20 business days to respond.

Until your complaint is resolved, the telco must stop credit management action on any charges you are disputing.

Most complaints are resolved at this stage.

You must respond to the telco

It’s important you respond to the telco by answering their calls or replying to their emails. Remember, most complaints are resolved early in the process. If you do not respond to their communication, the process slows down for everyone.

We may contact you to see if you and your telco could resolve your complaint

In most cases, we will contact you to ask if you and your telco resolved your complaint.

If you’re not happy with the telco's response, we will ask you why and decide whether it’s reasonable for us to keep handling your complaint.

What happens next?

We will move your complaint to the next stage of the complaint process.

In some cases, we may decide to stop handling your complaint. If this happens we will tell you why and you can ask for an Appeal.

Stage 2: One of our dispute resolution experts will look at what a fair outcome is to your complaint

If your complaint is not resolved between you and the telco, one of our dispute resolution experts will contact you and examine the outstanding issues in your complaint in more detail.

They may decide to:

Conciliate
Request information from you and your telco, or
Assess what a fair outcome is to your complaint

Conciliation

In conciliation, we work with you and the telco to find a solution to your complaint, either by conference call or by talking to each of you separately.

First, we might ask you (and the telco) to give us extra information. If we decide to use a conference call, we will set a time that suits you both.

The more actively engaged you are in this process, the faster and more efficient the conciliation process will be. This means being available for calls and giving us billing information, contracts, and records of your correspondence with the telco if we ask for it.

Requests for information

An important part of our complaint handling process is our ability to request information from you and the telco to help us consider the complaint issues. This allows us to assist you and the telco to reach an agreed outcome and, where necessary, assess what a fair outcome is to your complaint.

When we request information from you or the telco, we will provide a timeframe for response. We will consider reasonable requests for an extension. Where you or the telco request further extensions of time, these are not automatically granted and case officers will consider the reasons for requesting additional time and any impact on the other party.

If you do not provide the information we ask for, we may not have enough information to assess what is fair in the circumstances. If that happens, we may stop handling the complaint and may only be able to reopen it and continue handling it in exceptional circumstances.

If you or the telco do not provide the information we ask for, or do not give a reasonable explanation for doing so, we may draw inferences from a party’s failure to provide information, including that they do not have information to support its position, or the information supports the other party’s position.

If you or the telco repeatedly fail to comply with our requests for information during case management and we issue an assessment, but you or the telco later want to provide the information, we may decide not to consider the information, unless you or the telco give a reasonable explanation for not supplying it earlier. For more information about what happens after an assessment, see below, ‘We May Make a Decision’.

We will assess what a fair outcome is to your complaint

If one of our dispute resolution experts is involved and you and the telco agree on how your complaint should be resolved, we will close the complaint as resolved.

But if you and the telco can’t agree and/or we decide it is fair for us to do so, we may assess what a fair outcome is to your complaint. We will consider factors including:

relevant laws
industry guidelines and good practice
what impact the issues have had on you and the telco, and
what impact our assessment would have on you and the telco.

If we determine the telco’s position or offer is fair, we issue a Fair Offer Assessment. A Fair Offer Assessment is document outlining why we intend to stop handling a complaint because the telco has presented you with a fair offer or that its position is fair in the circumstances.

If we decide the telco needs to take additional action, we issue a Fair and Reasonable Assessment. A Fair and Reasonable Assessment will explain what steps we expect the telco to take that would be fair in the circumstances.

In either case, we will explain why we consider a particular outcome to be fair, and ask you and your telco whether you accept our assessment.

Your options

Option 1: You and the telco both accept the assessment

If you both accept the assessment, we expect you and the telco to carry out the agreed actions, and we will close the complaint as resolved.

Option 2: You reject the assessment

If you reject the assessment, you must explain why within 10 business days and tell us if you believe:

there is new evidence that has come to light that was not previously available, and it would likely impact the decision.
a significant error has been made in the assessment that would impact the outcome, for example, you think we have misinterpreted key facts, or we have not given you the opportunity to provide information.
there was bias or a conflict of interest that influenced the outcome.
the dispute resolution expert failed to consider or overlooked key information that warrants further consideration.

You must also provide any information and documentation that supports your reasons. We will take your reasons as a request for an Appeal or Review.

Your response will be reviewed by a designated staff member. That staff member may decide to uphold the assessment and close the complaint, make corrections to the assessment and issue a Decision, or return the case to the person that issued the assessment (or a different person) because further work is required.

Important: If you don’t respond to the assessment, we will end the process

If you don’t respond, we will close our file. The telco won’t have to carry out the actions and we will not consider your complaint any further.

What happens next

If you or the telco reject the outcome, we will move your complaint to the next stage of the process.

Stage 3: We may make a decision

If an assessment has been issued and the telco rejects the assessment, or we believe it is fair to do so, the complaint may be referred to a Decision Maker. A Decision Maker is a senior and experienced staff member who has been delegated the power to make decisions.

A Decision Maker may issue a Decision.

Decision

If we decide the outcome of the complaint, you and the telco will have 10 days to respond.

If you accept the decision

If you accept the decision, the telco must follow the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman’s directions. You must agree not to take the complaint to any other forum if the telco follows the directions.

If you reject the decision or don’t respond

If you reject the decision or don’t respond, we will close our file. The telco won’t have to carry out the actions and we will not consider your complaint any further.

If the telco doesn’t do what was decided

We will tell the telco to act within five days. If the telco doesn’t show they have done what was decided, we will refer them to the regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, for enforcement.

We may also publish details of the non-compliance.

Why we might stop handling a complaint

At any time during the case management process, we will stop handling a complaint if you ask us to, or if it’s resolved by agreement. We may also decide to stop handling a complaint if:

the member ceases to trade or is in liquidation
you can’t be contacted, or are not participating in the resolution process
your complaint was not made in good faith
you are acting unreasonably
we can’t take the complaint because it is out of our jurisdiction
another body or form is more appropriate to deal with the complaint.

If we decide to stop handling your complaint, you can ask for an Appeal, which will be reviewed by a senior officer.

If you ask for an Appeal, you must tell us if you believe:

there are exceptional circumstances.
there is new evidence that has come to light that was not previously available, and it would likely impact the decision.
a significant error has been made in the assessment that would impact the outcome, for example, you think we have misinterpreted key facts, or we have not given you the opportunity to provide information.
there was bias or a conflict of interest that influenced the outcome.
the dispute resolution expert failed to consider or overlooked key information that warrants further consideration.
There is information to show we have made a possible jurisdictional error.

You must also provide any information and documentation that supports your reasons.

Examples of decisions we have made prior to 1 July 2025

For examples of decisions we have made, please visit our Decisions and preliminary views page.