“Project ECHO” (Excellence Complaint Handling Optimisation) is designed to enable the TIO to become a 21st Century Ombudsman by aligning the technological functions of the office to the modern requirements for effective and innovative complaint management and resolution.
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A number of important developments involving the TIO have occurred recently. The first is the continuing reduction in the number of complaints by consumers about the services provided by telecommunications operators. This is to be welcomed, particularly if the reduction is for the right reasons.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced Telstra and Belong have agreed to offer remedies to customers who signed up for National Broadband Network (NBN) speed plans that could not achieve the advertised speeds.
The ACCC is responsible for enforcing this undertaking.
Telstra and Belong have until Wednesday 6 December 2017 to notify affected customers.
The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO), Simon Cohen, has cited credit management issues as a key problem area for the telecommunications industry, after the busiest quarter for new TIO complaints on record.
In the latest edition of TIO Talks, Mr Cohen reports on credit management issues where there was an 11.4 per cent increase in new complaints between January and March 2011.
This quarterly increase comes on the back of a 36 per cent increase in credit management issues last financial year.
TIO complaints per 10,000 services in operation (SIO) decreased for the fourth consecutive quarter in October-December 2014.
The result for the five participating providers (amaysim, iiNet, Optus, Telstra and Vodafone) is a 4.5 per cent decrease when compared to July-September 2014, from 6.9 to 6.6 complaints per 10,000 SIO. This figure is also 13 per cent less than in October-December 2013, when all participants recorded 7.6 complaints per 10,000 SIOs.
This process innovation arose from Recommendation 11 in last year’s Independent Review of the TIO. The recommendation called for the TIO to follow up with consumers after their complaint had been referred to their telco. To deliver the proposed outcome, the TIO began an exploration into the use of automation and “bots”.
The latest credit assessments mystery shopping study by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) shows telcos are making good progress in implementing strengthened consumer protection measures.
Assessing ability to pay for a service is an important safeguard because it protects Australian consumers from committing to products and services they may not be able to pay for.
In response to the governance recommendations released in part A report of the Telecommunications Consumer Safeguards Review, the Board of the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) is seeking stakeholder responses to an Options Paper on possible amendments to the Constitution of TIO Limited.
You can view and download our submission to Treasury in response to the ACCC Digital Platform Inquiry Final Paper via the link below: