The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) is closely monitoring a practice by some telemarketers that can mislead consumers into transferring their services to a new service provider, TIO Talks reports today.
Consumers have complained to the Ombudsman about telemarketers who represent themselves as acting on behalf of a large provider. The consumers say they unwittingly transfer their services to a company that in some cases they had never heard of.
The EDR forum included representatives from the TIO, AFCA, Energy and Water Ombudsman of Queensland, NSW and Victoria, the Australian Energy Regulator as well as the ACCC, ACMA and ASIC.
This Inquiry found the lack of an independent umpire is a significant gap in the consumer protection and regulatory framework. This gap leaves consumers and small businesses with no avenue to have their complaints about digital platforms independently resolved.
The TIO's Consumer Panel met (virtually) for the second time last week. The meeting provided a timely opportunity to reflect on the impact of COVID-19 on complaints, and share knowledge about issues arising from the TIO's work and the work of Panel members.
This summary explains how Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman Limited (we, our, us) protects the personal information we handle and how we comply with the Privacy Act 1988, including the Australian Privacy Principles.
More information about how we handle your personal information can be found in our privacy policy.
The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman notes the ACMA’s intention to issue a complaint handling standard and record keeping rules to improve complaint handling by telecommunications providers.
Ombudsman Judi Jones says she welcomes any measures that will improve the customer experience and drive better complaint handling practices.
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Note to editors
Australian landline numbers and the addresses to which they are connected are, by default, listed in public number directories and given out by directory assistance services.
A telecommunications provider can agree with a consumer to:
Complaints we commonly receive about privacy include claims that a telecommunications provider:
2023 has been a year of improvement for the TIO. We’ve refined our processes through implementation of the 2022 Independent Review recommendations, continued our fairness and satisfaction surveys about our service, ensuring that we are delivering a fair and independent service, and launched our new complaint handling platform as part of our technology transformation project. These improvements have enabled streamlining of the way we work, and improvements to our complaint handling practices.