Small businesses unable to contact telcos’ overseas call centres fuels complaint surge

Telcos are facing a potential crackdown as complaints surge, with one industry head calling on competitors to make a simple change.

A crackdown on Australia’s telco companies is looming as complaints continue to rise, with consumer advocates and industry figures saying the lack of action is “unacceptable”.

The office of the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman released its latest quarterly report on Wednesday, revealing complaints increased for the third consecutive quarter.

Between July and September, residential and small business telco customers filed 34,476 complaints with the Ombudsman after failing to resolve an issue with their phone or internet provider, an increase of 3.4 per cent over the previous quarter.

Small businesses are still unable to get help from their telcos after the coronavirus pandemic closed overseas call centres.

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Small business complaints were at their highest level in over a year, with many business owners having problems with multiple services.

Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman Judi Jones said the increase was “concerning” as Australia tries to reinvigorate the economy.

“Any issues between a small business and their provider in the delivery of a service can have significant consequences and I urge the parties to work together on solutions,” Ms Jones said.

“For the third quarter in a row we are seeing incremental growth in overall complaints.”

Complaints about being unable to contact a telco increased by 47 per cent, and according to the head of the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN), telcos can no longer blame it on the coronavirus pandemic.

A call centre operation in Townsville.

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“Phone and internet providers have had months to adapt to new customer service arrangements after overseas lockdowns affected their call centre operations,” ACCAN CEO Teresa Corbin said.

“To have over a third of complaints during the quarter relate to no or delayed action by providers is frankly astonishing and unacceptable; if you make a complaint, it should be heard and fixed.”

Ms Corbin said the increase in small business complaints “reflects the experiences of many” and that the telcos needed to do better.

“Reliable phone and internet services are the backbone of small businesses across the country. It’s time for the telcos to step up and ensure that both consumers and small businesses are kept reliably connected,” she said.

A telco executive has said the industry needs to hire more customer service staff locally.

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Complaints about not being able to contact telcos surged 1500 per cent earlier this year after the pandemic closed call centres in overseas countries where telcos have outsourced their customer service operations.

Head of business telco Macquarie Telecom, which bases all its customer service operations in Australia, said the rise in complaints was “hugely disappointing” at such a “critical time” and it was “unacceptable” that businesses couldn’t contact their providers while also being “charged with driving Australia’s economic recovery”.

“It has been several months since offshore call centres have been proven completely ineffective, and it’s clear tier one providers are not willing, or unable, to make up the shortfall at home,” Macquarie Telecom group executive Luke Clifton said.

“The industry has released plenty of rhetoric on improving service and hiring at home, but data doesn’t lie. Telcos must step up and aid Australia’s economy by providing the level of service businesses need, something I firmly believe can only be achieved through hiring more people in Australia to provide that service,” Mr Clifton added.

He said the industry needs to heed both the recent findings of the TIO and a separate warning from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

Call centre complaints have surged, drawing negative attention to the telco industry. Picture: Che Chorley

How the Telstra logo looked when consumer protections were first brought in for the telco industry in 1997.

ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin said on Wednesday the Authority “strongly supports” the government’s ongoing Consumer Safeguards Review “given these ongoing, systemic and impactful consumer issues”.

In its submission to the Review, ACMA notes that the telecommunications industry has changed significantly since current protections were set out more than two decades ago, praising the industry’s growth and ability to self-regulate but saying the goals of the original Telecommunications Act 1997 to foster competition against the Telstra monopoly “have been largely met” and new rules are needed.

“We consider that telecommunication services are essential services, like energy and water,” ACMA said in its submission, adding that “safeguards need to better reflect the importance of communications services and increased expectations of today’s consumers”.

ACMA has called for “clear and enforceable rules” as well as compulsory registration for the telco industry’s 1400 providers, with the ability for ACMA to deregister ones “that rip off consumers”.