Telstra in breach of consumer protection rules by after it restricted or suspended some customer services

ACMA says Telstra breached consumer protection laws when it failed to give notice to more than 5400 customers before restricting or suspending their services.

ACMA says Telstra breached consumer protection laws when it failed to give notice to more than 5400 customers before restricting or suspending their services. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Bianca De Marchi

Telstra has been declared in breach of consumer protection rules by the Australian Communications and Media Authority after it failed to give notice to more than 5400 customers before restricting or suspending their services.

The service restriction meant that many Telstra customers couldn’t make outbound calls other than to Telstra itself or emergency services, with some also unable to receive calls other than from the carrier and emergency services.

An investigation found that between May and July 2022 Telstra took action to limit the customers’ services due to non-payment of bills without providing at least five working days’ notice as required under the Telecommunications Consumer Protections Code.

ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said telecommunication companies must take extra care when it comes to taking actions that disrupt people’s services, especially amid the current economic conditions when cost of living pressures are paramount for many consumers.

“Phone and internet connections are essential for our everyday lives. We use them for work, education, banking, health services and social connection.

“With the current cost of living pressures, many Australians are doing it tough. By limiting peoples’ services without notice Telstra likely caused these people significant additional stress,” Ms O’Loughlin said.

As a result of the breaches, ACMA has issued Telstra with a formal warning.

One of ACMA’s 2022-23 compliance priorities is the protection of telco consumers experiencing financial hardship. Fundamental to this is making sure that telcos comply with their obligations, especially those relating to the disconnection of services. ACMA will soon release a report looking at customer financial hardship in the telco sector together with research into the customer experience.

A Telstra spokesman said that last year the telco identified and reported to ACMA that a small number of customers – with unpaid bills – didn’t get the required notice before having their services either restricted or suspended.

“We quickly identified a system error that meant customers without an email address on credit management didn’t receive a letter letting them know that their service would be restricted unless payment was made,” the spokesman said.

“We fixed the issue in our system and contacted the impacted customers. It should be noted that all customers during this time were still able to call triple-0 in the event of an emergency.”