Australia’s telcos maintain record-low complaint rates
According to the latest Complaints-in-Context Report released today by Communications Alliance, Australia's telcos have maintained record-low complaint rates.
The report reveals, for the third consecutive quarter, there were fewer than four complaints per 10,000 services in operation (SIO), with the October to December 2022, quarter average sitting at just 3.8, or one complaint for every 2,632 SIO.
The Complaints in Context Report provides meaningful information about complaints recorded against individual providers by the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) by creating an index that allows direct comparison of complaint numbers against individual telcos, regardless of their size.
The report is published quarterly. It presents the number of new TIO complaints lodged against each participating service provider as a proportion of the telecommunication services the provider has in operation.
New complaints data comprises complaints about telephone and internet services from residential and small business customers. It excludes enquiries made by residential and small business customers. The SIO data is based on a snapshot of active telephone or internet services taken at the end of the second month of the quarter for each participating telephone or internet service provider.
To calculate the number of Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman new complaints per 10,000 SIO, a service provider's total new complaints is divided by its total SIO and multiplied by 10,000.
The Complaints in Context report began in 2014 as a joint report by the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman and Communications Alliance.
Participation in the index is mandatory for the ten telco providers identified by the TIO as having the largest (absolute) number of phone and internet complaints in the previous financial year, with voluntary participation also welcomed. The most recent results are not directly comparable to prior quarters because the participating service providers have changed to reflect data in the latest TIO Annual Report.
"It is pleasing to see telcos actively competing on customer service performance and for complaint numbers to be so clearly reflecting this sustained effort," says John Stanton, Chief Executive Officer of the Alliance.
"When, in 2019, our Telecommunications Consumer Protection (TCP) Code introduced mandatory participation in this index for identified telcos, the industry's objective was to drive competition in this space by increasing transparency."
"Although the index is not the only driver of improved service provider performance and there is, of course, always room for improvement, we are delighted that this TCP Code provision appears to be driving improved customer service, as intended."
The Alliance encourages any RSP interested in joining the index to contact it at info@commsalliance.com.au.
Communications Alliance is the primary telecommunications industry body in Australia. Its membership is drawn from a broad cross-section of the communications industry, including carriers, carriage and internet service providers, content providers, search engines, equipment vendors, IT companies, consultants and business groups. It was formed to provide a unified voice for the Australian communications industry and to lead it into the next generation of converging networks, technologies and services.
The prime mission of the Communications Alliance is to promote the growth of the Australian communications industry and the protection of consumer interests by fostering the highest standards of business ethics and behaviour through industry self-governance.
