Poor service brings action on broadband
A crackdown on broadband internet providers after
a torrent of consumer complaints about poor service
will be announced this week.
Communications watchdog Ofcom is set to make mandatory
the voluntary code on the transfer of customers
from one provider to another.
The most common moan concerns Migration Authorisation
Codes, which allow the transfer of a broadband line
between providers. Some firms have refused to give
out Macs. Others ignore calls and letters from the
new provider, which can leave customers without
a service.
Ofcom's move will allow it to pursue complaints.
"There is a lot of anger out there," said
Chris Williams, broadband manager at utility deals
adviser uSwitch. "Orange has been criticised
for introducing a 12 charge if more than one Mac
has to be issued."
Orange said the charge is designed "to stop
the misleading selling practices by firms encouraging
Mac requests while not actually being able to connect
these customers to a new service within a reasonable
period."
Sources at the two telecoms ombudsman schemes,
which can award compensation, say broadband complaints
have soared. Mair Coombes-Davies, convener of Cisas,
the adjudication scheme to which many internet companies
belong, said Mac numbers are a major cause of complaint,
but other issues are also emerging.
"There are always complaints about billing
problems. Another issue is to do with the fact that
many service providers do not provide the line used
to allow broadband. Customers can be trapped between
the provider and the line company, usually BT."
The Office of the Telecommunications Ombudsman
has seen a big rise in complaints, including 182
Mac-related cases that a spokesman suspects are
"the tip of the iceberg."
Williams said scores of other niggles affect different
groups. "There can be an issue when BT upgrades
technology in its exchanges to increase broadband
speed. Some older modems can't handle it. BT now
warns customers by e-mail and replaces obsolete
modems for free."
