Telcos pay $1 million in compensation during 2008-09, but customer service performance improves

The country’s major telecommunications companies were forced to give out more than $1 million in compensation payments over the 2008-09 financial year, the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s annual report reveals.

The report also highlights an increase in the number of complaints received by the industry ombudsman, in an attempt to get telcos to lift their game.

But the report shows found the performance of the major telcos improved over the year, with consumers experiencing fewer and less frequent delays when waiting for new connections or experiencing a fault.

The report shows Telstra improved its performance in fault repairs, moving up from 88.8% to 90.5%, but its performance for meeting connections targets dropped to 90.3% from 92.8%.

Over the year, an average of 98.72% of the company’s fixed line services were uninterrupted by a fault, with services available on average for 99.91% each month. The average repair time fell from 63 hours to 51 hours.

However, the company also recorded a 73% increase in the number of individual services hit by a fault on four more occasions during a 60 day period, or five or more in a 365-day period.

Additionally, Optus’ performance for meeting connections targets rose to 96% for the year, with AAPT also rising to 93.1%. Both increased fault repair rates up to 90.6% and 93.9% respectively. However, AAPT’s performance for quick repairs declined.

Telecommunications companies are required to give compensation for late repairs or connections, with $14.52 for fewer than five days, and $48.40 for six days or over. Late or missed appointments require a payment of $14.52.

Telstra missed the customer service guarantee deadline in 3.2% of cases, while Optus exceeded the limit in 6.3% of cases. AAPT did not provide percentage figures, but said it missed 761 appointments in the time frame.

For priority assistance customers, such as those who are sick or elderly and have access to faster-than-normal repairs, Telstra dropped below the 90% mark for the first time in regards to connections, but its repair rate increased.

However, the report shows the telecommunications industry ombudsman recorded a 79.2% increase in complaint issues to 481,418 during the year, across all categories.

Telstra spokesman Craig Middleton told The Age the company wasn’t necessarily happy with some of the figures.

”It’s true that our performance during 2008-09 wasn’t as strong as we would have liked, but improving customer service is one of our top priorities,” he said.

Optus customer care director Austin Bryan said the company was encouraged by their performance.