Complaints
Complaining about your service provider
This guide is designed to inform you about your rights when making a complaint about your telecommunications and postal services. Most consumers are unsure about how to complain to their service provider and this guide will help consumers to structure their complaint. It also outlines ComReg’s role in the complaints process.
In this guide we:
• explain what the service provider must do when dealing with a complaint;
• list the points to consider when making a complaint;
• list the steps to take if you have exhausted your service provider’s complaints procedures and the issue is still not resolved;
• explain the role of ComReg and how we can help you;
• provide a full list of consumer organisations; and
• provide contact details for the postal Universal Service Provider (USP).
How should my service provider deal with my complaint?
Many telecommunications and postal service providers are required to put in place a code of practice for handling complaints. This code contains all the details you need if you want to complain, including:
• contact details for making complaints;
• procedures for investigating and escalating complaints;
• timescales for resolving complaints;
• compensation entitlements for service failures by your telecommunication or postal service provider; and
• details on the disconnection policies of telecommunication service providers.
How can I get a copy of my telecommunications or postal service provider’s complaints code?
You can get a copy of your telecommunications or postal service provider’s code on its website or by calling its customer care line. The Postal Service provider’s complaints code is also available at its public offices or outlets.
Points to note when making a complaint to your telecommunications or postal service provider
• Try to be clear about the issue and give enough details when making a complaint.-
• Give the service provider a chance to resolve your complaint.
• Record the date and time that you make your complaint.
• Ask for a reference number for your complaint.
• Make a note of any commitments that were made by the service provider.
What happens if I don’t feel my complaint is being handled properly?
What happens if my service provider doesn’t resolve my complaint?
If you still feel that your complaint has not been adequately addressed after using the service provider’s complaint procedures, we in ComReg may be able to help you.
How can ComReg help?
We will try to help by explaining what the service provider’s obligations are and will give you a realistic idea of the likely outcome of your complaint.
Will ComReg investigate my complaint?
If your complaint relates to a service provider's consumer protection obligations, we will ask the service provider to re-examine your complaint.
Who resolves the complaint?
When we refer your complaint to the service provider, it remains responsible for maintaining contact with you to resolve the issue. We will monitor the progress of your complaint and when the service provider lets us know that the issue is resolved, we will monitor the resolution and check to see all the issues have been addressed.
How long s hould it take to resolve my complaint?
Once a complaint is referred to the service provider, it typically resolves the complaint within 10 working days. It may take longer to resolve more complex issues. In these cases you should be kept informed about what is happening to your complaint. Postal operators should acknowledge receipt of a complaint within 3 working days.
• You should first speak to your service provider about the complaint.
• You should have exhausted the service provider’s complaint handling procedures.
• The issue giving rise to your complaint must have occurred
- for telecommunications issues - within the previous 9 months
- for postal issues* within 1 month of receiving an item; within 3 months of posting mail within Ireland; and within 6 months of the date of posting of international items.
• Generally, you should be the person who has experienced the service failure (either the account holder for telecoms complaints or the sender or the recipient of mail for postal complaints). In some cases, however, we will work with other people or organisations.
* This applies to An Post, the designated postal Universal Service Provider (USP), and other postal operators offering a universal service. For all other postal operators, please refer to their terms and conditions. Operators’ details are available on ComReg’s website www.comreg.ie.
Details you should give ComReg about your complaint
• Your contact details including a mobile telephone number if possible for telecoms complaints, and full postal addressfor postal complaints
• The account name and account number (if applicable)
• Details of the complaint, including the complaint reference number
• Details about previous dealings with the service provider
• A clear statement of what you hope to achieve byraising your complaint
When you give us information, please let us know if there are any particular details that you do not want us to send to the service provider.
Postal Universal Service Provider’s details
An Post
Phone: 1850 57 58 59
Letter: Customer Service, GPO, FREEPOST,
Fax: (01) 809 0900
Email: customer.services@anpost.ie
Details for all Authorised Postal Service Providers are on our website www.askcomreg.ie
Who else can help?
Telecommunications issues
• Broadcasting Commission of
Phone: (01) 644 1200
Website: www.bci.ie
Postal issues
• Office of the Ombudsman (An Post only)
Phone: (01) 639 5600 / 1890 223 030
Website: www.ombudsman.gov.ie
Phone: (01) 888 6000
Website: www.courts.ie
• Advertising Standards Authority for
Phone: (01) 660 8766
Website: www.asai.ie
• European Consumer Centre
Phone: (01) 809 0600
Website: www.eccireland.ie
•
Phone: (057) 868 4800 / 1890 252 231
Website: www.dataprotection.ie
• National Consumer Agency
Phone: 1890 432 432
Website: www.consumerconnect.ie
How can I contact ComReg?
(
By fax: (01) 804 9680
By email: consumerline@comreg.ie
Our websites are:
www.comreg.ie / www.askcomreg.ie / www.callcosts.ie
By post: ComReg Consumer Team, Irish Life Centre,
Block DEF,
November 2008
