Canada's big three telecommunications companies (Bell, Rogers and Telus) are fighting back against allegations that they engage in misleading sales practices and deliberately try to dupe customers into taking on services they don’t need and cannot afford.
Canada’s federal telecommunications regulator, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) reports that during the past past two months it has received more than 1,000 comments from telecommunications customers, complaining about everything from misleading promotions to being charged for products they never wanted and couldn’t recall ordering.
The CRTC has threatened to legislate changes to the sales practices of Canada’s major telecommunications companies – something that Bell, Rogers and Telus are vigorously fighting back against.
"Our customers are treated in a fair and respectful manner when purchasing the services we offer," Rogers wrote in a recent submission to the CRTC.
The CRTC requested information from the telcos after launching an inquiry in July into allegations of misleading and aggressive sales practices that could be harming consumers. In a joint CRTC submission, Bell, Rogers and Telus each defend their sales practices and claim their customers are well served by current processes. They say that, while there may be "a few hiccups," their ultimate aim is to retain customers by catering to their needs.
According to Bell, it provides more than 22 million wireless, residential and business customer connections, and has invested more than $850 million in improving customer service since 2011. The company's sales agents earn the bulk of their salary through an hourly wage and the rest through commission.
While the lure of commission may motivate sales staff, Bell says it has "significant measures and controls in place to help mitigate the risk that customers are misled." This includes a complaint resolution process, clawing back commission from sales made to unhappy customers, and a code of conduct mandating "ethical behaviour."
Similarly, Rogers states that no new rules are needed to strengthen Canada's existing consumer protections. Rogers serves close to 13 million customers and says over the past year it has fielded 2,200 complaints that were sales related. The company says it has a "zero-tolerance" policy for unethical sales practices and that its goal is to build long-term relationships with customers. Rogers sales agents make 30% of their salary through commissions, bonus pay and other incentives.
The CRTC said in a written statement that it is reviewing the telco submission and that it expects to make a ruling this fall on whether to legislate changes to the way Bell (TSX: BCE), Rogers (TSX: RCI.B) and Telus (TSX: T) engage in sales with customers.
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