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8/12/2019 Phone Right Consumer
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Send all your updates about mobile telecoms and plans for WCRD 2014 to
Reileen Joy Dulay at [email protected] and join http://lists.consumersinternational.org/wws/info/wcrd
World Consumer Rights Day:Saturday 15 March 2014
FIX OUR PHONE RIGHTS!
About Consumers International
Established in 1960, CI is the world federation of consumer rights groups. Our goal is to ensure that consumerrights can never be ignored. With over 240 member organisations spanning 120 countries, we serve as the
only independent and authoritative global voice for consumer rights. We are a registered UK charity.
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Send all your updates about mobile telecoms and plans for WCRD 2014 to
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World Consumer Rights Day: Saturday 15 March 2014 Fix Our Phone Rights!
Contents World Consumer Rights Day: Fix Our Phone Rights! .............................................................................................. 3Why Phone Rights are important ........................................................................................................................... 3
Get involved ............................................................................................................................................................ 3
CI’s agenda for Phone Rights ................................................................................................................................... 4
How consumer groups are already fighting for Phone Rights……………………………………………………………………………..5
Case studies to help your campaign …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..6
Provide consumers with fair contracts explained in clear, complete and accessible language ............................. 6
Provide consumers with their money’s worth ........................................................................................................ 7
Provide consumers with fair and transparent billing .............................................................................................. 8
Provide consumers with power over their own information ................................................................................. 9
Listen and respond to consumer complaints ....................................................................................................... 10
Appendix I ............................................................................................................................................................ 12
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Send all your updates about mobile telecoms and plans for WCRD 2014 to
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World Consumer Rights Day: Saturday 15 March 2014
Fix Our Phone Rights!
Can you imagine a world without mobile phones? In just a few years they have become an indispensable part
of our lives and can be found in almost every country around the world.
But as the number of consumers using mobile services nears 7 billion, what sort of service are they receiving?
Are they being treated fairly? Our 2014 World Consumer Rights Day (WCRD) campaign “Fix Our Phone Rights!”
is devoted to tackling the issues that most effect consumers of mobile services.
WCRD was established on 15 March 1983 to promote consumer rights around the world. For WCRD 2014, we
are calling on CI Members and Supporters to highlight the consumer issues that are undermining and
frustrating the success of this new technology.
Why Phone Rights are important
In 2013 it was estimated that 6.8 billion people owned a mobile phone. In 2011 that figure was 6 billion and in
2010 it was 5.4 billioni. When you consider that there are only 7.2 billion people in the world you realise how
widespread mobile phones have become!
At the same time mobile services have transformed from just being telephones that enable us to talk and text,
to mini computers giving us access to information and services that are crucial to livelihoods and health. They
are not just convenient, but increasingly important tools that help to empower citizens and consumers. Having
access to mobile connectivity is a necessity and has gone beyond being a frivolous activity.
Get involved
As we get closer to WCRD 2014, CI will be highlighting the problems and challenges faced by mobile consumers
across the world. This will culminate in a global action in the final week running up to 15 March. Together with
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Send all your updates about mobile telecoms and plans for WCRD 2014 to
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your national activities, we hope to ring in some significant changes to the way mobile consumers are treated.
Details of how you can get involved will be with you in January, so please key an eye out for CI WCRD
communications.
Also make sure you subscribe to CI’s WCRD 2014 e-network to get the latest updates:
http://lists.consumersinternational.org/wws/info/wcrd
CI’s agenda for Phone Rights
CI is developing a WCRD consumer agenda for Phone Rights. These are issues that affect mobile consumers
across the world in some way, and we hope every CI Member and Supporter can join the call too. Some of the
issues we want to address are:
1. Provide consumers with fair contracts explained in clear, complete and accessible language
Consumers often feel cheated by their mobile provider, either because of unfair contract terms and
conditions or because they didn’t understand what they had signed. Telecom providers should always
provide consumers with fair contracts with all relevant information explained clearly so that consumers
can exercise their right to make informed choices.
2. Provide consumers with their money's worth
Consumers subscribe to mobile services in order to communicate and to access information. It is only
reasonable that they then expect those services to be consistent and of a high quality without drop
outs in service.
3. Provide consumers with fair and transparent billing
Consumers shouldn’t be billed for services they didn’t request. We demand fairness and transparency
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in our bills, and protection from billing fraud.
4. Provide consumers with power over their own information!
Telecoms providers and regulators alike must protect the personal data that consumers give up in
order to use mobile services. Whilst giving consent to use personal data can enhance the experience of
using a mobile phone, it can also compromise the consumer ’s right to safety. Consumers must be able
to set the terms of how this data is used.
5. Listen and respond to consumer complaints
Telecom providers should have effective complaints systems, and if consumers are not satisfied thereshould be redress mechanisms to ensure a fair outcome. We must be able to penalise providers for
abusive and unjust business practices.
How consumer groups are already fighting for Phone Rights
Developments in mobile telecommunication continue to deliver real benefits to consumers all around the
world. However, despite the undoubted success of the mobile telecom industry, critical concerns remain about
consumer rights to information, security, privacy, mutual trust and fairness. In many countries around the
world consumers suffer from abuses, unfair practices and inconsistencies in mobile telecommunications
services.
In Malaysia, the National Consumer Complaints Centre (NCCC) - an independent body monitoring consumer
complaints, noted in its 2012 Annual Report that the sector with the highest number of complaints was
telecommunications. The 5,985 complaints included poor connectivity and tariff and billing concerns.
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Within the telecoms sector, most complaints often stem from mobile services. The Telecommunications
Industry Ombudsman (TIO) of Australia released its 2012-2013 report showing more complaints about mobile
services than any other telephone or Internet service. Of the 91,331 received mobile services complaints,
issues on coverage i.e. inability to make or receive calls and messages, inability to connect to the internet,
poor voice quality, and call dropouts - hit the number one spot with 25,770 complaints recordedii.
Case studies to help your campaign
1. Provide consumers with fair contracts explained in clear, complete and accessible language
A significant concern for consumers is the misleading, unclear and incomplete information that consumers are
given when they purchase mobile services. There are many reported cases in which consumers feel their
contracts are unfair or where they are not provided complete information on the provisions of the contract.
The result is often confusion and additional charges for end-users.
Examples of unfair and unclear contracts include:
Consumers are not provided with complete information about their contract.
There are hidden/vague provisions for automatic subscription renewals.
Consumers are unaware they are locked in to a lengthy commitment.
Unfair penalties are imposed for switching or terminating the service.
Which? UK
When UK consumers with a ‘fixed tariff’ contract were forced to pay for price hikes, CI’s UK member Which?
launched a successful ‘Fixed should mean fixed’iii campaign that called for the mobile phone companies to allow
the subscribers to leave their contract without penalty, if the network provider increased its service charges
beyond what was agreed in the signed contract.
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FOCUA-Consumers in Action, Spain
In Spain, CI Member FOCUA-Consumers in Action led the campaign #liberamimovil (unlock my mobile) against
the sale of locked mobile handsets to subscribers and the refusal to unlock these until the completion of their
contracts. Since the Consumer Protection Act in Spain recognises the autonomy of consumer authorities in
each of the 17 Autonomous Communities iv, FOCUA-Consumers in Action lobbied to fine companies which
continue to practice such policy, Movistar (one of the largest telecommunications providers in Spain)
announced the cessation of the policyv.
2. Provide consumers with their money's worth
High fees and promises from telecom providers encourage consumers to expect mobile connectivity at all
times, yet despite technological developments, poor service continues to be a perennial concern.
Examples of poor service include:
Poor mobile coverage - Mobile connection is inconsistent and fluctuating such that consumers
can’t use mobile services from one area to another.
Service drop outs Consumers experience drop outs, slow mobile Internet access or mobile
applications that crash.
Poor complaints - handling and a failure to resolve problems. Consumers are kept on hold for
long periods of time and fail to have their problems resolved to their satisfaction.
Association des Consommateurs du Mali (ASCOMA), Mali
In Mali, with the support of CI, the Association des Consommateurs du Mali (ASCOMA) vi has called for the
telecom providers to improve their network facilities in order to deliver the promotional services that are being
promoted to consumers. The poor network facilities cause call drop outs and network dead spots. With these
inefficiencies, the consumers are not benefitting from the services offered.
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Countryside Alliance, UK
In south west England, the public were encouraged to get involved in the Countryside Alliance's campaign to
improve mobile phone coverage in the rural areas of the region, which often experiences poor to no network
signals. According to Countryside Alliance, the poor network quality results in the loss in livelihoods vii.
3. Provide consumers with fair and transparent billing
Without clear and complete information, consumers are vulnerable to unfair charging for mobile services. Too
often consumers are charged for services and products that they have not authorised or that are associated
with free services. Consumer rights are also compromised when they are billed with products or services they
did not purchase, products or services they did not receive or when they are charged at a higher fee than the
fee that was advertised. These abuses are collectively known as ‘cramming’.
Examples of unfair and unclear billing include:
Hidden charges.
Consumers pay for a service or product which is more expensive than its published rate.
Scamming. Consumers receive calls or text messages from an unknown number offering
promotions and prizes, but are asked to sign up for a service before receiving the promotion.
They then find they are billed for this additional service.
Non-transparent charging scheme. Consumers are often confused by the complicated pricing
tariffs or are simply unaware of charges and costs due to the complexity of the information
they are given.
Excessive roaming charges. Using mobile services abroad can result in sky-high mobile phone
bills.
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Data breach and identity theft due to inadequate security measures by the mobile providerxi.
Consumers’ data and personal information can be accessed without authorisation, either
through a deliberate attack, by someone trying to impersonate the consumer or weak
protection that allows personal data to be viewed.
Mobile surveillance. Consumers’ data is collected and used by companies in ways that they
haven’t agreed to and don’t agree to.
Rwanda Consumer’s Rights Protection Organization's (ADECOR), Rwanda
In July 2013, all mobile users in Rwanda were required to register their SIM cards with mobile telephone
operators to protect the identity of the consumers and to combat terrorist acts. This move, though intended to
provide security, could also threaten the privacy of consumers and citizens. For this reason, the RwandaConsumer’s Rights Protection Organization's (ADECOR) proposed a campaign called “Stop Airing My Privacy”,
seeking to directly engage with ICT companies and mobile operators to ensure that consumers’ information is
respected. Government bodies such as the Ministry of ICT, Youth, and members of the parliament will be
encouraged to review the use of consumers' data.
The Slovenian Consumers Association (ZPS), Slovenia
The Slovenian Consumers Associationxii (ZPS), with support from CI, has launched a campaign calling for
telecom providers to provide better information to consumers about their automatic membership to unwanted
messages from “SMS club” services. This has resulted in third party providers billing consumers with additionalcharges and having access to their information. Despite the access the SMS club has to the consumers'
information, the consumers are not able to communicate directly with the SMS club to stop the charges.
5. Listen and respond to consumer complaints
International guidelines for how telecom providers, mobile vendors and governments should work together to
establish fair, effective, and transparent self-regulatory mechanisms, policies, and procedures to handle and
resolve consumer complaints and disputes, have been in place since 2008xiii.
However, many consumers still don’t know where to turn when they have a problem and many disputes are
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left unresolved.
Inadequate regulatory policies and procedures include:
A lack of strong policies on regulation of mobile telecom providers.
A lack of strong policies on dispute resolution between consumers, mobile telecom providers
and government.
The high cost of seeking redress.
Tanzania Consumers Advocacy Society (TCAS), Tanzania
In 2013, CI’s Member in Tanzania, the Tanzania Consumers Advocacy Society (TCAS) launched a campaign
against a proposed monthly SIM card tax of Sh1,000. The tax threatens to make mobile services unaffordablefor the poorest households who, it is estimated, only spend Sh3,154 per month on airtime xiv. Aside from the
economic burden, the SIM card tax has not undergone consultation among the citizens of Tanzaniaxv. Following
the launch of the campaign, the telecommunication providers have also joined TCAS in opposing the new tax.
Telecommunication User Committee, Argentina
In Argentina, the Telecommunication User Committee launched a campaign to raise awareness on the abuses
of telecom providers. A fifteen-point call was released by the Committee to promote changes in the regulatory
provisions in the telecommunication sector to ensure that consumers are protected from any unfair practices
concerning tariffs, contracts, quality of service and redress mechanisms.
The Telecommunication User Committee is composed of 24 consumers organisations, of which some are CI
Members – Consumidores Argentinos, Adelco, ProConsumer, Protectora, UCA and Union de Usuarios y
Consumidoresxvi.
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xi See http://www.techopedia.com/definition/13601/data-breach
xii See http://www.zps.si/
xiii See Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Consumer Policy Guidance on
Online and Mobile Payments. 4-6 November 2013.
xiv See http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Dar-telcos-join-consumers-in-lawsuit-over-SIM-card-tax/-
/1840392/2026062/-/o4nbm4z/-/index.html
xv See http://www.twaweza.org/go/sauti-brief-sim-tax
xvi See http://consumidoresarg.org.ar/article/campana-contra-los-de-las-empresas-de-telef/