ONE.TEL offers refunds, signs up on Telco Consumer Code

One.Tel Limited customers will get a better understanding of possible variations to their mobile telephone contracts and some will receive refunds after agreement between the company and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

One.Tel will also join the Australian Communications Industry Forums Code on Customer Information on Prices, Terms and Conditions and will work to complete a trade practices compliance program.

This follows an ACCC inquiry into a significant number of consumer complaints about variations to certain One.Tel mobile phone contracts.

One.Tel has voluntarily provided court-enforceable undertakings under section 87B of the Trade Practices Act 1974. It will not vary certain mobile phone charges for its existing customers and will provide refunds of any $12 monthly access fees paid by customers who signed up to One.Tels popular 0/20 plan between 1 September 1996 and 1 May 1997.

One.Tel will also complete a trade practices compliance program, with particular regard to the misleading and/or deceptive conduct parts of the Act.

The ACCC raised the customer complaints as it believed One.Tel had failed to adequately bring the variation clauses to the customers attention

"The ACCC is pleased with One.Tels response to its concerns," ACCC Chairman, Professor Allan Fels, said. "One.Tel voluntarily provided a package of additional undertakings that will aim to prevent similar complaints. It is amending its terms and conditions to clearly distinguish which mobile phone charges will be fixed or guaranteed and which will be variable.

"The ACCC recognises that variation clauses are common in many telecommunications contracts, particularly where service resellers such as One.Tel are constrained by the variable fees and charges.

"But customers must enter into contracts fully aware of, and understanding the meaning of, any variation clauses.

"One.Tels acceptance of the Code, combined with the other measures it has introduced, will hopefully reduce the potential for any customer concerns in the future," Professor Fels said. "The ACCC encourages other telco companies to also sign up to the ACIF Code".

Background

The ACCC received a substantial number of complaints from customers who had subscribed to One.Tels 0/20 plan regarding the terms of One.Tels standard mobile phone contract known as the One.Form, and in particular, One.Tels reliance on certain variation clauses, which allowed it to vary the terms of the contract, including customer fees and charges, at its discretion over the contract period. Most complaints the ACCC received suggested that customers were unaware at the time of signing the contract of One.Tels right to vary the contract terms and were therefore concerned when their monthly access fees were varied.

In May 1997, One.Tel introduced a $12 monthly access fee on its 0/20 mobile phone plan. Before May 1997, customers had signed up to the plan on the basis of its zero monthly access fee and $20 minimum monthly call charge, and were of the view that these charges would remain the same for the minimum term of their contract. The customers the ACCC spoke to were unaware of the contract variation clauses at the time of signing their contracts, and only read these terms after the contract had been varied.