Rachel_Sandford
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Telecommunications regulator, Ofcom, just released the results of their latest survey, which tracked how happy consumers have been with their landline, broadband, mobile, and pay TV services. Among the 11,000 people who answered the survey, 23% were unhappy with their broadband service and 24% were dissatisfied with their landline service. Pay TV services rated higher than average at 66%, with BSkyB scoring just a bit over Virgin Media.
Participants of the survey were asked to rate how satisfied they were with their service by rating their most recent customer service experience with their respective companies. Scores were based on how easy it was to contact customer service personnel, the speed in which they were dealt with, the manner in which the person dealt with them, and the usefulness of the advice they received.
The survey found that most consumers contact their landline provider to change their package or service or to report poor quality of service. Among the landline providers, BSkyB scored the highest, with 66% of consumers satisfied and 17% dissatisfied. Ofcom said that BSkyB “appears to have improved on most aspects of its customer service.”
For broadband, consumers often contact their providers regarding a change of package, connection speeds, and higher-than-expected bills. Among the broadband providers, Orange rated quite high with 76% satisfied and 11% dissatisfied. Given the fact that Orange had the lowest customer service satisfaction levels in 2009, the regulator considers this a good improvement, saying “Orange now tops the board.”
Mobile providers often receive customer calls regarding changes in package or service, billing issues, and repair issues. T-Mobile scored 72% satisfaction and 9% dissatisfaction. Vodafone had a dissatisfaction rating of 14%, and 3 received a rating of 11%.
Scoring the lowest on almost all fronts, was TalkTalk, the UK's third largest Internet service provider, and first major UK ISP to implement network-level anti-malware blockers to its service. The company, which has been having customer service problems since it took over Tiscali in 2009, has quarter of its customers dissatisfied with its landline and broadband services and the quality of call centre responses.
Ofcom said TalkTalk's “customers are the least satisfied with aspects of customer service, for similar reasons to their landline service,” and that the problem was “mainly due to customers being unable to get through to the right person, the speed of answering the phone and general dissatisfaction with the customer service advisor.” The regulator added that “TalkTalk also has the least loyal customers (34% saying they are less likely to use TalkTalk again for their broadband service).”
The survey revealed that TalkTalk was the most complained about landline and broadband provider between October 2010 and February 2011. Their broadband service had 1.27 complaints for every 1,000 customers, while their landline service had 1.78 complaints for every 1,000 customers. The complaints peaked in November 2010, during which time an Ofcom investigation was being conducted for incorrectly billing consumers for canceled services. TalkTalk and Tiscali had to pay £2.5m to 62,500 people, following the results of the investigation.
A spokesman for Ofcom, Claudio Pollack, said in a statement: “The research shows that there can be considerable differences in consumers' experiences of customer service. By publishing this research we want to give consumers an insight into the standard of customer service being offered across the communications sector. The more information of this kind consumers have, the more effectively they can exercise their choice.”
“Ofcom hopes publication of this research will act as an incentive to communications providers to improve their customer service levels,” Pollack continued. “To ensure that consumers and Ofcom have an accurate picture of service levels, Ofcom intends to conduct this again in the next 12 months.”
In the meantime, new service rules governing ISPs and telecommunications companies are being implemented beginning today, July 22[SUP]nd[/SUP]. The laws dictate that communications providers need to resolve customer complains within an eight week period. If remaining unresolved, customers can take their complaint to a free, independent, Ofcom approved resolution service, specifically Ombudsman Services: Communications or Communications and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme (CISAS).
Under the new ruling, ISPs and telecommunications providers will be required to include details of the relevant dispute resolution service (DRS) to their paper bills. Ofcom has announced that decisions made by these resolution services are legally binding to the provider. The regulator is also considering forcing ISPs to make it easier for dissatisfied consumers to switch providers. The review on this matter is expected to be released later this year.
Despite the obvious action Ofcom has taken, they are not free from criticism. Michael Phillips from Broadbandchoices.co.uk said that the research was flawed because the survey only covered companies holding a market share of 4% or more. “It's encouraging to see that service providers are making strides to improve customer service satisfaction levels, but it's a shame that the research excludes the smaller service providers,” he said. “Our own research earlier this year of over 11,000 respondents has shown that smaller, niche [broadband] providers, such as O2, BE, and Plusnet, are streets ahead of some of their larger counterparts.”
Phillips continued on saying that “This report highlights how important it is to regularly compare services and providers and take into account more than just the headline price. The cheapest deal is not necessarily the best value, so look at things like customer ratings and additional benefits to the overall package when weighing up your choices.”
With regard to the new ruling, “The new rules on resolving customer complaints should have a positive knock-on effect in improving service levels. Our research has shown that consumer awareness of the complaints process is very low and many don't use it. Voting with your feet is the best way to improve your service and get value for money,” said Phillips.
Participants of the survey were asked to rate how satisfied they were with their service by rating their most recent customer service experience with their respective companies. Scores were based on how easy it was to contact customer service personnel, the speed in which they were dealt with, the manner in which the person dealt with them, and the usefulness of the advice they received.
The survey found that most consumers contact their landline provider to change their package or service or to report poor quality of service. Among the landline providers, BSkyB scored the highest, with 66% of consumers satisfied and 17% dissatisfied. Ofcom said that BSkyB “appears to have improved on most aspects of its customer service.”
For broadband, consumers often contact their providers regarding a change of package, connection speeds, and higher-than-expected bills. Among the broadband providers, Orange rated quite high with 76% satisfied and 11% dissatisfied. Given the fact that Orange had the lowest customer service satisfaction levels in 2009, the regulator considers this a good improvement, saying “Orange now tops the board.”
Mobile providers often receive customer calls regarding changes in package or service, billing issues, and repair issues. T-Mobile scored 72% satisfaction and 9% dissatisfaction. Vodafone had a dissatisfaction rating of 14%, and 3 received a rating of 11%.
Scoring the lowest on almost all fronts, was TalkTalk, the UK's third largest Internet service provider, and first major UK ISP to implement network-level anti-malware blockers to its service. The company, which has been having customer service problems since it took over Tiscali in 2009, has quarter of its customers dissatisfied with its landline and broadband services and the quality of call centre responses.
Ofcom said TalkTalk's “customers are the least satisfied with aspects of customer service, for similar reasons to their landline service,” and that the problem was “mainly due to customers being unable to get through to the right person, the speed of answering the phone and general dissatisfaction with the customer service advisor.” The regulator added that “TalkTalk also has the least loyal customers (34% saying they are less likely to use TalkTalk again for their broadband service).”
The survey revealed that TalkTalk was the most complained about landline and broadband provider between October 2010 and February 2011. Their broadband service had 1.27 complaints for every 1,000 customers, while their landline service had 1.78 complaints for every 1,000 customers. The complaints peaked in November 2010, during which time an Ofcom investigation was being conducted for incorrectly billing consumers for canceled services. TalkTalk and Tiscali had to pay £2.5m to 62,500 people, following the results of the investigation.
A spokesman for Ofcom, Claudio Pollack, said in a statement: “The research shows that there can be considerable differences in consumers' experiences of customer service. By publishing this research we want to give consumers an insight into the standard of customer service being offered across the communications sector. The more information of this kind consumers have, the more effectively they can exercise their choice.”
“Ofcom hopes publication of this research will act as an incentive to communications providers to improve their customer service levels,” Pollack continued. “To ensure that consumers and Ofcom have an accurate picture of service levels, Ofcom intends to conduct this again in the next 12 months.”
In the meantime, new service rules governing ISPs and telecommunications companies are being implemented beginning today, July 22[SUP]nd[/SUP]. The laws dictate that communications providers need to resolve customer complains within an eight week period. If remaining unresolved, customers can take their complaint to a free, independent, Ofcom approved resolution service, specifically Ombudsman Services: Communications or Communications and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme (CISAS).
Under the new ruling, ISPs and telecommunications providers will be required to include details of the relevant dispute resolution service (DRS) to their paper bills. Ofcom has announced that decisions made by these resolution services are legally binding to the provider. The regulator is also considering forcing ISPs to make it easier for dissatisfied consumers to switch providers. The review on this matter is expected to be released later this year.
Despite the obvious action Ofcom has taken, they are not free from criticism. Michael Phillips from Broadbandchoices.co.uk said that the research was flawed because the survey only covered companies holding a market share of 4% or more. “It's encouraging to see that service providers are making strides to improve customer service satisfaction levels, but it's a shame that the research excludes the smaller service providers,” he said. “Our own research earlier this year of over 11,000 respondents has shown that smaller, niche [broadband] providers, such as O2, BE, and Plusnet, are streets ahead of some of their larger counterparts.”
Phillips continued on saying that “This report highlights how important it is to regularly compare services and providers and take into account more than just the headline price. The cheapest deal is not necessarily the best value, so look at things like customer ratings and additional benefits to the overall package when weighing up your choices.”
With regard to the new ruling, “The new rules on resolving customer complaints should have a positive knock-on effect in improving service levels. Our research has shown that consumer awareness of the complaints process is very low and many don't use it. Voting with your feet is the best way to improve your service and get value for money,” said Phillips.