ComReg seeks redress for consumers over failed engineer appointments, but stops short of mandating automatic compensation
Protecting consumers in the event of missed or delayed appointments
On 6 November 2024, ComReg published a month-long consultation on end user compensation for missed and delayed service and installation appointments – or “MDSIA”. Following transposition of the European Electronic Communications Code (EECC) into national law, the regulator is empowered to require operators pay compensation to consumers in the event of delays to, and abuses of, switching and porting processes, as well as for missed and delayed engineer appointments. Having established in January 2024 a compensation scheme for switching and number portability, ComReg is now consulting on an equivalent mechanism for appointments. The regulator states that it wants to ensure a consistent level of protection and redress for end users and to promote their interests in the case of any consumer harm arising from MDSIA, particularly by enabling the maximum level of quality of service (QoS) on the basis of effective competition.
Providers will have to meet new minimum QoS standards, compensating end users if they fall short of what’s expected
According to ComReg, there were around 3,600 consumer issues recorded in Q1 2024, of which 82% (~2,950) related to telecoms services. Of these, 5% (~150) were linked to problems with installations. The regulator’s preliminary view is that end users experience direct and indirect harm where an appointment is not met and for which they do not receive adequate redress. It therefore considers it necessary and appropriate to intervene in respect of service quality failures relating to MDSIA, and to specify how consumers may secure compensation. As such, the consultation sets out ComReg’s proposals to:
Specify minimum QoS standards for MDSIA, including the requirement for a provider to offer a customer a range of time slots and working days to choose from, and to confirm an appointment via email or SMS;
Specify failures of providers to comply with such standards, namely if an appointment is missed (not attended at the agreed time on the agreed day) or delayed (rearranged for a later time on the same day); and
Extend the specification of minimum QoS standards and of compensable failures to MDSIA beyond the scope of porting and switching.
Following its final decision, ComReg envisages a three-month implementation period for providers to comply with the minimum QoS standards. It is also the regulator’s provisional view that failure to meet its proposed standards – except in the case of certain ‘force majeure’ events – should lead to a provider paying compensation to an affected consumer. Operators would have a total of six months by which to have a transparent and user-friendly compensation scheme published and put into effect.
The regulator has considered the actions of its peers, but is not moving to introduce automatic compensation at this time
In coming to its proposals, ComReg has explored the experiences of other industries in Ireland and of other European countries with regard to what is understood by an appointment and also the compensation payable when an appointment is missed or delayed. Specifically, it has considered:
Gas Networks Ireland’s Customer Charter, which allows for claims of €50 (£41.5) if it fails to meet an appointment or notify a customer of cancellation;
Ofcom’s automatic compensation regime in the UK, under which consumers are entitled to receive a fixed fee of £30.49 for a missed engineer appointment without having to ask for it;
Belgium’s amended Royal Decree of September 2016, which entitles consumers to automatic compensation of €30 (£24.9) for a missed appointment; and
Slovenia’s General Act on Number Portability and the Switching of Internet Access Service Providers 2023, which requires operators to compensate end users if a service is not provided within the agreed time frame.
Unlike the systems in place elsewhere in Europe, ComReg is not proposing to implement an automatic compensation scheme or to determine the level of compensation at this time; however, it has stated that this matter will remain under review. Its MDSIA consultation will close on 6 December, after which it (currently) expects to issue a final decision by the end of January 2025.
