ARCHIVED - Telecom Commission Letter Addressed to David Watt (Rogers Communications Inc.)

Ottawa, 13 February 2018

BY E-MAIL

Mr. David Watt
Senior Vice President, Regulatory
Rogers Communications Inc.
350 Bloor Street East, 6th Floor
Toronto, Ontario M4W 0A1
Kim.Barrington@rci.rogers.com

Dear Mr. Watt:

RE: Revised Wireless Code implementation – Rogers’ Part 1 application for an extension of time File No. 8665-R28-201710442

This letter sets out the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s determinations on Rogers’ Part 1 application seeking an extension of time to implement certain requirements in Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2017-200 – Review of the Wireless Code (the revised Code).

In its application filed 3 November 2017, Rogers stated it would be unable to comply with certain requirements of section E (Bill Management) of the revised Code by the 1 December 2017 deadline. For this reason, it requested an extension to 31 May 2018 to implement these rules. Rogers stated that all other requirements of the revised Code would be implemented on time.

The Commission considers that, due to the technical complexities associated with operationalizing the required changes to Rogers’ billing system and its online customer service platform, as well as the level of automation that is involved with these systems, Rogers has demonstrated that it is facing barriers that make it financially unreasonable as well as technically impossible to implement the specific requirements related to bill management reflected in sections E.1 (i), E.2 (iii and iv) and E.3 (iii and v) of the revised Code by the required deadline.

Therefore, the Commission approves Rogers’ request to extend its implementation of the revised Code from 1 December 2017 to 31 May 2018 for the following rules:

• E.1 (i), E.2 (iv) and E.3 (v) of the revised Code for all accounts; and
• E.2 (iii) and E.3 (iii) for mixed line accounts only.

Until Rogers has fully implemented the revised Code for all customers, the Commission expects Rogers to credit or refund customers who complain to Rogers regarding the rules set out in E.1-3 of the revised Code and who are legitimately entitled to a credit or a refund. In particular, the Commission expects Rogers to credit or refund customers in any cases where Rogers bills them for data overage charges or data roaming charges in excess of the respective caps, without first obtaining the express consent of either the account holder or an authorized user  accepting such additional charges.

The Commission reminds Rogers that:

• It remains obligated to meet all other requirements in the revised Code, as of 1 December 2017. Until 31 May 2018, for rules E.1 (i), E.2 (iii and iv) and E.3 (iii and v) exclusively, Rogers remains obligated to meet the corresponding requirements as set out in the original Code.
• It remains obligated to submit its annual Wireless Code compliance reports. The first such report is due on 31 March 2018. The Commission will take its determinations in this decision into consideration when assessing Rogers’ overall compliance with implementing the revised Code. When assessing its 2018 compliance report, the Commission will assess Rogers’ compliance based on rules E.1 (i), E.2 (i) and E.3 (i) of the original Code and all other requirements based on the revised Code.
• The Commission for Complaints for Telecom-Television Services (CCTS) is currently addressing complaints for rules E.1-3 in a manner consistent with the revised Code for all customers, including those of Rogers. Therefore, despite the Commission’s approval of the extension, for complaints that the CCTS receives regarding these rules, it will continue to interpret and resolve matters in a manner consistent with the revised Code.

To ensure that Rogers’ customers are aware of the delays and can seek recourse where appropriate, the Commission directs Rogers to:

• Notify all its retail wireless customers, in the next billing cycle that starts within 30 days after the publication of this decision, of the specific delays to sections E.1-3 of the revised Code through a prominent notice both on its website and in customers’ monthly wireless service bills.

  The notice must explain how customers may be affected by the delay, highlight the existing tools that customers can use to manage their usage, and include a reminder to customers that should they have a complaint, they should first contact Rogers directly, and if they are not satisfied with how Rogers has addressed their complaint, that they have the right to escalate the complaint to the CCTS.

• Notify all new wireless customers of the delay in implementing sections E.1-3 of the revised Code at the time of signing the contract, and explain how the customer may be affected by the delay, highlight the existing tools that customers can use to manage their usage, and include a reminder to customers of their right to escalate a complaint about these issues to the CCTS.
• File monthly reports updating the Commission on the status of its system upgrades required to meet the rules pursuant to the revised Code. These reports must address any complaints received about these rules until the rules have been fully implemented and describe how Rogers resolved each complaint. Reports will be due each month, starting 30 days after the date of this decision. The first of these reports must include a copy of the text Rogers is using to notify its customers of the implementation delay and of their right to escalate complaints to the CCTS. Once all aspects of the revised Code are implemented in full, Rogers must provide written confirmation of this in its final monthly report.

The Commission intends to monitor consumer complaints for any systemic issues arising from the delays in implementing the revised Code. 

Yours sincerely,

(Original signed by)

Claude Doucet
Secretary General
CRTC

Cc: distribution list
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Date modified:

2018-02-13