UK's telecoms regulator, Ofcom, this week fined EE, the largest Operator in the country a sum of £1 million for failing to comply with Ofcom’s rules on handling customer complaints. EE is said to have failed in distributing letters stating that customers have the right to bring their complaints to the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) scheme, which provides protection for customers, said Ofcom. Ofcom said that between July 2011 to 8 April 2014, EE did not provide certain customers with accurate information about their rights to use the ADR scheme.
ADR allows customers to refer complaints that cannot be resolved with their provider to an independent body which can reach an impartial judgment. Complaints can be taken to ADR if they remain unresolved after eight weeks, or if a stalemate is reached between the customer and the provider before eight weeks.
Claudio Pollack, Ofcom’s Consumer and Content Group Director
It’s vital that customers can access all the information they need when they’re pursuing a complaint. Ofcom imposes strict rules on how providers must handle complaints and treats any breach of these rules very seriously. The fine imposed against EE takes account of the serious failings that occurred in the company’s complaints handling, and the extended period over which these took place
