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The Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA) today (November 1) welcomed the announcement by the Communications Association of Hong Kong (CAHK) to launch a two-year pilot run of the Customer Complaint Settlement Scheme (CCSS) for the telecommunications industry in Hong Kong.
"The OFCA welcomes the initiative taken by the telecommunications industry to set up the CCSS, which is an alternate dispute resolution scheme aimed at resolving billing disputes in deadlock between telecommunications service providers and their residential/personal customers. The CCSS represents another major step forward in the continued effort of the telecommunications industry to meet customer expectations and enhance the quality of customer service, following the successful implementation of the Industry Code of Practice for Telecommunications Service Contracts from July 2011," a spokesman for OFCA said.
In recent years, billing disputes have continued to top the categories of consumer complaints on telecommunications services received by OFCA. The CCSS seeks to resolve disputes through mediation, which is considered to be a more efficient and effective channel than formal litigations in resolving disputes between the service providers and the customers, not to mention being a more cost-effective option.
"We are very pleased that the CAHK and all the major telecommunications service providers have worked together diligently and completed the necessary preparatory work to launch the CCSS within seven months after the OFCA has completed an earlier consultation on the subject in March this year," the spokesman continued.
The CCSS will be run for a two-year trial period. Following the trial period, the OFCA and the industry will assess the effectiveness of the CCSS and the public demand for it in deciding the way forward for the long-term implementation of the scheme. The OFCA will sponsor the operation of the CCSS by contributing the necessary funding and will play an active role in monitoring the performance and the governance of the scheme, and by providing other administrative support.
"Customers who wish to make use of the mediation service provided by the CCSS for resolving their billing disputes with participating service providers may first contact the OFCA. The OFCA will refer accepted cases to the CCSS service centre set up under the CAHK for follow-up actions. Customers who wish to learn more about using the mediation service of the CCSS may contact OFCA at 2180 9521 or visit the website www.ofca.gov.hk/en/consumer_focus/fixed_telecom/ccss/index.html," the spokesman said.
Following the issue of a Statement entitled "Customer Complaint Settlement Scheme" on March 14, 2012 to conclude the relevant consultation in 2010, the OFCA has been working in earnest with the CAHK and the industry to map out the implementation details of the voluntary CCSS and to establish the CCSS service centre under the CAHK to manage and operate the scheme. On October 9, 2012, the CAHK and the OFCA signed the Memorandum of Understanding for the establishment and funding arrangement of the CCSS service centre.
Information about the CCSS operated by the CAHK, including the list of participating service providers, is available at the website ccss.cahk.hk.
Ends/Thursday, November 1, 2012
Issued at HKT 12:32
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