February 8, 2005
Australia. Call for tighter controls on phone bills
Australian telephone companies may have to make contracts simpler so customers do not rack up unexpectedly high bills under a plan being considered by the federal government, reports the The Sydney Morning Herald.
"The Australian Communications Authority (ACA) has released a report on credit management in the telecommunications sector.
The report recommended phone companies be forced to sign up to a standard way of handling credit or prepare their own plan in a bid to stamp out customer confusion which leads to high bills.
The report noted a number of examples including:
-- A young woman's $7,000 bill for premium rate SMS messages, charged at $2.20 for each message.
-- A disability pensioner's $3,000 bill for premium rate calls from a fixed service.
-- A 16-year-old's $1,200 bill, largely from standard SMS use.
-- A $7,000 bill for excess dial-up internet use over seven days due to hacking.
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The government is seeking public responses to its report by March 11.
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