|
|
NEWS
Complaints Now on the Company's Tab
By N. Katzin
Everyone finds it annoying to wait on hold for Customer
Service, listening to an irritating jingle over and over
again — and to get charged for these "pleasures"
too!
Yitzchok L. of Elad: "I recently found out some law that
requires companies to pay phone charges for customer service
has gone into effect. Is this correct and what organizations
fall under the scope of the law? Does it include banks,
municipalities, credit card companies, stores and public
transportation companies? Perhaps even the Yated Ne'eman
Consumer Hotline [part of the Hebrew edition] is required to
provide free phone service. And how are we supposed to guess
who provides free calling and what the phone number is?"
Indeed: Amendment 18 to the Consumer Protection Law, which
took effect last month, obligates large companies to provide
consumers free phone service. The law compels companies with
at least 100,000 customers to provide free calling, including
human service representatives, to report malfunctions and
defects in products or services.
The law is designed to rectify the present situation in which
consumers are forced to waste time and money in the event of
malfunctions. The law encompasses cell-phone providers, gas,
electricity and water companies, and more, requiring them to
inform consumers in a clear and prominent manner (including
notices on billing statements) of the phone number and hours
of the service line.
|
