A “concerning upward trend” in complaints regarding financial hardship caused to SMEs due to telco services has been noted by the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman’s (TIO) latest complaints data report.
TIO data for FY25 Q3 shows that the overall telco complaint volume remained steady with 15,385 received from January to March 2025, reflecting a slight increase of 0.6 per cent compared with the previous quarter (October-December 2024). Mobile service and internet complaints remain the highest proportion of all complaints at 43.9 per cent and 40.6 per cent respectively, although complaints about mobile have dropped 8.1 per cent when compared with the previous quarter.
However, consumers contacting the TIO with issues related to financial hardship or repayment arrangements have leapt 71.9 per cent compared with the same period last year, though it has decreased by 8.1 per cent against the previous quarter. Recurring themes within financial hardship complaints include telcos refusing payment plans or extensions, offering unsuitable or unaffordable payment arrangements and service disconnection or suspension.
Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman Cynthia Gebert commented: “Financial hardship remains a real concern for consumers contacting the TIO and its impacts can be severe. What our data reveals is that telcos still have work to do in terms of providing tailored support and repayment options for people that reflect their individual circumstances – there’s no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution. Disconnection or suspension of essential telco services should absolutely be a last resort.”
Meanwhile, complaints made by small businesses went up 6.9 per cent quarter on quarter, with 1767 complaints. The report has partly attributed this increase to service issues following the 3G network shutdown, with the most significant increases in complaints related to poor mobile coverage and intermittent service or dropouts.
Poor mobile coverage problems are on the rise for small-business consumers, as well as residential consumers, increasing by 25.3 per cent across the board.
Gebert commented: “For the second consecutive quarter, we’ve seen complaints from small businesses rise, this time by close to 7 per cent. What we’re hearing from small businesses is how serious the impact of persistent mobile and internet problems is on their ability to provide good customer service and operate efficiently.
“It’s impacting people’s livelihoods and something telcos should be working closely with their small business customers to address,” Gebert concluded.
