The next government must give telecoms consumers a seat at the table
By: Anne Pardoe
Tags: General Election, Consumer, Policy, Telecommunication, Advocacy

As we approach a general election, it’s difficult to make firm predictions about the policy agenda over the next few years. But with a number of parties making bold proposals on broadband, it is clear that the future of telecoms infrastructure is up for grabs.

We also know that loyal mobile and broadband customers are overpaying by £1.2 billion a year. This is just one example of the harmful practices telecoms consumers fall victim to.

The customer voice is almost entirely missing when important decisions are made

In other essential markets, independent consumer advocates fight to ensure the consumer voice is heard. These are strong, well-resourced bodies with powers and responsibilities set out in legislation. They work to put people’s interests, not profits, at the heart of decision making.

Citizens Advice is the statutory consumer advocate in the energy market. We found that people are overpaying for energy infrastructure by £7.5 billion over the course of the current 8-year price control. As a direct result of our work, so far 3 networks have agreed to return a total of £287 million to consumers. Ofgem has also publicly committed to make the next price control much tougher — saving customers £6 billion off their bills from 2021.

No comparable body exists for telecoms consumers. While industry can and should be part of these debates, consumers shouldn’t be left without a seat at the table.

It’s time telecoms consumers had a strong champion to fight their corner.

Consumer advocates can also shine a spotlight on unfair practices

We found loyal customers are being ripped off across a range of essential markets. In total these customers were overpaying by £4.1 billion per year, so we made a super complaint to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The CMA upheld our complaint and put forward a series of recommendations to Ofcom and other regulators.

Since then, Ofcom have completed their own analysis. They found a £1.2 billion loyalty penalty across mobile and broadband. So far they have set out proposals which would address some, but not all of this harm. For example, we estimate that the current proposals for the mobile market would address around 80% of the total harm. This progress is welcome but insufficient to get rid of the loyalty penalty altogether. We look forward to further announcements in the coming months.

The existing proposals are mostly based on voluntary agreements reached with industry. An independent advocate could scrutinise these commitments and hold industry to their word.

The loyalty penalty isn’t the only problem faced by telecoms customers. Our 2016 research found UK consumers experience 27.6 million problems per year. This is more than in any other essential service. A strong consumer advocate would shine a spotlight on these problems and push government, Ofcom and industry to address them.

Establishing a telecoms consumer advocate should be a priority for the next government

Many parties have come out with bold proposals for the broadband market during this election campaign. Any new policies will sit alongside a number of existing major market developments.

Next year Ofcom will auction off extra 5G network capacity. This will help shape who will have access to this technology and at what price for years to come.

Ofcom has also approved plans to move towards switching off the traditional fixed phone network. Customers still using these services will be switched to newer digital technology. This should lead to better services for those affected. But it also carries risks for those who are unwilling or unable to make the switch.

Whoever the next government is, they need to bring forward legislation to create a telecoms consumer advocate, and give consumers a seat at the table as soon as possible.