NBN vows to pay for late service

NBN Co will have to pay internet providers a $ 25 rebate for every late connection, fault repair or missed appointment under new rules enforced by the consumer watchdog.

The National Broadband Network owner has given the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission an enforceable undertaking to pay the penalties as part of a review of service standards.

Under the agreement, internet providers will need to pass on part of the benefit of any rebate they get from NBN Co to their own customers.

The company will introduce the changes to wholesale agreements in the next three months. NBN Co has also pledged to improve its reporting transparency and reveal congestion levels in its fixed wireless networks.

ACCC chair Rod Sims said greater transparency would encourage NBN Co to keep prioritising network upgrades designed to increase capacity, as well as allowing industry and the public to assess how well the company responds to congestion issues.

The regulator began the inquiry in November to consider if regulation was needed to force NBN to improve tomer experiences.

Complaints about the NBN increased by 204 per cent in the last six months of 2017, with nearly 23,000 people complaining to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. More than 14,000 of those complaints were about service quality with another 8757 regarding delays in establishing a connection.

“This undertaking by NBN Co addresses some of the issues highlighted in our inquiry but there are still a range of complex matters to consider,” Mr Sims said. cus-