Nearly 1 in 3 Canadians grumbled about internet provider in 2024: CRTC

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Almost one-third of Canadians complained about their internet service provider last year, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission research suggested.

Grievances about costs were not included in that tally.

“Just under one in three, 31.5%, reported having had a complaint related to the service provider they were subscribed to in the last 12 months, excluding complaints about pricing,” researchers wrote, per Blacklock’s Reporter.

Complaints were “most often related to home internet service (47%) followed by mobile phone service (29%) and television (22%).”

“In terms of the nature of the complaints, respondents most often said they related to either service delivery or billing disputes,” said the report, entitled Understanding Consumer Awareness and Satisfaction With the Commission For Complaints For Telecom Services.

Findings were gathered from questionnaires with 1,295 telecom users across the country. The CRTC paid $112,943 for the study by Nanos Research, per Blacklock’s.

Of those who complained, nearly half, 48%, “reported their service provider was able to resolve their complaint.”

Even fewer contacted the little-known Commission for Complaints for Telecom Services though the federal agency has been mandated to investigate customer service issues since 2007.

When asked “Why did you not submit a complaint to the Commission?”, 63% said they “did not know about it.” Others replied they “didn’t see the point” (mentioned by 11%), “couldn’t be bothered” (6%) or “weren’t sure how” (6%).

The report said that low public awareness of the commission was a serious issue. Fewer than 1% of telecom users said they would know to contact the agency.

“A crucial aspect of the Commission’s effectiveness is public awareness, as this increases consumers’ ability to seek recourse with the Commission and allows the Commission the opportunity to help Canadians where it can,” Consumer Awareness said.

“When asked unprompted where they would go to try and resolve a complaint related to one of their communications service providers a strong majority, 84%, said they would go to their service provider,” researchers wrote.

Most Canadians surveyed, 79%, said they had never heard of the Commission.

Customers who complained to their internet service provider typically found it an uneven experience, said the report. “More than 9 in 10 respondents who contacted their service provider about a complaint and whose provider did not resolve their complaint, 97%, reported their service provider did not mention the Commission as an avenue to address their complaint,” it said.

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