Could we have a single switching process?
01 July 2009
Mis-selling in the fixed-line market - where consumers are switched without their consent or an attempt is made to do this - is a long-standing problem and indeed the first submission to Ofcom by the Consumer Panel was on this subject. A series of efforts have been made to reduce the problem and the Panel has welcomed the latest measures proposed in a recent Ofcom consultation document.
However, the nature of the problem has changed as the competitive market has developed. The Panel is particularly concerned now that mis-selling of services and the ability to switch services take on a different dimension when different services - such as fixed line, mobile, broadband and television - are bundled together into a package. Over four in ten households already take bundled packages and a third of these take the triple-play option of fixed, broadband and TV.
Therefore the Chair of the Communications Consumer Panel Anna Bradley has written to the Ofcom Director of Consumer Affairs Claudio Pollack to call for thinking about a single process for switching communications services:
"In parallel with strengthening and enforcing the rules on fixed line mis-selling, we believe that Ofcom should be working towards a single process to enable consumers who buy bundles of services to switch provider quickly and easily. We would like to see Ofcom develop a strategy to move to a single switching process for all communications services as soon as possible.
This should involve a detailed examination of the possible options, including a process that requires a consumer to contact the new provider only, a process that requires a consumer to contact the existing provider initially and a process overseen by an independent third party. The Panel recognises that this is not a straightforward issue and that each option has pros and cons."