There is no expectation of even an unacceptable CSG (Customer Service Guarantee) let alone any certainty of an acceptable one.
ACCAN have made a submission on many factors but that also addresses CSG to the ACCC Inquiry that argues it is needed but the result of that will reside firstly with the Inquiry and then with the Government of the day who deal with the Inquiry Report. Is it a hopeful outcome? My thinking it will be mostly rejected as a cost burden unsustainable by NBNCo particularly because of the poor outcomes that the MTM NBN is already showing for many.
The following is most of the ACCAN take on CSG from their policy paper of 2017 and which is attached to their ACCC Inquiry submission:
"Broadband is now considered essential to provide access to services and employment opportunities, as well as entertainment and education. This is true for all consumers, no matter whether they live in regional, rural or remote areas or in the cities.
Reliable broadband connections are also pivotal for small businesses and farmers who often rely on them to run their businesses. Internet connections provide opportunities for farmers to use sophisticated agricultural software to monitor yield predictions and more. But when services fail, there are no guarantees that apply to internet services to ensure faults are fixed within certain timeframes. This can result in long outages, meaning lost money and productivity for farmers and small businesses, and frustration for general consumers.
The current consumer telecommunications guarantee, the Customer Service Guarantee (CSG), only applies to connection and fault repair times on fixed-line telephone (i.e. voice) services. This leaves consumers with no guarantees for fixed broadband (i.e. data) services.
ACCAN has been calling for an updated CSG to include service timeframes for fault rectification, connections and appointment keeping as the standard for internet connections. We are also proposing independent service reliability benchmarking to ensure that disruptions to services are minimised.
An updated CSG with service guarantees and reliability measures to underpin the provision of voice and data services, to deliver more accountability from providers and nbn, is also one of the five outcomes of the Regional, Rural and Remote Communications Coalition (which ACCAN is a member of). At the moment, there are no requirements for nbn to publish information on repair times or network reliability metrics, leaving consumers with little transparency around reliability of services. There is a need for updated, fully accountable and independently monitored CSG arrangements and reliability performance measures.
At ACCAN, we often hear from consumers in rural, regional and remote areas who experience faults with their services that last for long periods and disrupt their ability to conduct business, educate their children and stay connected with the rest of the world. The lack of guarantees for internet services also affects consumers in metro areas."
There is a topic in this forum regarding CSG and I will leave any further mention of it by me to be done in that topic.
