Blown away by Public's refusal to compensate customers for dropped calls lasting over one month!

[doctorbe]

I am blown away and extremely disappointed by Public's refusal to issue compensation in the form of service credits for those affected by the dropped calls over the past month.  I believe a one month service credit is an appropriate and fair request. 

How does this constitute good customer service when the service was totally unusable, including in our case affecting our ability to communicate with a family member's cancer care team while he was in hospital??  We were cut off in the middle of a conversation with the surgeon! 

We've experienced a major disruption in our ability to use the service we're paying for, and it is fair to request more than just lip service.  A future bill credit is a reasonable expectation given the scale of the disruption.

Mind boggling.  I have 5 lines with you Public and am EXTREMELY disappointed in this response.

QUOTE FROM PRIVATE MESSAGE:

Re:  DROPPED CALLS AFFECTING CANCER CARE--STILL PERSISTING

Hi [MY NAME]:

Although we understand that the dropped calls have affected you, please take into consideration that this was a general issue that took some time to fix and that most of our customer understood. [...]

Unfortunately at this time personal refunds for this issue will not be applied.

Here you can also find our Service Terms (at the bottom of the page) : https://www.publicmobile.ca/en/bc/

Direct link to the PDF:  Public Mobile Terms of Service PDF

Let me know if there is anything else I can help you with,

Have a great day,

Camelia_M

[sheytoon]

---

@pm-smayer97 wrote:

---

---

BTW did you know that companies have to pay the CCTS every time they have to process a complaint, even if there is no payout? So if there are enough of them, it might become an incentive for a company to correct a problem sooner rather than later.

---

Yes I did know that. It's one of the reasons I always recommend them, along with being a very effective agency.

[doctorbe]

Re: the person who said “Sorry to hear that you experienced the dropped calls while important calls on the orther side. 3G network has its limitations.” 

Give me a break, I’m asking for a phone that works as a phone, a pretty basic request for functionality, 3G or not (I’m on LTE). 

All I’m asking for is basic customer service that one would reasonably expect from a grassroots, friendly company that was literally founded on customers’ goodwill and has the word “Public” in its name. 

I’ve been with PM for 3+ years now, have 5 separate lines, have referred others and support this company because of its unique business model. I’ve stuck it out after lots of problems, being stranded in the US with a roaming package that didn’t work, website challenges, and other stuff. 

All I’m asking for is some goodwill in return—you charged me for a service you didn’t provide, so now you owe me some credit in compensation. 

The request has been escalated to a manager. I’ll share their response when I hear back. 

[JackQuint]

The reality is that first level customer support rarely has any authority to use any discretion in resolving issues. PM doesn't want to issue refunds across the board so that's the answer.

In your typical customer service environment, you can escalate the dispute to a supervisor/manager/second level where there is more discretion. With PM and their model of support through forum PMs to a mod, they have basically shut down any escalation possibilities.

Your personal case is more compelling than most in that the phone is a tool that you are seeming to rely on for scheduling medical care for a serious illness. Between that and five lines, once you get to someone with the authority to exercise discretion, you would think that you would get an acceptable resolution. If I were you, I would write directly to Darren Entwistle and explain the situation as a customer who really wants to stay with PM and within the Telus family. He won't respond, but he'll delegate someone with authority to do so. 

For anyone thinking that the C-Suite seems over the top escalation, PM's support model invites it because there is no other meaningful way of escalating. 

[pm-smayer97]

---

@sheytoon wrote:

@doctorbe,

Definitely file a complaint with CCTS.

https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/for-consumers/complaints/

---

BTW did you know that companies have to pay the CCTS every time they have to process a complaint, even if there is no payout? So if there are enough of them, it might become an incentive for a company to correct a problem sooner rather than later.

[sheytoon]

@doctorbe,

Definitely file a complaint with CCTS.

https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/for-consumers/complaints/

[will13am]

The CCTS is always a final resort.  I have had good success with using that option in the past.  A bit of history to consider, those of us on the 2016 fall promo collectively peppered Public Mobile with 1800 CCTS complaints back in February 2018 and successfully rebuffed a price increase.  Good luck to affected customers, stand up for your rights.  As a final thought, Telus CEO is totally focused on all things accretive to earnings.  I am sure this focuses filters down into the organization.  Giving away service credits is not directly consistent with that focus.  

[pm-smayer97]

---

@Metal1967 wrote:

@doctorbe 

This is public mobile.....enough said...... .after almost a yr of service..not one issue...read..follow instructions...have service... Dont get how people have so many problems.....pretty much flawless so far...

---

I have been a customer for about a year also, with now about 9 plans for my family, and have helped others too. LOTS of problems:

- Activating SIMS failure

- plans not renewing

- plans renewing but service not functioning

- plans renewing even when suspended/on hold

- plans not renewed after being reactivated, requiring extra payment to force/unstuck plan renewal

- dropped calls (though not me personally)

- texting failing for months

- being without service for days

- and of course, slow mod responses, with many messages being missed or skipped (due to poor or non-existent tracking system), incomplete answers requiring a LOT of back and forth, sometimes literally taking weeks to resolve a problem that should only take 5 mins (truly), etc.

(I'm sure I'm forgetting other issues too)

And do not ask why I still stick around... one is the price, the other is that I am so set up, that changing at this time is just as, if not more, painful. (I do have other active cell plans as backup too).

[Metal1967]

@doctorbe 

This is public mobile.....enough said...... .after almost a yr of service..not one issue...read..follow instructions...have service... Dont get how people have so many problems.....pretty much flawless so far...

[bridonca]

File a CCTS complaint.  You might not get what you are looking for, but it will be recorded.  It can be used against some Telus pinhead that says their network level of quality on all carriers is the same.  That is clearly not the case!

[sunflowershine]

@doctorbe Sorry to hear that you experienced the dropped calls while important calls on the orther side. 3G network has its limitations. PM may not fit your needs and expectations. Can't imagine you have 5 lines with PM. It could be a loss for PM if you choose to leave. But getting what you really need is important.