TPG has become the third ISP to agree to pay compensation to customers who have been misled about the speeds offered on certain NBN plans. In TPG's case, the number who will be compensated is about 8000.
Telstra was the first to agree to a compensation plan, for 42,000 customers; Optus followed suit, with the number offered compensation being about 8700.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said today that TPG had sold plans between 1 September 2015 and 30 June this year that offered a range of speeds, including the top 100/40Mbps speed tier.
The plans were offered with the slogan "Seriously Fast Internet. Up to 100Mbps."
{loadposition sam08}The ACCC said that TPG had admitted that it was likely to have contravened Australian Consumer Law "by engaging in misleading or deceptive conduct and making false or misleading representations".
“The technical limitations of NBN’s fibre-to-the-node technology meant many TPG customers could not reach the advertised 100/40 speeds they paid for. Some couldn’t even get half those advertised speeds,” ACCC chairman Rod Sims said.
“TPG charged customers higher prices for the promise of faster speeds, misleading many customers into paying a premium price for a service they could not get.
“This is the third major Internet provider we have taken action against in the past few weeks. Internet service providers must take responsibility to ensure that their customers get the promised speeds that they pay for.”
Among those affected were:
- 7509 (62%) of 100/40 Mbps FttN customers who could not receive the speeds they purchased. Of these customers, 2088 could not even receive 50/20 Mbps;
- 42 (4%) of 100/40 Mbps FttB customers who could not receive the speeds they paid for; and
- 411 (2%) of 25/5 Mbps FttN customers who also could not receive the speeds they had paid for.
The ACCC said TPG had provided a court-enforceable undertaking outlining the compensation it would provide.
The company has been asked to contact affected consumers by 2 March 2018 by email or letter to explain their compensation options and also advise as to what speed they can achieve.