Statistical Reports
Annual Report
August 1, 2020 – July 31, 2021
Contact Centre activities
Our Contact Centre received almost 115,000 communications by telephone, in writing and by online chat, down from over 122,000 last year.
| Type of communication | 2020-21 | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| Written correspondence | 41,085 | -2% |
| Phone calls answered | 69,759 | -8% |
| Chat sessions answered | 4,091 | 4% |
Phone calls continue to be the most-used type of communication, followed by written correspondence (which includes use of our online interactive questionnaire) and chat sessions. Phone calls and written correspondence decreased this year but chat sessions increased by 4%.
Out-of-mandate issues
The following tables show the number of issues raised by customers that the CCTS could not accept in 2020-21 as they are out of the scope of CCTS’ mandate. The CCTS’ mandate is set by the CRTC, and the CRTC periodically reviews whether the CCTS’ mandate ought to be expanded. The scope of complaints that the CCTS is authorized to receive and examples of services and subjects that fall outside the CCTS’ scope are set out in our Procedural Code.
| Procedural Code Section 3 and Other | Number |
|---|---|
| Section 3.1(a)(i) Internet applications/content | 446 |
| Section 3.1(a)(ii) Emergency services | 104 |
| Section 3.1(a)(iii) Payphones | 5 |
| Section 3.1(a)(iv) Yellow pages/business directories | 11 |
| Section 3.1(a)(v) Telemarketing/unsolicited messages | 484 |
| Section 3.1(a)(vi) 900/976 calls | 26 |
| Section 3.1(b)(i) Digital Media Broadcast Undertaking (DMBU) services | 95 |
| Section 3.1(b)(ii) Interactive TVSP services and applications | 10 |
| Section 3.1(b)(iii) Broadcasting content | 453 |
| Section 3.1(b)(iv) Journalistic ethics | 45 |
| Section 3.1(b)(v) TV accessibility issues, e.g., closed captioning and described video | 67 |
| Section 3.1(b)(vi) Simultaneous substitution | 36 |
| Section 3.1(c)(i) Customer-owned equipment | 188 |
| Section 3.1(c)(ii) Inside wiring | 42 |
| Section 3.1(c)(iii) Security services | 201 |
| Section 3.1(c)(iv) Networking services | 497 |
| Section 3.1(c)(v) Pricing | 1,242 |
| Section 3.1(c)(vi) Rights of way | 295 |
| Section 3.1(c)(vii) Plant/poles/towers | 1,221 |
| Section 3.1(c)(viii) False/misleading advertising | 466 |
| Section 3.1(c)(ix) Privacy issues | 1,044 |
| Other – Aggressive tactics | 106 |
| Other – Broadcasting (radio) | 39 |
| Other – Broadcasting (television – small business) | 56 |
| Other – Broadcasting (television – exempt independent TVSP) | 216 |
| Other – Consumer – clarity of offers and promotions (TVSP Code) | 99 |
| Other – Not related to service providers (phone/internet scams) | 648 |
| Other – Regulated services | 42 |
| Other – Spam | 55 |
| Other – Hybrid Video on Demand Services | 5 |
| Total | 8,244 |
The total number of issues reported in this section decreased from 8,866 last year to 8,244 this year.
Complaints about PSP prices remain the top issue even though it decreased by 25%. The CCTS does not accept complaints about how PSPs set their prices or the amount of telecom or television service prices; however, complaints about disclosure of price changes can be accepted. Issues about rights of way doubled (from 144 last year to 295 this year). Issues about networking services and security services increased by 42% and 31% respectively.
Telemarketing or unsolicited messages issues and broadcasting content issues decreased by 31% and 36% respectively.
Complaints about the quality of customer service delivered by providers do not fall within the CCTS’ mandate. However, we track the inquiries we get about these issues.
| Issue | Number | |
|---|---|---|
| Section 4.1 Customer service | ||
| Language barriers | 275 | |
| Outsourcing | 432 | |
| No phone number for customer service | 460 | |
| Rude representative | 2,560 | |
| Wait times | 2,894 | |
| Total | 6,621 | |
| Section 4.3 General operating practices and policies | 4,884 | |
| Total | 11,505 | |
In 2020-21 there were 11,505 issues, a decrease of 15% from last year.
The CCTS is required to decline complaints for certain situations, in accordance with our Procedural Code. These complaints are tracked and reported in the table below.
| Issue | Number |
|---|---|
| Section 10.1 Service provider not offered opportunity to resolve | 1,417 |
| Section 10.2(b) Matter previously or currently with another agency | 1,142 |
| Section 10.3(a) Facts transpired more than one year ago | 1,874 |
| Section 10.3(b) Facts arose prior to effective date | 41 |
| Total | 4,474 |
Complaints that customers tried to file in which facts took place more than one year earlier increased by 22%.
Most complaints about a service provider’s failure to accommodate customer accessibility requests are out of our mandate.
There are some accessibility issues that the CCTS will consider to be in-scope; specifically, where a CRTC Code that the CCTS administers contains a requirement to provide an accommodation. The Wireless, TVSP and Internet Codes require an extended trial period for persons with disabilities and also requires that customer contracts and related documents be provided in an accessible format on request.
At the request of the CRTC and members of the accessibility community, we track when customers raise out-of-scope accessibility issues about their service providers. We also refer these issues to the CRTC, which has the mandate to deal with them.
| Section | Number |
|---|---|
| Customer service: Indifference to customer’s disability | 42 |
| Hearing and speech issues: Lack of in-store language accessibility Message relay services (MRS) not available Video relay services (VRS) not available |
0 5 3 |
| Total | 8 |
| Mobility issues: Lack of in-store physical accessibility | 0 |
| Visual issues: Contract not provided in alternative format (for home phone and long distance only) Bills and other information not provided in alternative format |
13 0 |
| Total | 13 |
| TV accessibility issues | 67 |
| Special type of wireless device handset not offered | 2 |
| Customer was refused an accessibility plan | 2 |
| Emergency services (barriers to accessing emergency services) | 6 |
| Policies and operating procedures | 17 |
| Other issues | 14 |
| Total | 171 |
Complaints about the contract not being provided in alternative format increased from 1 last year to 13 this year. Issues about TV accessibility increased from 57 to 67.
Issues about wireless device financing plans
In March 2021, the CRTC issued a decision determining that device financing plans fall under the scope of the Wireless Code. This decision confirmed that the full protections of the Wireless Code apply to wireless device financing plans. To inform future reviews of the Wireless Code, the CRTC requested that the CCTS begin tracking complaints related to device financing plans in our annual and mid-year reports.
| # of issues in 2020-21 | % of all issues in 2020-21 | # of issues in 2019-20 | % of all issues in 2019-20 | YoY change in # of issues raised | Resolution rate (global resolution rate – 87.6%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Device financing plans (wireless services) | 142* | 0.3% | 72 | 0.2% | 97.2% | 87.3% |
* Fifty-two percent (74) of issues about device financing plans for wireless services in the 2020-21 fiscal year were reported by customers between March 4, 2021 (date of CRTC decision clarifying that device financing plans fall within the scope of the Wireless Code) and July 31, 2021.
A key driver of complaints about wireless device financing plans appears to be a lack of clarity in disclosure at the point of sale.
Small business
In 2020-21, we received 2,722 complaints from small business customers, a 130% increase from last year and 6.4% of all concluded complaints.
When we report our operational statistics, we include the data for all the complaints we dealt with during the year. However, not all complaints are alike. In particular, we know that complaints from small business customers can be quite different from those of individual consumers. The following tables highlight the differences.
The proportion of contract dispute and billing issues for small businesses increased compared to last year. Contract dispute issues are up from 42% to 47%. Billing issues are up from 29% to 31%.
The distribution of small business issues across service types remains largely unchanged from last year.
| Subject | Small business | Consumer |
|---|---|---|
| Contract dispute | 42.4% | 30.3% |
| Billing | 28.5% | 39.3% |
| Service delivery | 26.5% | 26.3% |
| Credit management | 2.6% | 4.1% |
| Total | 100% | 100% |
| Service | Small business | Consumer |
|---|---|---|
| Internet access | 32.7% | 31.1% |
| Wireless | 36.0% | 44.2% |
| Local exchange and VoIP services (including calling features) | 30.5% | 10.6% |
| Long distance (including prepaid calling cards) | 0.9% | 1.0% |
| Issue | Small business | Consumer |
|---|---|---|
| Disclosure issues | 11.7% | 14.2% |
| Legitimacy of early termination fee (ETF) | 10.9% | 2.5% |
| Incorrect charge | 10.5% | 13.3% |
| Quality of service | 9.8% | 11.1% |
| Breach of contract | 5.4% | 6.5% |
| Credit/refund not received | 4.6% | 5.7% |
| Auto-renewal | 3.3% | 0.1% |
| No consent provided | 2.8% | 1.3% |
| Amount of ETF | 2.8% | 0.8% |
| Complete loss of service | 2.8% | 2.9% |
Analysis of closed complaints
Our operational statistics show that we closed 2,028 complaints in 2020-21. The following table provides a breakdown of the reasons why those complaints were closed, with reference to the relevant section of the Procedural Code.
| Complaint | Issues | % |
|---|---|---|
| Closed as duplicate | 3 | 0.1% |
| Customer withdrew complaint | 203 | 10.0% |
| Out-of-mandate after further information obtained | 20 | 1.0% |
| Section 9.1(b) Customer is not authorized to file complaint | 10 | 0.5% |
| Section 9.1(c) Complaint more appropriately handled by another agency | 128 | 6.3% |
| Section 9.1(d) Further investigation not warranted | 386 | 19.0% |
| Section 9.1(e) Customer not cooperative | 962 | 47.5% |
| Section 9.1(f) Service provider offer is reasonable | 142 | 7.0% |
| Section 10.1 Service provider not offered opportunity to resolve | 3 | 0.1% |
| Section 10.2(b) Matter previously or currently with another agency | 8 | 0.4% |
| Section 10.3(a) Complaint filed outside time limits | 161 | 8.0% |
| Section 10.3(b) Facts arose prior to effective date | 2 | 0.1% |
| Total | 2,028 | 100% |
Compensation analysis
In cases that are resolved as well as in Recommendations and Decisions, customers may receive some form of compensation from their service provider. This compensation can take many forms, including:
- bill credits
- bill adjustments
- free or discounted products and services
- cash payments
We attempt to record the value of all compensation awarded to customers as a result of the CCTS process. This is challenging because in a significant number of cases (in particular, resolutions that occur at our Pre-investigation stage) we are not provided with the details of the settlement reached between the customer and the service provider.
The total compensation awarded in 2020-21 that we can determine was $2,861,299.72.
| Compensation range | Number of complaints | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| < $100 | 3,381 | 35.2% |
| $100 – $499 | 4,875 | 50.8% |
| $500 – $999 | 881 | 9.2% |
| $1,000 – $4,999 | 449 | 4.7% |
| $5,000 or more | 14 | 0.1% |
| Total | 9,600 | 100% |
“I was getting nowhere with my service provider and very frustrated. A friend recommended the CCTS. If it wasn’t for the CCTS I would probably still be waiting for resolution.”
Performance standards
Each year, we set a goal to provide great customer service, and we track our performance across various benchmarks. The following tables show how our performance this year compares to those benchmark targets.
Contact Centre/Pre-investigation
| Process | Target | 2020-21 |
|---|---|---|
| Answer phone calls within 120 seconds | 80% | 83.9% |
| Process written communications within 3 calendar days | 80% | 85.2% |
Complaint handling
| Process | Target | 2020-21 |
|---|---|---|
| Complaints concluded at Pre-Investigation stage within 40 days of acceptance | 80% | 95.3% |
| Complaints concluded at Investigation stage within 60 days of referral to Investigation | 80% | 85.0% |
Despite being a challenging year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and unusual working conditions, we exceeded all of our target benchmarks.
Regional analysis
We receive complaints from customers throughout Canada. Here, we identify the number of accepted complaints by province/territory.
| Province | Complaints | Population* | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alberta | 1,456 | 8.6% | 4,444,277 | 11.7% | |
| British Columbia | 2,290 | 13.5% | 5,174,724 | 13.6% | |
| Manitoba | 465 | 2.7% | 1,382,721 | 3.6% | |
| New Brunswick | 248 | 1.5% | 783,721 | 2.1% | |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 128 | 0.8% | 520,286 | 1.4% | |
| Northwest Territories | 8 | 0.0% | 44,991 | 0.1% | |
| Nova Scotia | 300 | 1.8% | 982,326 | 2.6% | |
| Nunavut | 10 | 0.1% | 39,536 | 0.1% | |
| Ontario | 7,978 | 46.9% | 14,789,778 | 38.8% | |
| Prince Edward Island | 72 | 0.4% | 160,536 | 0.4% | |
| Quebec | 3,847 | 22.6% | 8,585,523 | 22.5% | |
| Saskatchewan | 170 | 1.0% | 1,179,906 | 3.1% | |
| Yukon | 21 | 0.1% | 42,596 | 0.1% | |
| Not specified | 10 | 0.1% | |||
| Total | 17,003 | 100% | 38,131,104 | 100% | |
* Canada, Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0009-01 (formerly, CANSIM 051-0005)