An elderly couple in Etobicoke, Ontario were reportedly left without any phone service for several days during Bell’s transition from a copper network to a fibre optic one.
Mykola Latyshko, a 95-year-old retired public school teacher, and his wife don’t own cellphones and rely entirely on their five landline phones spread across their Etobicoke home. Latyshko, when explaining the disheartening incident to Global News, claims Bell disconnected their services twice without giving them prior notice.
The couple endured periods of no phone service from February 2-5 and later from June 4-11. The Latyshkos’ main grievance isn’t against the new technology or price, but the inconsiderate way in which the transition was handled. “I’m complaining about how they’ve done it. It is inhumane,” expressed an upset Latyshko.
Bell, when asked about the service interruption, stated that customers would have been informed about the change. Bell told Global News it is “transitioning from its copper network to a 100 per cent fibre optic network,” which is why the Latyshkos were left without phone service.
But according to Latyshko and his daughter, who had to contact Bell multiple times on their behalf, they were suddenly left without service for several days.
The lack of a functional telephone line left the elderly couple without a vital lifeline, unable to call 911 in case of an emergency. Latyshko expressed his concerns saying, “I’m pushing 96, it can happen anytime.”
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission declined to comment on this specific case. But they did mention that local phone providers like Bell Canada are required to provide certain services, with the choice of technology being at the company’s discretion.
In an attempt to mitigate the situation, Bell reassured that the couple are now paying less for their phone service with the new technology. But Latyshko continues to insist that the lack of sensitivity in leaving an elderly couple without phone services for days was a risky move.
It’s always good to have a backup cellphone nowadays if phone lines go down, but not everybody has the need for one, or is able to use one, especially some seniors. Bell should have alerted all residents affected better that service was about to get cut off.
