Telus-owned Public Mobile recently announced its legacy rewards program is ending in May, with a switch coming to move customers to its newer Public Points program.
Many customers who favoured the old rewards program were upset at this change, as it they felt it violated the original Public Mobile promise of keeping it around as long they stayed a customer. People were so upset they ended up filing complaints with the CCTS. The Public Points program means older customers will start paying more for their phone plans, as the value of the new points program gives a smaller discount versus the old rewards program.
Now, according to emails shared by iPhone in Canada readers, it appears the CCTS is rejecting Telus responses to complaints. It seems the CCTS is working swiftly in dealing with complaints. After a complaint to the CCTS was accepted in mid-March, four days later Public Mobile replied with its objection. It took 11 days for the CCTS to deny the Public Mobile objection, so that was a span of about two weeks.
The CCTS started accepting complaints about Public Mobile and then allowed the wireless carrier to respond. “We are accepting your complaint about Public Mobile. Next steps in our process: We have notified your service provider and asked them to contact you directly.”
Public Mobile, in its response to the CCTS, referenced section 4.3 of the CCTS Procedural Code to support its objection to the complaint. The company said that the change to the rewards program falls within its policies and procedures, noting that customers were given more than 30 days’ notice of the upcoming switch to the Public Points program.
Despite Public Mobile’s objections, the CCTS dismissed its stance. In a letter addressing both the customer and Public Mobile, the CCTS clarified, “After reviewing the complaint and objection, we are rejecting the objection. The complaint remains open for the reasons explained below.”
The CCTS pointed out the Public Mobile objections based on the merits of the complaint are not acceptable, and that issues such as billing disputes and contract changes fall within its scope.
Public Mobile has been given a deadline of mid-April to respond to the CCTS, in the particular email we read about.
Back in 2018, Public Mobile customers filed over 1,600 complaints to the CCTS, objecting a plan price increase. Public Mobile ended up reversing its decision.
You can click here to file a complaint with the CCTS over any telecom matter–but you first must contact your wireless carrier first about the matter (Public Mobile customers are complaining in their Community Forums first, then filing a CCTS complaint), before you file your CCTS complaint (otherwise it will be rejected).
Did you file a CCTS complaint over Public Mobile’s decision to axe its old rewards program? Did you hear back from Public Mobile and the CCTS?
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It feels like SOME of these carriers might finally get a little bit of karmic justice.
We can only be pushed so far until we start to fight back.
Hopefully it gets MUCH f***ing worse for them 🙂
Seriously? Look I’m all for hating the Canadian telecoms, but Public Mobile literally charges half of what the others charge. And you still expect promotions and more savings on top of that?
They offered a reward system that they did not have to offer. The big companies that charge more don’t offer a reward system at all, but no one seems to be mad at them about that…
Telus owns Public Mobile.
Telus is Public Mobile.
Public Mobile is Telus.
Don’t let the lipstick disguise the pig.
So because they offered more insentives that made their prices cheaper than their competition and remove them for no reason we should just roll over and accept that?
You do realize that Public mobile is owned by Telus and they are therefore the same company?
Yes, Public Mobile is cheaper, or at least on par with others. That doesn’t mean that the rewards they offered taking a few dollars off of a bill being removed should be ignored. Other companies offer more for the same these days and the only reason a lot of people stayed with PM is because of these few dollars, sometimes substantially more, in rewards.
This notion of running to get help from the goverment for everything is getting tiresome….with far less effor the complainers could have just switched to whoever they feel is offering a better deal. If you can’t find anything better, get together and start your own cellphone outfit.
First of all the CCTS is the phone corps own dispute body to keep customer complaints as far from the CRTC the actual government agency as possible.
Second who the hell willing pays more for less. Public Mobile’s own offer of free limited gigs looks like the proscribed remedy for bait and switch.
Shame several of their popular plans can’t actually use the data provided. D’oh! Wonder why people might be upset by that?
Government exists to resolve disputes. That is what law and regulation is all about.
Getting tiresome for the government to do their job? Are you stupid?
Garbage argument
A deals a deal. Period. That’s what separates us from the mob.
Did you give much thought to what you posted?
I filed a complaint. I added this to the complaint via email “I am involved in the dispute which you are aware of regarding the Public Mobile customers being removed from the old rewards program. I am presently paying $9 a month as I have been paying $2 a month for auto payment and an annual discount of $1 per month more every year after I signed up several years ago. Once removed from the “old reward program I will be paying $15 a month for a difference of $6 a month this year, and $7 next year. Under the new rewards program I would receive far less – $.75 a month.
Note that this is not only a broken promise – it is also a competition issue as promises were made resulting in not accepting other offers at the time. Also since we will be suffering a continued loss every month a one time “gift” of 5 gigs that must be used in a short time is an insult. Since we are losing every month – only a monthly introduction of data would come close to compensation for $6 or $7 a month. I would say a monthly addition of 2 gigs of 4g data to affected users every month could compensate. “
As a Public Mobile Legacy user, I too, have filed a complaint with the CCTS for this issue. It is encouraging to read that the CCTS stands for being just. When any company, in this case PM, makes promises to it’s customers and continues to promise that this will be honored, and then wheels back and changes it’s mind, something does need to be done. Thank you to CCTS!
I, too, have filed a complaint and received the same response from Public Mobile and the response from the CCTS. Finally some justice
I just filed my CCTS complaint, too. Not only are they increasing my bill by almost $7/mo., nowhere in my text message ‘thank you’ note, did it say which plans were ‘compatible’ for their thank-you gift and it would simply fall off if I switched it. As if I need to be on a 20GB plan or higher to get MORE data… as a thank-you after more than 5 years?…. I now feel compelled to educate all of my referrals, too.
they accepted my complaint, you can find the details here: unofficial Public Mobile