Telus is taking its fight with the CRTC to the Federal Court of Appeal as the regulator continues looking into whether the carrier’s $15 SIM and eSIM fee breaks new consumer protection rules.
In a huge 228-page filing dated September 14 and obtained by iPhone in Canada, Telus is asking the court for permission to appeal an August 14 CRTC ruling on how the case is being handled.
The company is represented by Henein Hutchison Robitaille LLP. The Attorney General of Canada is named as the respondent, while Bell, Rogers and an individual intervener were also served with the filing.
The dispute goes back to new rules that took effect June 12 which banned certain activation and modification fees.
On June 30, the CRTC opened a proceeding involving Bell, Rogers and Telus. Bell was asked to explain its $40 device handling fee, Telus its $15 SIM and eSIM fee, and Rogers its $40 device setup fee, $25 shipping fee and an unspecified SIM charge.
Possible penalties could reach $10 million against a company, plus up to $25,000 against individual officers or directors.
One of Telus’s biggest complaints centres on Scott Hutton, the CRTC’s vice-president of Consumer, Analytics and Strategy.
In a June 9 letter, Hutton told Telus that its SIM charge “would not appear” to fall under the exemption for optional products and services. He also said a SIM or eSIM fee “may be considered to be an activation fee” banned under the law.
Telus again pointed to comments Hutton later made to The Canadian Press. back in June. “You need a phone for your plan. It’s no more complicated than that,” Hutton said. “You need a SIM card for your plan. Those are not optional.”
The Vancouver-based telecom argues those comments came before the formal case was even announced and could make it look like Hutton had already decided the fee was not allowed.
The company wants him kept out of the proceeding. The CRTC rejected that argument in August, saying staff can investigate and advise the Commission, but they do not make the final decision.
Telus says that still does not solve the problem because staff members helping shape the case should also be impartial.
Telus is also unhappy that the CRTC is dealing with both the alleged violation and possible penalties at the same time.
The carrier wanted the case split into two parts. First, the CRTC would decide whether Telus actually broke the rules. Only after that would it look at fines or other penalties. Bell and Rogers supported that request.
The CRTC said no, saying its approach matches how similar cases have been handled in the past.
Telus argues it is unfair to make the company defend itself against possible fines before the regulator has even decided whether it did anything wrong.
The third issue is whether Telus has been told clearly enough what it is accused of doing wrong.
The company says the law and the CRTC’s new rules have not really been tested in this situation before, so it should get a clearer explanation of how its $15 SIM fee supposedly breaks the rules.
The CRTC says it has already provided enough detail.
Telus also argues it is not the only carrier charging customers for SIM cards.
The filing points to other providers, including Ice Wireless, Freedom Mobile, Fizz, SaskTel, Bell and Rogers, which Telus says charge for SIM cards in some situations.
Telus says its own $15 fee helps cover costs tied to making, storing, setting up and supporting SIM cards and eSIMs. Its main argument is that a SIM is a product, not an activation fee.
The Federal Court filing does not mean Telus has won an appeal. The company is first asking the court for permission to appeal the CRTC’s August ruling. The main CRTC case is still underway. Interventions closed August 31 and replies closed September 10.
iPhone in Canada has reached out to Telus for comment and will update this story if we hear back.
Want to see more of our stories on Google?
P.S. Want to keep this site truly independent? Support us by buying us a beer, treating us to a coffee, or shopping through Amazon here. Links in this post are affiliate links, so we earn a tiny commission at no charge to you. Thanks for supporting independent Canadian media!
