Dodo Services Pty Ltd, Primus Telecommunications Pty Limited, and M2 Commander Pty Ltd have undertaken to offer remedies to customers who couldn’t receive the internet speeds they bought because their NBN connection was incapable of delivering it.
Affected customers will be offered options for remediation, including moving to a lower speed plan with a refund or exiting their plan with a refund and no exit fees. 3,384 Dodo customers, 1,912 iPrimus customers, and 565 Commander customers were unable to achieve the speeds they were paying for.
Between 1 October 2015 and 30 June 2017, Dodo, iPrimus and Commander advertised a range of NBN speed plans. For example, iPrimus advertised its highest speed plan as “Download speed: Up to 100Mbps. Upload speed: Up to 40Mbps. 100/40 MBPS is as fast as you can get and will surely feed your need for speed.”
“Dodo, iPrimus and Commander have admitted that by offering speed plans that could not be delivered, they likely breached consumer law by engaging in misleading or deceptive conduct and making false or misleading representations,” ACCC Commissioner Sarah Court said.
Dodo, iPrimus and Commander will be contacting affected customers by email or letter by 27 April 2018, outlining the options that customers have.
“Affected customers may prefer to exit their contract with a refund rather than accept a service that does not meet their needs. Dodo, iPrimus and Commander will also be required to tell new customers if they are not getting the maximum speeds advertised to them,” Ms Court said.
Acting on misleading claims about internet speeds remains an enforcement priority for the ACCC in 2018.
“The ACCC has now accepted undertakings from eight internet service providers, who have all admitted they likely misled customers about internet speeds. As a result of these undertakings, more than 75,000 affected consumers are being contacted by their internet service provider and offered remedies. New customers will also now be told if they are not getting the maximum internet speeds they were promised,” Ms Court said.