Cable Problems: what individual recourse is there for Canadian consumers?

Author

Sophie Roussin, Yannick Labelle

Organization

Union des consommateurs

Published

2015

Summary

The purpose of Union des consommateurs (UC) study is to analyse complaint-handling services in the cable sector, to determine where consumers can turn if they experience a problem. What problems do consumers experience with cable services? What organizations do they approach, and are they satisfied with how their complaints are handled?

After a general description of the cable market in Canada (definitions, service penetration, popular types of offers, etc.), and then of consumer complaints about those services, UC’s report details the various available services for handling consumer complaints about their cable services.

UC examines the internal recourses offered by cable companies, and then those offered by federal organizations likely to receive complaints about the services provided. UC also presents an overview of recourses available to consumers under provincial laws, as well as an overview of various recourses available abroad, i.e., in the United States, France, Belgium, Australia and the United Kingdom, with regard to those services.

In addition, UC discusses the results of consultations with cable companies and with federal and provincial organizations that receive complaints about that sector, along with the results of a telephone survey of 1,500 Canadians.

Lastly, UC examines solutions to ensure that complaint-resolution services offered to consumers with regard to their cable services are accessible and effective.

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OCA Funded Research
This research received funding support through the Office of Consumer Affairs' Contributions Program.

Contact information

Source: Consumer Policy Research Database