Agcom has announced new fines against telephone operators protagonists of 28-day billing: here's what's happening
The tug-of-war between AGCOM, the Guarantor Authority for Telecommunications, and telephone operators continues because of the failure to automatically refund the amounts charged to customers in the period of 28-day billing.
The AGCOM, strengthened by the pronouncement in its favor by the Council of State, announces new fines for operators. The customers who should receive refunds, however, are only those of fixed telephony: the AGCOM Resolution 252/16/CONS, in fact, does not concern also the customers of mobile telephony. The dispute between AGCOM and the major telephone companies has been going on for months and stems from the decision, unilaterally and judged illegitimate by the competent bodies, to issue bills every 4 weeks and no longer every month, as has always been done.
Bills at 28 days: what operators are proposing
While the Authority has imposed an automatic refund to customers, TIM, Vodafone, Fastweb and Wind Tre have made different proposals: either they have made available to them forms on their respective sites in order to get back what was unduly subtracted (the refund, in this way, would be anything but automatic), or they have proposed compensatory solutions. TIM, for example, offers six free months of a service of the customer's choice (to be chosen among TIM Vision, Chi รจ, Extra Voice, Voce internazionale and Max Speed) for the fixed line or ADSL. Similar offers also from Fastweb: instead of a refund, the user can ask for free activation for six months of the International option, Ultrabroadband or Verso Mobile Sempre option. Also in these cases, however, it must be the user to make the first step.
Bills at 28 days, new sanctions coming
In the light of these behaviors of the operators, AGCOM has started a new sanctioning procedure that could end with fines up to 5 million euros. The position of AGCOM, in fact, is always the same: refunds must be automatic, the user must not ask for anything but receive what is due without filling in any form or choosing any offer.
The unknown of the new Council
On this issue hangs also the sword of Damocles of the expiration of the Council of AGCOM, which already today works in regime of extension. Theoretically, by September 26, Parliament should appoint the new members of the Council, but the current government crisis suggests a possible paralysis of the Authority. It is not to be excluded, therefore, that the telephone companies try to take time and then discuss the matter again, in several months, with the new Council and the new President of AGCOM.