Ohio PUC adopted new minimum telephone service standards for loca...
Ohio PUC adopted new minimum telephone service standards for local and long distance providers. New rules result from PUC review of service standards in light of industry changes over last few years and last year’s Ameritech service problems. Rules…
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won’t take effect until they have been reviewed and approved by Legislative Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review. If approved as expected, new Ohio rules (Docket 00-1265-TP-ORD) will require telecom providers to issue automatic credits for missed installation and repair appointments and issue credits upon customer request if installations or repairs are delayed past state deadlines. Under new rules, it will be up to customer to notify carrier of late installations or repairs. Since old service rules were adopted in 1998, some one million customers have received $13 million in credits due to delays. New rules also will implement customer bill of rights that emphasizes customers’ options for obtaining and retaining local phone service and spells out complaint processing procedures. Rules also require (1) redesigned phone bills that clearly explain all charges and fees and (2) that customers disconnected for nonpayment be allowed 911 access for 14 days after disconnection. PUC also asked staff for recommendation on whether it should adopt standardized format for all Ohio telephone directories to ensure legibility and usefulness.