Ottawa orders regulator to investigate sales practices by big telecom companies
TORONTO — The sales practices of Canada’s largest telecommunications companies — a long-time sore spot for many consumers — will be the subject of a public inquiry ordered by the federal government on Thursday.
“Like many Canadians, we are concerned by allegations of clearly inappropriate sales practices by telecom carriers,” Navdeep Bains, the minister responsible for telecommunications, said in a statement.
Bains said he has directed the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to conduct the investigation, including a public inquiry, and report on the sales practices used in the industry by Feb. 28.
He said Canadians have complained directly to him as he’s travelled and noted the industry’s dispute-resolution body’s mid-term report for 2017-18 showed a 73 per cent increase in complaints compared with the previous year.