An analytical study of consumer remedies against a telecom service providers for deficient network services in India
ABSTRACT:
Imagine yourself you are talking in a phone with someone or texting something which is very important to you and all of a sudden you are not able to communicate anymore, you are constantly facing poor network issue and call drops. How would you feel, question yourself once, not good right. As a person you will feel helpless and frustrated that you bought a sim card and always recharge your phone where the service provider gives you assurance about a lot of things that they provide good network and all but in reality that doesn’t actually meets the standard as they prescribed earlier. Here the problems arises, when you pay monthly bills for good internet, so basically you are hiring a telecom service and becomes a consumer, so our article aims to answer the issue that as a consumer what legal remedies are there for you to get a relief. In this article we will be discussing the steps, procedure and legal framework provided to us as a consumer which targets to protect us against these problems .
INTRODUCTION:
We know how telecommunication is so important to us and in today’s generation it has become a integral part of it. If we don’t have a proper telecom service it would become highly problematic to us in this complex era . Telecommunication is basically you are communicating information through technology. Now as we all are aware that information is something very crucial to all of us for the proper functioning of the society. Back in days when there was no technology people used to rely on word of mouth, post offices and letters through birds or human assistant but it used to take a lot of time and during that period, world was not so complicated so it was acceptable. As we grew and society developed , the need for information and communication also started to grew in extreme way . Therefore, telecom services come into picture and helped to stick with the pace in the modern world. In this article, our aim is to address the issue that is “how can a consumer legally file a complaint against a telecom service provider for persistent poor network and call drops”.
BACKGROUND:
Before discussing about the legal remedies given to us , first let us deep dive into the problems and it’s root causes. It begins when a person hires a telecom service and becomes a consumer after that the service hired fails to meet the prescribed promise which turns to “deficiency in service”. Now this deficiency can occur for many reasons such as follows:
- It could be that there is not enough towers in a particular region to carry a signal.
- It can be due to overcrowded signals in a concentrated area and disrupt each other.
- It maybe because of invisible highway of radio frequencies that telecom companies use to carry our data and voice and that highway is narrow and there is shortage of space which can cause network traffics.
- As mobile users is growing but the network capacity is still the same, it causes the system to be overloaded.
- Another reason could be that when mobile signals overlap with eachother causing call drops immediately.
- When there is an electricity blackout and the local mobile tower runs out of backup battery power, the network in the whole area drops instantly.
If there is repeated failure then a consumer can escalate the issue to consumer forum and use it’s right against the service provider and seek redressal for it.
LEGAL FRAMEWORK:
The legal mechanism to fight back against the telecom service provider is governed under the Consumer Protection Act , 1872 (CPA) and Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) are as follows:
- Section 11(1)(b) of TRAI Act, 1997 – Empowers TRAI to protect consumer interests and ensure quality of telecom services. This is the foundational provision behind consumer protection regulations in the telecom sector.
- Telecom Consumers Complaint Redressal Regulations, 2012
These regulations establish a two-tier grievance redressal mechanism for telecom consumers.
Key provisions include:
- Complaint Center: Every telecom service provider must establish a complaint center for receiving consumer complaints.
- Docket Number: Upon receiving a complaint, the service provider must register it and provide a docket number to the consumer.
- Appellate Authority: If the consumer is dissatisfied with the resolution or receives no response within the prescribed period, an appeal may be filed before the Appellate Authority of the telecom service provider.
3. Under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019:
Section 2(7) – A telecom subscriber who avails telecom or internet services for consideration falls within the definition of a consumer.
Section 2(11) – Any fault, imperfection, inadequacy, or shortcoming in the quality or manner of performance of telecom services may amount to deficiency in service.
Examples:
- Frequent call drops
- Poor network connectivity
- Unjustified billing
- Failure to provide promised internet speed
Section 2(47) – Misleading advertisements, hidden charges, or false representations regarding telecom plans may constitute an unfair trade practice.
Section 35 – Provides the right to file a complaint before the Consumer Commission.
Section 39 – Empowers the District Consumer Commission to grant relief such as:
- Refund
- Compensation
- Removal of deficiency
- Discontinuance of unfair practices
STEPS FOR SEEKING RELIEF : In this part we will be discussing about the steps in sequence manner that “how can a consumer legally file complaint”. Let’s look into it
Step 1: Lodge Complaint with Telecom Service Provider
- File complaint with the service provider’s Complaint Centre.
- Obtain docket/reference number.
Step 2: Wait for Resolution
- The service provider must address the complaint within the prescribed timelines under TRAI regulations.
Step 3: Appeal to Appellate Authority
If the Complaint is not resolved, or Resolution is unsatisfactory, file an appeal before the telecom operator’s Appellate Authority within the prescribed period.
Step 4: Approach Consumer Commission
If the grievance still persists, the consumer may file a complaint under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 alleging:
- Deficiency in service (Section 2(11))
- Unfair trade practice (Section 2(47))
- Excess billing
- Failure to provide promised services
The Consumer Commission may grant compensation, refund, correction of deficiency, or other appropriate relief.
CASE STUDIES:
To support the the legal provisions there were many cases happened which gives full assurance to all the consumers out there that they can take legal action if needed for the failure of telecom services.
1.Vodafone Idea Cellular Ltd. V. Ajay Kumar Agarwal (2022) – In this case the main issue was that can a telecom consumer file a complaint before a Consumer Forum, or must the consumer only use arbitration under Section 7B of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885. It raised a genuine problem and obstacle for the consumer to take correct action. The case began when our complainant Ajay Kumar Agarwal made a complaint before the District Consumer Forum alleging deficiency in service, wrong billing, consumer harassment and he also sought compensation. It started when he received an extremely high bill of around ₹24,609. He believed that this bill was incorrect and that Vodafone had overcharged him. Ajay Kumar contacted Vodafone and tried to get the issue resolved. According to him, the company did not properly resolve his grievance. Therefore, he decided to seek legal redress. Vodafone did not immediately argue about whether the bill was correct. Instead, Vodafone raised a legal objection so where they argued that “The Consumer Forum has no jurisdiction to hear this case” and relied on the mentioned provision which provides for arbitration of telecom disputes. According to Vodafone, the consumer should go for arbitration and not approach the Consumer Forum. This case went through from district commission to supreme court and all their judgments where same and it was finally upheld that consumer can file a complaint before a consumer Forum. A consumer may choose arbitration under Section 7B of the Telegraph Act if they want. However, the consumer cannot be forced to use arbitration. The Court recognized that telecom services fall within the broad definition of “service” under consumer law. Therefore, telecom consumers can seek protection under consumer legislation.
- Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) V. TRAI (2016) – This is a another case which deals with call drops, around 2015, mobile users across India were experiencing frequent call drops which occur when a phone call gets disconnected before the conversation is finished. Consumers were frustrated and as a result, TRAI decided to take action. TRAI introduced the Telecom Consumers Protection (Ninth Amendment) Regulations, 2015. The regulation said: For every call drop, the telecom company must credit ₹1 to the consumer, subject to a maximum of ₹3 per day. The purpose was to compensate consumers for inconvenience caused by call drops. COAI (representing telecom companies) argued that not every call drop is the telecom company’s fault. Call drops can happen because the user is moving rapidly, the phone battery is weak, the handset has technical issues, Buildings, weather, or other factors interfere with signals. They cited with their own reasons and also mentioned that TRAI itself had noted that many call drops occur for reasons beyond the operator’s control. TRAI already imposed penalties on operators who failed to meet quality-of-service standards. Therefore, telecom companies argued that this additional compensation scheme was unnecessary. The Supreme Court struck down TRAI’s regulation and held that the regulation was arbitrary , unreasonable and beyond TRAI’s powers in the manner it was framed. This case is important because despite the judgement it was clearly stated by the supreme court that if a consumers have a right to receive quality telecom services, TRAI has the power to regulate telecom services and protect consumer interests and lastly that telecom operators must maintain proper service standards. So the Court did not deny consumer rights; it only held that this particular compensation mechanism was legally flawed.
CONCLUSION & EVALUATION
We can conclude with the analysis that consumers have crystal clear legal remedies available to use against the telecom service provider for persistent poor network and call drops. There were many cases which proved it but still we can see that despite the written laws their needs a strong implementation because many of them are not aware of their rights or they tend to fear for involving in cases and courts which becomes one of a main reason of exploitation by the service providers. These frameworks are good but practical reality is way more different than it looks like. It is often being observed that if a consumer is facing problem instead of talking about it or taking a stand for yourself they tend to change and switch to different networks. However, this strategy won’t work because it will become a cycle that you keep on changing it until you get a better one but how will that better one become until you make a move to make it better. If you don’t change yourself how can you expect others to become one, the real development starts when you bring a change first. So don’t wait for others to address the issue if you are facing it , have the courage to take a proper action. It will force the respective authority to take a immediate note and compel the telecom company to quickly fix the issue. By knowing our rights under TRAI and the CPA, we can transform ourselves from helpless users into informed, legally protecting consumers.
REFERENCES AND CITATIONS :
Vodafone Idea Cellular Ltd. v. Ajay Kumar Agarwal, (2022) 6 SCC 496 (India).
Cellular Operators Association of India v. Telecom Regulatory Auth. of India, (2016) 7 SCC 703 (India).
Consumer Protection Act, No. 35 of 2019, India Code (2019).
Consumer Protection Act, 2019,https://www.indiacode.nic.in/handle/123456789/15256
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, No. 24 of 1997, India Code (1997).
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, Telecom Consumers Complaint Redressal Regulations, 2012, https://www.trai.gov.in/node/3222
