Poor Customer and Helpdesk Service by Singapore Telcos
Ministry of Digital Development and InformationSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns complaints about poor telco customer service and long helpdesk wait times for elderly customers, as raised by Er Dr Lee Bee Wah. Minister for Communications and Information Mr S Iswaran responded that complaints have trended downwards over five years and IMDA surveys indicate improved satisfaction with hotline waiting times and officer competence. He highlighted that IMDA mandates telcos to investigate all complaints and noted that non-English speakers remain generally satisfied. To assist the elderly, telcos have implemented callback appointment systems to reduce phone wait times and ensure callers are served by officers who can speak their preferred languages or dialects.
Transcript
17 Er Dr Lee Bee Wah asked the Minister for Communications and Information (a) whether the Ministry is aware of the complaints of poor customer service by the Singapore telcos; and (b) what can the Ministry do to get the telcos to improve their phone helpdesk especially for the many elderly customers who have to be put on hold for long periods to speak to an officer.
Mr S Iswaran: The number of complaints received by the Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA) and the telecommunication companies (telcos) concerning poor customer service by telecos has shown a decreasing trend over the past five years. IMDA requires telcos to look into every complaint and see how they can serve their customers better.
IMDA also tracks consumer satisfaction of telecommunication services through the Consumer Awareness and Satisfaction Survey (CASS). The 2018 CASS showed that consumers were generally satisfied with their telcos, and consumer satisfaction has improved in several areas, including hotline waiting times, the time taken to resolve complaints, and the competence of customer service officers. An April 2019 poll of non-English speaking individuals conducted by IMDA also found that respondents were generally satisfied with the customer service by telcos.
To address the needs of elderly customers, several telcos now allow customers to make appointments for telcos to call them back, so they do not have to wait on the line for too long. In addition, when receiving calls on their hotlines, the telcos will arrange for elderly customers to be served by officers who can speak the same language or dialect.