Mohlala takes aim at iBurst, FNB Connect

Section 63 of the Act states, among other things, that prepaid vouchers can expire only once fully used or redeemed for goods or services, or after three years. While the general practice is that there is no carry-over of unused data, some companies allow a one-month carry-over on certain data packages.

The loss of unused data is said to be costing customers large amounts of money.

FNB, which offers high-speed internet service ADSL through its service provider, FNB Connect, seems to be the first bank to face Mohlala's wrath, despite the banking sector's exemption from a large chunk of the Act.

For mobile operators, the latest letters from Mohlala add to a list of allegations of contraventions of the Act levelled against them by her. The companies have asked the Consumer Tribunal to set aside Mohlala's compliance notices issued to them, telling them to change their customer contracts in line with the consumer Act.

Letters go to operators

Last month, Mohlala issued letters to Cell C, Virgin Mobile SA, MTN, Vodacom, iBurst, FNB and 8ta informing them that they were contravening Section 63. All companies except iBurst and MTN confirmed that they had received the letters and that they would meet Mohlala to discuss the matter.

In the letters, Mohlala said that in terms of Section 63 of the Act, the credits for prepaid data bundles remained the property of consumers. The credits would expire once consumers had redeemed them all, or after the expiry of three years from the date of issue.

FNB said it would meet Mohlala today to discuss the letter and "what we consider to be an industry issue".

Vodacom said it did not agree with the commission's view that Vodacom's policy for data packages contravened the provisions of Section 63 of the Act.

Section inspires debate

Jonathan Newman, Virgin Mobile SA's chief strategy and marketing officer, said its discussion would also centre around the interpretation of Section 63 and its application to data vouchers.

"Section 63 has inspired much debate in the industry and we look forward to discussing the intentions of the NCC (National Consumer Commission) regarding the protection of consumers in this arena," Newman said.

8ta said it was waiting for legal advice. Pearlene Singh, executive head of human resources and legal, said on Friday she was not aware of a letter from Mohlala. Without specifically commenting on claims that iBurst does not comply with Section 63, Singh said iBurst took compliance with Act seriously and intended to comply with its provisions.

Mothibi Ramusi, Cell C's executive head of regulatory affairs, said the company would respond further after its meeting with Mohlala.

Source: Business Day via I-Net Bridge