By Karlis Salna
Three-quarters of Australians are satisfied with their communications services, although the number of complaints is continuing to rise, a report shows.
The report by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) shows 76 per cent of households in metropolitan areas were satisfied with their communications services.
Similarly, 75 per cent of households in non-metropolitan areas were satisfied with their services.
The satisfaction levels are even higher in terms of fixed-line services with 80 per cent of people in the city and 82 per cent of those in non-metro areas saying their expectations were mostly met.
The results explain why 80 per cent of Australian households have a fixed-line telephone service.
However, location does appear to be a factor for consumer satisfaction when it comes to mobile phones with 34 per cent of non-metro users compared with 10 per cent of those in metro areas expressing concern.
The most common complaint among non-metro users is mobile reception with 34 per cent saying they were dissatisfied with the service they received compared to just 10 per cent in the city.
Complaints are rising across the board, having grown overall by almost four times in the past five years.
In the past five years, the number of complaints recorded by the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman has risen from 68,020 in 2002/03 to 268,645 in 2007/08.
The highest number of complaints was in the areas of billing and customer service, accounting for 39 per cent following a rise of 67 per cent since 2006/07.
When separated into the categories of fixed-line, mobile and internet services, it is the later that has experience the most marked growth in complaints, having risen by 176 per cent since 2005/06.
Despite the growth in the number of complaints, 73 per cent of Australian households are generally satisfied with their internet service.
Just nine per cent of those surveyed said they were likely to change providers in the next 12 months.