TRAI ON PESKY CALLS and
SMS!
India's telecom regulator TRAI has
announced tough rules that may put an end to bulk, unwanted phone calls and
messages.
The authority has been struggling to
check the menace of pesky texts and calls for almost 3 years. In 2011,
the TRAI said only a hundred texts can be sent per day from a single
connection. The tariff for bulk SMSes was also raised and this year and now the
regulator started the process of blacklisting companies.
A large number of
complaints pertain to calls or messages received by consumers on behalf of
banks, insurance companies, builders and so on, it observed.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India ( TRAI) said phone connections to a bank or a company responsible for unsolicited calls and SMSes will be terminated/disconnected after the third complaint from a customer.
The new rules issued by the authority include a fine of Rs 5,000 per complaint on a telecom firm if found that the unsolicited commercial call (UCC) or SMS was made by unregistered telemarketers using its network.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India ( TRAI) said phone connections to a bank or a company responsible for unsolicited calls and SMSes will be terminated/disconnected after the third complaint from a customer.
The new rules issued by the authority include a fine of Rs 5,000 per complaint on a telecom firm if found that the unsolicited commercial call (UCC) or SMS was made by unregistered telemarketers using its network.
HOW TO REGISTER A COMPLAINT
1. If you receive any
unsolicited commercial communications seven days after registration of your
telephone number in the NCPR, you may register a complaint by
A. Dialling the toll
free number 1909; or
B. Sending an SMS to 1909
2.
It is important to note that:
a). The
complaint has to be registered from the telephone number on which unsolicited
commercial communication has been received.
b). Your
complaint must be made within three days of receipt of the unsolicited
commercial communication.
A.
REGISTRATION OF COMPLAINT BY DIALING 1909
1. Dial 1909, listen to
the instructions and choose one of the following to register your complaint:
a). Through customer
care executive
b). Through
IVRS(Interactive Voice Response System)
A1.
REGISTRATION OF COMPLAINT THROUGH CUSTOMER CARE
EXECUTIVE
1. Dial 1909 and select
the option for registering the complaint through the
customer care executive.
2. Provide the details
of the unsolicited commercial communication to the customer care executive
including:
a. Particulars of the
telemarketer;
b. The telephone number
from which the unsolicited commercial communication originated;
c. The date and time of
the unsolicited commercial communication
d. A brief description
of the unsolicited commercial communication.
3. The customer care
executive will register the customer complaint and acknowledge the complaint by
providing a unique complaint number.
4. Preserve this unique
complaint number for further communication.
5. You will be informed
of the action taken on your complaint within 7 days of the complaint booking.
A2.
REGISTRATION OF COMPLAINT THROUGH SMS TO 1909
1. You may register a
complaint regarding receipt of unsolicited commercial communications by sending
SMS to 1909 in the specified format given below:
“COMP
TEL NO XXXXXXXXXX, dd/mm/yy, Time hh:mm”
Where XXXXXXXXXX – is
the telephone number or header of the SMS, as the case may be, from which the
unsolicited commercial communication has originated.
2. The complaint will be
registered and acknowledged by the access provider by sending a unique
complaint number through SMS.
3. You will be informed
of the action taken on your complaint within 7 days of the complaint booking.
