When the government instituted rules several years ago demanding that service providers provide timely service to customers, it meant business – and on Sunday, cable company HOT learned just how serious breaking the rules is. The Cable Broadcasting Commission, the government supervisory organization HOT answers to, fined the company NIS 1.6 million ($385,000) because of excessive complaints by customers regarding poor service.
According to the Commission, customers were forced to wait lengthy amounts of time in July, August, and September – as long as an hour – for phone inquiries, far more than the four minutes the law requires that a call be answered in. The Commission decided to impose the fine after investigating the basis of the complaints and of the delays.
This is the biggest fine ever imposed on a service provider in Israel. According to Commission head Dr. Yifat Ben-Hai Segev, “I am very hopeful that now HOT customers, who pay premium for good service, will now get that service,” she said.
According to Segev, there has been a shocking rise in recent months in waiting times for many companies, adding that she intends to fine other companies for their poor service performance as well.