Ofcom has published its levels of complaints for major telcos between October and December last year.
And it looks like TalkTalk had the most complaints for landline telephone services while Orange came top for broadband services and pay monthly services.
However Ofcom said overall the total volume of complaints made to it continued to fall last quarter, which was the sixth consecutive quarter of decline. Complaints about landline, broadband and pay as you go mobile services decreased, but pay monthly complaints increased marginally, Ofcom said.
Pay Monthly mobile services
Orange received the most complaints from pay monthly mobile customers during the final quarter of 2012, at an above average level of 0.21 per 1000 customers, largely driven by the withdrawal of its free broadband offer, Ofcom siad.
T-Mobile was above the industry average, with complaints mainly regarding billing and how said complaints were handled, and Three came in as equal to the industry average.
O2 was the least complained about mobile provider, with 0.06 per 1000 customers, and a spokesperson for the network said the data showed it had remained the best performer for two years.
“We plan to keep it that way by continuing to deliver the best possible experience for our customers.”
Virgin Mobile and Vodafone also came in with fewer complaints than the industry average.
O2, Virgin Mobile and Vodafone all achieved fewer complaints than the industry average.
Landline phone services
TalkTalk generated the most complaints during the final quarter of last year at 0.36 complaints per 1000 customers, but these complaints continued to fall quarter on quarter, Ofcom said.
However they were almost double the industry average, with complaints made mainly about service faults and customer service issues, Ofcom said.
A TalkTalk spokesperson said the company had made significant improvements across the business this year and was pleased this was reflected in the data.
“Complaints about both landline and broadband services have halved compared to the same quarter last year. We’ve invested in our online customer support – which now accounts for over 70% of customer contacts, and offer more support when people move home.”
The spokesperson said when issues did arise, the company “increasingly” fixed them first time, and continued to look for ways to better serve its customers.
BT complaints dropped from 0.21 to 0.20 per 1000 customers, still above the industry average. Sky and Virgin Media had complaints below the industry average, with Sky sitting at 0.12 complaints per 1000 customers and Virgin Media the least number of complaints at 0.11 per 1000 customers.
Broadband services
Orange generated the most complaints as a proportion of its broadband customer base at 0.70 per 1000 customers, up from 0.50 three months earlier, Ofcom said.
An Orange spokesperson said the network was disappointed by the latest results and would take the findings onboard as it strove to offer customers the best service at all times.
Complaints hit a peak in October, which related to the network’s decision to withdraw free broadband unless customers also purchased line rental.
TalkTalk was second, but complaints again fell quarter on quarter from 0.35 to 0.33 complaints per 1000 customers, however these were still higher than the industry average.
BT had above average complaint numbers at 0.30 per 1000 subscriber, and Sky had the least complaints regarding its broadband service at 0.08 per 1000 customers.
BT also generated above average complaints levels at 0.30 per 1,000 subscribers. Sky’s broadband service attracted fewest complaints ‘ 0.08 per 1,000 customers.
Incentive to change
The report aimed to help consumers make informed decisions when considering a new service or provider, and also incentivised operators to improve their performance, Ofcom said.
Ofcom consumer group director Claudio Pollack said it was encouraging to see a continuing decline in total volume of complaints and hoped these figures would incentivise providers to further improve their performance.
“We’re committed to providing consumers with valuable information to help them choose a provider that best suits their needs.”
Graph pictured of pay monthly mobile complaints per 1000 customers, courtesy of Ofcom.