Phone or broadband complaint ignored?

Writing “Please record this as a complaint” can make your intention clear. But you do not have to discover the right phrase before your concern counts.

ComReg says consumers do not need to use a particular word or expression to make a complaint. If you raise it through another customer-service channel, the provider must deal with it appropriately there or direct you to its complaint channel and procedure. Read the complaint-handling requirements.

For your own records, it is useful to follow a phone conversation with a short written summary. Describe what you reported and any action or callback you were promised.

For example:

I contacted you on [date] because my account still showed charges after the cancellation date you confirmed. I was told your billing team would contact me. I have not received that callback or an acknowledgement of my complaint.

Use the real dates. A clear account of what happened is more useful than a long description of every frustrating conversation.

There are two different stages to watch.

Acknowledgement: ComReg’s requirements say this must arrive within two working days and include a unique complaint reference and a link to the provider’s complaint-handling code. ComReg also says the acknowledgement must be supplied in a form you can store and refer to later. See the acknowledgement requirements and Consumer Care guidance.

Complaint response: The provider must respond within ten working days. That is not a promise that everything will be fixed by then. Where it cannot provide a resolution, the response must include a timeframe where appropriate and advise you that a dispute can be referred to ComReg. See the response requirements.

A reference number helps you identify the complaint. It does not, by itself, explain a disputed bill or resolve a service problem.

Find the provider’s published complaint procedure and use one of its listed channels. Keep the submitted text and any confirmation. Providers must offer an electronic complaint channel that lets you retain a copy or receive a record you can keep. ComReg sets out the required complaint channels.

You can adapt this message:

Subject: Complaint not acknowledged, account [account number] I first raised this problem on [date] through [phone, chat, form or another channel]. The problem is [brief explanation]. I contacted you again on [dates]. I was told [relevant promise or explanation], but [what remains unresolved]. I have not received an acknowledgement or complaint reference. Please provide these and confirm the date recorded for my complaint. To resolve the underlying issue, I am asking you to [explain the charge, correct the account, restore the service, assess a refund request or another specific action]. I have attached [relevant bills, cancellation confirmation or previous correspondence]. Please reply in writing.

Start with the documents that demonstrate the problem. For a billing dispute, that might be the relevant bill and a cancellation confirmation. For repeated missed callbacks, it might be the chat transcript containing the promise and a short list of your follow-up contacts.

This follow-up should record the earlier contacts, not pretend the problem began today. Keep the original messages as well as the new one.

ComReg’s guidance identifies three situations in which it may engage with your provider: the provider has not acknowledged your complaint, has not issued a response within ten working days, or has responded but you remain dissatisfied.

It also says an issue that is ignored, or receives no meaningful attempt at resolution, is deemed to be a complaint after two working days. Do not assume you must obtain a reference number before explaining the missing acknowledgement to ComReg. Read ComReg’s escalation guidance.

Tell ComReg plainly that no reference was supplied. Give the date and channel of your first contact, and include any evidence showing what you raised. The absence of an acknowledgement is a separate reason to ask for help; ComReg does not list it only as a problem you can raise after the ten-working-day response period. See the circumstances in which ComReg may engage.

There is an important condition: ComReg’s Consumer Care page says you must first have notified the provider in accordance with its complaint-handling code within the previous 12 months. For an older dispute, explain the dates and ask ComReg what route remains available rather than assuming this process applies. Check the notification condition.

You can use ComReg’s official Consumer Care contact page, call 01 8049668, or email consumerline@comreg.ie. The contact page also provides an online complaint form.

A first message could be:

I am asking for help with a complaint to [provider]. I first raised it on [date] through [channel]. The problem is [short explanation], and I asked the provider to [requested action]. I have not received an acknowledgement or complaint reference. I followed up on [dates]. I have attached my correspondence and the relevant account documents. Please advise whether Consumer Care can take this further and whether you need anything else.

Describe what you can demonstrate. You do not need to guess which department lost the complaint.

There may be two problems: the provider has handled your complaint poorly, and you believe a charge is wrong. Explain both. A missed response does not, on its own, explain what a charge was for or establish the amount you should receive back.

Consider this fictional example. Your provider confirms a service end date, but a later bill includes another €40 charge. You have also received no answer to your complaint.

Ask what period that €40 covers and why it is due. Separately, identify when you complained and the missing acknowledgement. This gives the provider, and anyone helping you, two specific matters to address.

Where further payments or collection activity concern you, ask the provider to explain in writing how it will handle the disputed amount while investigating. Keep that answer with the complaint. This article does not establish that payments or collection activity are automatically paused.

For help checking a charge after cancellation, use our guide to broadband bills after cancellation.

Another person’s report of an immediate callback or refund cannot promise your result. ComReg describes circumstances in which it may engage with a provider, rather than promising that every complaint will be accepted or resolved in the consumer’s favour. Read what Consumer Care can do.

ComReg provides a free complaint-handling service, mainly through phone and email. It also has a separate, more formal dispute-resolution process, with an application form and a €15 fee. Its guidance says consumers are first offered the opportunity to resolve matters through the free service. Read about the two processes.

Start by explaining the problem to Consumer Care. Keep a record of any proposed solution, including the amount of a refund or credit, what it covers and when it should happen. A useful written outcome should tell you what changes, not simply that the complaint is “closed”.

You can help someone organise their bills and write the complaint. To speak to ComReg on their behalf, ask about its third-party authorisation process. ComReg’s contact page explains how to request authorisation through its online form.

Your next step: put your first complaint date, the unresolved problem and the missing acknowledgement into one clear message. Keep a copy. If the provider has not acknowledged the complaint, explain that to ComReg rather than waiting indefinitely for a reference that has never arrived. Check ComReg’s guidance before you send it.