Canadian wireless providers may be forced to offer free paper bills

Published March 3, 2020 at 12:32 pm

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Canada’s telecom regulator is set to rule this week on whether mobile service providers should be compelled to offer some or all of their customer’s paper invoices, at no charge.

Two advocacy groups want the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to force Telus-owned Koodo Mobile to reverse its move to electronic billing for all but a select few of its customers.

John Lawford with the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, which filed a formal complaint to the CRTC with the National Pensioners Federation, says Canadians have a right to receive a paper bill — at no cost — under changes to the Telecommunications Act passed in 2014.

Koodo has argued that, while the law says telecom companies cannot charge a fee for invoicing, they are not compelled to actually provide paper bills.

Since Koodo began switching to electronic bills in early 2015, most other wireless carriers, including Telus, have followed suit.

Rogers Communications told its customers last month that its bills would be available exclusively online as of Mar. 26.

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