38General functions—protection of public interest and consumers

##### 38 General functions—protection of public interest and consumers (1) The functions of AUSTEL include ensuring that the provisions of this Act are carried out with due regard to the public interest. (2) The functions of AUSTEL include protecting consumers from unfair practices of carriers and other persons in connection with the supply of telecommunications services, the supply, installation or maintenance of customer equipment or the performance of cabling work and, for that purpose: (a) receiving and investigating consumer complaints, including complaints about charges for telecommunications services; and (b) developing indicative performance standards relating to: (i) the quality of standard telephone services that carriers supply to consumers; and (ii) the quality of goods and services that carriers supply to consumers in connection with supplying standard telephone services to them; and (iii) the quality of other telecommunications services in relation to which AUSTEL thinks it appropriate to develop such standards; and (iv) matters associated with, or incidental to, the supply of goods or services referred to in subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iii); and (c) monitoring, and reporting to the Minister on, the performance of carriers and other persons in meeting the standards developed under paragraph (b); and (d) referring consumer complaints to the Ombudsman, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman or the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission in appropriate cases; and (e) monitoring, and reporting to the Minister on, charges paid by consumers. (3) When developing standards under paragraph (2)(b), AUSTEL must have regard to the best international practice performance indicators available to it. (4) The matters referred to in subparagraph (2)(b)(iv) include (but are not limited to): (a) the timeliness and comprehensibility of bills; and (b) the procedures to be followed by carriers to generate standard billing reports in order to assist in the investigation of consumer complaints about bills; and (c) any other matter relating to customer billing.