Bell, Telus — and maybe Rogers — under fire for charging fees that 'appear' to violate new rules

ship's bell and Telus ar veneer scrutiny from Canada's telecom regulator for introducing wireless fees the regulator says seem to break new federal rules. Rogers may soon face scrutiny as well, because it recently unveiled a similar fee.

On Friday, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) implemented new rules banning telecoms from charging extra fees to activate, change or cancel cellphone plans. The now-outlawed charges include early cancellation fees and the once-ubiquitous activation fee for phone plans. The regulations are meant to make it easier for Canadians to switch wireless and internet plans to secure better deals. 

Shortly before the new rules took effect, the CRTC sent stern letters to Telus and Bell, warning that Telus's newly introduced $15 SIM card fee and Bell's new $40 device handling charge for wireless plans appeared to violate the regulations. 

Although Rogers has yet to receive a letter, the CRTC says it's reviewing the telecom's new $40 device setup charge — which is similar to Bell's device handling charge.

Matt Hatfield, executive director of the non-profit advocacy group OpenMedia, suggests all of these fees are an attempt by the major telecom companies to circumvent the new rules and recoup lost revenue.

"This appears to me to be them continuing a practice that looks very much like activation fees under a different name," Hatfield said. 

"It's not great corporate-citizen behaviour, is it? It's sort of a shady used-car dealer type thing to do."

Bell, Telus and Rogers each maintain their fees comply with the CRTC regulations.

The CRTC first contacted Bell in May, shortly after the company introduced its $40 device handling charge. According to Bell's website, the one-time fee covers "fulfilment costs" for customers who purchase a phone or other device with their wireless plan.

The new regulations allow telecom companies to still charge fees for optional products and services, such as a visit to a customer's home to set up their Wi-Fi. But the CRTC wrote in its letter to Bell that "it would not appear that the device handling charge falls under the exemption."

Bell responded on June 10, arguing in a letter to the CRTC that the fee is exempt because customers don't have to buy a phone when they sign up for a new plan. "It is a physical product that customers 'may expressly agree to purchase,'" wrote the telecom.

That explanation failed to satisfy the CRTC. It sent a second letter to Bell on Friday, demanding the company confirm by June 17 whether it has stopped charging the contentious fee.

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Hatfield argues that since many people purchase a phone when signing up for a wireless plan, device setup is an essential service — one that shouldn't carry an extra fee under the new rules.

"It seems to me they're hoping to get away on a technicality here," he said.

The CRTC is locked in a similar dispute with Telus over its $15 fee, which the regulator says the telecom introduced on June 11 for both physical and digital SIM cards. Those microchips are required for phone plans because they connect a customer's device to a mobile network. 

In its initial letter to Telus earlier this month, the CRTC told the telecom, as it did Bell, that "it would not appear" the SIM card fee qualifies for an exemption under the new rules. 

On Friday, the CRTC issued a second letter ordering Telus to confirm whether it has scrapped the fee and, if not, to explain why by June 17.

According to Bell's website, it provides a physical or digital SIM card for free with a monthly phone plan. 

In its second round of letters to both Bell and Telus, the CRTC threatened to pursue "regulatory action" if the matters remain unresolved. 

Hatfield said the CRTC is trying to convince the telecom companies to drop the fees now to avoid what can be lengthy enforcement action in each case. 

"I appreciate them trying to move more at the speed" that would benefit telecom customers, he said. "CRTC decisions take a very long time."

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