(a) Adoption. The following customer service standards applicable to providers of cable television service in the City are hereby adopted.
(b) Compliance. Any provider of cable television service in the City shall comply with the following customer service standards effective ninety days after written notice of their adoption is given to the provider.
(c) Definitions. For the purposes of this section and Sections 808.05 and 808.06, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meanings given herein:
(1) "Appointment window" means either a specific time or, at a maximum, a four-hour time block during normal business hours. The provider may schedule service calls and other installation activities outside of normal business hours for the convenience of the customer.
(2) "Cable Commission" means the City Cable Television Commission.
(3) "Complaint" or "subscriber complaint" means any correspondence (written or oral) with a subscriber in which the subscriber indicates a dissatisfaction with any service provided by the provider, including, without limitation, billing, customer service, technical delivery of service, programming and rates.
(4) "Provider" means the business entity providing cable television service under a franchise with the City.
(5) "Service interruption" means the loss of picture or sound on one or more cable channels.
(6) "Subscriber" means a person within the City who receives cable television service.
(7) "System" means the cable television service in all of its components being delivered pursuant to a franchise agreement to persons within the City.
(d) Subscriber Complaint Practices.
(1) The provider shall maintain a local office which shall be open during normal business hours at least nine hours per weekday and four hours on Saturdays. This office shall accept payments, handle adjustments to subscriber bills, respond to installation, repair and/or maintenance requests and make other service calls. The provider shall have a publicly listed telephone number and be so operated as to receive subscriber complaints and requests on a twenty-four hour-a-day, seven days-a-week basis. At least ninety percent of the time, the provider shall connect a telephone caller to a live service representative staff member within thirty seconds during the following times: 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Monday through Friday; 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Saturday; 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Sundays; and 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on national holidays, with the exception of Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Day and Independence Day, on which the time shall be 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. The provider shall maintain written or computer-generated records demonstrating, to the satisfaction of the City, its ability to meet the standards set forth in this section. A written log shall be maintained listing all complaints and their dispositions. A copy of all complaint records, including, but not limited to, written logs pertaining to City subscribers, shall be provided for the Cable Commission's review at the Commission's periodic meetings.
(2) Within the provider's local office, monitors of reasonably recent vintage shall display programming available on the local cable system allowing subscribers to view a properly received cable picture.
(3) The provider shall render efficient service, make repairs promptly and interrupt service only for good cause and for the shortest time possible. Such interruptions, insofar as possible, shall be preceded by a notice and shall occur during periods of minimum use of the system. A written log available for City inspection shall be maintained for all service interruptions and shall be provided for the Cable Commission's review at the Commission's periodic meetings.
(4) Work on subscriber requests for maintenance or repairs received prior to 12:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, shall be commenced the same day.
(5) Work on subscriber requests for maintenance or repairs received after 12:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, shall be commenced within twenty-four hours of the request.
(6) Work on subscriber requests for maintenance or repairs received on Saturdays or Sundays shall be commenced within twenty-four hours of the request.
(7) Service calls for maintenance or repairs shall be performed within an appointment window at no charge or at a charge approved by the City or the FCC. An operator may not cancel an appointment with a customer after the close of business on the business day prior to the scheduled appointment. If a cable operator representative is running late for an appointment with a customer and will not be able to keep the appointment as scheduled, the customer shall be contacted as soon as possible. The appointment shall be rescheduled, as necessary, at a time which is convenient for the customer.
(8) If the provider fails to correct a service problem (other than a service interruption which is governed by paragraphs (d)(9) and (10) hereof) within twenty-four hours after the provider receives notification of a service problem, the provider shall credit one thirtieth of the monthly charge for the affected tier or premium channel to the subscriber for each twenty-four hours or fraction thereof after the first twenty-four hours during which a subscriber is with reduced service. The credit shall be made automatically by the provider without requiring a subscriber request. The provider shall, as part of the complaint information to be provided pursuant to paragraphs (d)(1) and (3) hereof, inform the Commission at its periodic meetings regarding the disposition of all credits provided by the grantee to subscribers pursuant to this paragraph (d)(8).
(9) The provider shall respond within two hours to all service interruption reports affecting at least one channel for five percent or more of the system's subscribers receiving that channel.
(10) In the event that any service interruption continues for more than twelve hours after the provider is first notified of the service interruption, the provider shall credit one sixtieth of the monthly charge to all subscribers affected by the service interruption for each twelve hours or fraction thereof after the first twelve hours during which the subscriber is with reduced service. The credit shall be made automatically by the provider without requiring a subscriber request.
(e) Installation.
(1) Subscribers who request installation, maintenance or repairs shall be given the schedule option of morning, afternoon, evening (during daylight hours) or Saturday appointments. Persons requesting installation of cable service shall be afforded a right of rescission between the time the cable service is requested and the time service is actually installed. All new installations, reconnects and service upgrades or downgrades shall be performed within seven business days of the date the order was placed by the subscriber. If a provider representative is running late for an appointment with a subscriber and will not be able to keep the appointment as scheduled, the subscriber shall be contacted. The appointment shall be rescheduled, as necessary, at a time which is convenient to the subscriber.
(2) Only those homes which require drops in excess of 125 feet shall be required to pay for the provider's materials and time at the rate per foot. All other installations shall be performed at the advertised installation rate. For the purposes of this paragraph, the term "drop" shall mean the shortest linear distance from the distribution line to the nearest point of the home.
(f) Subscriber Information. The provider shall provide to the City and all new subscribers, and at least once a year to existing subscribers, written subscriber service information in conspicuous print which shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(1) The procedure for investigation and resolution of subscriber service complaints, including the name and telephone number of the secretary of the Cable Commission with the City;
(2) Programming services, rates, and charges for all services, including public access related charges;
(3) Billing practices as required by subsection (g) hereof;
(4) A/B switch (if any);
(5) Service termination procedures;
(6) Change in service procedures;
(7) Refund and credit policy;
(8) Office hours;
(9) Converter/VCR hook-up information and use instructions;
(10) Pay-per-view; and
(11) Parental control devices.
(g) Subscriber Billing Practices.
(1) The provider shall notify each of its subscribers, through the written service information, of its billing practices. The service information shall describe the provider's billing practices, including, but not limited to, the following: frequency of billing, time periods upon which billing is based, advance billing practices, security deposit requirements, charges for late payments or returned checks, payments required to avoid account delinquency, availability of credits for service outages, procedures to be following to request service deletions, including the notice period a subscriber must give to avoid liability for such services, and procedures to be followed in the event of a billing dispute.
(2) The provider shall notify all affected subscribers not less than thirty days prior to any change in the billing practices and such notice shall include a description of the changed practice.
(3) The subscriber's bill shall contain the following information, presented in plain language and format and in conspicuous print:
A. The name and address of the provider;
B. The period of time over which each chargeable service is billed, including prorated periods as a result of the establishment and termination of service;
C. Each rate or charge levied for programming service, equipment provided and other services or items offered;
D. The amount of the bill for the current billing period, separate from any balance;
E. The provider's telephone number and a statement that the subscriber may call this number with any questions or complaints about the bill; and
F. The date on which payment is due from the subscriber.
(4) The account of a subscriber shall not be considered delinquent until at least thirty days have elapsed from the due date of the bill, which shall be a date certain. The following provisions shall apply to the imposition of late charges on subscribers:
A. The provider shall not impose a late charge on a subscriber unless a subscriber is delinquent, unless the grantee has given the subscriber written notice of the delinquency in a clear and conspicuous manner, and unless the subscriber has been given at least eight business days from the mailing of the notice to pay the balance due.
B. The total late charge for any delinquent bill shall not exceed five percent of the amount of the delinquent bill.
C. No late charge may be assessed on the amount of a bill in dispute if the dispute is resolved in favor of the subscriber.
D. Any charge for returned checks shall be reasonably related to the costs incurred by the grantee in processing such checks.
(5) In the event the provider provides bills, statements, invoices or notices to subscribers which separately itemize the portion or portions of the provider's charges which are attributed to any tax or fee, the itemization format first shall be reviewed by the City. At a minimum, if the provider itemizes any tax or fee on a subscriber's bill, the provider shall itemize all of its taxes or fees in a like manner. In no event shall any such itemization by the provider be inconsistent with applicable law.
(6) Service to subscribers with delinquent accounts may be terminated only after the account is forty-five or more days past due and the subscriber has been given at least two notices of delinquency and notice that service will be disconnected on or after a date certain if the account is not paid by a date certain.
(h) Parental Control Option. The provider shall provide, free of charge, or for a charge approved by the City or the FCC, parental control devices to all subscribers who wish to be able to delete any objectionable programming from the cable service entering the subscriber's home.
(i) Periodic Subscriber Survey.
(1) Commencing in 1994, and every two years thereafter, the provider shall conduct a written random survey of City subscribers in a form and manner approved by the City. Each questionnaire shall be prepared and conducted in good faith so as to provide reasonably reliable measures of subscriber satisfaction with:
A. Signal quality;
B. Response to subscriber complaints;
C. Billing practices;
D. Programming services;
E. Installation practices.
(2) The survey shall be conducted in conformity with such requirements, including supervision and review of returned surveys, as the City may prescribe. The grantee may satisfy the requirements of this subsection (i) through a telephone survey conducted by an independent person approved by the City who is in the business of regularly conducting telephone surveys.
(3) The provider shall provide the City with the results of the survey and shall report in writing what steps the provider is taking to implement the findings of the pool survey, such as correcting problems and expanding services. The City shall have the right to receive a copy of the results of the survey directly from the surveyor.
(j) Charges for Disconnection or Downgrading of Service.
(1) The provider may impose a charge reasonably related to the provider's actual cost incurred for a downgrade of service, except that no such charge may be imposed when:
A. A subscriber requests total disconnection from the system; or
B. A subscriber requests the downgrade within a thirty-day period following any rate increase or substantial change in programming relative to the service in question.
(2) If a subscriber requests disconnection from service prior to the effective date of a rate increase or a substantiated change in programming, the subscriber shall not be charged the increased rate if the provider fails to disconnect service prior to the effective date. Any subscriber who has paid in advance for the next billing period and who requests disconnection from service shall receive a prorated refund of any amounts paid in advance.
(k) Orders and Penalties. The Cable Commission, pursuant to powers provided in Section 818.05, may make orders and assess monetary penalties against the provider for violation of any of the customer service standards set forth herein. The order may require the provider to undertake an activity which the provider is required to undertake pursuant to these customer service standards and may assess a penalty of not to exceed three-hundred dollars ($300.00) per day for each day that the provider fails to comply with the order. An order of the Commission shall be final only after a hearing and referral to Council as set forth in Section 808.05.
(Ord. 157-94. Passed 11-28-94.)