The following Customer Service Standards applicable to providers of cable television service in the City are hereby adopted:
Any provider of cable television service in the City shall comply with the following customer service standards effective ninety (90) days after written notice of their adoption is given to the provider:
(a) Definitions. For the purposes of this chapter, 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 of Newton Falls 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 or rates.
(4) “Provider” means the business entity providing cable television service under franchise with the City.
(5) “Service interruption” means the loss of picture or sound on one or more cable channels.
(6) “System” means the cable television service in all of its components being delivered pursuant to franchise agreement to persons or entities within the City of Newton Falls.
(7) “Subscriber” means a person or entity with the City of Newton Falls who receives cable television service.
(b) Subscriber Complaint Practices.
(1) Provider shall maintain a local office with toll free telephone access for Newton Falls, which shall be open during normal business hours at least nine (9) hours per weekday and four (4) hours on Saturdays. This office shall accept payments, handle adjustments to subscriber bills, respond to installation, repair, and/or maintenance requests and other service calls. Provider shall have a publicly-listed telephone number and be so operated as to receive Subscriber Complaints and requests on a twenty-four (24) hour-a-day, seven (7) days-a-week basis. At least ninety percent (90%) of the time, Provider shall connect a telephone caller to a live service representative staff member within thirty (30) 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; and 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 Years Day and July 4, which shall be 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Provider shall maintain written or computer- generated records demonstrating, to the satisfaction of the City, its ability to meet the standards 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 of Newton Falls subscribers shall be provided for the Cable Commission’s review at the Commission’s periodic meetings.
(2) Within 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) 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 proceeded by 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 (24) hours of the request.
(6) Work on subscriber requests for maintenance or repairs received on Saturdays or Sundays shall be commenced within twenty-four (24) hours of the request.
(7) Service calls for maintenance or repair shall be performed within an “Appointment Window” at no charge or 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 convenient for the customer.
(8) If Provider fails to correct a service problem (other than a service interruption which is governed by subsection (9) and (10) below) within twenty-four (24) hours after Provider receives notification of a service problem, Provider shall credit one thirtieth (1/30) of monthly charge for the affected tier or premium channel to the Subscriber for each twenty-four (24) hours or fraction thereof after the first twenty-four (24) hours during which a Subscriber is with reduced service. The credit shall be made automatically by Provider without requiring subscriber request. Provider shall, as part of the complaint information to be provided pursuant to subsections (1) and (3) above, inform the Commission at its periodic meetings regarding the disposition of all credits provided by Grantee to subscribers pursuant to this subsection (8).
(9) Provider shall respond within two (2) hours to all service interruption reports affecting at least one (1) channel for five percent (5%) or more of the System’s Subscribers receiving that channel.
(10) In the event any service interruption continues for more than twelve (12) hours after Provider is first notified of the service interruption, Provider shall credit one sixtieth (1/60) of the monthly charge to all subscribers affected by the service interruption for each twelve (12) hours or fraction thereof after the first twelve (12) hours during which the Subscriber is with reduced service. The credit shall be made automatically by Provider without requiring subscriber request.
(c) Installation.
(1) Subscribers who request installation or 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 recision between the time cable service is requested and the time service is actually installed. All new installations, reconnects, service upgrades or downgrades shall be performed within seven (7) 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 Provider’s materials and time at the rate per foot for each foot beyond 125 feet. All other installations shall be performed at the advertised installation rate. For the purposes of this paragraph, the term “drop” shall mean the shortest lineal distance from the distribution line to the nearest point of the home.
(d) Subscriber Information. 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 service, rates, and charges for all Services, including public access related charges;
(3) Billing practices as required by subsection (e) 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 hookup information and use instructions;
(10) Pay-per-view; and
(11) Parental control devices.
(e) Subscriber Billing Practices.
(1) Provider shall notify each of its Subscribers, through the written service information, of its billing practices. The service information shall describe 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, charge for late payments or returned checks, payments required necessary to avoid account delinquency, availability of credits for service outages, procedures to be followed 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) Provider shall notify all affected Subscribers not less than thirty (30) days prior to any charge in the billing practices and such notice shall include a description of the changed practice.
(3) The Subscriber bill shall contain the following information presented in plain language and format and in conspicuous print:
A. Name and address of 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 services, equipment provided, and other services or items offered;
D. The amount of the bill for the current billing period, separate from any balance;
E. 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 (30) 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. Provider shall not impose a late charge on a Subscriber unless a Subscriber is delinquent, Grantee has given the Subscriber written notice of the delinquency in a clear and conspicuous manner, and the Subscriber has been given at least eight (8) business days from the mailing of the notice to pay the balance due.
(Ord. 95-05. Passed 2-20-95.)
B. The total late charge for any delinquent bill shall not exceed five percent (5%) of the amount of the delinquent bill or three dollars ($3.00), whichever is larger. (Ord. 95-15. Passed 6-5-95.)
C. No late charge may be assessed on the amount of a bill in dispute if found in favor of the Subscriber.
D. Any charge for returned checks shall be reasonably related to the cost incurred by Grantee in processing such checks.
(5) In the event Provider provides bills, statements, invoices, or notices to Subscribers which separately itemize the portion or portions of 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 Provider itemized any tax or fee on subscriber’s bill, Provider shall itemize all of its taxes or fees in a like manner. In no event shall any such itemization by Provider be inconsistent with applicable law.
(6) Service to Subscribers with delinquent accounts may be terminated only after the account is 45 or more days past due and the subscriber has been given at least 2 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.
(f) Parental Control Option. 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.
(g) Periodic Subscriber Survey.
(1) Commencing in 1995, and every two (2) years thereafter, 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; and
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. Grantee may satisfy the requirements of this subsection through a telephone survey conducted by an independent person approved by the City who is in the business of regularly conducting telephone surveys.
(3) Provider shall provide the City with the results of the survey and shall report in writing the steps Provider is taking to implement the findings of the poll 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.
(h) Charges for Disconnection or Downgrading of Service.
(1) Provider may impose a charge reasonably related to the Provider’s actual cost incurred for a downgrade of service, except that no such charges may be imposed when:
A. A Subscriber requests total disconnection from the System; or
B. A Subscriber requests the downgrade within a thirty (30) 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 an increase in rates or substantiated change in programming, the Subscriber shall not be charged the increased rate if 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.
(i) Orders and Penalties. The Cable Commission pursuant to powers hereinafter provided 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 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 hereinafter.
(Ord. 95-05. Passed 2-20-95.)