FG Mandates TELCOs To Refund Subscribers For Poor Network Quality

A new directive has been issued to the mobile network operators, as they are required by the Nigerian Communications Commission to reimburse subscribers in regions where network quality is subpar.

The NCC mandates telcos to compensate subscribers with airtime credits when QoS KPIs are breached. Payouts are calculated based on users’ spending patterns and their location in affected LGAs. Additionally, tower companies must reinvest regulatory fines into infrastructure upgrades to boost network resilience.

Affected consumers would receive airtime credits based on their average spending patterns and their location in local government regions where service interruptions occur, according to a statement released on Sunday by the Commission’s Head of Public Affairs, Nnenna Ukoha.

“When operators fail to meet specified standards of service delivery, subscribers shouldn’t be forced to bear the entire burden of service disruptions.”

According to the commission, “the compensation will be provided in the form of airtime credits, calculated based on subscribers’ average spending patterns and their presence within local government areas where service failures occur.”

The NCC clarified that the action is a component of its larger consumer-focused regulatory philosophy, which aims to put customers at the centre of Nigeria’s telecom network.

Today, social contact, economic activity, and access to digital opportunities are all supported by telecommunications services. Poor service quality has an impact on business operations, productivity, and even public trust in our communications infrastructure, according to the statement.

In order to improve network performance, the regulator also ordered tower companies, which own vital infrastructure like masts, to reinvest fines imposed on them into quantifiable infrastructure upgrades.

“To meet the growing demand for telecommunications services, the commission will continue to reinforce the obligation of operators to invest consistently in network resilience, capacity expansion, and infrastructure upgrades,” the statement stated. 

In order to ensure that subscribers receive the high calibre of service they are entitled to, the NCC further stated that it will keep using regulatory instruments to advance justice, accountability, and openness.

The statement concluded, “In addition to this directive, the commission is also requiring Tower Companies to invest in infrastructure with measurable outcomes using sums that it has fined these companies, in addition to other financial fines the commission will deem appropriate.”

Instead of just fining operators, the NCC now requires direct payouts to consumers. The commission argued that subscribers shouldn’t absorb the full impact of disruptions that harm productivity and digital trust.