MANAMA: The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) resolved 1,597 consumer disputes out of 1,604 in 2019, an 89 per cent increase from 2018.

Releasing latest statistics, the TRA said its consumer affairs arm determined that 60pc of all disputes received last year were related to mobile services, whereas broadband disputes made up 24pc, fixed line services 11pc, and 5pc to other disputes such as calling cards.

TRA director of consumer affairs and media Shaikh Abdulla bin Humood Al Khalifa said, “Consumer protection and awareness, as well as ensuring compliance among service providers, is a main pillar of the TRA’s mission, and we take every precaution to ensure that consumers are represented fairly.”

“We have been spreading awareness among consumers to enable them to make informed decisions and depend on the TRA to handle consumer disputes in the sector. These efforts have been successful thus far, as the rise in the number of complaints reflects that more and more consumers are becoming aware of our role,” Shaikh Abdulla added.

The TRA also continued its efforts to enhance communication channels between the TRA and all consumer segments and improve the level of services provided to them, as it launched the video call service to subscribers with special needs to facilitate the communication process and educate them of their rights as consumers in the telecom sector.

The consumer call centre (81188) has received more than 31,000 calls since its inception, with an average of 96pc success rate of responses to the calls.

“Mobile services represent the largest segment of disputes on a consistent basis, year-on-year,” said TRA manager of consumer affairs Amna Al Ghatam.

“Statistically, mobile subscriptions outnumber every other service in the sector, thus this is expected, paired with the fact that mobile service disputes comprise of mobile data, calls, coverage, billing and roaming, among other factors.

“We expect dispute cases to continue rising as our awareness efforts continue. We welcome and urge consumers to approach us with any issues they face with their telecom services by escalating their disputes through our channels.”

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